3. NORTH CAROLINA

2008 RECORD. Overall: 54-14 (Advanced to College World Series). Conference: 22-7 / 2^nd in ACC (Coastal).

Coach: Mike Fox (452-190, 10^th year).

First Game, 2009: Feb. 20 vs. Virginia Military Institute.

 

OVERVIEW: With three straight top-3 finishes at the College World Series, the Tar Heels are hoping this will be the year they get over the hump. It all starts on the mound for UNC, which may have the best 1-2 punch in college baseball in junior RHP Alex White, the No. 3-ranked prospect for this year’s draft, and sophomore RHP Matt Harvey, the projected top pick in 2010. The Tar Heels return every meaningful arm from 2008, with the exception of closer Rob Wooten (6-2, 1.87, 5 SV). Offensively, they’ll have to step up after losing five of their top seven hitters. But 1B-OF Dustin Ackley is universally acknowledged as the premier hitter in the college ranks and will be a major force in the middle of the order. 3B Kyle Seager, another significant bat, will provide protection for Ackley in the clean-up spot.

 

PROJECTED 2009 STARTING LINEUP

C: Mark Fleury, Jr. (.275-3-25).

1B: Dustin Ackley (3), Jr. (*.417-7-51, *19 SB).

2B: Garrett Gore, Sr. (.275-2-38).

3B: Kyle Seager (4), Jr. (.347-9-*75, *30 2B).

SS: Ryan Graepel, Jr. (.253-0-7).

LF: Ben Bunting, So. (.227-1-11).

CF: Mike Cavasinni (1), Sr. (DNP in 2008; .231-0-3 in 2007).

RF: Levi Michael, Fr. (HS—Winston-Salem, N.C.).

DH: Greg Holt, So. (.357-0-4).

1/Starter: Alex White, Jr. (*13-3, 2.83, *102 IP/*113 SO).

2/Starter: Adam Warren, Sr. (9-2, 4.23, 83 IP/73 SO).

3/Starter: Matt Harvey, So. (7-2, 2.79, 67 IP/80 SO).

Closer: Colin Bates, So. (6-1, 2.78, 0 SV, 55 IP/57 SO).

 

BEST TOOLS

Best Athlete: Dustin Ackley.

Best Overall Hitter: Dustin Ackley.

Best Power Hitter: Greg Holt.

Best Strike-Zone Discipline: Dustin Ackley.

Fastest Base Runner (60 time): Dustin Ackley (6.6 seconds).

Best Base Runner: Kyle Seager.

Best Defender: Ryan Graepel.

Best Infield Arm: Garrett Gore.

Best Outfield Arm: Greg Holt.

Best Fastball (velocity): Matt Harvey (98 mph).

Best Breaking Ball: Matt Harvey.

Best Changeup: Logan Munson.

Best Command: Brian Moran.

 

TOP FRESHMAN PROSPECT: Levi Michael, ss-of. UNC’s incoming freshman class was hit unusually hard by the draft, particularly at the Aug. 15 signing deadline when three prime recruits were lost. The Tar Heels got an unexpected bonus, however, when Michael, one of North Carolina ’s top high-school prospects for the 2009 draft, enrolled at UNC at the semester break. He’s scheduled to start initially in the outfield, but should eventually settle in the middle infield. He’s an athletic infielder who shows pop from both sides of the plate, and has 6.75-second speed in the 60.

TOP SOPHOMORE PROSPECT: Matt Harvey, rhp. A projected early first-round pick in 2007 out of a Connecticut high school, Harvey passed on a potential big pay day to attend UNC. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Harvey profiles extremely well on the mound with a fastball in the 93-98 mph range, along with a power breaking ball and plus changeup. He has everything scouts look for in a No. 1 starter in the big leagues, and has made big strides in refining his command after walking 47 in 68 innings as a freshman.

TOP JUNIOR PROSPECT(S): Alex White, rhp / Dustin Ackley, 1b-of. Both players are projected top-10 picks in this year’s draft. White, who earned ACC pitcher-of-the-year honors in 2008, is a very good athlete for a pitcher, and goes after hitters with a fastball that has touched 96 mph and a hard, tight slider. With a .409 career batting average, Ackley is the consensus top hitter in college baseball. His ability to square up balls and drive them hard consistently is second to none. He’s far too good an athlete to have spent most of his college career at first base, and plans to move him to the outfield to take advantage of his speed have been delayed by a sore elbow that finally led him to undergo Tommy John surgery last summer.

TOP SENIOR PROSPECT: Adam Warren, rhp. White and Harvey get most of the attention from scouts, but Warren has quietly posted a 22-2 record in three years at Carolina . He a perfect complement to the two hard throwers in the Tar Heels rotation, but Warren has been clocked up to 92 mph himself—though his pitchability is his real strength. A 36^th-round pick of the Indians in the 2008 draft, Warren elected to return for his senior year—and a crack at a fourth trip to the College World Series.

--JEFF SIMPSON