HBCU baseball well represented on USA Collegiate National Team

USA Baseball finalized the rosters for the Collegiate National Team, which features the International Friendship Series and Summer League Tour rosters. Both rosters feature HBCU baseball players.

“After two very competitive Stars versus Stripes games, we are excited to announce our two Collegiate National Team rosters for 2024,” said Eric Campbell, USA Baseball’s Professional and Collegiate National Team General Manager. “We are confident that the fifty-seven players we have assembled will represent the United States well and look forward to beginning our schedule tomorrow in both Cary and Fayetteville.”

Overall, the 57-man roster features seven USA Baseball alumni. The International Friendship Series roster comprises four players who have previously donned the stars and stripes: Ben Abeldt, RJ Austin Jr., Drew Burress, and Nolan Schubart. On the Summer League Tour roster, Gavin Grahovac, Matthew Matthijs, and Ethan McElvain return to play for Team USA after previous stints in the red, white, and blue. Additionally, Alton Davis II, Matt Scott, and Pablo Torres participated in last summer’s Collegiate National Team Training Camp.

Vanderbilt leads all schools with four players on the two rosters, including three athletes on the Summer League Tour squad. Georgia, Louisville, North Carolina, North Carolina State, and Tennessee all feature three players among the two rosters, while Alabama State, Duke, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Stanford, and Virginia all boast two players each.

Both rosters begin action on Saturday, June 29. The 21st USA vs. Chinese Taipei International Friendship Series kicks off at Segra Stadium in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on Saturday before game two at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina on June 30. Game three of the series will also be at the National Training Complex on July 1 before the two sides face off at First National Bank Field (Greensboro, North Carolina) on July 2. The series finale will be on July 3 at Atrium Health Ballpark in Kannapolis, North Carolina.

The Summer League Tour gets underway at the National Training Complex on June 29 as the U.S. will take on the Coastal Plain League Select Team. The two teams will meet again on June 30 in Cary before Team USA hits the road to take on the Appalachian League East Select Team on July 1 at Calfee Park in Pulaski, Virginia. The Stars and Stripes complete their four-game Summer League Tour on July 2 against the Appalachian League West Select Team at TVA Credit Union Ballpark in Johnson City, Tennessee.

Following the conclusion of both team’s slates, the International Friendship Series roster and the Summer League Tour roster will meet for a Fourth of July contest at Segra Stadium in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

There are five HBCU baseball players on the 2024 Collegiate National Team. Grambling State infielder Kyle Walker is the only HBCU player on the International Series Roster, while there are four HBCU players on the 2024 Summer League Tour Roster.