Nick Gonzales, 2B, New Mexico State (No. 5)
Elevation or not, Gonzales has been punishing baseballs early this spring. Through eight games, the infielder is hitting .567/.698/.1.433 and leading the nation with seven home runs. He also has 10 walks, three doubles and a triple. He hit for the cycle—with two home runs—in Sunday’s game against Iona, was just named the Western Athletic Conference Hitter of the Week for the second time in the first two weeks of the season and has extended his on-base streak to 74 games, which dates back to his freshman season. While critics will continue to point to the fact that he plays in one of the more hitter-friendly environments in the country, it would be difficult to hit like Gonzales is doing off a tee, let alone against live pitching. He leads the country in total bases (43) and his gap over the No. 2 hitter in that category (Tennessee Tech’s Jason Hinchman, with 33) is as big as the gap between No. 2 and No. 23. Scouts voted Gonzales as the best pure hitter in the country, and he’s more than living up to the billing thus far. He'll get his first real challenge of the season Tuesday night in a matchup against Arizona State, which will put two of the very best hitters in the country on the same field thanks to 1B Spencer Torkelson, who is hitting .333/.568/.917 with four home runs and 13 walks.
^ Per BA