AUBURN, Ala. – Coming off arguably its best season in more than 20 years, Auburn baseball and head coach Butch Thompson have reeled in another recruiting class that ranks among the best in the country.
The class of newcomers who arrived on The Plains this summer and fall have been ranked No. 14 in the country by Collegiate Baseball, No. 17 by Baseball America and No. 22 by Perfect Game.
"Auburn attracts, the Southeastern Conference attracts, and Karl Nonemaker, as the architect of this class, worked extremely hard to meet our needs," Thompson said. "We take pride in going after good ballplayers and good students who come from great families and programs. We go after who we are, and again, Karl did a great job of going out and finding the right players."
The class includes 18 players, including 13 from high school and five junior college transfers, and consists of an outfielder, two catchers, seven infielders and eight pitchers, including six left handers. Nine players hail from Alabama, four from Georgia, three from Texas and one each from Hawaii and Washington.
Headlining the class are a quartet of high school players who were selected in the 2018 MLB First Year Player Draft but elected to come to school. Outfielder Kason Howell was selected in the 20th round by Boston, infielders Devin Warner and Ryan Bliss were taken in the 30th round by Arizona and Boston, respectively, and pitcher Garrett Wade was drafted in the 38th round by Tampa Bay.
Wade, who was named the 2018 Alabama Gatorade Player of the Year, a 2018 Rawlings-Perfect Game All-American and a 2017 Under Armour All-American, is the highest rated player in the class according to Perfect Game. He checked in as the No. 71 player overall and the No. 2 player in Alabama, including the top-rated pitcher in the state. Bliss, who was also tabbed an All-American by Rawlings-Perfect Game, joins Wade in Perfect Game's top-100 as he was ranked No. 96 overall in the class and the No. 2 shortstop in Georgia.
Including Wade and Bliss, six newcomers earned All-American honors a season ago. Will Morrison was named a two-time Collegiate Baseball All-American and the Alabama Sports Writers 6A Pitcher of the Year, Warner picked up Rawlings-Perfect Game All-American honors, Brody Moore was named a Collegiate Baseball All-American and Rankin Woley earned 2018 NJCAA First Team All-American honors and was tabbed the Alabama Community College Conference Player of the Year at Chattahoochee Valley.
Overall, 13 players in this year's class were rated in the top 500 by Perfect Game in their respective senior years, including four in the top 150.
The Tigers complete 2018 class can be found below.
| No. | Name | B/T | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. | Hometown | Previous School |
| 2 | Everett Lau | L/R | IF | 5-10 | 185 | Jr. | Honolulu, Hawaii | College of San Mateo |
| 3 | Devin Warner | S/R | IF | 6-3 | 205 | Fr. | Cartersville, Ga. | Cartersville HS |
| 4 | Rankin Woley | R/R | IF | 6-0 | 210 | Jr. | Atlanta, Ga. | Chattahoochee Valley CC |
| 5 | Jarrett Eaton | L/R | IF/OF | 5-9 | 162 | Fr. | Mobile, Ala. | St. Paul's Episcopal |
| 6 | Matt Scheffler | R/R | C | 6-2 | 190 | Jr. | Kirkland, Wash. | Pierce CC |
| 7 | Ed Johnson | R/R | IF | 6-1 | 175 | Fr. | Trussville, Ala. | Hewitt-Trussville HS |
| 8 | Bailey Horn | L/L | LHP | 6-2 | 212 | Jr. | Waco, Texas | McLennan CC |
| 9 | Ryan Bliss | R/R | IF | 5-9 | 165 | Fr. | LaGrange, Ga. | Troup County HS |
| 16 | Kason Howell | R/R | OF | 6-0 | 185 | Fr. | Argyle, Texas | Liberty Christian School |
| 18 | Brooks Fuller | L/L | LHP | 6-2 | 215 | Fr. | Auburn, Ala. | Auburn HS |
| 19 | Brody Moore | R/R | IF | 6-0 | 185 | Fr. | Oneonta, Ala. | Oneonta HS |
| 25 | Dawson Sweatt | R/L | LHP | 6-2 | 190 | Fr. | Fayetteville, Ga. | Starr's Mill HS |
| 26 | Troy Bearden | R/R | C/IF | 6-2 | 220 | Fr. | Trussville, Ala. | Next Level Baseball Academy |
| 29 | Carson Skipper | L/L | LHP | 6-3 | 195 | Fr. | Birmingham, Ala. | Hewitt-Trussville HS |
| 33 | Will Morrison | R/R | RHP | 6-2 | 180 | Fr. | Cullman, Ala. | Cullman HS |
| 36 | Kyle Gray | L/L | LHP | 5-10 | 205 | Jr. | Austin, Texas | Blinn CC |
| 40 | Garrett Wade | L/L | LHP | 6-2 | 205 | Fr. | Hartselle, Ala. | Hartselle HS |
| 43 | Richard Fitts | R/R | RHP | 6-3 | 185 | Fr. | Helena, Ala. | Helena HS |
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