UC Irvine’s Tony Martinez leads Latinos in College Baseball
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Ángel Cantú, Contributor
- February 24, 2025
Top 15 Latinos in College Baseball
Two years ago, it would have likely been impossible to predict that Tony Martinez would be one of the top players in college baseball. The UC Irvine slugger was a lightly recruited player coming out of De La Salle High in Concord, Calif., even though he was Maxpreps 2022 Norcal Player of the Year.
Martinez impressed right away, though, earning Freshman All-American honors from three outlets. He was also the 2023 Big West Conference Field Player of the Year.
The 6-foot-3, 230-pound first baseman from Fairfield, Calif., proved that his freshman season was no fluke. He hit .316 with nine home runs and 18 doubles as a sophomore with a school record 74 RBIs to earn All Big West honors.
Tony Martinez highlights Our Esquina’s list of Top 15 Latinos in College Baseball in 2025. With El Salvadoran, Filipino and Colombian roots, Martinez is a rarity in college baseball.
Tony Martinez rises up draft boards
Martinez represented the U.S. last summer with the U.S. Collegiate National Team. He’s one of the top sluggers in college baseball with an opportunity to rise up MLB draft boards by this summer.
Here are the Top 15 Latinos in College Baseball:
No. 1 UC Irvine 1B Tony Martinez
Tony Martinez, who has yet to play this season because of a hamstring injury, is No. 57 on Baseball America’s list of Top 100 college baseball prospects. He’s also a Third Team Baseball America All-American. Martinez was named to the Golden Spikes watch list.
No. 2 Duke OF AJ Gracia.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound slugger was a First Team Freshman All-American selection last year by D1 Baseball, Perfect Game and NCBWA.
Gracia was named to the Golden Spikes Preseason Watch List. He set Duke freshman records for home runs (14) and RBIs (58) in 2024. He posted a .440 on-base percentage and .559 slugging percentage last year.
No. 3 Texas INF Jalin Flores.
The 6-foot-2 slugger was tied for the team lead in home runs (18) and total bases. Texas can count on Flores on both sides of the diamond. He had a .340 batting average and a .953 fielding percentage.
Flores was named to the preseason Golden Spikes watch list. The San Antonio native was one of only three Longhorns to start all 60 games a year ago. Flores earned All-Big 12 First Team honors.
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Two-way star
No. 4 Virginia LHP/1B Chris Arroyo.
Arroyo originally signed with Florida. He spent his freshman season with the Gators before garnering NJCAA Division II First Team All-American honors at Pasco-Hernando State last year.
The two-way player from Puerto Rico was raised in Coral Springs, Fla. He’s No. 55 on Baseball America’s list of top 100 college baseball prospects for the 2025 draft.
The 6-foot-2 lefty batted .403 with 19 home runs and 52 RBIs last season. Arroyo also had a 5-4 record and 3.53 ERA on the mound. He struck out 63 batters in 62 ⅔ innings.
Arroyo is off to a hot start with the Cavaliers. He launched his first home run in their first game against Michigan in front of his Puerto Rican family in the Puerto Rico Challenge. He also pitched 1 ⅓ innings against Villanova, allowing one hit and striking out two.
No. 6 LSU OF Derek Curiel.
The 6-foot-2, 182-pound slugger is ranked No. 1 on Perfect Game’s list of Top 75 Freshmen in College Baseball. He also ranked No. 9 on Baseball America’s Top 25 Freshmen in college baseball list. D1Baseball named Curiel the SEC’s preseason Freshman of the Year.
The West Covina, Calif., native registered a hit in each of his first six collegiate games. He’s had four multi-hit games thus far. Curiel has a .440 average and a 1.148 OPS over LSU’s first seven games. He hit his first collegiate home run against Purdue Fort Wayne.
No. 6 Texas C Rylan Galvan
The junior catcher was a Second Team Preseason All-SEC selection. The Sinton, Texas, native helped Texas reach the College World Series last year. He had a .287 battong average with 14 doubles and eight home runs.
The 215-pound catcher started his 2025 campaign with a three-game hitting streak.
No. 7 Texas Tech OF Damian Bravo.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pounder was a preseason All-Big 12 selection. Bravo led the Big 12 with a .378 batting average in 2024. He also led the Red Raiders in doubles (21) and runs (52).
The Haltom City, Texas, native is continuing where he left off. He currently has a .304 batting average and five RBIs. He’s also stolen two bases.
‘Monster’ Milam does it all
No. 8 LSU SS Steven Milam
Steven Milam was one of the top freshmen in America last year. Don’t be surprised if he’s No. 1 on this list next year.
The Las Cruces, N.M., native hit .326 (72-for-221) with 12 doubles, three triples and eight home runs last season to garner Freshman All-America honors.
The 5-foot-8, 177-pounder had 40 RBIs with 51 runs and seven stolen bases while starting 60 games and playing in 63 as a freshman. Milam made 59 starts at second base and one start at shortstop.
He is ranked No. 6 on the 2025 D1Baseball.com’s list of Top 50 Shortstops in the Nation. Milam is also No. 32 in the 2025 Perfect Game list of Top 100 Sophomores.
No. 9 TCU SS Anthony Silva
Silva was a First Team preseason All-Big 12 selection. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound junior shortstop is hoping for a bounce back year.
Silva took home numerous honors as a freshman, when he was a Baseball America and NCBWA Freshman All-American.
Silva led the Horned Frogs with 13 stolen bases. He batted .268 with four triples.
No. 10 Northeastern OF Cam Maldonado
The Wolcott, Conn., native broke the Northeastern home run rookie record with 13 home runs. He was a Freshman All-American and the ECAC Rookie of the Year.
Maldonado is off to a fast start to his junior year. He already has one home run and seven RBIs this year.
Strong catchers
No. 11 NC State C Alex Sosa.
The Viera, Fla., native was rated No. 35 on Perfect Game’s list of the top 100 sophomores in college baseball.
Sosa already has two home runs with five RBIs this season.
No. 12 Louisiana C Jose Torres
Torres made the list after a great sophomore season. The 5-foot-8 catcher transferred from San Jacinto Community College to Louisanna and quickly made his presence known last year.
The Panamanian slugger batted .310 with three homes and 35 RBIs. He is considered one of the best catchers in college baseball.
No. 13 TCU LHP/1B Noah Franco
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound Franco was named the Big 12 Preseason Freshman of the Year by the conference’s coaches.
Franco arrived at TCU after a decorated career at IMG Academy, where he capped his career as a Baseball America, Under Armour, MLB and Perfect Game All-American.
Franco played on the 18U USA Baseball National Team in 2022 and 2023.
No. 14 San Diego State RHP Omar Serrano
Serrano, a 6-foot-4, 195-pounder, was a 2025 All Mountain West Conference’s Preseason First-Team selection. Serrano was 5-5 with a conference-leading 3.06 ERA while earning All Mountain West Conference honors as a junior in 2024.
No. 15 Grand Canyon University SS Emilio Barreras
You won’t find many shortstops who are better defensively than Emilio Barreras, a two-time All-WAC Defensive Team selection. The 6-foot, 190-pound junior from Casa Grande, Arizona, is known for his glove.
He hit No. 9 in all 56 of his starts last season, but he showcased his hitting skills in the Tucson Regional last year. He hit .400 (6-for-15) to earn a spot on the All-Regional Team. He also hit .357 in WAC play last season for the eighth best batting average in the conference.
Featured art courtesy of @UCIbsb/X.
Ángel Cantú
Contributor
Our Esquina contributor Ángel Cantú is a co-host for the Full Seam Ahead podcast. He joined Teach for America after graduating from Texas A&M University. He is currently a fourth grade teacher at KIPP Public Schools in Houston.
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