Five Utes Among D1Baseball.com’s Top Big 12 Prospects

Core Jackson led the Utes with a .363 batting average last season and projects to be one of the top defensive shortstops in the Big 12 for 2025.

Photo by: Sophia Kuder/Utah Athletics

Five Utes Among D1Baseball.com’s Top Big 12 Prospects

1/23/2025 12:43 PM | Baseball

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Trio from Utah highlighted for 2025 MLB Draft

SALT LAKE CITY – Five members of the Utah Baseball team were highlighted this week among the top prospects in the Big 12 Conference. The group was named among Mike Rooney's larger season preview for the Big 12.

For the upcoming 2025 MLB Draft, Rooney listed right-handed pitcher Merit Jones (No. 16), shortstop Core Jackson (No. 18) and outfielder Kaden Carpenter (No. 44) among the league's top prospects. Sophomore right-hander Colter McAnelly was slotted in the top-25 for the 2026 draft, while fellow right-hander and freshman Dillon Fine was tabbed No. 15 on the list of impact freshmen in the Big 12.

Selected last Summer as a draft-eligible sophomore, Jones elected to return to school after being picked by the Minnesota Twins in the 20^th round (608^th overall). He made 14 appearances last season with 13 starts, finishing 3-5 and tallying 68.1 innings on the bump with 68 strikeouts. Jones also made a cameo bullpen appearance late in the year, closing out a win over Oregon in the Pac-12 Tournament after going six-up, six-down against the Ducks. The CSC Academic All-District selection earned a spot in the weekend rotation as a freshman and earned his first collegiate win in a combined shutout at Washington on March 12, 2023.

Named to the Pac-12 All-Conference Team in 2024, Jackson started 52 games at shortstop a year ago, slashing .363 / .463 / .516 with 15 doubles, three triples, four home runs, 41 RBI, 30 walks and 51 runs scored. His .363 batting average was a team-best while he stole 17 bases, ranking second both on the team and in the Pac-12. Jackson also was among the league leaders in batting average (4th), OBP (3rd) and hits (4th; 78). One of the league's top defensive shortstops, he led the Pac-12 in assists (163) and had a hand in 38 double plays, the fifth-most across the conference. During league play, he ranked second with a .398 batting average.

A Utah native out of American Fork, Carpenter played in 51 games as a sophomore with 44 starts (35 at DH, nine in left field). He hit .278 on the year with nine doubles, three triples, six home runs, 26 RBI and 16 walks. His three triples tied for the team lead while Carpenter ranked third with a .481 slugging percentage. All told, he tallied 11 multi-hit games and six with multiple RBI.

McAnelly was named Utah Athletics' Rookie of the Year at the 2024 Crimson Carpet Awards after going 5-4 in 15 appearances (10 starts), totaling a 4.76 ERA in 51 innings. He ranked fourth on the team with 45 strikeouts and held opponents to a .239 batting average. Later in the season he moved into the Sunday role in the starting rotation, with six of his starts coming in that spot.
His first Pac-12 win came against Washington, striking out five as the Utes earned a rubber game triumph at Smith's Ballpark. Before coming to the U, McAnelly was ranked as Perfect Game's No. 1 recruit in Wyoming for the 2023 class.

A newcomer to the club this season, Fine was a decorated two-way player at Homedale HS in Idaho, helping the Trojans win three district championships and one state runner-up finish. The 2024 Idaho 3A Player of the Year went 12-0 with a blistering 0.37 ERA and 126 strikeouts—his third straight season with 100-plus punchouts on the bump. He was also a four-year football letter winner, captaining his team as a quarterback and safety.

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