In a historic achievement for UC Santa Barbara, Jackson Flora has been named the District 9 Player of the Year by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. This marks the first time a player from UCSB has received this prestigious honor in the award’s 29-year history.
Flora, a standout pitcher for the Gauchos, set a new program record with 133 strikeouts this season, ranking him third among all Division-I pitchers. His exceptional performance also earned him the nation’s best ERA at 1.06, the lowest for any UCSB pitcher since the program joined Division I in 1970. Remarkably, Flora maintained an ERA below 2.00 throughout the season, with a personal best of 0.63 during a streak of 38 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings across March and April.
His contributions were instrumental in leading the Gauchos to a 40-20 season record, securing a share of The Big West Regular Season Championship and an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, where they advanced to the Austin Regional Final. Flora’s individual accolades include being named The Big West Pitcher of the Year, an All-Big West First Teamer, and a member of both the Big West Championship All-Tournament Team and the Austin Regional All-Tournament Team.
Flora’s achievements have not gone unnoticed by Major League Baseball scouts, as he is unanimously projected to be the first pitcher selected in the upcoming MLB Draft. This would mark the second consecutive year that UC Santa Barbara has produced the first pitcher off the board.
The NCBWA’s District 9 encompasses California, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Arizona, and Alaska, making Flora’s recognition a significant accomplishment not just for UCSB, but for the entire region.
Original reporting: KEYT (Ventura/Santa Barbara) — read the source article.
