SAN DIEGO – San Diego State's TJ Fondtain (Clovis, Calif./Buchanan HS) added another accolade to his ever-expanding postseason award inventory on Friday after earning second-team ABCA/Rawlings All-America honors as a utility player. The announcement was made by the American Baseball Coaches Association prior to the start of the 2023 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.
First recognized in 1949, the ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division I All-America teams are selected by the ABCA All-America & Coach of the Year committee, which is chaired by Tommy Raffo of Arkansas State. The committee also includes Dean Ehehalt (Monmouth), Brian Green (formerly at Washington State), Dan Heefner (Dallas Baptist), Jeff Mercer (Indiana), Brian O'Connor (Virginia), Jim Penders (Connecticut), and Butch Thompson (Auburn).
Fondtain, who received ABCA/Rawlings All-West Region first-team recognition earlier in the week on June 13, was automatically nominated for the organization's All-America honors.
With his award, the Clovis, California, product becomes the first Aztec baseball player to merit All-America distinction from multiple outlets since infielder/pitcher Casey Schmitt (Collegiate Baseball – 1st team; Baseball America – 1st team) received Freshman All-America recognition in 2018. On June 1, Fondtain also garnered second-team All-America accolades from Collegiate Baseball newspaper.
The 2023 Mountain West Pitcher of the Year, Fondtain was the genuine ace of the SDSU staff this spring, posting a 7-3 record during the regular season while leading the league in ERA (2.80), opposing batting average (.193), hits allowed per nine innings (6.23) and innings pitched (86.2). He also tied for the top spot in victories and ranked second in strikeouts (93).
On the national level, the Aztec junior ranked 19th in hits allowed per nine innings (6.23) and 33rd in ERA (2.80) for the regular season while tying for 47th in strikeouts (93).
In a 4-0 Aztec victory over Nevada on April 21, Fondtain tossed the eighth no-hitter in program history, notching a career-high 14 strikeouts while issuing just one walk to the leadoff batter in the ninth after pitching eight perfect innings.
With his performance, Fondtain earned multiple national honors, including Pitcher of the Week distinction from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and D1Baseball.com, along with his selection as Peak Performer of the Week from the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award.
Not to be outdone, Fondtain displayed his versatility at the plate during the regular season, compiling a .279 batting average with a team-high nine home runs. The Aztec junior also topped the squad with a .902 OPS and ranked second with 35 RBIs in that span, logging 26 starts at designated hitter and 16 in left field.
For his efforts, Fondtain was named one of five finalists for the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award by the College Baseball Foundation. The award will be presented later this summer.
After an 0-5 start to the 2023 campaign, San Diego State regrouped to claim a share of the Mountain West regular-season title with an 18-11 mark in conference play. The Aztecs' MW regular-season championship was the program's third overall and first since 2004.
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Founded in 1945, the American Baseball Coaches Association is the primary professional organization for baseball coaches at the amateur level. Its over 15,000 members represent all 50 states and 40 countries. Since its initial meeting of 27 college baseball coaches in June 1945, Association membership has broadened to include nine divisions: NCAA Division I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA, Pacific Association Division, High School, Youth and Travel.
The ABCA All-America teams now include nine divisions: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division, and high school.
In all divisions, the ABCA/Rawlings National Pitchers and Position Players of the Year will be announced on Monday, June 26.
TJ Fondtain Named ABCA/Rawlings All-American
