Kevin Abel To Return To Oregon State

Published Jun 16, 2020

Brenden Slaughter • BeaversEdge

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After going unselected in the five-round 2020 MLB Draft, Oregon State right-handed pitcher Kevin Abel has elected to return to Corvallis for another season of action.

"See you soon Beaver Nation," Abel said via Twitter.

The news comes as a huge coup for head coach Mitch Canham who will have one of the better pitchers the program has ever had back in the fold and healthy for the 2021 campaign.

The 6-foot-2, 195-pounder has already etched his name in Oregon State history as his performance in the 2018 College World Series will go down as one of the most impressive and impactful in college baseball history.

In the summer following Abel's impressive outing against Arkansas, he was widely regarded as one of the best pitching prospects in the country. He dominated against the Razorbacks, tossing a 10-strikeout, two-hit shutout to lead the Beavers to their third title in program history.

Abel wrapped his historic freshman season with an 8-1 W-L record and a 2.88 ERA, earning National Freshman of the Year Honors by D1Baseball.com and Baseball America.

However, early in the 2019 season, Abel began to have back and arm issues that led to him making just three starts before ultimately being shut down and going forward with Tommy John Surgery. He was ultimately left off the 2020 roster (after he wasn't quite ready with rehab) and hasn't pitched in a game since the beginning of 2019.

The redshirt-sophomore will enter the 2021 season with three years of eligibility, but it's not likely he'll need it as he'll once again be one of the top prospects in the draft as long as he's able to return to the diamond with no issues.

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