University of Georgia first baseman/outfielder Charlie Condon has made the USA Collegiate National Team following an impressive training camp, USA Baseball announced Thursday.
A 6-6, 215-pound rising sophomore from Marietta, Ga., Condon was among the 56 premier non-draft eligible players competing at the CNT training camp this past week in Cary, N.C. Condon batted a team-best .533 (8-for-15) in four intrasquad games to earn one of the 31 spots on the final roster. Up next, the CNT will play friendship series against Chinese Taipei and Japan from June 30-July 12 at various venues across the Carolinas.
Condon is the latest Bulldog to wear the USA Baseball jersey as a member of the summer national team, joining pitcher Cris Carpenter (1987), pitcher Dave Fleming (1989), pitcher Brian Powell (1994), catcher Clint Sammons (2002), shortstop Kyle Farmer (2012), pitcher Robert Tyler (2015) and pitcher Cole Wilcox (2019).
“After the most talented and competitive Training Camp, the staff completed a grueling selection process to get to the final roster today,” said USA CNT manager Larry Lee. “Our roster is full of extremely talented and capable baseball players, and we are focused on representing the United States well in international competition. We are looking forward to getting our series against Chinese Taipei started tomorrow night here in Cary.”
Condon was named the 2023 National Freshman Hitter of the Year by multiple outlets as well as an All-American after posting one of the greatest seasons in school history. He led the Southeastern Conference with an .800 slugging percentage and finished second in batting to Golden Spikes Award winner Dylan Crews of LSU who hit .426. Condon captured the Triple Crown (Batting Average-Home Runs-RBI) for the Bulldogs at .386-25-67. He was a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award and the Dick Howser Trophy. Condon started all 56 games with 29 starts at first base, 21 in right field and six in left field. He posted a .992 fielding percentage.
Condon spent the first part of the summer playing for the Falmouth (Mass.) Commodores in the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL). When he left for the CNT training camp, he was leading the CCBL with 10 RBI in 11 games while batting .261 in the summer’s premier wood-bat league.
The 20th USA vs. Chinese Taipei International Friendship Series is set for June 30-July 4, with games at the National Training Complex, the Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, Atrium Health Ballpark in Kannapolis, and Segra Stadium in Fayetteville. The National Training Complex will host the opening three games of the 44th USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Championship Series July 7-9, while games four and five of the series will be played at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Ballpark in Charleston, South Carolina, on July 11 and 12.
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