Rhett Lowder #25

Selected in the first round (No. 7 overall) of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds out of Wake Forest University... received a $5.7 million bonus when he signed with the Reds on July 14, 2023... did not appear in a game for the Reds in 2023... was ranked by MLB.com as the Reds' top pitching prospect and No. 2 overall prospect as well as the No. 5 overall right-handed pitching prospect in baseball to end 2023... MLB.com ranked Lowder as the No. 6 prospect in the 2023 Draft class, citing his changeup as "one of the best in college baseball"

After cracking Wake Forest's weekend rotation as a freshman but posting a 6.12 ERA, Lowder nearly halved that to 3.08 in 2022, when he ranked second in NCAA Division I with 11 victories and became the first Demon Deacon ever named Atlantic Coast Conference pitcher of the year... pitched for the U.S. Collegiate National Team... in 2023, he joined Danny Hultzen as the only players to repeat as ACC pitcher of the year, and he led NCAA D-I with 15 wins and ranked fourth in ERA (1.87) and strikeouts (143, a school record) while pitching Wake to its first College World Series since 1955... became the Demon Deacons' third pitcher taken in the first round in the past four Drafts when the Reds selected him at No. 7... was a Dick Howser Trophy Finalist in 2023 and a Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist in 2023... pitched for the Strasburg Express in the Valley Baseball (summer) League... attended North Stanly (North Carolina) High School, where he was a member of National Honor Society, Beta Club, president of North Stanly chapter of National Art Honor Society, and a member of the Jr Dream team for the Dream on 3 Foundation... in high school, he was ranked as the No. 491 recruit in the nation by Perfect Game, as well as the No. 12 prospect in North Carolina... he was twice named the Pitcher of the Year in both his conference and county and was a two-time all-state honoree... in a shortened senior season, went 2-0 with 27 strikeouts and one walk, not allowing an earned run in 13.2 innings... as a junior, he tossed a pair of no-hitters en route to a 9-0 record and 0.61 ERA, totaling 115 strikeouts with just seven walks in 68 1/3 innings... in his sophomore season, he finished 9-2 with a 1.03 ERA, 96 strikeouts and seven walks in 61 innings... he played club baseball for the South Charlotte Panthers... was recruited by Wake Forest, UNCW, App State and Campbell... his cousin, Joe, played baseball for App State... holds the Wake Forest Single-Season record for wins (15), strikeouts (143) and Win-Loss Percentage (15-0)

Awards & Honors at Wake Forest:

2023 Anthony J. McKevlin Award (ACC Male Athlete of the Year)
2023 ACC Pitcher of the Year
2023 ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year
2023 Baseball America First Team All-American
2023 Collegiate Baseball First Team All-American
2023 ABCA First Team All-American
2023 NCBWA First Team All-American
2023 National Pitcher of the Year Finalist
2023 First Team All-ACC
2023 All-ACC Academic Team Selection
2023 Dick Howser Trophy Finalist
2023 NCBWA District 4 Player of the Year
2023 First Team CSC Academic All-American
2023 Winston-Salem Regional All-Tournament Team
2023 Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist
2023 ACC All-Tournament Team
2023 ACC Pitcher of the Week (April 17, May 8)
2023 Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List
2023 ACC Pitcher of the Week (March 27)
2023 Perfect Game National Pitcher of the Week (March 27)
2023 Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List
2023 Perfect Game First Team Preseason All-American
2023 Collegiate Baseball First Team Preseason All-American
2023 Baseball America First Team Preseason All-American
2023 D1Baseball First Team Preseason All-American
2023 NCBWA First Team Preseason All-American
2023 D1Baseball Preseason ACC Pitcher of the Year
2023 Perfect Game Preseason ACC Pitcher of the Year
2023 Perfect Game Preseason All-ACC
2022 ACC Pitcher of the Year (First ever in Wake Forest history)
2022 Unanimous All-American (Third in Wake Forest history)
2022 ABCA First Team All-American
2022 Baseball America First Team All-American