Photo by: Will Porada/MSU Athletics
Valincius Selected As Golden Spikes Semifinalist
May 14, 2026 | Baseball
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State ace Tomas Valincius was tabbed a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award, which is presented annually to the top amateur baseball player in the country.
Valincius is one of 25 players picked as a semifinalist and one of 10 from the Southeastern Conference. Fans can vote for their favorite players on GoldenSpikesAward.com to help determine the finalists, which will be announced on June 10. The Golden Spikes Award will be presented on June 29 on MLB Network.
Through 13 starts, the sophomore left-hander is 8-2 with a 2.52 earned run average with 105 strikeouts and just 16 walks across 75 innings of work. Valincius has limited opposing hitters to a .209 batting average on the year. He ranks second in the SEC in strikeouts and wins, is third in innings pitched and fourth in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.56) and WHIP (0.99).
The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder from Lockport, Illinois is scheduled to make his final regular season start on Thursday at No. 10 Texas A&M.
Valincius is the 10th Diamond Dawg to earn a semifinalists distinction from the Golden Spikes Award and the first since Dakota Jordan in 2024. Will Clark is MSU's only Golden Spikes Award winner in 1985 while Rafael Palmeiro and Brent Rooker finished as finalists for the honor in 1984 and 2017 respectively.
GOLDEN SPIKES AWARD SEMIFINALISTS
Name - Position - Year - School - Conference
Jarren Advincula - INF - Junior - Georgia Tech - ACC
Drew Burress - OF - Junior - Georgia Tech - ACC
Lorenzo Carrier - OF - R-Senior - Pittsburgh - ACC
Roch Cholowsky - INF - Junior - UCLA - Big Ten
Tague Davis - INF - Sophomore - Louisville - ACC
Jason DeCaro - RHP - Junior - North Carolina - ACC
Evan Dempsey - RHP/OF - Junior - FGCU - A-SUN
Hunter Dietz - LHP - R-Sophomore - Arkansas - SEC
Mason Edwards - LHP - Junior - Southern Cal - Big Ten
Grady Emerson - INF - Senior (HS) - Fort Worth Christian (HS)
Jackson Flora - RHP - Junior - UC Santa Barbara - Big West
Gavin Grahovac - INF - Junior - Texas A&M - SEC
Landon Hairston - INF - Sophomore - Arizona State - Big 12
Ryder Helfrick - C - Junior - Arkansas - SEC
Daniel Jackson - C - Junior - Georgia - SEC
Gavin Kelly - C/INF - Sophomore - West Virginia - Big 12
Dee Kennedy - INF - Junior - Kansas State - Big 12
Aidan King - RHP - Sophomore - Florida - SEC
Vahn Lackey - C/INF - Junior - Georgia Tech - ACC
Kollin Ritchie - OF - Junior - Oklahoma State - Big 12
Aiden Robbins - OF - Junior - Texas - SEC
Caden Sorrell - OF - Junior - Texas A&M - SEC
Cade Townsend - RHP - Sophomore - Ole Miss - SEC
Tomas Valincius - LHP - Sophomore - Mississippi State - SEC
Dylan Volantis - LHP - Sophomore - Texas – SEC
Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the baseball program. Fans can also follow the program on social media by searching 'HailStateBB' on X, Facebook and Instagram.
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Valincius is one of 25 players picked as a semifinalist and one of 10 from the Southeastern Conference. Fans can vote for their favorite players on GoldenSpikesAward.com to help determine the finalists, which will be announced on June 10. The Golden Spikes Award will be presented on June 29 on MLB Network.
Through 13 starts, the sophomore left-hander is 8-2 with a 2.52 earned run average with 105 strikeouts and just 16 walks across 75 innings of work. Valincius has limited opposing hitters to a .209 batting average on the year. He ranks second in the SEC in strikeouts and wins, is third in innings pitched and fourth in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.56) and WHIP (0.99).
The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder from Lockport, Illinois is scheduled to make his final regular season start on Thursday at No. 10 Texas A&M.
Valincius is the 10th Diamond Dawg to earn a semifinalists distinction from the Golden Spikes Award and the first since Dakota Jordan in 2024. Will Clark is MSU's only Golden Spikes Award winner in 1985 while Rafael Palmeiro and Brent Rooker finished as finalists for the honor in 1984 and 2017 respectively.
GOLDEN SPIKES AWARD SEMIFINALISTS
Name - Position - Year - School - Conference
Jarren Advincula - INF - Junior - Georgia Tech - ACC
Drew Burress - OF - Junior - Georgia Tech - ACC
Lorenzo Carrier - OF - R-Senior - Pittsburgh - ACC
Roch Cholowsky - INF - Junior - UCLA - Big Ten
Tague Davis - INF - Sophomore - Louisville - ACC
Jason DeCaro - RHP - Junior - North Carolina - ACC
Evan Dempsey - RHP/OF - Junior - FGCU - A-SUN
Hunter Dietz - LHP - R-Sophomore - Arkansas - SEC
Mason Edwards - LHP - Junior - Southern Cal - Big Ten
Grady Emerson - INF - Senior (HS) - Fort Worth Christian (HS)
Jackson Flora - RHP - Junior - UC Santa Barbara - Big West
Gavin Grahovac - INF - Junior - Texas A&M - SEC
Landon Hairston - INF - Sophomore - Arizona State - Big 12
Ryder Helfrick - C - Junior - Arkansas - SEC
Daniel Jackson - C - Junior - Georgia - SEC
Gavin Kelly - C/INF - Sophomore - West Virginia - Big 12
Dee Kennedy - INF - Junior - Kansas State - Big 12
Aidan King - RHP - Sophomore - Florida - SEC
Vahn Lackey - C/INF - Junior - Georgia Tech - ACC
Kollin Ritchie - OF - Junior - Oklahoma State - Big 12
Aiden Robbins - OF - Junior - Texas - SEC
Caden Sorrell - OF - Junior - Texas A&M - SEC
Cade Townsend - RHP - Sophomore - Ole Miss - SEC
Tomas Valincius - LHP - Sophomore - Mississippi State - SEC
Dylan Volantis - LHP - Sophomore - Texas – SEC
Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the baseball program. Fans can also follow the program on social media by searching 'HailStateBB' on X, Facebook and Instagram.
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Players Mentioned
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