DAYTON – Former Wright State baseball player Tyler Black has been named the No. 44 overall prospect in baseball by The Athletic's Keith Law, while the Raidergang alum has also been given a non-roster invitation to Major League spring training with the Milwaukee Brewers.
 
In addition, Black was named the Brewers' No. 4 prospect by ESPN MLB Insider Kiley McDaniel after he was named the Brewers' co-player of the year last fall by the organization.
 
Between AA Biloxi and AAA Nashville, Black posted a .930 OPS, hit 18 homers and stole 55 bases. He finished with a .417 on-base percentage overall, and his average, OBP and slugging all improved across 39 games with Nashville compared to at Biloxi. Black ended the season with a .310 batting average and .428 OBP, including four home runs and eight stolen bases, in 39 AAA games.
 
Black was the 33rd overall selection in the 2021 MLB Draft by the Brewers, becoming the highest selected Raider position player in program history and the second-highest overall. A three-year player for the Raiders, Black started 104 of his 113 games in a Wright State uniform, tallying a career .353 batting average with 104 total runs driven in, 26 doubles, 21 home runs and seven triples.
 
From Keith Law:
Black is the sort of player you love if he's on your team and hate if he's in the other dugout, as he plays hard all the time, and will fight for every out and every ball or strike until the game ends. Drafted 33rd in 2021 out of Wright State, Black has real plate discipline and great feel for the barrel, with a .400+ OBP at High A, Double A, and Triple A over the last two seasons. His hands are quick and he's short to the ball and through contact, so the swing is more conducive to low line drives and some groundballs than to power. He's a 70 runner who should be able to play center and is adequate at second, although since shoulder surgery his arm hasn't been great and the left side of the infield might be out of reach. It's an unusual profile for first base, but I think he can produce a .400 OBP with 10-15 homers and a ton of value on the bases, which would be enough offense for the position even without huge power, and then the only real question would be if his height holds him back. His floor is a super-utility guy who still gets 400-500 PA a year playing all over the diamond, but I'm in the camp that says he's a starter at second, in left or — if he's not with Milwaukee — in center, and he'll be a favorite of hometown fans once they see how he plays.
 
Black was a first team All-Horizon League performer in his final season in the Green and Gold and was named an All-American by ABCA/Rawlings, D1 Baseball and Perfect Game/Rawlings (third team) while earning a spot on the All-Knoxville Regional Team after his play in the NCAA Championship. Black was named the No. 7 hitter in the country by D1 Baseball in its analytical breakdown rankings of its Top 100 Hitters. In his first season at Wright State, Black was named the Horizon League's Freshman of the Year while earning a spot on the Horizon first team and all-freshmen teams.