Flinn Secures 2026 D1Baseball Freshman All-America First Team Status
July 1, 2026 | Baseball
NEWS
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Fighting Illini pitcher Aidan Flinn was named a Freshman All-American by D1Baseball, which was announced on Wednesday morning.
Flinn earned a spot on the D1Baseball Freshman All-America First Team and was the only Big Ten student-athlete to secure Freshman All-America status from D1Baseball this season.
He has already garnered Freshman All-America honors from Baseball America, NCBWA, and Perfect Game.
A native of Mokena, Illinois, Flinn posted a 2.79 ERA during his debut collegiate campaign in 2026, throwing 61.1 innings with 58 strikeouts and a 0.83 WHIP, the latter of which ranked tied for first in the country. Flinn made 15 total appearances, including 13 starts, while allowing just 13 walks all season. He is currently competing at the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team training camp.
An All-Big Ten Second Team and Big Ten All-Freshman Team honoree, Flinn registered the best ERA by an Illini freshman since 2020, the most innings pitched by an Illini freshman since 2017, and the most strikeouts by an Illini freshman since 2013.
Flinn, now the 15th Freshman All-American in program history, is the first Illini to secure Freshman All-America honors since Cole Kirschsieper in 2020.
Illinois' Freshman All-Americans
1989 - Sean Mulligan, C (Collegiate Baseball)
1989 - Bubba Smith, UT (Collegiate Baseball)
1991 - Scott Spiezio, IF (Collegiate Baseball)
1999 - Luke Simmons, DH (Collegiate Baseball)
2000 - Andy Schutzenhofer, 1B (Collegiate Baseball, Baseball America)
2002 - Drew Davidson, OF (Collegiate Baseball)
2003 - Eric Eymann, SS (Collegiate Baseball)
2008 - Casey McMurray, OF (Collegiate Baseball)
2009 - Willie Argo, OF (Collegiate Baseball)
2012 - Reid Roper, 2B/RHP (Collegiate Baseball)
2013 - Kevin Duchene, LHP (Collegiate Baseball, NCBWA, Baseball America, Perfect Game)
2014 - Adam Walton, SS (Collegiate Baseball)
2017 - Michael Massey, 2B (Collegiate Baseball)
2020 - Cole Kirschsieper, LHP (Collegiate Baseball)
2026 - Aidan Flinn, LHP (Baseball America, D1Baseball, NCBWA, Perfect Game)
2026 D1Baseball Freshman All-America Teams
D1Baseball Freshman All-America First Team
C Colt Brown, Louisiana
1B Ethin Bingaman, Auburn
2B Ethan Ball, Virginia Tech
3B Nico Partida, Texas A&M
SS Jett Kenady, Cal
OF Rett Johnson, NC State
OF Anthony Pack Jr., Texas
OF Jacob Parker, Mississippi State
DH Teddy Tokheim, Stanford
UT Josiah Overbeek, Army
SP Aidan Flinn, Illinois
SP Garrett Lambert, Mercer
SP Trey Morris, Oregon State
SP Cord Rager, Oklahoma
SP Myles Upchurch, Alabama
RP Sam Cozart, Texas
RP Caden Glauber, North Carolina
D1Baseball Freshman All-America Second Team
C Alonzo Alvarez, Miami (Fla.)
1B Tony Lira, Arizona
2B Diego Cruz, Miami (Ohio)
3B Wyatt Hanoian, Air Force
SS Linkin Garcia, Texas Tech
OF Brady Christman, Georgia Southern
OF Grady Lenahan, East Carolina
OF Mason McCraine, Auburn
DH Enzo Infelise, Cincinnati
UT Brady Bowen, Akron
SP Lance Davis, TCU
SP William Labonte, Portland
SP Jackson Rose, North Carolina
SP Michael Senay, USF
SP Trey Williford, UNC Wilmington
RP LJ Cormier, Auburn
RP Landon Hood, Gonzaga
