What Numbers Do You Need to Play D1, D2, or D3 Baseball?

There's no hard cutoff. There are real averages, though. Hitters who committed posted a best showcase exit velo of about 97 mph at Power 4, 95 at other D1 (D1 outside the Power 4), 92 at D2 and 90 at D3.

Every level runs give or take 5 to 6 mph. So the ranges overlap a lot.

That means the exit velocity needed for D1, D2 or D3 baseball is a range, and your son's position moves it. Recruiting isn't a turnstile where 90 mph gets you in and 89 keeps you out.

For a pitcher, the question is how hard do I need to throw? For a hitter it's what exit velo, what 60 time, how strong does my arm need to be?

It's the wrong question, and it's part of the reason I built BaseballPath. So we pulled what players at each level actually posted, by position, with the spread.

What exit velo do D1, D2 and D3 hitters have?

They average about 90 mph at D3 and climb to about 97 at Power 4. Exit velo is how hard the ball comes off the bat.

The table shows the average best showcase exit velo for hitters who committed at each level. The typical range is that average give or take one standard deviation, which is a measure of how spread out the numbers are.

Look at how much the ranges overlap. Say your son's best exit velo is 92.

That's above the D3 average and just under the D2 average. It's also inside the typical range at every level, Power 4 included.

That's why one number can't tell you where he belongs.

Does exit velo change by position?

Yes, and by a lot. Corner infielders (1B/3B) post the highest exit velo at every level, and middle infielders (SS/2B) post the lowest, about 3 mph under the corners.

Outfielders and catchers land in between. That fits how the positions work, since at short and second the glove and the feet carry more of the load.

Averages by position, rounded to the nearest mph:

The position gap is about as big as the gap between levels. A D3 corner infielder averages a harder exit velo than a D2 middle infielder.

Say he's a shortstop with a 91 exit velo. That's right at the D2 middle-infield average and about 2 mph under the other-D1 middle-infield average.

Now say he plays first base with the same 91. That sits just under the D3 average for corner infielders. Same swing, but it reads very differently.

What 60 times do D1, D2 and D3 players run?

Outfielders who committed averaged a best 60-yard dash of 6.83 seconds at Power 4 and 7.13 at D3. Speed matters most for outfielders and middle infielders, so here are both groups at each level, in seconds.

From Power 4 to D3, the outfield average moves about 3 tenths of a second. The spread inside a single level is about the same size, give or take about 0.3 seconds.

So a 60 time alone doesn't sort players by level very cleanly.

Corner infielders run slower than outfielders and middle infielders at every level, from 7.15 at Power 4 to 7.52 at D3. No one recruits a first baseman for his wheels.

How hard do infielders, outfielders and catchers throw?

A couple of mph less at each level down. Inside each level, infield and outfield arms spread about 5 mph either way.

These are averages for players who committed, rounded to the nearest mph. Pop time behind the plate is in seconds.

The infield row pools every infield spot. Split out, middle infielders throw a bit under 2 mph harder across the infield than corner infielders at every level.

Pop time is the catcher's throw to second, from glove to glove. The average moves only about a tenth of a second from Power 4 to D3.

Behind the plate, framing, receiving and the bat can outweigh a tenth of a second.

How hard do D1, D2 and D3 pitchers throw?

Pitchers who committed averaged a top fastball of about 91 mph at Power 4, 88 at other D1, 85 at D2 and 82 at D3. The middle of their fastball range runs about 1.5 to 2 mph under the top.

That middle number comes from his best measured outing. It isn't the same as what he sits in a game.

The spread is wide, give or take about 3 to 4 mph at every level. An 88 top fastball sits inside the typical range at Power 4, other D1 and D2.

A pitcher with a real changeup who throws strikes can beat a harder thrower who has no idea where it's going.

A BaseballPath report looks past the top fastball too. It counts his off-speed pitches and his spin. It doesn't measure command, so throwing strikes in front of coaches is still on him.

How should you read these numbers?

As averages, not cutoffs. This is the part the recruiting industry tends to skip, since "You need 90 to play D1" sells more showcase tickets than the truth does.

At every level, some players sit below the average and fully belong there. Others sit above it and never get the call, for reasons that have nothing to do with their numbers.

The range matters more than the mean. His position matters, and so do his academics and whether a program even has a roster spot open where he plays.

At D1, how many spots are actually open is its own question. And if your son is a freshman or sophomore, today's number is just where he starts.

How we got these numbers

These are the best recorded showcase numbers on PBR profiles of players in the classes of 2024 to 2026, grouped by the level each one committed to. Power 4 means the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC. Other D1 means every D1 program outside those four conferences.

We kept one row per player and removed impossible entries, like a typo that turns a fastball into a four-digit number. Arm and pop time numbers only count players who play that spot. Then we took a plain average and the standard deviation for each level.

Some players posted their best number after they committed, so an average taken right at commitment would run a little lower. These are averages, not cutoffs. Numbers checked October 2026.