Why Rob Vaughn Believes College Baseball Could Eventually Add Former Pros

The Alabama coach reflected on the Charles Bediako case, and the implications it could have for college baseball.

Alabama baseball coach Rob Vaughn. | Alabama Athletics

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Alabama basketball's midseason addition of NBA G-Leaguer Charles Bediako immediately reignited debates about the state of college athletics. One of the most interesting questions to emerge was: Could college baseball be next?

"College athletics is in a weird place right now," Alabama baseball coach Rob Vaughn said. "I don't know the ins and outs of what's going to happen. All I know is that somebody's going to try it at some point, somebody's going to put something together."

Very random thought: if Charles Bediako is granted a preliminary injunction, what happens to college baseball?

Got to imagine there are hundreds of guys that went straight out of HS who are now toiling around in the minors and would love to have NIL and a scholarship

— Theodore Fernandez (@TheoFernandez__) February 7, 2026

Baseball is in a unique position compared to other sports due to the sheer number of players who forgo college. 97 high schoolers signed with an MLB organization in the 2025 draft alone, up slightly from 87 in 2024, but far from an outlier. Many of these players will never see an MLB roster, and with the explosion of NIL in recent years, it stands to reason that many would be open to a move to a high-level college baseball program.

Theoretically, that creates a pool of talented professional players who could, if rules loosened or loopholes remained, become attractive additions for college programs.

"At the end of the day, we're trying to do whatever we can to put the best team out there, as is every team in the country," Vaughn said. "So if the rules start opening up and present themselves to a place where that's an option, then we'll explore what that option looks like."

Bediako ultimately lost his case, being denied a preliminary injunction by Judge Daniel Pruet, and is no longer eligible to play. His case is specific to a player attempting to return after playing professionally, but it raises broader questions about how far the NCAA’s eligibility rules could be pushed. It remains unclear how the Bediako case could influence future eligibility disputes, particularly in a sport like baseball, where the pro pipeline is already built into the system.

"I would venture to say we're going to start to close some of the loopholes that we have in this thing," Vaughn said. "I don't think it takes a rocket scientist to kind of look out there and be like, hey, we need to clean this up. We need to kind of draw a little bit harder lines in the sand on some of this stuff.

"So I would expect that gets worked out, but at the same time, you never know where this goes, and it's our job to put the best team on the field. And if that thing presents itself in the future, we'll address it on a case-by-case basis."

With the NCAA likely heading towards sweeping rule changes this summer, it does appear as though those "hard lines" will be drawn. It is unlikely that we will see Alabama or any other major baseball program actually try to challenge the NCAA by making a midseason move to add a professional player, but the longer we go without a clear resolution to the 'loopholes' in the rules, the more likely a team is to pull the trigger and potentially flip college baseball upside down.