Bino Watters among the rising stars Notre Dame baseball is leaning on to ascend

How Notre Dame baseball budding phenom Brenson Thomas Watters became simply “Bino” was a pretty simple formula.

“My dad would say “B’ when I was younger, and then he’d say ‘no’ when I’d do something wrong,” the Irish sophomore left fielder/first baseman/DH explained. “Put that together — B, No!”

Apparently, Bino Watters was errant often enough during his childhood to make it stick.

And enough right on the baseball field these days to project as a top 10 pick in the first round of the 2027 Major League Draft — by both Baseball America and Perfect Game — as the left-handed hitter and throwing starts his second collegiate season with the Irish. Watters will be eligible for the draft after the 2027 season.

The Irish opened the 2026 season on Friday night with a 7-1 loss at Florida Atlantic in the first game of a three-game series. Watters played first base, batted second and went 0-for-5, with game two set for Saturday at 4 p.m. Freshman lefty Caden Crowell will take the mound for the Irish (0-1).

“This offseason I made an emphasis more on focusing my head more toward the team goals and focusing on winning instead of self-oriented stats and things like that,” Watters said ahead of the FAU series..

“Also maintaining a healthy body throughout the season. I went down there at the end, but I had a healthy season for the most part, so just maintaining a safe and healthy season throughout.”

Coming back from injury

Watters slashed .317/.436/.549 (batting average/on-base/slugging) with 9 home runs and 39 RBIs. He stole 3 bases on 4 attempts and scored 40 runs. He did not commit an error in the field.

But the 6-foot-2, 215-pound Rochester Hills, MIch., product missed the final eight games of the season with a lower-leg injury. 

“I took it more slowly,” he said of his recovery, “just because my long-term future is more important than me playing in an ACC game. It took me a little bit throughout the summer to get ready and then getting back throughout the fall and throughout preseason.

“Last season, I was prepared in the sense of hitting and defensive things, but I wasn’t really ready for the fact that we were going to play 51 games and I was going to be up and down every single day.

“So, just getting my body in a better spot for this year and understanding my body’s not going to feel good every day. So [my focus is] finding ways to help my body recover, and trying to help my mind be in a better place when I’m not playing well.”

Beyond the bubble?

As a team, Notre Dame’s projections of playing well enough to be on the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble are mixed. The ACC coaches voted the Irish to finish 12th, a spot lower than last season when the Irish just missed the NCAAs.

D1 Baseball, however, projects Notre Dame as one of 10 ACC teams to make the 64-team NCAA Tournament bracket. D1 slots the Irish as a 3 seed in the four-team Fayetteville, Ark., Regional.

Host Arkansas is the regional’s top seed and No. 7 national seed. Arizona is the regional’s second seed and Little Rock the regional’s 4 seed.

“I think we’re going to be a really feared team this year,” Watters said. “I feel like we’re obviously not ranked super high in the preseason poll, but the rankings only can mean so much. I think our bats up and down the lineup are going to be a lot better than last year. Our starting pitching — Jack Radel.

“Some of the guys we brought in are very impressive. So, I’m excited to see where we stand, but I feel like we’re going to be a top ACC team.”

And Watters, once he gets started, one of the league’s biggest stars.

“I think Bino Watters is an All-American type player,” former ND player and current college baseball analyst (ESPN and D1 Baseball) Mike Rooney said at the end of last season.

“I think he’s just going to keep getting better and better. He’s everything you want. He’s left-handed. He’s physical. He runs. Great at-bats. He doesn’t take slugger at-bats. He takes real hitter at-bats. He just happens to be 225 pounds.”