Tag: Baseball America

LSU baseball rises as high as No. 3 in Baseball polls

The Tigers went 4-1 this past week, moving up in the polls in the process.

After playing a five-game stretch last week in which the Tigers went 4-1, LSU has climbed the college baseball rankings as high as the No. 3 spot.

This is fitting, because LSU’s No. 3 has a lot to do with why the Tigers had so much success during that stretch. LSU outfielder Dylan Crews batted .444 (8-for-18) with one triple, two homers, nine RBI, four runs scored, and a .565 on-base percentage in the last five games.

Crews is now hitting a team-high .483 on the year with one double, three triples, two homers, 13 RBI, and 12 runs. Along with the hot-hitting Crews, the Tigers definitely got their Money’s worth when Blake Money was on the mound. Money was brilliant on Friday night, as he defeated Towson with seven shutout innings, increasing his scoreless innings streak this season to 14 straight.

Money limited Towson to no runs on just two hits – a pair of singles – in seven innings with two walks and seven strikeouts. Money is 2-0 this season with a 0.00 ERA, a .085 opponent batting average, and three walks and 17 strikeouts in 14 innings.

The Tigers rank No. 3 in the Collegiate Baseball and Perfect Game rankings, and they sit in the top 10 of D1 Baseball, USA TODAY Sports and Baseball America’s polls, sitting at No. 7 in the former two and at No. 8 in the latter.

This week will be a very interesting week for LSU Baseball as the Tigers play against New Orleans this Wednesday before traveling to Minute Maid Park in Houston for the Shriners College Classic. LSU will play Oklahoma on Friday, No. 1 Texas on Saturday, and Baylor on Sunday.

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Notre Dame baseball almost atop the latest Baseball American poll

The Irish have made a good impression on Baseball America

The Irish didn’t complete the sweep during opening weekend, but it seems like Baseball America didn’t care much about the getaway day loss to Delaware. It was a game where Link Jarrett’s team just couldn’t finish the job, as the Blue Hens got the walk-off victory.

As noted above, Baseball America didn’t care, their latest poll was released today and the Irish are ranked as the second best team in the country.  Notre Dame ended up moving up two spots, just behind top rated Texas. It’s a bit surprising as the third ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys have the same record but defeated Vanderbilt in two of three games. The Commodores were the number two ranked team in the country last week.

Regardless of where the Irish are, having a ranking the high early in the season is a great sign, one that shows that they are among the top teams in the country.

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Quick primer ahead of Notre Dame baseball’s season opener Friday

It’s almost time to play ball for the Irish

The NCAA baseball season begins for the Irish this weekend and the expectations are sky high. After a run to the Super Regionals last year, Link Jarrett has establish the program as one of the best in the Midwest quickly. In his first full season, the Irish finished first in the ACC’s Atlantic division, racking up a 25-10 conference record, 34-13 overall. Obviously we all remember their run in the NCAA tournament, but the brilliance spanned the whole season. Gone is slugging first baseman Niko Kavadas, but the Irish are still viewed as one of the best teams in the country heading into the 2022 season. Here is a quick primer of what to expect from this seasons squad.

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A quick look ahead to the LSU Tigers 2022 baseball season

We aren’t far away from the beginning of baseball season.

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We are just a couple of weeks away from the start of what looks to be another exciting Baseball Season at “The Box”.

Not only is it the start of a new season, but also a start of a new regime at LSU. On June 25th, 2021, the Tigers hired Jay Johnson to be the new skipper for the Tigers baseball program. Coach Johnson coached at Arizona last year where he was the Pac-12 coach of the year. He led the Wildcats to the Pac-12 championship and eventually to the College World Series.

His Wildcats had the nation’s best offense in 2021. Oh yeah, did I mention he brought his best player with him? Jacob Berry was the hottest hitter for the No. 1 offense in the country, batting .352 with 17 homers and 70 RBIs. This is why he was placed on Baseball America’s Preseason All-American team for the 2022 season. He wasn’t the only Tiger on that list.

Berry was joined by Dylan Crews, Cade Doughty, and Tre’ Morgan. All four of these Sophomores are part of the reason why there is so much excitement around the program this year. Many truly believe this is a team that could win it all.

LSU begins the 2022 season ranked No. 10 on Baseball America’s Top 25. They will ease into the season with Maine, at Louisiana Tech, Southern, Towson, and New Orleans before things ramp up in the Shriners Hospital for Children College Classic where the Tigers will take on the likes of Oklahoma, No. 1 Texas, and Baylor at Minute Maid Park.

LSU leads the nation with four on Baseball America’s preseason All-American team

Four Tigers named preseason All-American by Baseball America

LSU leads the country with four players on the 2022 Baseball America Preseason All-America team. Sophomore outfielder Dylan Crews and Sophomore infielder Jacob Berry were voted to the first team, and Sophomore first baseman Tre’ Morgan and Redshirt Sophomore infielder Cade Doughty were voted to the second team.

In 2021, Dylan Crews was named the 2021 Perfect Game National Freshman of the Year. He hit .362 (89-for-246) with 16 doubles, 2 triples, 18 homers, 42 RBI, 64 runs scored, and 12 stolen bases. Crews’ 18 home runs last year were the most in a single season by a freshman in LSU history, surpassing Mike Fontenot, who hit 17 home runs as a freshman in 2000. Crews also earned all-tournament honors for the Euguene Regional as he batted .476 (10-for-21) with two doubles, one triple, three home runs, four RBI, and six runs scored.

Jacob Berry is a new face in Baton Rouge, but he is a guy that Tiger fans will get familiar with quickly. Berry transferred to LSU from Arizona, where he led the Wildcats to the 2021 College World Series and the Pac-12 Championship. Berry batted .352 with a team-high 17 homers and 70 RBI. He was named the National Co-Freshman of the Year by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. Berry earned first-team All America honors from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and he was named a second-team All-America honors from D1Baseball and Perfect Game.

Tre’ Morgan batted .357 (89-for-249) last year with 16 doubles, 4 triples, 6 homers, 42 RBI, 64 runs scored, and 15 stolen bases. He was honored as a Freshman All-America, Second-Team All-SEC, and Freshman All-SEC.

Cade Doughty posted a .308 batting average (70-for-227) in 2021 with 11 doubles, 2 triples, 13 homers, 55 RBI, and 41 runs scored. Doughty helped LSU clinch a spot in the SEC Tournament against Texas A&M when his two-out, three-run homer in the fifth inning erased a 6-3 deficit and then hit a two-run double in the top of the 13th to help the Tigers take the lead and seal the deal.

LSU baseball ranked in fourth preseason poll

Another preseason poll, another top 10 ranking

We are less than a month away from the beginning of the 2022 college baseball season and the LSU Tigers are among the top 10 teams in the country.

New baseball head coach Jay Johnson is preparing to lead this team back to Omaha and the College World Series. Last season their dream was cut short by the Tennessee Volunteers in the Super Regional.

After signing the No. 1 recruiting class in 2022, the Tigers are ready to defend their turf and make another run at a national championship. LSU hasn’t returned to the CWS since 2017. Johnson led the Arizona Wildcats to Omaha last year.

Per the LSU Tigers’ release:

LSU is ranked No. 10 in the 2022 Baseball America preseason Top 25, marking the Tigers’ fourth Top 10 appearance in a preseason poll.

LSU’s previously released preseason rankings are No. 3 by Collegiate Baseball, No. 4 by Perfect Game, and No. 8 by D1 Baseball.

The Tigers are engaged in groups workouts and conditioning drills, and LSU’s first official team practice is scheduled for Friday afternoon. The 2022 season begins on February 18, when LSU plays host to Maine in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.

Rank Team
1 Texas Longhorns
2 Vanderbilt Commodores
3 Mississippi State Bulldogs
4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
5 Virginia Cavaliers
6 Florida Gators
7 Stanford Cardinal
8 Arkansas Razorbacks
9 Mississippi Rebels
10 LSU Tigers
11 Oregon State Beavers
12 Florida State Seminoles
13 Arizona Wildcats
14 Georgia Bulldogs
15 East Carolina Pirates
16 North Carolina State Wolfpack
17 Tennessee Volunteers
18 UC Irvine Anteaters
19 Oklahoma State Cowboys
20 Nebraska Cornhuskers
21 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
22 UCLA Bruins
23 Texas Tech Red Raiders
24 Old Dominion Monarchs
25 Miami Hurricanes

 

Baseball America: Re-Ranking of 2016 recruiting classes shows Arkansas knew what it was doing.

Four key players still in professional baseball

I love the concept of re-evaluating a recruiting or draft class (no matter the sport) a few years later. That’s really when we know how well a franchise/program evaluated the available talent. As is often the case, we commonly see 3-star recruits and late-round draft picks blossom once in the right spot.

This week Baseball America looked back at the 2016 recruiting class. Arkansas was coming off its worst season under Dave Van Horn, but managed to build a class that would anchor its run to back-to-back trips to Omaha.

Arkansas hosted three straight regionals from 2017-19, made the College World Series in both 2018 and 2019 and finished as national runner-up in 2018. This class played a key role in all of those teams. Cronin was one of the best relievers in the country throughout his college career, emerging as a dominant force at the back of the bullpen. Fletcher was a three-year starter in center field for the Razorbacks and was the top draft pick in the class at No. 75 overall in 2019.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Former Gator Jonathan India named MLB’s 2021 Rookie of the year by Baseball America

Former UF infielder Jonathan India had a fantastic first campaign with the Cincinnati Reds.

Florida’s baseball program has been arguably the most consistent over the course of the last decade, and with the team constantly recruiting at an elite level, it’s no surprise that it puts good players into the major leagues with regularity.

The latest of these is Jonathan India, who played at Florida 2016-18. India was dominant in college, being named the 2018 SEC Player of the Year and a First Team All-American by several outlets. He was projected to be one of the top players selected in the 2018 MLB draft, and indeed, the Cincinnati Reds took him fifth overall.

India made his debut for the Reds in 2021, and he had a spectacular season. For his efforts, he’s been named Baseball America’s Rookie of the Year.

India appeared in 150 games for Cincinnati, playing mostly at second base and earning a .269 batting average with 21 home runs and 69 RBI. He had 36 extra-base hits on the season, 34 of which were doubles.

It took India a couple of years to reach the sport’s pinnacle, as he spent the last two seasons in the minor leagues. But his major league career is off to a phenomenal start, and he could be the latest Gators player to make a big impact in MLB.

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Baseball America releases new Top 25 rankings

Baseball America unveils new Top 25 list

Monday, Baseball America released its latest Top 25 poll after the first weekend of play for 2021.

The Gators of Florida fell a few spots to No. 7 after dropping back-to-back games against Miami, while the Bulldogs still have not cracked the Top 25.

Georgia started off slow with a season-opening loss to Evansville, but was able to rebound to win three-straight and take the series.

Up next for the Dawgs is a date with Georgia State on Wednesday in Atlanta before hosting Gardner-Webb for four games in Athens next weekend.

To view the full Top 25 rankings for this week, click here ….

Notre Dame baseball update: 2021 season set to begin next week

A primer on what to expect when Notre Dame baseball gets their season started next week.

Notre Dame baseball is getting closer to their opening day, a week from this Friday. Last year, in Link Jarrett’s first season with the Irish, prior to the season being canceled, the Irish posted  a sparkling 11-2 record. The fast start had the Irish ranked as the 24th best program in the country in one of the major polls.

There are high expectations for this years team, with the majority of players returning with the exception of pitcher Joe Boyle, who was drafted by Cincinnati Reds in the 5th round of the MLB Draft. Here is a quick primer on Notre Dame baseball news as the season is set to begin next week.