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D1 Baseball released its preseason poll Monday and the Tigers find themselves just outside the top 10, sitting at No. 11.
LSU was also ranked eleventh by the Collegiate Baseball poll that came out in December. This year marks the ninth straight season baseball opens in the top-15. Eight other SEC teams were ranked in the Top 25 with defending national champion Vanderbilt at No. 2, trailing only Louisville.
LSU loses a lot from last year’s lineup. The Tigers’ top-three bats, Josh Smith, Zach Watson and Antonie Duplantis, are all gone. Zack Hess and Todd Peterson won’t be on the mound for LSU either.
But the Tigers bring back 11 pitchers who all saw action including what is presumed to be the entirety of its weekend rotation: Cole Henry, Landon Marceaux and Eric Walker. LSU also brings back Jaden Hill and Ma’Khail Hilliard who have starting experience, while the bullpen will be led by Devin Fontenot and Matthew Beck.
Here’s what D1 Baseball’s Aaron Fitt said of the Tigers.
The Tigers have a real chance to be better than last year’s 40-win super regional club, largely because their sophomore class is loaded with riches on the mound and breakout candidates in the lineup. And it’s their time to shine.
The Tigers begin its preseason workouts on January 24; the regular season begins February 14, as LSU will open against Indiana at Alex Box Stadium.
The D1 Preseason Top 25 is as follows:
- Louisville
- Vanderbilt
- Miami
- Florida
- Georgia
- Texas Tech
- Arkansas
- Auburn
- Arizona State
- Mississippi State
- LSU
- Florida State
- Michigan
- UCLA
- Duke
- NC State
- Stanford
- Wake Forest
- Georgia Tech
- Texas A&M
- East Carolina
- Oklahoma State
- North Carolina
- Oklahoma
- Ole Miss