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The LSU Tigers had to reload after winning a national championship, and it led to a major step down in production this season. The good news is that they were a much younger team this season, and don't have a mass exodus on the way, and could have some more if they get some players back and out of the MLB draft.
Guys like Derek Curiel and Jake Brown feel like they are certain to head to the league. Curiel is a first-round lock and could go within the top-10. An injury certainly didn't help boost Browns' stock, but he should still not have to wait past the second round to hear his name called.
Here are some players with less certain decisions to make and feel like true toss-ups on whether they will be back next season:
Getting Milam back would add a lot of stability to next year's roster. He has been one of the team's best players since arriving in Baton Rouge, both at the plate and in the field with his glove. He's a true switch-hitter with a career .924 OPS.
He slashed .296/.417/.520 with 11 home runs and 49 RBI with 35 walks to 23 strikeouts this year. Even when he struggled at times, no one worried because he is such a rock-solid force at the plate.
There is always going to be the looming knock to him in draft scouting in that he's 5-foot-8 and 185 pounds, and that doesn't really track with elite modern shortstops, so some teams might have pause in drafting him.
It's hard to imagine suggesting someone declare after a season that saw their ERA rise from 2.59 the year before all the way up to 6.39, but it might not matter for Guidry. The MLB draft is all about tools and Guidry certainly has the stuff that scouts look for.
The 22-year-old boasts a fastball, curveball, cutter mix. He is a high-energy reliever who is certain to at least get looks from MLB clubs. He still had 12.2 strikeouts per inning this season and dropped his walk rate, so it wasn't all bad, but hitters just saw him better this year.
Garcia has a 4.96 career ERA over two seasons with the Tigers and the Oregon Ducks. He is a strikeout machine who struggles heavily with surrendering walks, 17 in 22.2 innings this year, but like Guidry he has the tools that scouts look for more than college production.
The 21-year-old might just head to the minors if there is enough interest. Things aren't getting easier for him in college and he still has the excuse of being a raw talent. He has a good fastball and a solid breaking ball, which is all it takes for southpaw prospects sometimes.
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Guys like Derek Curiel and Jake Brown feel like they are certain to head to the league. Curiel is a first-round lock and could go within the top-10. An injury certainly didn't help boost Browns' stock, but he should still not have to wait past the second round to hear his name called.
Here are some players with less certain decisions to make and feel like true toss-ups on whether they will be back next season:
SS Steven Milam
Getting Milam back would add a lot of stability to next year's roster. He has been one of the team's best players since arriving in Baton Rouge, both at the plate and in the field with his glove. He's a true switch-hitter with a career .924 OPS.
He slashed .296/.417/.520 with 11 home runs and 49 RBI with 35 walks to 23 strikeouts this year. Even when he struggled at times, no one worried because he is such a rock-solid force at the plate.
There is always going to be the looming knock to him in draft scouting in that he's 5-foot-8 and 185 pounds, and that doesn't really track with elite modern shortstops, so some teams might have pause in drafting him.
RHP Gavin Guidry
It's hard to imagine suggesting someone declare after a season that saw their ERA rise from 2.59 the year before all the way up to 6.39, but it might not matter for Guidry. The MLB draft is all about tools and Guidry certainly has the stuff that scouts look for.
The 22-year-old boasts a fastball, curveball, cutter mix. He is a high-energy reliever who is certain to at least get looks from MLB clubs. He still had 12.2 strikeouts per inning this season and dropped his walk rate, so it wasn't all bad, but hitters just saw him better this year.
LHP Santiago Garcia
Garcia has a 4.96 career ERA over two seasons with the Tigers and the Oregon Ducks. He is a strikeout machine who struggles heavily with surrendering walks, 17 in 22.2 innings this year, but like Guidry he has the tools that scouts look for more than college production.
The 21-year-old might just head to the minors if there is enough interest. Things aren't getting easier for him in college and he still has the excuse of being a raw talent. He has a good fastball and a solid breaking ball, which is all it takes for southpaw prospects sometimes.
Continue reading...
