Who's on Mississippi State baseball's 2027 roster? MLB draft prospects, portal needs

[ASFN Admin]

Mississippi State baseball had a stacked roster in 2026, but there are still areas that must get better for 2027.

There are also departing players the Bulldogs must replace.

MSU will lose most of its starting position players, including Ace Reese, who could be a first-round MLB draft pick. MSU returns a lot of its pitching, but the bullpen was a weakness in 2026 for coach Brian O'Connor's first season.

Here's a look at Mississippi State's roster for 2027, including strengths, team needs and draft-eligible players to monitor.

Mississippi State returns starting pitchers in 2027​

All three weekend starting pitchers, Tomas Valincius, Ryan McPherson and Duke Stone, are not eligible for the draft. Add in Maddox Miller and Jack Bauer off promising freshman seasons, and that's a solid core of pitchers.

Mississippi State will need to do a lot of its replacing with position players. Five starters — Gehrig Frei, Noah Sullivan, Reed Stallman, Vytas Valincius and Bryce Chance — are out of eligibility.

That doesn't include Reese. It would be a surprise if he doesn't sign an MLB contract. MLB.com ranks Reese as the No. 21 prospect in the 2026 draft.

Mississippi State baseball's transfer portal needs​

The transfer portal opened June 1, and Mississippi State already landed one player before its season ended in the Athens Super Regional on June 7. The Bulldogs got Georgia Southern's Sun Belt Freshman of the Year Brady Christman. He's listed as a catcher/outfielder but could also be a designated hitter for Mississippi State with Sullivan gone.

Jacob Parker isn't eligible for the draft until 2028 after a breakout freshman season. He, Kevin Milewski and Ryder Woodson could be the only starting position players who return.

MORE: What kept Mississippi State from getting to Omaha in Brian O'Connor's first season

That means MSU has needs for position players essentially everywhere except shortstop and catcher. Those transfers would need to be starting caliber, unless Mississippi State thinks players like Aidan Teel, James Nunnallee and Chone James can fill those roles.

Mississippi State also has freshmen like Peter Merhson, Nick Frontino and Charlie Wortham who seldomly played in 2026.

Finding key relief pitchers in the portal will be a necessity, especially a closer that Mississippi State never had in 2026.

Ben Davis is the only key reliever out of eligibility, but it is an area Mississippi State must upgrade. William Kirk, a redshirt freshman, was supposed to be an important pitcher for MSU in 2026 but suffered a season-ending knee injury during his first career start on Feb. 24 against Austin Peay.

Mississippi State's MLB draft risks to monitor​

The MLB draft July 11-12 will impact the roster, too.

Teel and Milewski could get drafted but are in opposite situations. Teel seemed like a certain 2026 draft pick after transferring to MSU this season, but he fell out of the lineup by May. Milewski had a slow start to the season but had a great finish, including four home runs in the last four games.

Tyler Pitzer, Dane Burns and Maddox Webb are relief pitchers to monitor as draft risks.

Mississippi State's recruiting class is ranked No. 6 nationally by Perfect Game and includes many draft prospects. The class includes six players ranked inside MLB.com's top 200 draft prospects: catcher Will Brick (No. 51), shortstop Rocco Maniscalco (No. 56), pitchers Landon Brown (No. 63), Denton Lord (No. 72) and Wilson Andersen (No. 108) and outfielder Martin Shelar (No. 193).

Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X @sklarsam_.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi State baseball roster 2027: Portal needs, draft prospects

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