BATON ROUGE – LSU is ranked No. 22 in the 2011 Baseball America magazine poll released Thursday.
The Tigers are one of four Southeastern Conference teams appearing in the Top 25, along with No. 1 Florida, No. 4 Vanderbilt and No. 7 South Carolina.
Cal State Fullerton and Tulane, two of LSU’s non-conference opponents this season, are No. 8 and No. 25, respectively, in the ranking.
The Tigers begin preseason practice at 2:30 p.m. Friday in Alex Box Stadium. All practices in the stadium are open to the public.
LSU opens the 2011 season at 7 p.m. on Friday, February 18 versus Wake Forest in Alex Box Stadium. The Tigers, who captured the 2009 College World Series title, are seeking their third CWS appearance in the past four seasons.
The LSU roster includes 16 lettermen from the 2010 club, including eight position players with starting experience and eight pitchers that recorded innings last season.
The LSU veterans are complemented by a talented class of 18 newcomers, including seven players that were selected in the 2010 Major League Draft. The class was voted No. 1 in the nation in September in the annual Collegiate Baseball recruiting ranking.
2011 Baseball America Preseason Poll
Team 2010 Record Final 2010 Ranking
1. Florida 47-17 7
2. UCLA 51-17 2
3. Texas Christian 54-14 3
4. Vanderbilt 46-20 14
5. Oklahoma 50-18 5
6. Texas 50-13 9
7. South Carolina 54-16 1
8. Cal State Fullerton 46-18 11
9. Connecticut 48-16 NR
10. Clemson 45-25 10
11. Arizona State 52-10 4
12. Florida State 48-20 6
13. Stanford 31-25 NR
14. Oregon 40-24 25
15. Virginia 51-14 8
16. Baylor 36-24 NR
17. California 29-25 NR
18. Rice 40-23 21
19. Arizona 34-24 NR
20. College of Charleston 44-19 NR
21. Texas A&M 43-21 23
22. LSU 41-22 NR
23. St. John’s 43-20 NR
24. Miami 43-20 15
25. Tulane 32-24 NR