BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU is No. 1 in the 2018 Baseball America magazine recruiting ranking released on Wednesday, marking the Tigers’ fourth No. 1 designation since 2007.
LSU has now finished in the Top 5 of a recruiting poll seven times in the past 12 seasons, and the Tigers are in the Top 10 for the 11th time in the past 12 years.
The Tigers have finished No. 1 in the recruiting ranking in 2007, 2010, 2014 and 2018; No. 3 in 2009; No. 4 in 2012; No. 5 in 2017; No. 7 in 2011, 2015 and 2016; and No. 10 in 2013.
The 16-man recruiting class is composed of nine pitchers and seven position players, and it contains seven players that have been chosen in an MLB Draft – outfielder Giovanni DiGiacomo, catcher Saul Garza, left-handed pitcher Easton McMurray, right-handed pitcher Landon Marceaux, right-handed pitcher Cole Henry, right-handed pitcher Jaden Hill and catcher/outfielder CJ Willis.
LSU led all schools with eight recruits listed on the 2018 Baseball America Top 500, which is made up of all draft-eligible players.
“Our recruiting coordinator, Nolan Cain, and our associate head coach, Alan Dunn, did a tremendous job in securing the No. 1 class in the nation,” said 13th-year LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “Several members of the class could have signed pro contracts, but they wanted to come to LSU. They didn’t want to give up on the college experience and the opportunity to be a part of the LSU baseball program. I know that these decisions will work out best for them, because I know what’s in store for them as LSU student-athletes.
“We have very high standards here, so it’s going to be very challenging for the new players. It’s going to be very competitive, but it’s going to make them all better as players. We are extremely excited about this class and the immediate impact the players can make upon our program.”
The new Tigers have engaged in conditioning drills and individual workouts with the returning LSU players since late August, and the team will hold its first full-squad workout of the fall practice session on Sunday, September 23.
A new NCAA rule allows the Tigers to play two exhibition games this fall against another school. LSU will play a two-game exhibition series against the University of New Orleans – Game 1 will be on Sunday, October 14, at 3 p.m. CT in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field, and Game 2 will be on Saturday, October 27, at 1 p.m. CT at UNO’s Maestri Field.
Fall practice concludes with the intra-squad Purple-Gold World Series November 1-4, and the 2019 season opens on February 15 when the Tigers play host to Louisiana-Monroe in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
2018 Baseball America Top 25 Recruiting Class Rankings
1. LSU
2. Vanderbilt
3. Florida State
4. Louisville
5. Florida
6. UCLA
7. Texas A&M
8. Texas
9. Clemson
10. Miami
11. Virginia
12. Mississippi State
13. Arizona
14. Southern California
15. Alabama
16. Cal State Fullerton
17. Auburn
18. Texas Tech
19. Florida International
20. Texas Christian
21. South Carolina
22. North Carolina
23. Kentucky
24. Illinois
25. Coastal Carolina