Tigers Projected to Finish Second in SEC West; White, Travinski Receive Preseason All-SEC Honors

BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU is predicted to finish second in the SEC Western Division, and two Tigers received 2024 Preseason All-SEC recognition Thursday in a vote of the league’s 14 baseball head coaches.

Arkansas is projected to win the 2024 SEC baseball championship in the coaches’ vote. Three different schools received first place votes to win the SEC title. Arkansas led the way with nine votes, while LSU received three and Florida received two.

The Razorbacks are predicted to win the SEC Western Division, followed by LSU and Texas A&M. Florida was the pick to win the Eastern Division, followed by Tennessee and Vanderbilt.

LSU junior third baseman Tommy White was voted to the First-Team All-SEC squad, and graduate catcher/first baseman Hayden Travinski was granted Second-Team All-SEC honors.

White, a 2023 First-Team All-American, batted .374 (102-for-273) last season with 24 doubles, 24 homers, 105 RBI and 64 runs scored. He finished No. 1 in the nation in RBI (105), No. 3 in total bases (198) and No. 4 in RBI per game (1.59), as he helped lead LSU to the College World Series title.

White, a product of St. Pete Beach, Fla., completed the season No. 1 in the SEC in RBI (105), No. 2 in total bases (198), No. 2 in hits (102), No. 2 in doubles (24), No. 4 in homers (24), No. 6 in batting average (.374) and No. 7 in slugging percentage (.725).

Travinski, a native of Shreveport, La., is a two-time SEC Academic Honor Roll selection, and he received his LSU bachelor’s degree in the spring of 2023.

Travinski earned the starting catcher position at the end of April and played a tremendous role in the Tigers’ drive to the 2023 National Championship. He appeared in 41 games (23 starts) on the year, batting .356 (37-for-104) with five doubles, 10 homers, 30 RBI and 30 runs scored.

He was voted to the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional All-Tournament Team after hitting .429 (6-for-14) with one double, two homers, five RBI and five runs. He batted .538 (7-for-13) in the SEC Tournament with one double, three RBI and three runs scored, recording a career-best four hits in four-at bats with two runs scored in the May 25 game versus Arkansas.

2024 SEC Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll
Eastern Division
1. Florida (11) – 88
2. Tennessee (2) – 75
3. Vanderbilt (1) – 73
4. South Carolina – 50
5. Kentucky – 44
6. Georgia – 36
7. Missouri – 19

Western Division
1. Arkansas (9) – 87
2. LSU (5) – 82
3. Texas A&M – 68
4. Alabama – 47
5. Auburn – 46
6. Ole Miss – 32
7. Mississippi State – 23

SEC Champion: Arkansas (9), LSU (3), Florida (2)

() – First place votes

2024 SEC Baseball Coaches Preseason All-SEC Team
First Team
C: Cole Messina, South Carolina
1B: Jac Caglianone, Florida
2B: Cade Kurland, Florida
3B: Tommy White, LSU
SS: Colby Shelton, Florida
OF: Jace LaViolette, Texas A&M
OF: Ethan Petry, South Carolina
OF: Kendall Diggs, Arkansas
DH/UTL: Ike Irish, Auburn
SP: Hagen Smith, Arkansas
SP: Drew Beam, Tennessee
RP: Brandon Neely, Florida

Second Team
C: Devin Burkes, Kentucky
1B: Charlie Condon, Georgia
2B: Christian Moore, Tennessee
3B: Billy Amick, Tennessee
SS: Jonathan Vastine, Vanderbilt
OF: Braden Montgomery, Texas A&M
OF: Dakota Jordan, Mississippi State
OF: Bobby Peirce, Auburn
DH/UTL: Hayden Travinski, LSU
SP: Jac Caglianone, Florida
SP: Carter Holton, Vanderbilt
RP: Alton Davis II, Alabama