#2 Michael Papierski Season 2025

2017 SEC Academic Honor Roll

MLB Draft: 9th Round in 2017 (Houston); 16th round in 2014 (Toronto)

Superb player that looks like a big-league catcher … has an outstanding arm from behind the plate and excelled as the Tigers’ starting catcher in 2016 and 2017 … played in 147 career games (114 starts) for LSU, batting .246 (84-for-342) with 17 doubles, 15 homers, 69 RBI, 61 runs, 76 walks and a .389 on-base percentage … selected by the Houston Astros in the ninth round of the 2017 MLB Draft and signed with Houston in the summer of ’17 … selected by the Toronto Blue Jays as a high school senior in the 16th round of the 2014 MLB Draft … a member of the 2017 SEC Academic Honor Roll as a sport administration major.

2017 Season
Played in 65 games (62 starts), batting .256 (45-for-176) with six doubles, 11 homers, 39 RBI, 37 runs, 40 walks and a .401 on-base percentage … threw out 23 runners attempting to steal over the course of the season … ranked No. 9 in the SEC with 40 walks … helped lead LSU to wins in 25 of its last 30 games, batting .302 (26-for-86) with three doubles, eight homers and 26 RBI … batted .281 (9-for-32) in LSU’s NCAA Tournament games with two doubles, four homers, 13 RBI and 10 runs … launched three homers and drove in five runs in the College World Series … homered from each side of the plate in LSU’s CWS semifinal win over Oregon State on June 24, becoming the first player in College World Series history to homer both from the right side and the left side in a single game … 2-for-5 in NCAA Super Regional vs. Miss. State (June 10-11) with two doubles, three RBI, three runs, one walk and one hit-by-pitch … Papierski had the game-winning RBI in both Super Regional games – he lifted a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning of Game 1 to break a 3-3 tie, and his two-run double in the fifth inning of Game 2 erased a 4-3 MSU lead … 2-for-5 in NCAA Regional with one homer, five RBI, three runs, four walks, one hit-by-pitch and a .636 on-base percentage … batted a team-best .342 (13-for-38) in final 12 SEC regular-season games with one double, four HRs, 12 RBI and nine runs … 4-for-13 in Miss. State series (May 18-20) with one homer, three RBI, four runs, two walks and a .400 on-base percentage … batted .400 (2-for-5) in three games versus Auburn with two homers, five RBI, three runs, three walks, two sacrifice bunts and a .625 on-base percentage … Papierski’s two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning on May 12 against Auburn right-hander Keegan Thomson broke a 3-3 tie and lifted LSU to a 5-3 victory … enjoyed a very productive series at Alabama (April 27-29) with three hits – including one double and one homer – three RBI, one run, five walks, two steals and a .600 on-base percentage … Papierski launched a solo homer in the top of the ninth inning in Game 2 to expand LSU’s lead from 6-4 to 7-4, and he lined the game-winning RBI single in the top of the 11th inning in a 4-3 LSU victory in Game 3 … launched a grand slam vs. Tulane (March 28); it was LSU’s first grand slam since the 2016 NCAA Regional vs. Rice when Greg Deichmann hit a bases-loaded homer … smashed a three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning vs. Maryland (Feb. 24) extending LSU’s lead from 3-1 to the eventual final margin of 6-1.

2016 Season
Played in 50 games (40 starts at catcher), batting .242 (30-for-124) with nine doubles, three homers, 20 RBI and 16 runs threw out 19 runners attempting to steal on the year … posted a .364 (8-for-22) average in LSU’s six NCAA Tournament games (regional and super regional combined) with three doubles, one homer, two RBI and two runs scored … hit .500 (4-for-8) in the NCAA Super Regional versus Coastal Carolina with one double and one run scored … batted .286 (4-for-14) in the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional with two doubles, one homer, two RBI and one run scored; his home run came in the 8th inning of the regional championship win over Rice (June 7), a solo blast to give LSU a 4-2 lead … provided a two-run single and a sacrifice fly in LSU’s SEC Tournament win over Mississippi State (May 26) … blasted solo homer in win over Southeastern Louisiana (April 20) … singled, walked twice and drove in two runs in LSU win over Southern (April 5) … posted career highs of three hits and three RBI in LSU win over Ball State on March 13; he also scored a run and threw out a runner attempting to steal second base in the contest … belted two doubles with one RBI and two runs at Lamar (Feb. 24).

2015 Season
Played in 32 games (12 starts at catcher), batting .214 (9-for-42) with two doubles, one homer, 10 RBI and eight runs scored … 2-for-4 in LSU win at New Orleans (May 12) with one homer and two RBI … also collected two RBI in LSU win at Arkansas (March 20) and in the Tigers’ victory over Princeton (Feb. 28) … threw out five baserunners attempting to steal during the season.

Prior to LSU
Team captain who helped lead Lemont High to the 2014 3A Illinois State Championship … batted .410 in 2014 with 12 doubles, eight homers, 42 runs, 30 RBI, 13 steals and a .543 on-base percentage … 2013 & 2014 All-Area and All-State selection … also named All-Conference in 2012, 2013 and 2014 … named to the Lemont High Honor Roll every semester during his entire career … played in the Area Code Games in Long Beach, Calif.

Personal
Full name is Michael John Papierski … parents are Mike and Peggy Papierski … has one younger sister, Katelyn … his father and his uncle, John, played baseball at the University of St. Francis … chose to attend LSU because of “the coaching staff and how they can help me improve as a baseball player and as a person. Also influencing my decision was the chance to play for a National Championship every year and the great fans that come out every day to support our team” … majoring in sport administration at LSU … born February 26, 1996 in Palos Heights, Ill.

Papierski’s LSU Career Highs
At-Bats: 5 several times; most recently at Mississippi State (5/20/17)
Hits: 3 vs. Ball State (3/13/16)
Runs Scored: 3 three times; most recently vs. Mississippi State (6/11/17)
Doubles: 2 at Lamar (2/24/16)
Triples: none
Home Runs: 2 vs. Oregon State (6/24/17)
RBI: 4 three times; most recently vs. Oregon State (6/24/17)