Florida State Seminoles baseball faces elite competition early, showcasing preseason stars and a challenging lineup designed to forge a postseason path.
Florida State Seminoles baseball won 42 games last season and made it to the Corvallis Super Regional, where they fell to the host Beavers of Oregon State. Florida State, a perennial power, lost 11 players from last year’s team to the MLB draft. But the team will simply reload this season, with three of their own already getting some respectable preseason recognition.
The Seminoles start the season Feb. 13 with a three-game series at home against James Madison. But they get an early test in Week 2, when they travel to Arlington, Texas, and Globe Life Field to play in the Amegy Bank College Baseball Series.
It is an opportunity to play against some of the top teams in the country in a Major-League ballpark. Globe Life Field is home to the Texas Rangers.
Florida State joins a field of teams that looks like what a postseason bracket might look like. The other participants include Auburn, Kansas State, Louisville, Michigan and Nebraska.
This is not your ordinary tournament, meant to fill some early dates on the schedule. Auburn was a No. 4 national seed last season. Louisville made it to the 2025 College World Series. Nebraska won the Big Ten Tournament and played in the Chapel Hill regional.
The coaches from the participating teams, including Seminoles coach Link Jarrett, were on a Zoom call on Wednesday. Jarrett raved about his pitcher, lefty Trey Beard, a transfer from Florida Atlantic. Beard dominated last season, and his strikeouts-to-0walks ratio was 118/32. Also, Beard is an MLB Top 100 prospect.
Jarrett also talked about his outfield, and spoke highly of Chase Williams. Williams played in 32 games last season and anchored the outfield from his position in left field. Williams batted .342, with a slugging percentage of .474 and .394 on-base percentage.
Ranked as the No. 23 outfielder by D1 Baseball last season, Williams scored 17 runs, posted 54 total bases, stole 18 bases, and hit two home runs with 20 runs batted in.
Another player to know is catcher Hunter Carns. Last year, as a freshman, the Jacksonville native logged a .286 batting average with six home runs and 17 RBI. Over the summer, Carns played in the Cape Cod League and batted .327. Ahead of this season, Carns is on the watch list for the Buster Posey Award, given to the top catcher in college baseball.
This award is named after former Florida State catcher Buster Posey. Posey won the award, formerly called the Johnny Bench Award, in 2008. That season, he also won the Golden Spikes Award and the Dick Howser Trophy. Posey played 12 seasons in the major-leagues, all with the San Francisco Giants, and won three World Series championships with the team.
The Seminoles will be tested right out of the gate, but should have the right players at the right positions, along with their production, to get through that early-season gauntlet and, eventually, back to the postseason.
ㅤ
Join the Community! Don't miss out on our NOLES ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news! It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected.