LSU Tigers Stars Take Over 150 College Baseball Freshman List

The LSU Tigers baseball team just had a surprisingly rough season and Jay Johnson is determined to make sure it doesn't happen again, as they have invested heavily in both their transfer and freshman classes.

Prep Baseball released its list of the top 150 freshmen in the country, and there were 10 separate Tigers newcomers highlighted. This new crop of players will not only set LSU back on the right path for the future, but a handful of these stars are going to force their way onto the field right away.

Here is the full crop of Tigers freshmen who were named, per the school's announcement: Coleton Brady, Nate Davis, Parker Loew, Dylan Minnatee, Lucas Nawrocki, Dominic Santarelli, Logan Schmidt, Cooper Sides, Kolby Stringer and Malachi Washington.

Because of this new NIL era in college baseball, LSU has not only been able to bring in more top talent in terms of quantity, but also quality. Better players are now skipping out on the MLB draft, because going the NCAA route is now just like going to the minor leagues.

A player like Schmidt being able to get to the Tigers' mound would probably not have happened even just a few years ago. Now, there is a career path like Kade Anderson to follow. He was someone who could have gotten drafted out of high school, but went to college. He dominated while at LSU, developed quickly and is now in the Majors just over a year after being drafted.

The Tigers also didn't necessarily expect to have this much high school talent coming in, as they also made sure they had a full lineup of starters before the draft even began. They brought in top players from the transfer portal to fill the holes that could now be filled by freshman talent. It's a good problem to have.

Santarelli is someone who could potentially earn playing time as a freshman either at first base or designated hitter. That could work out as he does have a different profile to Mason Braun, who is also anticipated to fill a similar role. Braun is more contact-forward while Santarelli brings a ton of pop.

Washington could also force an uncomfortable decision as LSU brought in starting-level outfielders at all three spots, but the freshman is viewed as ready to compete. His bat is coming around quickly, and his glove could already be one of the best on the team.