For third time in the last four years, LSU’s baseball recruiting class is ranked in the nation’s top 5.
The Tigers’ 17-man 2020 recruiting class of 10 pitchers, six position players and one two-way player is No. 2 behind Miami, and leads the 10 SEC teams ranked in the top 25 by Baseball America.
“We’re trying to develop a championship ball club, and I think we have the makings of a really great team,” LSU head coach Paul Mainieri said. “We’ve added to an already elite pitching staff with some really electric arms in this recruiting class. I just think our pitching staff has the chance to be one of the best pitching staffs we’ve ever had.”
It’s also LSU’s 13th top 10 finish in the past 14 years. The Tigers have finished No. 1 in a recruiting ranking in 2007, 2010, 2014 and 2018; No. 2 in 2020; No. 3 in 2009; No. 4 in 2012; No. 5 in 2017; No. 6 in 2019; No. 7 in 2011, 2015 and 2016; and No. 10 in 2013.
The 2020 ranking is third top 5 class for LSU assistant coach Nolan Cain, who has served as recruiting coordinator since 2017. Cain’s classes have been ranked No. 5 in 2017, No. 1 in 2018, No. 6 in 2019 and No. 2 in 2020.
“The incoming class also features some tremendously talented position players with exceptional abilities that can make an immediate impact upon our program.,” Mainieri said. “The new players combined with our returning veterans give us the chance to have a very potent offensive lineup.”
LSU’s recruiting class is led by outfielder Dylan Crews of Longwood (Fla.) Lake Mary, pitcher Ty Floyd of Rockmart (Ga.) High and outfielder/pitcher Brady Drost of Lake Charles Barbe High.
Crews, a projected first-round 2020 MLB draft pick ranked as the 35th best player in the draft by CBSsports.com., withdrew his name from coronavirus-shortened MLB draft to attend LSU.
“My ultimate dream was to go to LSU, be an icon, be a dude there,” Crews told Tiger Rag assistant editor William Weathers in July. “I want to get drafted out of college in 2023. I wanted to play for (LSU) coach (Paul) Mainieri because the coaching staff there was all that I wanted. Throughout this whole process I wanted to go to LSU. It’s something I always wanted to do.
“I wanted to develop my game, there’s no shortcuts in baseball. There wasn’t a better opportunity I could have than LSU. I know by going there, I’ll mature as a player, I’m going to be a better outfielder, be a better hitter and experience going to Omaha and hopefully win a national championship. I want to be the best player that I can when I re-enter the draft in 2023.”
The team will hold its first full-squad workout of the fall practice period on September 20. Fall practice finishes with the intra-squad Purple-Gold World Series October 27-29.
2020 Baseball America Top 25 Recruiting Class Ranking
1. Miami
2. LSU
3. Vanderbilt
4. Arizona
5. Florida
6. South Carolina
7. Stanford
8. Texas
9. Arkansas
10. Georgia Tech
11. Florida State
12. Georgia
13. Texas Christian
14. Auburn
15. Texas Tech
16. Oklahoma
17. Mississippi State
18. North Carolina
19. Tennessee
20. Oklahoma State
21. Mississippi
22. Louisville
23. Arizona State
24. Southern California
25. Florida International
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