2014 Recruiting class

Currently ranked 6th by Collegiate Baseball Magazine. Baseball America has rated us 24th in it's latest ranking. They do 4 years later reproject the ranking. Perfect Game has a running ranking on their site and we are 56th. PG does not account for junior college players which is the strength of our 2014 class.


Freshmen:

RHP Jesse McCord 6-2 190: Rated 200 by Perfect Game. His brother played baseball at Auburn. Quality pitcher. Highly ranked in his home state of Alabama. I see him coming out of the BP in 2015.

LHP Andrew Mahoney 6-2 210: Rated 386 by PG. Another highly thought of pitcher from Alabama. He is coming off surgery but appears to be healthy.

MIF Ryan Gridley 5-9 180: Rated 391 by PG. A scrappy player who gets it done. He looks up to Dustin Pedrioa of the Red Sox. I hope he turns out just like Dustin! Ryan is from talent rich Georgia. I think he can be a quality backup this year.

RHP/RF/1B Cole Gordon 6-6 240: Ranked 500 by PG. Really don't know where they have him this fall. I have read where he tears the cover off the ball from the left side. I see him pinch hitting some in 2015. Cole is from Florida.

RHP Aaron Dominguez 6-0 195: Ranked 500 by PG. Aaron from what I hear is a Bulldog on the mound. A very determined pitcher. I do see him coming out of the BP for some innings.

LHP Paxton Stover 5-11 180: Paxton is from Tennessee. I don't know much about Paxton but as you can see he is a lefty which means he has a real good chance at BP duty in 2015.

Transfers: (the heart of this recruiting class)

MIF John Holland 5-11 180, Jr.: A no doubt huge pick up. He started some as a true freshman for Florida State. He can play great defense and hit from the left side. What else can you ask for? He and returnee SS Seth Heck will make for highlight reel material in 2015.

LHP Daniel Brown 5-11 185, So.: Another huge pick up (have you noticed that the coaches do a great job signing JC transfers in the positions we need the most help). He was All-American at a Texas juco. He was nasty from the left side. He was a starter too. He will do everything in 2015.

CF Michael Smith 5-10 170, Jr.: A very, very fast player. Michael is from Tennessee. He is a lead off, bunt for a single, steal second base baseball player. Any questions? I think he and Jacob Robson will tag team in CF.

2B/3B Matt Spruill 6-1 190, Jr.: Originally from Virginia but played in Texas juco last two years. His older brother is a MLBer for the Diamondbacks, a pitcher. I don't know much about him but he looks interesting.

LHP/1B Trent Waddell 6-3 210, Jr.: Another player that makes me go mmmmm. He played mostly 1B at East Ms CC and pitched a little mostly due to arm issues. I think he will mostly pitch with us. His arm is healthy. He has the size and of course he is left handed too. Fall ball will determine what we got.

RHP Logan Elliot 6-1 175, So.: A side arm action pitcher. Pitched last year at Tallahassee JC. He had good stats last year. Fall ball will determine what we got.

3B/DH Luke Reynolds 6-2 180, So.: The word on him is that he is a good hitter, bats left. Could become the DH or a situational hitter batting left. Again, fall ball will determine.

RHP Cole Barlow 6-2 190, Jr.: A Mississippi juco product. Another side arm pitcher. We shall see during fall ball what he has.

C Josh Lovelady 6-0 190, Jr.: Will push for PT behind starter Gavin Collins. We shall see during fall ball.


RECAP: What this class brings in JC star power. Expect at least 3 JC's to have a major impact in 2015. John Cohen likes to bring the freshman along slow, so that is what to expect with a few of them. But the JC guys will be thrown in to compete for spots immediately. Some of these guys are unknown so I am excited to see what they can do. I totally trust the coaches knack for finding talent. The 2015 class will rely heavily on the HS guys so this class went with JC players. It doesn't matter where they came from, if they can play and we win, it is all that matters. I will have more after fall ball is over.