12/22/2020
LSU Sports Information
By: William Franques


​HILL, FONTENOT EARN PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA RECOGNITION FROM COLLEGIATE BASEBALL
 
BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU pitchers Jaden Hill and Devin Fontenot on Tuesday received 2021 Preseason All-America recognition from Collegiate Baseball newspaper. Hill was named to the first team, and Fontenot was voted to the second team by the publication.
 
Hill, a junior right-hander from Ashdown, Ark., allowed just one hit in 11.2 innings in the shortened 2020 season while recording 17 strikeouts. Opponents batted only .028 (1-for-36) against Hill during the year.
 
Hill made his first appearance in a game in nearly a year when he worked two relief innings versus Indiana on February 15. Hill, who was sidelined in 2019 by an elbow injury, was dominant in the outing, firing two shutout frames with no hits, one walk and three strikeouts. His fastball was consistently clocked in the upper 90s, peaking at 98 mph.
 
Hill earned his first LSU career save in a February 28 win over Texas with a dominating three-inning performance. He fired three scoreless frames, allowing no hits with one walk and six strikeouts, preserving the Tigers’ 4-3 victory.
 
Hill fired four perfect innings with three strikeouts on March 7 to earn a save versus UMass Lowell.
 
Fontenot, a senior right-hander from The Woodlands, Texas, was 1-0 in 2020 with a 0.90 ERA, four walks, 17 strikeouts and four saves in 10 innings, and he ranked No. 3 in the SEC in saves.
 
He recorded a win and two saves in his final three appearances of the 2020 season, working five scoreless and hitless innings in that three-game stretch with two walks and 11 strikeouts.
 
Fontenot pitched four scoreless innings over two relief appearances during the final week of the season, earning a save versus Southeastern Louisiana and a win over UMass Lowell. He allowed no hits with two walks and nine strikeouts in the two appearances.
 
Fontenot will enter the 2021 season with a 9-5 record and 11 saves in 64 career appearances (five starts) for the Tigers. He has registered 115 strikeouts in 100.1 career innings at LSU.
 

12/21/2020
LSU Sports Information
By: William Franques


​              LSU RANKED NO. 7 IN 2021 COLLEGIATE BASEBALL PRESEASON POLL
 
BATON ROUGE, La. -- LSU is ranked No. 7 in the 2021 Collegiate Baseball newspaper preseason poll released Monday, marking the ninth time in 10 seasons the Tigers will begin the year among the Top 10 teams in the nation.
 
Despite some obstacles created by COVID-19, LSU completed its fall practice session in November, and the team will begin preseason workouts on Friday, January 29. The Tigers’ 2021 schedule of games may be finalized in the coming weeks.
 
“I'm just so thrilled that we were able to have a fall practice," said coach Paul Mainieri, who will enter the 2021 season ranked No. 1 on the active NCAA Division I coaches wins list with 1,467 career victories in 38 seasons at St. Thomas, Air Force, Notre Dame and LSU. “We got an awful lot done and found out a lot about our team. I'm excited about this team, and we can certainly make a run at it with some very talented players.
 
“We’ll come back for preseason practice in January, and we’ll have a very competitive environment with guys working to earn roles on the ball club.”
 
LSU has a 39-man roster that includes a recruiting class ranked No. 2 in the country by Baseball America magazine. The Tigers also return 10 position players with starting experience and 11 pitchers who recorded innings last season.
 
Four juniors – outfielder/first baseman Cade Beloso, centerfielder Giovanni DiGiacomo, outfielder/infielder Gavin Dugas and outfielder/infielder Drew Bianco – provide a veteran presence among the position players.
 
Members of the skilled sophomore class – catchers Alex Milazzo and Hayden Travinski; infielders Collier Cranford, Cade Doughty and Zach Arnold; and outfielders Maurice Hampton Jr. and Mitchell Sanford will be counted upon to play significant roles this season.
 
The pitching staff is led by junior right-hander Jaden Hill, who is projected as the Tigers’ No. 1 starter; and senior right-hander Devin Fontenot, who is expected to work as the LSU closer. Both Hill and Fontenot earned 2020 All-America honors following the pandemic-shortened season.
 
LSU has a very deep staff that includes two returning weekend starters – junior right-handers Landon Marceaux and AJ Labas. The bullpen features a wealth of experience, including senior right-handers Matthew Beck, Ma’Khail Hilliard, Aaron George and Trent Vietmeier; senior left-hander Brandon Kaminer, junior right-hander Nick Storz and sophomore left-hander Jacob Hasty.
 
The Tigers’ talented 16-man recruiting class is composed of 10 pitchers and six position players, with several of them expected to make a major impact this season.
 
LSU is one of 12 Southeastern Conference teams appearing in the Collegiate Baseball 2021 preseason Top 50, along with No. 1 Florida, No. 2 Vanderbilt, No. 5 Ole Miss, No. 9 Mississippi State, No. 12 Georgia, No. 21 South Carolina, No. 22 Arkansas, No. 26 Texas A&M, No. 27 Alabama, No. 35 Tennessee and No. 37 Auburn.
 
2021 Collegiate Baseball Preseason Poll (2020 records in parentheses)
1.          Florida (16-1)
2.          Vanderbilt (13-5)
3.          UCLA (13-2)
4.          Texas Tech (16-3)
5.          Mississippi (16-1)
6.          Miami, Fla. (12-4)
7.         LSU (12-5)
8.          UC Santa Barbara (13-2)
9.          Mississippi St. (12-4)
10.        Arizona (10-5)
11.        Louisville (13-4)
12.        Georgia (14-4)
13.        N.C. State (14-3)
14.        Virginia (14-4)
15.        Arizona St. (13-4)
16.        East Carolina (13-4)
17.        Oklahoma St. (13-5)
18.        Michigan (8-7)
19.        TCU (11-4)
20.        Texas (14-3)
21.        South Carolina (12-4)
22.        Arkansas (11-5)
23.        Coastal Carolina (11-5)
24.        Dallas Baptist (12-4)
25.        Clemson (14-3)
26.        Texas A&M (15-3)
27.        Alabama (16-1)
28.        Florida St. (12-5)
29.        Southern Mississippi (12-4)
30.        Texas St. (14-4)
31.        Stetson (11-4)
32.        Central Florida (15-3)
33.        Pepperdine (12-3)
34.        Georgia Tech (11-5)
35.        Tennessee (15-2)
36.        Duke (12-4)
37.        Auburn (13-5)
38.        Central Michigan (11-6)
39.        Indiana (9-6)
40.        Winthrop (11-4)
41.        Oklahoma (14-4)
42.        UC Irvine (8-7)
43.        Tulane (15-2)
44.        Long Beach St. (10-5)
45.        Wichita St. (13-2)
46.        Minnesota (8-10)
47.        Notre Dame (11-2)
48.        Houston (6-9)
49.        Oregon St. (5-9)
50.        Stanford (5-11)