News: LSU Baseball Hires Pitching Coach Wes Johnson Away From Minnesota Twins

Johnson able to bring professional environment to Baton Rouge, improve bullpen after shaky end to 2022 season

LSU baseball is hiring Minnesota Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson to the same role in Baton Rouge, per Kendall Rogers of D1 Baseball. Johnson has been with the Twins since 2018 before previous stints with Mississippi State and Arkansas.

It’s quite the hire by head coach Jay Johnson and this program, as the Tigers will be looking to pry a few of their 2022 signees from the MLB Draft. This will certainly help LSU’s case.

This is a first: A big league pitching coach leaving a first-place team for a college job in the middle of the MLB season. https://t.co/gwAmlgdRPP

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) June 26, 2022

Johnson will be replacing Jason Kelly, who recently took over a head coaching position with the University of Washington. Kelly was named the Assistant Coach of the Year during his stint with Washington a few years back, ultimately returning to where he saw incredible success.

“My family and I could not be more excited to be heading back to Seattle,” Kelly said in a statement. “The University of Washington has always been home to us. I would like to give a special thank you to President [Ana Mari] Cauce, Jen Cohen and Kim Durand for entrusting me with this incredible opportunity. I am proud to be a Husky, and can’t wait to get to work. Go Dawgs!”

Now, the Tigers get their guy in Wes Johnson. During Johnson’s tenure with the Twins, they twice won the AL Central Division and are on pace to make the postseason yet again in 2022. The Twins also ranked in the top 10 in MLB in team ERA in each of Johnson’s first two seasons in Minnesota.

LSU will look to improve their bullpen in the 2023 season after a number of struggles to close out the 2022 season. Unable to get it going in the SEC tournament and carrying the same issues into the Hattiesburg Regional, the Tigers will benefit significantly from Johnson coming to Baton Rouge and improving an LSU bullpen that has already made a myriad of positive additions.