Where LSU Baseball Players, Signees Projected in 2022 MLB Draft
The 2022 MLB Draft is just a few days away with a number of LSU signees set to test the waters before making a decision on their baseball future. Jay Johnson and the Tigers signed a deep 2022 class as they prepare for next season, but the draft could certainly put a dent in what they have assembled to this point.
LSU’s Class of 2022 has five MLB Draft prospects projected to go in the first or second rounds: Bishop Gorman High School (Nevada) outfielder Justin Crawford, McQueen High School (Nevada) left-hander Rob Snelling, Hammond High School (South Carolina) third baseman Tucker Toman and Orange Lutheran (California) shortstop Mikey Romero, according to MLB Pipeline’s Prospect List.
This year’s MLB Draft being so late hurts all college programs, not just the Tigers. Building a team for next season via the 2022 high school class and having a decent amount of those prospects potentially heading the professional route changes everything.
Coach Johnson told The Advocate his thoughts on the draft and the difficulties it causes head coaches.
“I'll give you my opinion: this is horrendous for us as coaches,” Johnson said. “I think there are four (prospects) that have no chance of showing up here next year based on the season they had and where they are and it is what it is. I'm going to move forward to get us what we need. I'm not gonna let any one player hold our program hostage. It's a complicated issue that I spend every day working on.”
The Tigers will lose two players from last year’s team in projected first rounders Jacob Berry and and Cade Doughty to the draft, but aside from those two, LSU has a chance to reel in a few of their high school signees.
After top 100 prospect Paxton Kling made his decision regarding the MLB Draft, pulling out and choosing to honor his LSU commitment, the Tigers saw a major domino fall their way.
He is ranked Pennsylvania’s top player by Perfect Game and is the nation’s No. 7 prospect in the 2022 class according to Prep Baseball Report. Kling was named the 2022 Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year after dominating his senior year.
But now, the Tigers focus shifts to swaying the rest of their 2022 signees to Baton Rouge as this LSU program prepares for the 2023 season. Johnson and the Tigers will have their work cut out for them, but with the transfer portal becoming such a key piece to recruiting, they will still have the chance to build on their already deep roster.