Mississippi State Baseball's Slate Alford Enters Transfer Portal
Mississippi State third baseman Slate Alford has entered the transfer portal, according to Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball.
The sophomore infielder from Madison, Alabama played in 45 games for the Bulldogs, starting in 40 of them. During the 2023 season, Alford had a .248 batting average with 39 hits, 29 runs, 36 RBI's, and nine home runs.
Alford is a talented hitter, recording nine-multi hit games during his tenure in Starkville, but struggled defensively, fielding a .835 and committing 13 errors during the 2023 season.
Alford becomes the fifth player from the Bulldogs to enter the transfer portal since the conclusion of the season. Other players currently in the transfer portal, including freshmen catchers Bryce Hubbard and Ryan Williams, junior first-base man Von Seibert, and junior shortstop Lane Forsythe.
With five players in the transfer portal, this upcoming offseason will be a big one for Bulldog head coach Chris Lemonis and his coaching staff. The Bulldogs have missed back-to-back SEC and NCAA tournaments since winning the College World Series in 2021, and have also fired pitching coach Scott Foxhall after his pitching squad posted a SEC-worst 7.01 ERA.
With a top-15 recruiting class on the way, the Bulldogs have a lot of work to do this offseason through recruiting and the transfer portal in order to fill out roster spots and to bring the team back to its former glory.