How Can New Head Coach Jim Schlossnagle Make Texas Baseball Contenders?

With a limited window and a brand new team to work with, new Texas baseball head coach Jim Schlossnagle will have his hands full turning the Longhorns around in 2025.

University of Texas baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle speaks at his introductory news conference at the Frank Denius Family University Hall of Fame Wednesday June 26, 2024. / Jay Janner/American-Statesman / USA

Texas baseball head coach Jim Schlossnagle has been in Austin for just one full day, but it's clear that he’s going to have to get to work quickly.

After poaching the entirety of the Texas A&M coaching staff to replace head coach David Pierce, Texas baseball’s future looks to be in good hands. Schlossnagle and the staff nearly won the College World Series in 2024, and the head coach has made the postseason in nine of his last 10 seasons, with six CWS appearances during his time with A&M and TCU. 

But simply hiring a great staff isn’t enough to take Texas baseball back to where it wants to be: Omaha.

Schlossnagle’s goals seem to be clear early on, establish a culture and win immediately. But winning right away isn’t as easy as it seems.

University of Texas baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle speaks at his introductory news conference at the Frank Denius Family University Hall of Fame Wednesday June 26, 2024. / Jay Janner/American-Statesman / USA

Texas’ future will be very heavily influenced by the 2024 MLB Draft, taking place from July 14-16, where many players and recruits are expected to be picked.

At a bare minimum, Texas will lose three of their main 10 batters from last year, with Porter Brown, Jack O’Dowd and Peyton Powell all graduating, but it's hard to see a world where sophomores Jalin Flores and Jared Thomas don’t end up on signed to an MLB team this summer. It’s likely that Schlossnagle will have to replace four starting positions on the offense, and potentially starting pitcher Lebarron Johnson Jr.

On top of the former Longhorns, the future of the team could be in jeopardy because of the draft. Texas has an extremely strong recruiting class, headlined by MLB.com’s 10th-best draft prospect, shortstop Bryce Rainer. Alongside Rainer, Thomas, and Flores, Texas features four of their best recruits in the website's top 250 rankings. There’s a world in which Texas has seven players drafted in the first five rounds, which could cripple the team's talent pool.

So how does Schlossnagle address this? He needs to do something Pierce struggled with in the past: utilize the transfer portal to its fullest potential.

As of right now, the Texas roster has six of its starting nine positions covered. Catchers Rylan Galvan and Kimble Scheussler will split time between catcher and DH, Big 12 POTY Max Belyeu and 2023 top 50 recruit Will Gasprarino will take two of the outfield spots, and standout freshman Dee Kennedy and Casey Borba will likely slot into the left side of the infield.

Texas has Rainer and fellow shortstop recruit Theo Gillen don’t take contracts into the MLB, as they would be perfect options at shortstop, but otherwise, the team does not have CWS-level players to play at third base, shortstop, and left field.

The team still has plenty of depth, with freshman outfielder Tommy Farmer showing potential as well as players like sophomore infielder Jayden Duplantier and transfer outfielders Casey Cummings and Seth Werchan waiting to step up. But Texas will need to find players to replace the level of Flores, Powell and Thomas, the top of the order for the 2024 Texas team.

The easiest replacements could come from Schlossnagle’s old job, Texas A&M. The two best players in the transfer portal right now are former Aggies outfielder Jace Laviolette and third baseman Gavin Grahovac, both who would instantly slot in as top players for the Longhorns.

If those two aren’t available, Schlossnagle should look into the availability of shortstop Gavin Kilen, outfielder Logan Maxwell, third baseman Cole Cramer, infielder Bobby Boser, or any of the other A&M transfer options. Either way, Texas will need a minimum of two veteran or high-talent bats to make up for the loss of the top of their lineup.

On the pitching staff, Texas looks a lot deeper. Even if the likes of Johnson  Jr. or top prospects Levi Sterling, Jason Flores, and Kyle DeGroat take an MLB contract, Texas still has eight pitchers on the roster that pitched 19 or more innings in 2023. 

The bullpen may be good as is, with closer Gage Boehm and reliever Andre Duplantier II breaking out in 2024. With Ace Whitehead potentially moving to the pen and the high potential of younger arms like Cade O’Hara, Easton Tumis and Cole Selvig, Texas could be set in that group in 2025.

Where the team may struggle is with starting pitching. Max Grubbs will remain the Friday starter, but there are no guarantees after that. An elite transfer arm to pitch the weekends, such as Myles Patton or Austin Williamson, would make up for the loss of Johnson or a freshman to the draft.

Texas has under a week to make some big moves, as the summer transfer window ends on July 2. Schlossnagle doesn’t need to make every move for the Spring at this time, but as of right now Texas likely needs four starters from the transfer portal.

Schlossnagle maximized the portal in his time with Texas A&M, but doing so in Austin will be even harder given the time crunch. If Texas can bring in some of the best players from the last season, it’s easy to see a world where the team is one of the most competitive teams in the SEC in just its first year.