Projecting USC baseball's depth chart ahead of Trojans' 2023 season opener

Jaden Agassi - the son of tennis legends Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf - is back for his junior season

The 2023 college baseball season has arrived.

With some long-time starters on the way out, and a medley of freshmen and transfers coming in, USC baseball begins the Andy Stankiewicz era on a new page.

Stankiewicz was hired last summer to replace Jason Gill who left in June amid unsatisfactory on-field results and an investigation into his questionable leadership.

With USC's season set to begin Friday at home against Marist, here's a closer look at the depth chart at every position:

USC BASEBALL DEPTH CHART

INFIELD

The good news in the infield is two significant contributors are returning: Nick Lopez and Johnny Olmstead. The two combined for 14 home runs and 82 RBIs last season, and Lopez slashed .282/.363/.460 in 47 games, while being a reliable target at first base.

However, two key starters departed the Trojans’ 2022 infield. Tyresse Turner was drafted in the 15th round of the 2022 MLB draft by the Cleveland Guardians, and D’Andre Smith went in the 5th round to the New York Mets. The production of Turner and Smith will have to be replaced by a combination of freshmen and transfers.

Freshman Ethan Hedges out of Mater Dei was the No. 9 ranked shortstop in California for the 2022 class. He will compete for playing time in the middle infield and may contribute on the mound as well, with a fastball he can run up to 92 mph.

The rest of the innings will be filled out by Ryan Jackson, a junior transfer who hit .344 at Nevada last season, Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek, a sophomore transfer from UCLA, freshman Kaikea Harrison, and Caden Huber, who was on the squad last year but did not see the field.

Behind the dish, both Tyler Lozano and Garret Guillemette, who caught the majority of innings for the Trojans the last two years, are now gone, leaving the Trojans without much experience at the catcher position.

It is yet to be seen which catchers will assume most of the playing time, but on the roster, there are two veteran transfers, Connor Clift from Cal Baptist and Connor Aoki from Binghamton. Incoming freshmen include Luca DiPaolo and Jacob Galloway.

OUTFIELD

Freshman Austin Overn projects as USC’s most exciting prospect. The outfielder ran a ridiculous 6.19 second 60-yard dash, in the top 0.1% of his class. He ranked just outside the top 100 nationally, according to Perfect Game, and was the No. 2 outfielder in California.

A wiry all-around player, Overn is crafty at the plate and smooth in center field, with an arm clocking at 91 mph from the outfield. He’ll certainly fight for playing time and could be an impact player if he puts it together at the plate. Overn also plays wide receiver for the USC football team.

Adrian Colon-Rosado is back for his senior season, providing some optimism and consistency for the outfield. He hit eight homers for the Trojans in 2022 and slashed .298/.372/.466 as one of the team’s most dependable players.

The loss of Rhylan Thomas, who was drafted in the 11th round by the Mets, and Trevor Halsema, who hit seven homers with 35 RBIs in 45 starts for the Trojans last year, will certainly be felt, so others will need to step up to fill out the outfield.

Cole Gabrielson, Carson Wells, and freshman Caleb Brandon will battle for a spot in the lineup.

ROTATION

The Trojans’ pitching rotation could potentially be a strength in the 2023 season.

Jaden Agassi - the son of tennis legends Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf - is likely USC’s most valuable prospect for the upcoming MLB draft this summer. He started 10 games last year and posted a 4.34 ERA.

Tyler Stromsborg had a 4.18 ERA over 12 starts and should be a consistent part of the rotation in conference play, and Blake Soderston, a transfer from CSUN should fill out the rest of the weekend starts for USC.

There are a lot of righties on USC’s roster, with only three LHPs in total. Starting pitching should be interesting to keep an eye on as USC hopes to turn around the direction of the program.

Notre Dame transfer Caden Aoki and Eric Hammond, who is returning from injury, can also make starts or long relief appearances for the Trojans as needed.

BULLPEN

There’s not a ton of great news here, as USC simply isn’t returning or adding much consistent production. Hopefully, the veterans will be able to hold some games together for the Trojans, although many of returners posted ERAs into the 6s and 7s last season.

Expect to see a majority of appearances from Nate Clow, Ethan Hoopingarner, Josh Blum, Toby Spach, Kyle Wisch, and Garrett Clarke.