1) Zack Mathis Jr. 5’8 188lbs (17)
2) Collier Cranford Fr. 6’0 186lbs (16)
3) Hal Hughes Jr. 5’11 178lbs (3)
4) Cade Doughty Fr. 6’1 201lbs (4)

Another late addition to the signing class a year ago and it looks like it could be one of those diamonds in the rough. Zack Mathis may look strangely similar to now departed Chris Reid when fans see him step into the box for the first time but that’s about where the comparisons stop. Mathis thus far has taken the third base job by storm and I can say confidently has earned himself a starting spot somewhere in this lineup. Behind him Cranford, Hughes, and Doughty are all possibilities.

Zack Mathis out of San Joaquin Delta College in California was a 39th round draft pick of the Minnesota Twins however elected to attend LSU in the hopes of starting on the infield for the Tigers. Mainieri has raved about him time and time again and has said he spends more time in batting cages than anyone he can remember in recent memory. Zack from the left side of the plate maintains a low center of gravity does an excellent job keeping his hands in bringing the bat level through the zone consistently. Very advanced pitch recognition and very rarely do you see him reaching for anything. One thing I've admired is his ability to go with something if given, very rarely has he been rolling over anything. He’s one of those volume hitters that will pound out singles and doubles in bunches. His bat has yielded more power than I honestly would have thought at this point in his career but the exit velocities off his bat don’t lie. Mainieri has a quote in Mathis bio saying he saw glimpses of Ryan Schimpf and I’m now starting to see why. Speed is slightly lower than a plus tool…23 stolen bases in two years of JUCO may translate to a few here or there while at LSU but he’s not a going to light it up running in a straight line. I like his glove at third thus far and he looks more comfortable where the position doesn’t require a rangy athlete. Because of his bat he becomes an option at SS if Mainieri wants to get another hitter in the lineup.

Collier Cranford is someone who I’ve highlighted at other positions. He’s an option to slide to 3B defensively if needed.

Hal Hughes is someone who I’ve highlighted at other positions. He’s an option to slide to 3B defensively if needed.

Cade Doughty I don't seeing playing 3B if he’s not able to handle 2B however it’s still an option if and when because they love his potential and is one of those high ceiling type athletes.

My take: There’s defensive depth to slide here where needed. I think if there’s a long term backup Cade Doughty or Collier Cranford seem to be best fit, both are different type players who could give the coaches two different options. In the lineup Mathis has currently been working in the three hole and anytime a first year player finds himself in that spot there is major confidence behind that decision. His approach plays perfectly to sit in the two or three hole and will become one of those high OBP% type bats. Realistically he should be protected in the order and is someone that teams have limited scouting reports on so I could seem him exploding onto the scene in 2020 if things work out for him. Sometimes you hit on JUCO players and Mathis appears to be that next great transfer. When I grade the overall position I would rate it higher if there was more experience in the depth chart but that may be nitpicky.

Zack Mathis

Power------65
Hitting------70
Speed------55
Fielding----50
Arm---------55

POSITION ADDITIONS:
Zack Mathis
Collier Cranford
Cade Doughty

POSITION LOSSES:
Chris Reid

POSITION OVERALL GRADE: 60

This post was edited on 2/5/20 at 7:27 am

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Posted by Adam4848

Member since Apr 2006

19016 posts

Posted on 2/1/20 at 7:26 am to Adam4848

OUTFIELD

LEFT FIELD
Drew Bianco So. 6’0 217lbs (5)
Wes Toups 5’9 173lbs (9)
Mitchell Sanford 6’2 188lbs (22)

CENTER FIELD
Giovanni DiGiacomo So. 6’1 172lbs (7)
Maurice Hampton Fr. 6’0 210lbs (14)

RIGHT FIELD
Daniel Cabrera Jr. 6’1 196lbs (8)
CJ Willis So. 6’2 193lbs (23)

Losing Zach Watson and Antoine Duplantis will sting but nevertheless LSU’s been able to hit on some fringe players they thought might not make it to campus the past two recruiting cycles and because of this are in a better position than once thought. Daniel Cabrera returns for his presumed final year where he’ll play RF be of the top players this year in the SEC. Giovanni DiGiacomo looks like he’s going to stick in CF. Left field has been an open competition but Drew Bianco mostly due to his hitting has the leg up to start in left field.

Left Field: Jumping into it I there will be multiple players who get some innings at LF. Drew Bianco has taken the lead and for the most part as long as he continues to hit, he’ll stick. Drew looks to be in slightly better shape than he was a year ago and was absolutely crushing the ball in the fall. I'm not saying this will determine playing time but the power he’s displaying is going to something that’s hard to take him out of the lineup. In only 68 at bat’s Drew hit 3 HR’s and showed power to the gaps while not always showing up in a box score. While none of this is earth shattering it may lend to some of the type of numbers he could put up with a standard 200+ at bats over the course of a regular season. Bianco likes to crowd the plate and take his base if necessary, I think he’s going to start hitting for average and show more productive plate appearances as he’s made a ton of progress these past few months against great pitching. Speed is slightly below to average on the base paths. It remains to be seen how well he can adjust to playing LF day to day and will be something to keep a close eye this spring. He’s not the most agile athlete but he’s able to make the routine play and sliding him to that corner is doable, arm is above average for the position.

Wes Toups is one of my dark horses to steal a spot in the lineup this year if his bat comes along faster than expected. He has truly flashy speed and can cover a ton of ground defensively. Other than that nothing stands off the page but he’s one of the more polished defenders in the outfield right now and because of this he’s a candidate to be a defensive replacement in the outfield in late game situations as well as a pinch runner when called upon.

Mitchell Sanford is another freshman outfielder in this class who is also a converted quarterback from Berwick, La. Mitchell might not make a huge impact this year but he’s got a nice frame from the left side of the plate and is going to be adding weight. Really good arm so thoughts are he may become a right fielder in time with pop.

Center Field: Giovanni DiGiacomo is a natural centerfielder and the fastest player on this team besides Maurice Hampton depending on the day. As surprising as this may sound DiGiacomo actually started in half of the games last year and I think getting those at bats will help further his development from year one to year two. Gio has occasional pop in his bat but tends to rely on spraying the ball around the field, he’s best when he stays on top of the ball and lets his footwork help him. He needs to avoid the swing and misses as any ball placed on the ground for him there's a potential to beat out. Speed is top of the charts in the country and there are only a handful in D-1 players that are able to get out of the box as quick as he can from the left side of the plate. DiGiacomo has incredible range and a frame that will only fill out where he’ll get stronger over the next two years. Very few balls get down with him in CF and he actually has slightly above average arm strength for his current build and the position itself.

Maurice Hampton is the highest rated player to come to LSU straight out of high school since 2011 when Kevin Gausman slid down draft boards after signability concerns. Hampton turned down a reported 1.8 million dollars. It’s obvious that Hampton is one of the better athletes in all of college baseball and has one of the fastest 60 times of any freshmen in the class. The only thing that’s going to hold him back from playing time the first couple of weeks is the ability to hit consistently and for average. He’s got one of the quickest swings I’ve seen of a freshman and by all accounts has been a tremendous worker since arriving to the team. Because he missed all of fall practices and now has just weeks of live pitching there’s not guarantee he’s going to be able to jump right in and go with it...Jared Mitchell was able to do it (more so out of necessity) but Chad Jones and Spencer Ware took months to get any kind of rhythm. Mainieri is in a win now mode and because of this he has to put together the best lineup that helps the team win now. With that being said I wouldn’t expect Hampton to start the opener but he will get plenty of chances early in the year to get at bats and could be an option in LF or CF if the players in front of him aren’t performing.

Right Field: Daniel Cabrera returns as LSU’s most prolific bat. It needs to be emphasized that even with such production in 2019 it was frustrating to watch Cabrera press and try to pull everything in sight through extensive stretches. He became a victim of his own struggles and had a difficult time getting back to what made him so successful as a freshman. Hearing Mainieri speak the past few weeks he mentioned that Daniel came back to campus recharged, refocused, and began to show a leadership mentality. Seeing Daniel smile and play looser usually lends to more production. Cabrera right now is a 5 tool prospect and has every tool he needs to succeed at the college level...sometimes I’m curious how he even made it to a college campus with some of the highlights he produces. Power is a plus plus tool, I think the addition of Eddie Smith is going to rejuvenate his approach at the plate where he can be more aggressive. Protecting Cabrera in the lineup will be vital and if LSU is able to successfully do that then Daniel has the pitch recognition to abuse some lesser talent. The average should jump much higher this year as coach Smith forces him to use the other side of the field where he was exceptional towards the end of season as a freshman. An interesting note is that Daniel stole 10 bases in 33 games against some great competition up in the Cape Cod league. I’m curious to see if the coaches are going to let him be more aggressive on the base paths instead of playing station to station as he has in the past. Glove is vastly improving from his freshman year and as former pitcher the arm is well above average that lends itself useful in right field to limit runners stretching bases.

The most logical backup here to me has to be CJ Willis. Rangy athlete with a plus arm and power.

My take: In light of replacing two everyday starters there is tremendous upside along with a combination of different style athletes to plug and play as needed which LSU has lacked at times in the past. Daniel Cabrera is an all-american candidate as long as he plays loose and both DiGiacomo and Bianco should make big strides in their second year. Hampton is one of the top freshman in all of college baseball that in time will be a superstar. Toups is a rangy outfielder who will supply a defensive need when needed. CJ Willis is another outstanding prospect that is simply waiting his turn to emerge. The positions are not set in stone but there are players to fill if and when needed.

This post was edited on 2/6/20 at 7:37 am

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Posted by deaux