Tommy White So. 6’0 242lbs (47) Bats-R Throws-R
Gavin Dugas Sr. 5’10 204lbs (8) Bats-R Throws-R
Ben Nippolt Jr. 5’11 175lbs (5) Bats-L Throws-R
Jared Jones Fr. 6’4 230lbs (22) Bats-R Throws-R

Jay Johnson hit big time with the addition of Tommy White who will start at 3B. Gavin Dugas and Ben Nippolt will backup both 2B and 3B. There’s no real correct order as it will most likely depend on what’s happening at 2B. If by some reason Tommy White shifts over to 1B or DH then I could see a guy like Jared Jones work into here to get him at bats.

Tommy White is an instant impact transfer who LSU will have on campus for at least two years which is an added bonus. White was the 2nd highest player in the 2021 HS class to attend college and his impact at the collegiate level was felt immediately as he set the freshmen record for HR’s at 27. White has a slightly open stance where he’s able to load up and use his incredible lower body strength to drive to drive the ball. 7 HR’s to left field, 9 HR’s to center field, 11 HR’s to right field…he shows power to all fields, some of the exit velocities off his bat are only rivaled by Crews. The power is the best grade I can give at this level and even some of his outs will be loud outs. Tommy is he’s also a very advanced hitter who hit 0.362 in a deep ACC conference only outmatched by the SEC. I don’t think he’ll maintain that quite high of an average but it’s still a plus tool at this level and he did a great job simply getting on base more times than not. Speed is below average. Looks here are deceiving as White is extremely athletic for his build. Tommy is able to torque his body and throw while moving laterally this spring. Arm is more than fine from what I’ve seen. I’d like to think White is going to have some extended leeway if he makes an error or two as the bat is not coming out of the lineup. If I had one thing to watch out for it would be how he takes to this position after spending most of his freshman season DHing. The key will be keeping White playing everyday at 3B and allow LSU the chance to bring in another excellent bat to DH.

Gavin Dugas right now is backing up at both 2B and 3B. As long as he’s seeing the ball well he’s going to continue to push for a spot in the infield. With how loaded the outfield is, I don’t think they stick him in LF unless they really need to.

Ben Nippolt is working at every infield position besides 1B so it should be no surprise to see him get some time here especially since it’s the position he spent most of his time at VCU. May be a pinch hitter or pinch runner late in games.

If by some reason Jared Jones is playing here it means White has either shifted to 1B or DH.

My take: You hope there's some major stability here. Last season you started Merrifield which transitioned to Berry and when he was injured, you saw some guys such as Cranford/Bianco/Doughty, it was very fluid and even with Berry's bat in the lineup it was a merry go round. The goal here is to put Tommy White at 3B and set it and forget it where you instantly upgrade with an all-american bat in the lineup and let either a right or left-handed hitter DH depending on the pitching matchup. White will most likely hit behind Crews in the lineup at 3 or 4 if I had to guess. He's your prototypical cleanup type bat so we'll see what they do. If so I could see Tommy put up around 25 HR's and 75 RBI's. The key again here will be keeping White in the lineup so that they don’t need to waste the DH position if at all possible.

Tommy White

Power------80
Hitting------65
Speed------40
Fielding----50
Arm---------55

POSITION ADDITIONS:
Tommy White
Ben Nippolt

POSITION LOSSES:

Jacob Berry

POSITION OVERALL GRADE: 70

This post was edited on 2/5/23 at 7:22 am

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Posted by Adam4848

Member since Apr 2006

19179 posts

Posted on 2/1/23 at 5:45 am to Adam4848

LEFT FIELD

Josh Pearson So. 5’10 195lbs (11) Bats-L Throws-R
Gavin Dugas Sr. 5’10 204lbs (8) Bats-R Throws-R
Zeb Ruddell 6’1 195lbs (39) Bats-L Throws-L

CENTER FIELD

Dylan Crews Jr. 6’0 203lbs (3) Bats-R Throws-R
Josh Stevenson So. 6’1 195lbs (23) Bats-L Throws-L
Mic Paul Fr. 5’10 175lbs (13) Bats-L Throws-L

RIGHT FIELD

Paxton Kling Fr. 6’2 210lbs (28) Bats-R Throws-R
Brayden Jobert RS-Jr. 6’1 215lbs (6) Bats-L Throws R

I’ve struggled with this position group trying to come up with perfect starting lineup because there are so many iterations Johnson can go with opening night. For the first time in recent memories I see 6 starting level outfielders in this group. Starting with left field you have Josh Pearson who should slide over to left field where he’ll be more comfortable…if Gavin Dugas is hitting like he can and does not win the starting 2B position he’s in instant competition here. Zeb Ruddell provides depth here. You then get to centerfield where Dylan Crews will start. Josh Stevenson’s athletic ability and range makes him the perfect candidate to backup center with Mic Paul behind him. You get to right field where I think there’s excellent competition in Paxton Kling vs Bryaden Jobert…neither would be a surprise if they started.

For now I’m assuming Josh Pearson starts in left field where he spent some time a season ago after emerging mid-season as arguably LSU’s top freshman. Josh has had a substandard fall and spring by his standards but I’m still very bullish on his hitting abilities where he showed the ability to hit against elite competition. Pearson does a good job attacking early in counts where he’s able to square off. Josh does an extremely well job of keeping his bat level more times than not throughout the zone and can spray the ball to all fields. His quick hands allow him to turn on pitches well and shows excellent power for his frame. Josh’s offensive outbursts do come with big swing and misses where he’s prone to strikeouts when he gets behind in the count. Speed is average at best and is not a threat to steal when on base. Defensively Pearson does not pose as a liability but with better arms in the outfield he fits in best in LF where you can cover this up.

Gavin Dugas has had a ton of experience in LF where he’s shown to be a serviceable outfielder. Gavin will play here if they feel his bat needs to be in the lineup at all costs…I do believe he’ll see playing time earlier at 2B.

Zeb Ruddell outfielder out of Neville had one of the more impressive falls of the entire team. Any other year and I'd think he could could push for playing time but it's going to be extremely hard with the depth they have. Zeb at the very least is one of the more versatile defenders on this team and will be a primary pinch hitter/runner late in games.

Dylan Crews is one of the most complete college outfielders I've seen in the college game in some time. Power is topped out at the college level, he's consistently putting up 110+ mph exit velocities to all fields on what I would call a great staff. Dylan has shown the ability to consistency hit SEC pitching putting up 0.362 and 0.349 in his first two years. One of the more impressive aspects with Crews hitting tool is the ability to take what he's given at any point in the count. A weakness? He strikeout's a lot and he may lead the team again. Defensively I always thought Dylan fit better in RF and at the next level he'll most likely be a corner outfield to match his arm strength. He made the most improvement between his freshman and sophomore year with the angles he takes and he could play any position out there right now if needed. Speed is above average, I would say it's on the verge of a plus plus tool. He'll most likely be one of LSU's more aggressive runners again. I think over time he'll fill out more where he'll get up to 215-220lbs. It's hard to find holes in Dylan's game and it's a reason why he's projected as the 1st overall pick by almost every single publication this spring. Enjoy watching Dylan at the box for one last season while you can.

Josh Stevenson who I think is one of LSU's better defensive outfielders and an extremely good athlete to me fits in here. Josh's defensive tools and speed are all above average. Josh's power is slightly below average, I'd like to see him put the ball in play with more consistency to use his legs...because he's not going to get many at bats with a 40% K rate. At the very least Stevenson gives you a very well rounded backup who has at bats against SEC competition.

Mic Paul who according to the website you're reading was the top player out of Utah in the 2022 class. Mic will rotate a bit in the outfield and is another speedster who can provide LSU with a pinch runner on a team that is frankly lacking speed.

Paxton Kling is one of those freshman that looks like he's been in college for five years. Kling was the top high school player in Pennsylvania and arguably the top recruit in this years freshmen class which was the best class I've seen LSU get to campus maybe ever. Paxton has a big frame where he shows advanced power to the pull side. Has a neutral batting stance and stays square when he drives through the zone, his hit tool may be higher that what I have but I'd like to see him show it. Even at 6'2 210lbs Kling has some room in his frame to fill out and get stronger where his power tool will become a plus plus to top of the level in college. Kling was more of a speedster during high school, he continues to move very well for his frame but I question how much he'll be used on the base paths over his career as he gets bigger. My favorite tool of his is the arm and if you're going to play him in the outfield it needs to be in RF. That arm will get only get better.

Brayden Jobert is going to push extremely hard to start in RF or DH and do not be surprised if he's named a starter opening night. Jobert mostly DH a year ago however spent some time in RF out of necessity where he proved he was a capable defender. Brayden is going to be your typical feast of famine kind of bat, the amount of depth on this team is incredible that we're talking of places to try and fit in two 18 HR guys (Dugas/Jobert). Brayden's power tends to play to the pull side where he absolutely torched weak pitching...it was evident once conference play started every team started shifting...it was difficult mentally for him to adjust. To be fair he had made better contact that what his stat sheet shows. If Jobert isn't starting in RF look for him to platoon at DH.

My take: The group is lead by the projected first overall pick in the MLB draft. After that you return Josh Pearson, Brayden Jobert, Gavin Dugas, and Josh Stevenson, all who SEC experience. You add the top OF prospect to attend college in Paxton Kling and there's an obvious log jam. Johnson has a good problem on his hands and there will be some intense competition in the next week. If Dylan Crews is in the 2 hole I could see Pearson settling in around the 5 hole, if Dylan moves back then he makes sense to slide in right after Morgan. Kling to me works perfectly at 6 or 7 where he won't have as much pressure to produce. There is so much depth here...chances are LSU will find 3 that work.

Josh Pearson

Power------65
Hitting------60
Speed------50
Fielding----50
Arm---------50

Dylan Crews

Power------80
Hitting------75
Speed------65
Fielding----75
Arm---------80

Paxton Kling

Power------65
Hitting------60
Speed------65
Fielding----60
Arm---------70

POSITION ADDITIONS:
Paxton Kling
Zeb Ruddell
Mic Paul

POSITION LOSSES:
Giovonni DiGiacomo

POSITION OVERALL GRADE: 75

This post was edited on 2/6/23 at 7:48 am

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Posted by Yeti_Chaser

Member since Nov 2017

8176 posts

Posted on 2/5/23 at 7:45 am to Adam4848

quote:
Tommy is able to torque his body and throw while moving laterally this spring.

Sounds like an improvement from Berry. This is my biggest concern for this season. If we end up with another shitty IF and it isn't worth taking certain bats out of the lineup to improve it. Hopefully White locks it down

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Posted by FAP SAM

Member since Sep 2014

2934 posts

Posted on 2/5/23 at 8:24 am to Adam4848