By Colton Watson and Doug Kyle
There's good news, and there's bad news when it comes to the Mississippi State baseball program.
The good news is that the Bulldogs led the Southeastern Conference in Major League Draft signees last summer, with 11. It's 14 if you count two recruits and a transfer portal commit who opted for pro ball.
The bad news is that those are shoes that must be filled for 2025. And the good news again is that in 2024, Head Coach Chris Lemonis and his staff demonstrated not only a remarkable turnaround from the 2022-23 post-Natty down seasons, they showed a measurable knack at developing talent into career-extending levels.
We break down the Mississippi State newcomers into three or four categories: freshman recruits who made it to campus, recruits coming from two-year schools to a four-year level, portal transfers, and what we'll call rehab returnees, players coming back from major injuries and/or surgeries and significant lost playing time.
In 2025, the Bulldogs look to be a hosting-caliber ball club once again, with hopes in the clubhouse and across the fanbase to build and improve upon a solid season last year. Head Coach Chris Lemonis said during fall practices that he expects his team’s production to come from a “50-50” mix of returning players and newcomers, including additions from the high school ranks, JUCO system, and the transfer portal. Lemonis is also looking forward to seeing three players hit the diamond in a game, one for the first time, one for the first time in three seasons, and one back to the form that made him a lauded recruit and player.
The college baseball enthusiasts and the maroon and white faithful alike may need a gameday program for the first couple weekends of the 2025 season to keep up with the new names, numbers, and faces.
Here, we’ll do our best to give you some cursory introductions to the new Bulldogs whose names you’ll hear called from the Dudy Noble Field press box this spring. The following list is not all-inclusive, but it'll keep you busy learning until SEC play begins.
And, be sure to check back with us in a few days for even more information and detail, as we'll be attending the Mississippi State preseason press conference on Friday afternoon that features Lemonis and selected players.
First, the high school prospects: Lemonis and Co. brought in eight players ranked inside Perfect Game’s Top-500 MLB high school prospects list, half of those falling in the top 150.
PG’s number 88, RHP Cade O’Leary, was also PGs number 1 RHP in the state of Tennessee. He dominated high school baseball in 2024 using a 91-93 mph fastball and a four-pitch mix. An MLB Combine participant in 2024, he’s one of three freshmen hailing from the storied Farragut High School baseball program in Tennessee.
Number 109, RHP/UT Braden Booth, enjoyed a stellar season at Bob Jones High School, both at the plate and on the mound, leading to his designation as Mr. Baseball Alabama in 2024 as well as both Player and Pitcher of the Year honors. Each of the above players were rated a 10 by Perfect Game.
The first 9.5 rating on the list is that of Number 149, Ryan McPherson, another RHP, from Hollywood, FL. Perfect Game describes him as "a strong athletic build on his 6-2 190 lb. frame...stays well timed-up with above-average arm speed, fastball works 85-90 mph with heavy spin and sink, creates plane from higher slot, replicates arm speed on change-up well and kills spin on pitch, acts like a splitter with hard diving action, showed curveball with flashes of good bite. Quality three-pitch mix with feel and projection. Very good student as well."
A potential breakout star lies in Number 154 LHP Charlie Foster, another MLB Combine invitee and the number 1 LHP in the state of Georgia. Originally signing with the SEC’s other Bulldogs in his home state, he opted to bring his 6’4’ frame and 95 mph fastball to Starkville. He could factor in as a potential Sunday or midweek starter early in his career at Mississippi State, with future Friday night potential provided he stays healthy and out of the portal.
Number 201, MIF Conner Barth, comes to Starkville all the way from California. Formerly committed to Oregon State, the Pac-12’s dissolution played a role in State’s ability to sign this athletic MLB prospect.
Another Farragut High School product in this class is OF Landis Davila, formerly a VA Tech commitment, who Coach Lemonis described as “dynamic” during fall practice.
The third Farragut player is PG’s number 494 player MIF Lukas Buckner, a coach’s son that chose State over multiple SEC programs before he even visited after decommitting from UCF. The chemistry that already exists between 3 key freshmen on State’s roster could pay dividends for future Bulldog teams.
The last “freshman” discussed here is one that carries a bit of extra intrigue. LHP Dane Burns graduated high school in 2023 and took a year off from organized baseball to recover from injury but was still selected by the Royals in the 17th round of the 2024 MLB draft. He’s another pitcher that could factor in on the mound early in his career.
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The junior college system has provided SEC stars for decades, but the transfer portal has diminished the JUCO system’s importance to major college baseball coaches. While State has been more selective in their JUCO prospects since the days of Tanner Leggett and Brayland Skinner, they have still taken a handful of talented prospects from the JUCO ranks every year in the Lemonis tenure.
This year, RHP Kevin Mannell is rated as the number 3 JUCO player in the country. Previously on Kansas State’s roster before moving down to Cloud County Community College, he earned NJCAA All-American and KJCCC Pitcher of the Year honors when he turned in a 1.91 ERA in his 15 starts. He struck out 92 (11 Ks per 9 innings) and had the second-best WHIP (walks+hits per innings pitched) in all of JUCO at 0.86.
On the other side of the mound, LHP Robert Fortenberry tallied a 14-1 record at Weatherford College in Texas last season. He allowed 0 home runs and posted an ERA of 2.15 in 2024, just ahead of his 2.74 clip in 2023. He’s the reigning NJCAA Pitcher of the Year. Both Mannell and Fortenberry could be rotation-caliber pieces for Coach Justin Parker’s pitching staff in 2025.
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Some decry it as the ruination of collegiate athletics, others laud it as the great equalizer amongst the haves and the have-nots in the NCAA. Whatever you think about it, the NCAA transfer portal is a crucial part of every roster’s makeup in college baseball, both in how it gives and how it takes away.
State signed a highly-rated transfer portal class last offseason. They targeted some guys they faced during the 2024 season and picking off some of the upper echelon of players that saw success in lower conferences who were looking to improve their level of competition during their upperclassmen seasons.
While OF/INF Ace Reese played in the Big 12, his Houston Cougars were a bit of an afterthought in the league. Early success slowed down after teams realized he didn’t have much protection behind him in the lineup, but he still shined with a .278 batting average and 7 home runs as a true freshman. He was perhaps State’s most productive player in the fall, and fans could expect to see him at DH, in the outfield, or most likely manning third base this spring.
Noah Sullivan is a two-way transfer from South Carolina Upstate. Although he is more likely to factor into the Bulldogs' offense (.324 average with 17 HR at USC-Upstate last season), he was also the Spartans' Saturday starter in 2024. Head Coach Chris Lemonis has not yet defined what specific pitching role Sullivan will have in 2025 but has spoken of him as one of three two-way players (along with Nolan Stevens and Luke Dotson) on whom he will count for innings on the mound.
MIF Sawyer Reeves was a reliable shortstop at the Citadel, posting back-to-back seasons of .300+ batting averages with 5 and 4 home runs respectively. He’s a likely candidate to replace Amani Larry at second base. With fewer than 30 strikeouts and 10+ stolen bases each of the last 2 seasons, he’s a potential leadoff candidate as well.
INF Gehrig Frei led the North Alabama Lions in average (.320), home runs (15), RBIs (49) , runs scored (51), and hits (66) in 2024 while only striking out 21 times. He batted .375 against SEC competition and adds another 3rd base/DH option for State.
RHP Chase Hungate brings his unique arm slot and Omaha experience to Mississippi State from UVA. He pitched well against State in the Charlottsville Regional. His 3.74 ERA in 53 relief innings and 3/1 Ks/BB ratio make him a reliable back end of the bullpen choice for State in 2025.
RHP Jacob Pruitt had something in common with every player on Mississippi State’s roster last year—the feeling that he should’ve been rewarded with some home baseball by the NCAA Baseball Tournament committee. The former Indiana State Sycamore notched a 3.02 ERA in his 13 appearances last season. He was tabbed as one of the highest-rated pitching prospects in the portal last season and also utilizes a funky delivery that kept batters off balance with a .232 batting average allowed in 2024.
INF Reed Stallman was an interesting take for State in the 2024 portal class. Only batting .239 at Cambell, his 15 home runs and greater number of walks than strikeouts make him a high ceiling/low floor type of player. Of course, Coach Lemonis could be taking a Moneyball approach by looking at his .441 on-base percentage last season for the Camels.
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Some “newcomers” that weren’t a part of any recruiting class for Mississippi State last season include some names that State fans are already familiar with.
C Ross Highfill missed nearly every game last year, seeing no action after February and none behind the plate as he battled injuries. A bona fide MLB Draft prospect and All-SEC candidate, he’s a catcher that is so athletic, Coach Lemonis has tried him at center field some this fall. He batted .231 as a true freshman with 9 home runs in 36 games.
Stone Simmons was a feature closer, striking out 6 of the 13 batters he faced and allowing 0 to reach base at the beginning of 2022 before he went down with a Tommy John injury that held him out of competitive baseball for 2 years, during which time he coached a mean first base for Mississippi State. He struck out 29 batters in 24 innings in 2021, walking only 8 as the last remaining player from State’s national championship team.
Lastly, Mikhai Grant was one of the most coveted prospects in the 2023 signing class before injury knocked him out of his true freshman season. Now working back to health, he could become of key part of State’s staff by the time SEC play comes around.
The list of State’s new toys can be enough to make one’s head spin, but the bottom line is this: Chris Lemonis and his staff used multiple sources to restock the cupboard from a 2024 team that lost 11 pitchers and 4 starting position players to the MLB Draft and graduation.
Lemonis said in a radio interview last fall that he feels he has an Omaha-caliber team, and that his guys looked the best they’ve looked since before 2021. He also said that numerous position battles will likely continue well into the season.
Justin Parker proved to be a tremendous addition at pitching coach a season ago, and pitchers under his tutelage have shined every year. If the Dawgs can put together a cohesive lineup by the time SEC play begins and stay healthy on the mound, hosting an NCAA Regional is a realistic goal for them.
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