Baseball thoughts to sprout wool to warm you up

[Todd4State]

Ground rules: I think that Paul Young, Garner, Robson, and Hann will all be drafted and leave by 2016. I am well aware that the draft may take some of these players.

This might be our 2016 lineup:

Fri.- Dakota Hudson Jr.- Drafted by the Rangers out of high school. Projected starter as a freshman. Has the chance to be a first round pick.

Sat.- Austin Sexton Jr.- Highly thought of and missed Sr. season with an ACL injury. Will spot start some for us this year and most years would be good enough to be the midweek guy at the very least.

Sun.- Jesse McCord So.- Draftable talent out of the Birmingham area made MaxPreps All-American as a Jr. in high school.

Midweek- Vance Tatum Jr.- Will compete with McCord for the Sunday spot. LHP that led Southaven to a state title in the top high school league in Mississippi.

Sidearmer- Myles Gentry Sr.- Well, since we have the sidearm camp, I thought I would mention him. He could be the next Caleb Reed. Senior leader that eats up innings.

Closer- Austin Riley Fr.- This could be a number of people, but since we're talking two years out, the exact roles are going to be hard to determine. Riley is already throwing in the low 90's and is a legacy that has a chance to be an Under Armour All-American as a dual threat player. (More on that in a minute) But he seems like a good choice to be a closer as a freshman who will later transition to the SEC rotation.

C- Chase Vallot So.- Under Armour All-American that has legit power and if he makes it to campus will be without a doubt the best catching prospect that Cohen has brought in. I expect him to challenge for a starting spot as a freshman.

1B- Cole Gordon So.- LH power hitter from the talent rich Tampa area. Is the prototypical size for a first baseman at 6'5" and has very good speed for someone his size. In fact his speed is good enough that the outfield is not out of the question. Another draftable type talent that could replace Wes Rea next year.

2B- Dale Burdick So.- Another draftable talent in the MSU class who has protypical MLB size for a middle infielder with decent power and speed and is also a very good defender. Highly coveted player from Tennessee.

3B- Reid Humphries Jr.- Drafted by the Washington Nationals out of high school and one of the most highly regarded players to come from Mississippi in recent years. Should play a good bit as a freshman for MSU and has the potential to hit for power and average while also having good speed. Is very versatile and can play a number of positions.

SS- Luke Alexander Fr.- Made Team USA as an eight grader and committed to MSU also as an eighth grader after receiving offers from Ole Miss and LSU. Is a plus defender who is a switch hitter with speed and a good arm. He's a top of the order type hitter who has a little bit of pop and good size for a middle infielder.

LF- Joey Swinarski- Jr.- Bypassed his senior year in high school to play SEC baseball. He has five tool potential with the speed to cover the vast LF outfield at Dudy-Noble Field. He's 6'3" and much like Hunter Renfroe, if he can put it all together, he could be a high draft pick.

CF- Jake Mangum Fr.- One of the most highly thought of players to come through Mississippi in recent years, Mangum is a switch hitter who will hit at the top of the order and steal bases and is probably the best bunter in the Mississippi high school ranks. He also has a chance to pitch in college as well, and has the size that you look for in a CF in MLB. Is a tremendous defender who will replace Robson in a couple of years.

RF- Austin Riley Fr.- Here's that guy again! As a position player, he has tremendous power and should hit for average as well. He has the arm strength necessary to play RF and he could also play third base potentially as well. He's an instant impact type player that will find his way into the lineup as a freshman.

DH- Gavin Collins Jr.- Very highly thought of Californian who has the ability to play catcher, and by DH him we could let Vallot play DH on his off day, he can play RF and come in when Riley pitches using this scenario that I am outlining, and if Alexander has trouble transitioning to college pitchers, he has the ability to play third base allowing us to move Humphries to SS. Wherever he plays, I think he will hit for power and average.

Footnotes- Every single player listed is at least 6'0" tall. Every single player also has a very legit chance to be drafted at some point in their career. One thing that is very evident to me is the increase in power while at the same time this team is still going to have players that can run- which will hopefully give us a very balanced lineup. Going to more power is wise because the baseball seams will be changing in 2015 to try to get more home runs. Once again, good job by Cohen and his staff of adjusting to the changes in the game. It's also good to see us staying with the power arms on the staff and mixing in some sidearm guys to give us a lot of variety.

[Jacksondevildog]

I'm hoping that Vallot gets on campus. He has huge power and would be Cohens biggest "highly rated" player to make it to campus.

[BLC]

Love it Todd! If they all get to campus, it will only serve to make every kid on this list, and many who aren't on the list, that much better. The coaching staff does an amazing job of pushing competition. The future is bright, no doubt.

[Harrydawg]

Fun to guess, did I see where Billingsly from Mag Hieghts is a walk on? Not on scholly?

[preachermatt83]

We could be building something absolutely amazing !!

[Todd4State]

Love it Todd! If they all get to campus, it will only serve to make every kid on this list, and many who aren't on the list, that much better. The coaching staff does an amazing job of pushing competition. The future is bright, no doubt.

Seven of them are already on campus, so hopefully we'll keep that up. I think Brent Rooker will be a solid player for us, and Ryan Girdley should be solid as well- so, hopefully we'll be OK if it doesn't work out exactly perfectly.

[Todd4State]

Fun to guess, did I see where Billingsly from Mag Hieghts is a walk on? Not on scholly?

Yes, I believe he is a walk-on. But I do think he will be a contributer for us out of the bullpen. Ole Miss wanted him as well, and he took a big step forawrd as a senior in high school. He got his velocity up into the high 80's, low 90's.

[Goat Holder]

I agree that we will be good and in a reload position after 2015. 2015 will be somewhat of a rebuilding year (I still think we make a regional), but what do you expect after we are likely losing 4 contributing pitchers, 5 if Young gets drafted after this year, and 5 position players. But we're back-filling them with talent.

HOWEVER....

If Robson, Hann and Garner all do well enough to get drafted after 2015, their 3rd years.....then we probably just had a damn good year. Let me go on record as saying I see no way this happens. So I must disagree with you there. So a few changes I'd make to your lineup is to delete Vallot, he ain't making it here. Collins is the C, Garner the DH. Hann the 2B, and Robson the CF. I also think John Marc Shelly will be the closer in 2016.

[601Dawg]

Pure wool. That lineup would be ridiculous.

[It_Could_Happen]

That lineup is unreal but I don't see Riley ever making it to campus.

[engie]

5 if Young gets drafted after this year,

Young is a true soph -- so he isn't eligible just yet.

[Goat Holder]

Thanks, I did not know this. We may be better than expected in 2015. He and Hudson likely the Friday/Saturday guys unless Fitts makes a big move.

[MsStateBaseball]

All players leaving the team either Jr or Sr will have a real shot at pro ball. The level of talent has skyrocketed. If we keep all of the 2014 class that would be huge. I don't mind losing roster players to draft, I hate losing signers.

[bully99]

I agree about doubting Vallot. Followed his Twitter account last fall and a number of his tweets he ended with "#mlbdraft". You can probably see where his mindset is.

[messageboardsuperhero]

If we could get one of either Austin Riley or Chase Vallot on campus, we'll be sick. I don't even want to talk about us potentially getting both... And there are a lot of damn good commits that you didn't even mention (Mahoney, Gridley, Stovall, James, etc.). The future is bright.

I just wish Cohen would learn how to recruit.**

[engie]

Vallot will be key. He's rated highly some places -- and in some he isn't. Will probably take a little luck to get him to campus at this point, I'd think...

[AlSwearengen]

So, the Riley kid was burning it down as a tenth grader last year?

[Jacksondevildog]

Vallot is what I call a bad body all American. Got a little weight in the wrong areas, average speed, average defender, retarded power. That could hurt his stock a little, but he's a top 5 round guy no doubt.

[Todd4State]

So, the Riley kid was burning it down as a tenth grader last year?

He almost single handedly eliminated MC from the playoffs last year. It was impressive.

[State82]

Really nice work there, Todd. Vallot & Riley. It's time to silence the dead Indians and get a few like these 2 on campus for 3 years. I don't think we have had a coach, in any sport that I can remember, that has ignited their program from the dumpster like Cohen has. Not discounting Mullen in any way at all, but listening to Cohen in interviews and talks at alumni gatherings since his hiring has always impressed me immensely. He has the fire, enthusiasm and knowledge of the college game to take this program to the heights we, as a fan base, deserve. Impatiently waiting for Feb. 14!