It’s still only July — Ole Miss baseball doesn’t play its first regular-season game of the 2025 season for seven or so months — but college roster updates wait for no one.
A total of seven Ole Miss players were selected in the 2024 MLB Draft, which wrapped up Monday.
Infielder/outfielder Jackson Ross was drafted in the ninth round by the Washington Nationals, outfielder Ethan Lege in the 15th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates, pitchers Connor Spencer and Xavier Rivas in the 16th round to the Oakland Athletics and New York Yankees, respectively, pitcher Cole Tolbert in the 18th round to the Boston Red Sox and pitchers Hunter Elliott and Kyler Carmack in the 20th round to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies, respectively.
Spencer, Rivas, Tolbert, Elliott and Carmack each have eligibility remaining. Pitchers Brayden Jones, Gunnar Dennis and Riley Maddox — who were all draft eligible — have announced they will be returning to Ole Miss next season. Ole Miss will also return key players such as first baseman Will Furniss, shortstop/second baseman Luke Hill, catcher Campbell Smithwick and infielder/outfielder Judd Utermark, among others.
The Rebels have lost a few key players via transfer portal this offseason, with second-team All-SEC third baseman Andrew Fischer and starting pitcher Liam Doyle both transferring to Tennessee, outfielder Treyson Hughes transferring to Virginia Tech, starter Grayson Saunier transferring to Texas and pitcher J.T. Quinn transferring to Georgia, among others.
Ole Miss has gotten some good news recently, however, in the form of a pair of elite high school recruits forgoing the MLB Draft to play for the Rebels. Shortstop Owen Paino and pitcher Cade Townsend, ranked as the No. 142 and 150 prospects, respectively, in the most-recent MLB Draft, both announced they will attend Ole Miss. Head coach Mike Bianco has also added via the transfer portal, highlighted by Louisville outfielder Isaac Humphrey, who hit .310 with 10 home runs, 39 RBIs and nine stolen bases in 2024.
The Rebels are coming off a 27-29 season — their second-straight losing season since winning the College World Series in 2022.
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