3 Reasons Why LSU Baseball's Season Ending Is a Good Thing

LSU baseball's season came to an end Wednesday night with a 3-1 loss to Auburn in its second game in the SEC Tournament.

After going 30-28 in 2026, the defending national champions end their season earlier than any LSU team has since 2012. While the season was full of issues on both sides of the ball, as well as some magic moments, it's now all about 2027.

The offseason will be pivotal for head coach Jay Johnson and his staff as they look to return to Omaha next year.

Dodging the Draft

The MLB Draft is always an exciting time in the baseball world. But for LSU baseball, the 2026 draft can become really interesting.

For LSU, draft decisions will likely pour in over the next few weeks. With Derek Curiel, the No. 17-ranked prospect; Jake Brown, the No. 51-ranked prospect, and Steven Milam headlining those decisions.

Johnson will also look to convince a handful of his nine high school recruits to come to campus and help him compete for a championship.

With NIL embedded in today's college baseball, the MLB Draft's identity has changed. That means college baseball's draw from high school does too.

Now players are being paid in college. At programs like LSU, they're getting paid a significant amount to be a Tiger, an amount that rivals some of the draft's slot values.

For current players, being draft-eligible and leaving eligibility on the table always brought about a tough choice, as just one season can improve their draft stock - and, in turn, their signing value. But now the decision is also about whether the draft will bring them more money than they make in college.

The same holds for high school recruits.

But for LSU's nine high school signees projected to go in the top-150, the option to develop in college is sweeter with NIL.

Now, as an 18-year-old weighing the draft or LSU, the choice has always entailed deciding between the minor leagues' development and LSU's development. College baseball nearly always provides better development, but for many people, turning down hundreds of thousands of dollars - sometimes millions - is hard to do.

Now, college baseball is more enticing because you get paid to play.

Resting Up

LSU's season was riddled with injuries.

At one point, LSU didn't have a single starting pitcher, with Cooper Moore, Casan Evans and William Schmidt all being out in one weekend. Moore has missed multiple weeks, as his season ended after a tricep injury in the Oklahoma series, and Evans missed multiple weekends as well; he made his return against Georgia.

The whole starting rotation will likely come back. Moore has already said he will, and Evans and Schmidt aren't draft-eligible. So let them rest and come back ready for 2027.

Another massive blow for LSU was when Jake Brown's season-ending injury was announced after the Texas A&M series. Brown was on a tear, hitting .309 with an OPS of 1.047, smashing 16 home runs, and recording 49 RBI.

But past that, numerous players experienced injuries that kept them in and out of the lineup, including Chris Stanfield, Omar Serna Jr. and Trent Caraway.

It's time for LSU to rest.

Hitting the Transfer Portal

Apr 28, 2026; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; Louisiana State Tigers head coach Jay Johnson looks at the stands before a game against the Southeastern Louisiana Lions at Alex Box Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

Johnson has never been able to put his full attention into the transfer portal since he arrived at LSU.

With the portal opening on June 1, LSU has been occupied with regional and super regional action and has kept recruiting through time in Omaha. It's hard to focus on the portal and on winning a championship.

There's something to that; just look at the 2026 transfer class. Johnson has made comments saying he made mistakes with this portal class, calling himself out for not relying on more players from within the program.

Johnson's first season, 2022, ended on June 6. In 2023, he was busy winning a national championship till mid June. In 2024, his offseason started on June 3, leading to a championship roster with the help of those transfers.

The closest Johnson has had to this amount of time is 2024, and he landed Daniel Dickinson, Anthony Eyanson, Jacob Mayers, Zac Cowan, Luis Hernandez and Chris Stanfield.

All of these players made immediate impacts in 2025, helping LSU claim its eighth national title.

His sights are now fully set on a similar class in 2026.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google