LSU Baseball Adds Commitment From Prized PAC-12 Southpaw

Jay Johnson made the move to hire pitching coach Nate Yeskie just seven days ago, and after a week on the job, he’s already secured a lefty from the NCAA Transfer Portal.

LSU has landed a commitment from UCLA southpaw Gage Jump after a stint in the portal.

Jump missed the 2023 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, but will be ready for the 2024 season, according to D1Baseball’s Kendall Rogers.

A member of the Bruins 2021 recruiting class, Jump was a hot commodity before committing to UCLA. Once in Los Angeles, his first season was cut short due to injuries, forcing the youngster to undergo Tommy John surgery.

TRANSFER NEWS: @LSUbaseball has landed another commitment out of the transfer portal in former #UCLA LHP Gage Jump, @d1baseball has learned. Jump missed the 2023 season with Tommy John surgery but has huge upside. He will be ready for 2024. #GeauxTigers https://t.co/eTepH8FGTd
— Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogers) July 8, 2023

Now, after taking the time to battle back while continuing to rehab, Jump will be ready for the 2024 season with the reigning National Champion LSU Tigers.

In seven appearances and three starts during the 2022 season, Jump tallied a 1-1 record with a 3.86 ERA, .172 batting average against and 22 strikeouts across 16.1 innings.

Jump passed on the 2021 MLB Draft despite being rated as MLB.com’s No. 41 overall draft prospect. Perfect Game had Jump rated as the No. 7 overall lefty.

Coming out of high school, Jump was ranked No. 4 overall and No. 1 among southpaws in the state of California.

The UCLA to LSU pipeline carries on after the Tigers also welcomed former Bruin Thatcher Hurd last offseason. Hurd, a gifted righty who burst onto the scene late this season, came to Baton Rouge last offseason.

Jump is the third pitcher to commit to LSU this offseason via the NCAA Transfer Portal after the Tigers also welcomed Xavier’s Justin Loer and Alabama’s Kade Woods.