LSU Baseball Lands Handful of Tigers on Top-100 Collegiate Sophomores List

BATON ROUGE, La. – Five LSU baseball players are listed among the Top 100 Collegiate Sophomores for the 2026 season by Perfect Game.

The list includes LSU outfielder Derek Curiel (No. 1), right-handed pitcher William Schmidt (No. 12), right-handed pitcher Casan Evans (No. 14), left-handed pitcher Cooper Williams (No. 45) and catcher Cade Arrambide (No. 54).

Curiel, a product of West Covina, Calif., was voted the 2025 National Freshman of the Year by D1Baseball.com after a superb rookie season in which he helped lead LSU to the NCAA National Championship.

A 2025 Second-Team All-America, First-Team Freshman All-America, Second-Team All-SEC selection and First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll member, Curiel hit a team-high .345 with 20 doubles, two triples, seven homers, 55 RBI and 67 runs.

He was named to the College World Series All-Tournament Team after collecting six hits, three RBI and three runs in LSU’s five CWS games. Curiel hit a team-high .571 in the Tigers’ NCAA Super Regional sweep of West Virginia with one double, one homer, five RBI and six runs.

LSU Tigers Baseball: Kade Woods. — Courtesy of LSU Tigers Baseball.

Schmidt, a product of Catholic High School in Baton Rouge, appeared in 17 games (six starts) last season as a true freshman, posting a 7-0 record and a 4.73 ERA in 32.1 innings with 22 walks, 41 strikeouts and a .226 opponent batting average. He was also named to the 2025 First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll.

Schmidt pitched 3.1 innings to post a win over Southeastern Louisiana on April 29, allowing two runs on four hits with one walk and seven strikeouts. He earned the win at Nicholls on April 8 with dominant relief effort, firing 4.0 shutout innings, with no hits, two walks and a career-best eight strikeouts.

Evans, a right-hander from Houston, Texas, earned 2025 Third-Team All-America and First-Team Freshman All-America recognition, as he posted a 5-1 mark with 2.05 ERA and seven saves in 19 appearances (three starts). He worked 52.2 innings, recording 19 walks, 71 strikeouts and a .228 opponent batting average.

He posted an excellent relief outing versus UCLA in the College World Series, earning the win and limiting the Bruins to two runs on four hits in 4.1 innings with no walks and five strikeouts.

Evans earned the save versus Arkansas in LSU’s CWS opener, working 1.0 inning with no runs on one hit and one strikeout.

LSU Tigers Baseball: Casan Evans. — Courtesy of LSU Tigers Baseball.

Evans, who was named to the 2025 First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll, delivered one of the best postseason outings in LSU history on June 2 in the Tigers’ NCAA Baton Rouge Regional championship game win over Little Rock. He entered the game in the second inning and allowed one run on four hits in 6.0 innings with three walks and a career-best 12 strikeouts.

Williams, a native of Alvin, Texas, appeared in 21 games last season as a true freshman, posting an 0-1 mark and a 1.80 ERA in 20.0 innings with 13 walks, 21 strikeouts and a .186 opponent batting average.

He recorded an excellent relief effort versus Little Rock in the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional on June 1, working 3.2 shutout innings with three hits, one walk, and four strikeouts.

Williams, a member of the 2025 First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll, made three appearances in NCAA Tournament games – including one versus UCLA in the College World Series – working a total of 6.2 innings with one run on five hits, four walks and five strikeouts.

He pitched 8.2 relief innings without allowing an earned run from April 26-June 7, logging 10 strikeouts and two walks in that span.

Arrambide, a product of Tomball, Texas, played in 36 games (19 starts) last season as a true freshman, batting .242 (15-for-62) with three doubles, four homers, 14 RBI and 11 runs.

He was 3-for-4 with a solo homer and two runs scored in a win over Arkansas on May 10, and he produced three RBI versus Louisiana Tech on April 1, delivering a two-run single in first inning of the contest.

Arrambide, a member of the 2025 First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll, was 3-for-4 with a double, a two-run homer and three RBI versus UL Lafayette on March 25, and he launched a two-run homer in LSU’s win over New Orleans on March 18.

The 2026 season begins on Friday, February 13, when LSU plays host to Milwaukee in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.

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