LSU Baseball Star Derek Curiel Named to Watch List for Prestigious Bobby Bragan Award

Curiel remains in headlines this season, former LSU outfielder Dylan Crews won the award in 2023.

Courtesy of LSU Tigers Baseball.

BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU sophomore centerfielder Derek Curiel has been named to the Watch List for the 2026 Bobby Bragan National Collegiate Slugger Award.

The winner of the Bragan Award will be announced in June and honored at a gala in the fall in Fort Worth, Texas.

LSU outfielder Dylan Crews was the recipient of the 2023 Bragan Award, which was first presented in 2017. The award is based upon performance at the plate, academics and personal integrity.

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.

Courtesy of LSU Tigers Baseball.

The Buzz: LSU Moved to 11-1 on Sunday

William Schmidt (3-0) fired a career-high 7.1 innings, limiting Dartmouth to no runs on four hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.

His strikeouts total was also a career best, matching the nine strikeouts he recorded against Milwaukee on February 15.

“William was outstanding today, and he’s getting better as we go,” said LSU coach Jay Johnson. “I’m really proud of how’s he developing, how he’s competing; he’s throwing strikes and leading the team to wins on three Sundays in a row. I don’t think any other team in the country can run out that kind of pitcher on a Sunday.

“He had a really good preseason in our scrimmage games, and he’s put together three really good starts. You’re seeing an uptick in stuff, and pitch execution, and strikes. Nine strikeouts and no walks, it’s had to do much better than that.”

Courtesy of LSU Tigers Baseball.

LSU suffered the program's first loss last Tuesday to McNeese, but with three consecutive wins over the weekend, the Tigers quickly bounced back at Alex Box Stadium with Curiel serving as a catalyst.

“This season is a 56-game playoff, and every game is really important. Every one that we win is of great value, and we take it to heart when we’re not successful," head coach Jay Johnson said.

"We get everybody’s best shot when we play, and we made some mistakes (in Tuesday’s loss to McNeese) that we can learn from. We can use a lot from Tuesday’s game that can help to catapult us forward, and there’s much we can gain from that game.”

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