Where Missouri Baseball was Picked to Finish in SEC
Missouri Tigers baseball has once again been picked to finish last in the SEC East per the Preseason Coaches poll. To add insult to injury, this year they also have nobody on the Preseason All-SEC Teams either.
The Tigers have been in that spot in the preseason poll for last two years and have fulfilled their low expectations the last three years by earning below a .333 win percentage in SEC play in each season.
A history book back to the Tigers Big 12 days needs pulled out if you want to find the last time they finished with a winning record in their conference. All the way back in 2009, the Tigers finished with a 16-11 record in the Big 12. The last time they didn't have a losing record in SEC play was almost 10 years ago, however, when they went 15-15 in 2015.
Winning against teams not in their conference isn't the problem for Missouri. They went 20-4 in non-conference games last season, which definitely helped them keep their record above .500 last season. Without those games, the Tigers looked pretty bleak with losing two-thirds of their games against SEC opponents.
Missouri last finished above seventh in the SEC East where they placed fourth in 2019. But they are hoping to turn it around do better this year than last behind new coach Kerrick Jackson and half a new roster. Unfortunately for Missouri, the SEC is a tough place to compete in — especially with eight of the 14 teams ranking in the top 25 of all college baseball, according to NCAA rankings.
Fighting out of last place won't be easy for the Tigers. They will be figuring everything out while competing in one of the hardest conferences and under a new coach with a relatively young roster. With all of the new players, they won't have as many players that are used to Taylor Stadium — which has been one of their advantages in past years.
To achieve the goal of not finishing last, they need to lean on their strengths. One of which is home games. Taylor Stadium has the unfortunate reputation for being on the worse and older ends of stadiums in the SEC, but that just gives them a home field advantage. Nine of their 10 SEC wins last season came at home and they finished with an overall home record of 19-7.
Missouri may be in for a bumpy start. But they are optimistic and have a new mindset for this season to help them in their journey out of last place.
"We're not supposed to be the best because we're the farthest team north in the SEC," Missouri head coach Kerrick Jackson said. "We don't have the best stadium and what I've told our guys is that what you have is opportunity"
Missouri baseball starts its season in California against Cal Poly on Friday, Feb. 16 at 8 p.m.
2024 SEC Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll
Western Division
- Arkansas (9) – 87
- LSU (5) – 82
- Texas A&M – 68
- Alabama – 47
- Auburn – 46
- Ole Miss – 32
- Mississippi State – 23
Eastern Division
- Florida (11) – 88
- Tennessee (2) – 75
- Vanderbilt (1) – 73
- South Carolina – 50
- Kentucky – 44
- Georgia – 36
- Missouri – 19
SEC Champion: Arkansas (9), LSU (3), Florida (2)
Coaches Preseason All-SEC Team
First Team
C: Cole Messina, South Carolina
1B: Jac Caglianone, Florida
2B: Cade Kurland, Florida
3B: Tommy White, LSU
SS: Colby Shelton, Florida
OF: Jace LaViolette, Texas A&M
OF: Ethan Petry, South Carolina
OF: Kendall Diggs, Arkansas
DH/UTL: Ike Irish, Auburn
SP: Hagen Smith, Arkansas
SP: Drew Beam, Tennessee
RP: Brandon Neely, Florida
Second Team
C: Devin Burkes, Kentucky
1B: Charlie Condon, Georgia
2B: Christian Moore, Tennessee
3B: Billy Amick, Tennessee
SS: Jonathan Vastine, Vanderbilt
OF: Braden Montgomery, Texas A&M
OF: Dakota Jordan, Mississippi State
OF: Bobby Peirce, Auburn
DH/UTL: Hayden Travinski, LSU
SP: Jac Caglianone, Florida
SP: Carter Holton, Vanderbilt
RP: Alton Davis II, Alabama