A Quartet of Tulane Baseball Players Named to Magazine's 2026 Preseason All-Conference Team
Tulane’s baseball team had four players named to The Diamond Report’s American Preseason All-Conference Team as recently announced.
The Diamond Report is a highly regarded preseason guide for the 2026 season, compiled by contributing writers from College Baseball Insiders, College Baseball Central, Just Baseball, 11Point7, and SGPN. Tulane was ranked fourth in the American Conference in the preseason poll.
Preseason All-Conference Selections
Jason Wachs: First Team Outfield
Hugh Pinkney: Second Team Catcher
Matthias Haas: Second Team Infield
Nolan Nawrocki: Second Team Utility
Outfielder: Jason Wachs
As a true freshman, Wachs led the team with a .335 batting average in 51 games (45 starts). He recorded 46 runs, 56 hits, 14 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs, 25 RBIs, and a .479 slugging percentage. Wachs also drew 31 walks with a .457 on-base percentage and was a unanimous selection to the 2025 All-Freshman Team. He concluded his debut season on a 23-game hitting streak and a 26-game on-base streak. Wachs was also named Preseason All-Conference by coaches.
Catcher: Hugh Pinkney
Pinkney hit .271 in 47 games (40 starts), with 26 runs, 35 hits, 8 doubles, 2 home runs, and 24 RBIs. He posted a .394 on-base percentage and threw out 9 runners attempting to steal, showcasing his defensive prowess behind the plate.
Infielder: Matthias Haas
Haas posted a .303 batting average, with 35 runs, 63 hits, 21 doubles (second in the conference), a triple, 4 home runs, and 40 RBIs. He accumulated 98 total bases, a .471 slugging percentage, and was highly disciplined at the plate with 19 walks, 11 hit-by-pitches, and 4 sacrifice flies. Haas was previously recognized as a Preseason All-Conference selection.
Utility: Nolan Nawrocki
In his first season at Tulane, Nawrocki played at South Carolina before injuries limited his 2025 campaign. He appeared in 14 games with 12 starts, recording a hit in his first four games, along with 5 runs, 2 doubles, 1 home run, and 7 RBIs. Nawrocki previously played at Clemson in 2024, appearing in 36 games with 34 starts and hitting .264 with 28 runs, 5 doubles, 4 home runs, and 24 RBIs.
Season Outlook and Team Achievements
Tulane is coming off a successful 2025 season that saw the Green Wave reach the American Conference Championship Game for the third consecutive year. Over the past decade, Tulane has won nine of its last 10 conference tournament games, earning two league championships and NCAA Tournament appearances.
Last season, Tulane finished with a 33-25 record and earned five All-Conference selections: Michael Lombardi (P, 1st team), Connor Rasmussen (2B, 1st team), Gavin Schulz (DH, 2nd team), Jason Wachs (All-Freshman), and Tanner Chun (All-Freshman). The team also placed three players on the All-Tournament Team and two on the LSWA All-State Team. Additionally, Lombardi, Rasmussen, and Tayler Montiel were selected in the 2025 MLB Draft, with Lombardi going in the 2nd round (Kansas City Royals), Montiel in the 12th round (Arizona Diamondbacks), and Rasmussen in the 15th round (Kansas City Royals).
Portions Courtesy Tulane Athletics
Doug has covered a gamut of sporting events in his fifty-plus years in the field. He started doing sideline reporting for Louisiana Tech football games for the student radio station. Doug was Sports Director for KNOE-AM/FM in Monroe in the mid-80s, winning numerous awards from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association for Best Sportscast and Best Play-by-Play. High school play-by-play for teams in Monroe, Natchitoches, New Orleans, and Thibodaux, LA dot his resume. He did college play-by-play for Northwestern State University in Natchitoches for nine years. Then, moving to the Crescent City, Doug did television PBP of Tulane games and even filled in for legendary Tulane broadcaster, Ken Berthelot in the only game Kenny ever missed while doing the Green Wave games. His father was an alumnus of Tulane in the 1940s, so Doug has attended Tulane football games in old Tulane Stadium, the Superdome, and Yulman. He was one of the 86,000 plus on December 1, 1973, sitting in the North End Zone to seeTulane shutout the LSU Tigers, 14-0. He was there when the Posse ruled Fogelman and in Turchin when the Wave made it to the World Series. He currently is the public address voice of the Tulane baseball team.