Angelo State is the top choice to capture the 2023 Lone Star Conference Baseball title as the league released its annual preseason poll on Monday.
The league’s preseason poll reflects the opinions of LSC head coaches, sports information directors and various media representatives throughout the region.
ASU earned the top spot in the poll with 23 of 32 first-place votes and 407 total points. The Rams were 51-14 overall in 2022, which tied for the most wins in a season at ASU and made their second straight trip to the NCAA Division II Baseball Championship. ASU won the LSC baseball, LSC tournament and South Central Regional titles to record one of the most successful seasons in program history.
West Texas A&M ranked second in the poll, with 388 points and eight first-place votes.
Texas A&M-Kingsville was third with one top vote and 315 points, followed by Lubbock Christian in fourth at 298.
St. Edward's was fifth with 296 points, while UT Tyler was sixth (291), Oklahoma Christian seventh (206), and St. Mary's eighth (203).
Texas A&M International, UAFS, Eastern New Mexico, Cameron, and UT Permian Basin rounded out the poll.
West Texas A&M Adam Becker was named the LSC Preseason Player of the Year, while St. Edward's Wesley Gafford picked up LSC Preseason Pitcher of the Year honors.
Becker, a senior infielder from Midland, Texas, was tabbed LSC Player of the Year last season after hitting .402 with 22 doubles, two triples, 22 homeruns and 92 RBI for a slugging percentage of .803 to go along with 27 walks for an on-base clip of .462. He was named First Team All-South Central Region by the D2 CCA, NCBWA and ABCA/Rawlings.
Gafford, a senior pitcher from Georgetown, Texas, captured LSC Pitcher of the Year honors an 11-3 record with a league-high 101 strikeouts in 15 games last season. He also earned ABCA South Central Region Pitcher of the Year and first-team D2 CCA and NCBWA.
Additionally, 10 players and nine pitchers were selected for the first LSC baseball preseason players to watch list. The student-athletes were nominated by their member institution for recognition.
The 2023 season begins on February 3, with 13 LSC teams playing a single round-robin schedule with a four-game weekend series against each league opponent.
The LSC Championship will feature a two-week tournament comprised of the top eight teams with the opening round at on-campus sites May 5-7. The winners of each opening round series will advance to a double-elimination tournament played May 11-13. The winner of the postseason tournament will be recognized as the LSC Tournament Champion and receive the conference’s automatic qualifier to the NCAA postseason.
2023 LSC Baseball Preseason Poll
| Rank |
Team |
1st |
Total |
| 1 |
Angelo State |
23 |
407 |
| 2 |
West Texas A&M |
8 |
388 |
| 3 |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
1 |
315 |
| 4 |
Lubbock Christian |
|
298 |
| 5 |
St. Edward's |
|
296 |
| 6 |
UT Tyler |
|
291 |
| 7 |
Oklahoma Christian |
|
206 |
| 8 |
St. Mary's |
|
203 |
| 9 |
Texas A&M International |
|
160 |
| 10 |
UAFS |
|
131 |
| 11 |
Eastern New Mexico |
|
88 |
| 12 |
Cameron |
|
82 |
| 13 |
UT Permian Basin |
|
47 |
LSC Baseball Preseason Players to Watch
| Name |
School |
Class |
Pos. |
Major |
Hometown/High School |
| Beau Williams |
Cameron |
SR |
INF |
Business Finance |
Frisco, Texas/Reedy HS |
| Spencer Roach |
Eastern New Mexico |
SO |
DH/OF |
Phy. Educ.-Health & Wellness |
Cape Coral, Florida/Cape Coral HS |
| Eduardo Acosta |
Lubbock Christian |
SR |
INF |
Business Management |
San German, Puerto Rico/Montverde HS |
| Jake Mares |
St. Mary's |
SR |
SS |
Mathematics |
Fort Worth, Texas/All Saints Episcopal |
| Matt Kissamis |
Texas A&M International |
SR |
OF |
Kinesiology |
Katy, Texas/Wharton County JC/Katy HS |
| Nick Wolff |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
JR |
C |
Wildlife and Range Mgmt. |
Klein. Texas/Homeschool |
| Noah Davis |
UAFS |
SO |
IF |
Business Administration |
Bryant, Ark./Bryant HS |
| Michael Clapperton |
UT Permian Basin |
SR |
SS |
Engineering |
Calgary, Alberta/Holy Trinity Academy |
| Carson Cox |
UT Tyler |
SR |
OF |
Biology |
Texarkana, Texas/Pleasant Grove HS |
| Adam Becker |
West Texas A&M |
SR |
INF |
Business |
Midland, Texas/Lee HS |
LSC Baseball Preseason Players to Watch
| Name |
School |
Class |
Pos. |
Major |
Hometown/High School |
| Marcos Feria |
Cameron |
SR |
RHP |
Business Finance |
Miami, Fla./Ferguson HS |
| Ruger Bravo |
Eastern New Mexico |
JR |
LHP |
Business Administration |
Albuquerque, N.M./Manzano HS |
| Marcos Escalera |
Lubbock Christian |
JR |
RHP |
Business Management |
Carolina, Puerto Rico/Mary HS |
| Wesley Gafford |
St. Edward's |
SR |
P |
Political Science |
Georgetown, Texas/Georgetown HS |
| Kobe Jaramillo |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
JR |
RHP |
Kinesiology |
Bishop, Texas/Bishop HS |
| Brayden Johnson |
UAFS |
JR |
RHP |
Business Administration |
Alma, Ark./Alma HS |
| Austin Parks |
UT Permian Basin |
JR |
P |
Business |
Dallas, Texas/Woodrow Wilson HS |
| AJ Irvin |
UT Tyler |
SR |
RHP |
Electrical Engineering |
Kingwood, Texas/Kingwood HS |
| Nick Marshall |
West Texas A&M |
JR |
P |
Business |
Antigo, Wis./Antigo HS |