LSU shortstop Ryan Kucherak enters NCAA transfer portal
LSU shortstop Ryan Kucherak has entered the NCAA transfer portal, On3’s Pete Nakos has learned. He appeared in 16 games this past season as a freshman.
Kucherak totaled 12 at-bats in his 16 appearances in 2024, totaling three hits. His biggest performance came in his collegiate debut against VMI when he went 1-for-2 with an RBI while scoring three runs.
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All told, Kucherak went 3-for-12 with four runs scored during his lone season with LSU. He arrived in Baton Rouge as a highly touted recruit, coming in as the No. 2-ranked shortstop in his home state of Arizona, according to Perfect Game.
Kucherak is the latest LSU player to enter the portal Tuesday, joining pitcher Thatcher Hurd. He started his career at UCLA before two years at LSU, where he went 11-6 and had 140 strikeouts. All told, over his three seasons of college baseball, Hurd has a 4.84 ERA.
Catcher Brady Neal was also among the Tigers to hit the open market this offseason, but he is now off the board. He committed to Alabama on Monday.
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Neal spent two seasons at LSU before hitting the portal. Now, he’ll stay in the SEC with the Crimson Tide after an impressive 2024 season.
In 44 games last year at LSU, Neal hit .276 with eight doubles, nine home runs and 31 RBI. He entered the transfer portal in June. Across two seasons at LSU, the 5-foot-10 catcher hit .251 with 12 home runs and 40 RBI.
Brady Neal emerged as LSU’s starting catcher in his true freshman season in 2023. He appeared in 26 games before a back injury sidelined him for the remainder of the Tigers’ national championship-winning season. He boasted a perfect fielding percentage behind home plate with zero errors, along with a .209 batting average, 14 hits, three home runs and nine RBI on the year.
This past season Neal played in 44 games, splitting catcher duties with Alex Milazzo and Hayden Travinski. He also spent some time as the designated hitter in LSU’s lineup. Neal could work his way into being one of the top catcher prospects in the 2025 MLB Draft. He was selected in the 17th Round of the 2022 MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers.
Matt Connolly contributed to this report.