Big Day for FSU Baseball: 3 transfers choose Seminoles, slugger James Tibbs confirms return
As Link Jarrett said Wednesday in his interview with Warchant, Florida State’s baseball roster will be in a state of flux for quite some time as the Seminoles look for additions in the transfer portal and wait to see what happens in the MLB Draft.
But a few important pieces came into focus on Thursday, including the official return of leading hitter James Tibbs and the announcement of three promising transfer additions.
Tibbs, a sophomore who led the Seminoles in batting average (.338) and home runs (17) this past season, had hinted earlier that he was planning to return for the 2023-24 season. But the Georgia native confirmed those intentions on Thursday, announcing a deal to become an ambassador with NIL collective Rising Spear.
The Tibbs announcement comes less than one week after All-ACC Freshman Team third baseman Cam Smith announced he also was returning.
But that wasn’t the only positive news for Jarrett and the Seminoles on Thursday, as they landed three promising players from the transfer portal.
One of the new additions will be a very familiar name for FSU fans. UCF freshman infielder Drew Faurot, a Tallahassee native who blasted 15 home runs in his first season of college baseball, announced on Instagram on Thursday that he was transferring back home to Florida State.
Faurot’s father, Adam, was a standout on the FSU baseball team in the mid-1990s. The younger Faurot started 57 of 58 games this season, hitting .258 with 51 RBIs to go with his 15 homers.
Florida State also landed a commitment from freshmanUNF shortstop Alex Lodise, who started 55 games this past season for the Ospreys. Lodise earned first-team All-Atlantic Sun honors this season after hitting .307 with 16 home runs and 63 RBIs. According to UNF’s web site, he finished in the top 10 nationally among freshmen in home runs, RBIs and runs scored.
University of Alabama outfielder Max Williams also announced Thursday he is joining the Seminoles. He played sparingly as a freshman, hitting .320 (8-for-25), but he was very highly regarded coming out of high school.
Williams, who hails from Fleming Island near Jacksonville, was rated the No. 21 outfielder nationally and the No. 83 prospect overall by Perfect Game USA.
*ALSO SEE: Updated list of FSU baseball transfer commitments.
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