Émilien Pitre tabbed as Preseason Top-10 Second Baseman

Just days after teammate Devin Burkes was ranked a Preseason Top-15 catcher in the country, Kentucky Baseball’s Émilien Pitre has been ranked a Preseason Top-10 second baseman by D1Baseball. Petey landed at No. 9 in the rankings.

The Quebec native shined in 2023, earning a spot on All-SEC Second Team along with the SEC All-Defensive Team. Pitre batted .318 with 51 RBI, 16 doubles, and an OBP of .440. His 20 stolen bases last season are the most among returning Wildcats.

Petey is the third-highest ranked second baseman in the SEC, just behind Tennessee’s Christian Moore (3) and Florida’s Cade Kurland (5). In total, eight of the top-50 ranked second basemen are from the Southeastern Conference.

3. Christian Moore (Tennessee)
5. Cade Kurland (Florida)
9. Émilien Pitre (Kentucky)
10. Amani Larry (Mississippi State)
14. Paul Toetz (Georgia)
21. Trevor Austin (Missouri)
49. Cam Kozeal (Vanderbilt)
50. Peyton Stovall (Arkansas)

Petey and Grant Smith both return to form one of the best middle infields in the entire country. Smith was rated as the Preseason No. 39 overall shortstop in college baseball, but that seems a bit low as Smith was a finalist for the Gold Glove Award at the position in 2023.

"When I go home and speak only French, I dream in French."

A 🎙'd up @emilien_pitre is must-see content. pic.twitter.com/nkvG3Rlzj4

— Kentucky Baseball (@UKBaseball) February 5, 2024

Pitre, who will embark on his second season as the starting second baseman, will look to aim for the All-SEC First Team in 2024.