Five LSU baseball players named Top-100 prospects for 2024 MLB draft
By TigerBait StaffSeptember 20, 2023

BATON ROUGE, La. – Five LSU players have been named to the D1Baseball Top 100 College Prospects List for the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft.

LSU junior third baseman Tommy White is No. 7 on the list; junior right-handed pitcher Luke Holman is No. 12; junior right-handed pitcher Thatcher Hurd is No. 25; sophomore outfielder Paxton Kling is No. 50; and junior left-handed pitcher Gage Jump is No. 62.

White, a 2023 First-Team All-American, batted .374 (102-for-273) last season with 24 doubles, 24 homers, 105 RBI and 64 runs scored. He finished No. 1 in the nation in RBI (105), No. 3 in total bases (198) and No. 4 in RBI per game (1.59).

White, a product of St. Pete Beach, Fla., completed the season No. 1 in the SEC in RBI (105), No. 2 in total bases (198), No. 2 in hits (102), No. 2 in doubles (24), No. 4 in homers (24), No. 6 in batting average (.374) and No. 7 in slugging percentage (.725).

Holman, who transferred to LSU this summer from Alabama, made 31 appearances (15 starts) over the past two seasons for the Crimson Tide and posted a 4.05 ERA with 111 strikeouts in 100.0 innings.

Holman, a native of Sinking Springs, Pa., worked as Alabama’s No. 1 starter in 2023, recording a 7-4 mark and a 3.67 ERA in 81.0 innings with 87 strikeouts and a .186 opponent batting average. He finished No. 2 in the SEC in WHIP (1.05) and No. 3 in the league in opponent batting average and hits per nine innings (6.00)

Hurd was the winning pitcher in the 2023 College World Series Championship Game, as he posted the victory over Florida to clinch LSU’s seventh NCAA title. He limited the Gators to two runs on two hits in 6.0 innings with two walks and seven strikeouts.

Hurd, a product of Manhattan Beach, Calif., was brilliant in the 2023 postseason, recording three NCAA Tournament wins in four appearances with a 3.71 ERA and 25 strikeouts in 17.0 innings. He posted an 8-3 overall record and three saves last season with 84 strikeouts in 63.1 innings.

Kling, a native of Roaring Springs, Pa., played in 57 games last season (22 starts) for the Tigers, batting .289 with five doubles, two triples, four homers, nine RBI, 29 runs and three stolen bases.

Kling batted .652 (15-for-23) during a remarkable seven-game stretch (March 4-12) with three doubles, one triple, three homers, six RBI and 13 runs. He launched his first career LSU homer on March 6 versus Butler, when he was also 3-for-3 with a double and three runs scored

Jump transferred to LSU this summer after two seasons at UCLA. He did not pitch in 2023 due to injury, and he made seven appearances as a true freshman in 2022, including three starts.

Jump completed the 2022 season with a 1-1 record, two saves, a 3.86 ERA, a .172 opponent batting average and 22 strikeouts over 16.1 innings. A product of Aliso, Calif., he was ranked as the No. 1 left-handed pitcher in the state of California as a high school senior.