Coming off a run to the College World Series with a veteran roster, Ole Miss Baseball was set for significant turnover. The Rebels brought in a good haul from the portal, while losing several players to graduation and the draft.
MLB Draft
For the first time in Ole Miss Baseball history two players were taken in the first round of the same MLB Draft. The Chicago Cubs took starter Cade Townsend with the No. 23 overall pick, and the Kansas City Royals took starter Taylor Rabe with the No. 30 overall pick.
The Texas Rangers selected reliever Hudson Calhoun with the No. 117 overall pick. Townsend, Rabe and Calhoun, despite having college eligibility remaining, are expected to sign with the teams who drafted them.
Townsend and Rabe have slot values, a predetermined monetary figure for every pick in the first 10 rounds of the draft, of over $3 million dollars (Townsend nearly reaches $4 million) and Calhoun has a slot value of over $650,000.
The Atlanta Braves drafted left-handed pitcher Wil Libbert No. 144 overall and the New York Mets drafted Landon Koenig No. 240 overall. Libbert has two years of eligibility remaining, while Libbert has one.
The Toronto Blue Jays selected Landon Waters No. 522 overall. He is out of eligibility and will sign with the Jays. On the other hand, the San Francisco Giants drafted JP Robertson No. 598 overall, but he could return to Oxford for another year.
Catcher Austin Fawley has another year of eligibility left, but the Braves took him No. 562 overall. If Fawley elects to go pro, the Rebels have his replacement on the roster.
Portal
Five Rebels entered the portal: Brayden Randle, Noah Allen, Tate Sirmans, Blake Ilitch and Brett Moseley. Twelve players came to Oxford from the portal.
Ole Miss Athletics also made a move with the coaching staff. They offered head coach Mike Bianco a new four-year contract for around $1.8 million a year.
Middle infielder Randle was one of the most consistent bats for Ole Miss in the postseason, and Bianco even played him in the outfield during the postseason to keep his bat in the lineup. With shortstop Owen Paino and second baseman Dom Decker returning to the team for 2027, he could not have played in the infield and likely did not want to stay in the outfield.
Center fielder Moseley and left fielder Sirmans hit the portal. Moseley was primarily used as a defensive substitution in the playoffs. Sirmans was a part of a rotating door in left field last season. He started 13 games and had a .178 average.
Six-foot-seven-inch freshman Allen left for Alabama. He had a 2.89 earned run average across eight relief appearances. Ilitch, who did not appear for the Rebels last season, also entered the portal.
Third baseman Judd Utermark, first baseman Will Furniss and right fielder Tristan Bissetta graduated but were not drafted.
TCU catcher Brady Dallimore left the Big 12 for the SEC and could serve as the everyday backstop for Ole Miss. Dallimore was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman team after slashing .270/.373/.549, driving in 23 and hitting eight homers in 122 at-bats.
The Rebels brought in Clemson third baseman Jason Fultz Jr. to replace Judd Utermark. He reached base at a .408 clip and walked 24 times in his freshman season.
Across the diamond, Louisiana Tech first baseman Trey Hawsey will come to Oxford for his junior season. He had a .329 average and a .584 slugging percentage in 231 at-bats. He drove in 47 and hit 15 homers.
Utermark and Furniss struck out more than twice as much combined (142 times) as Fultz Jr. and Hawsey combined (70), but the out-going pair totaled 31 homers and 24 doubles, compared to the incoming pair’s 16 long balls and 16 two baggers.
In the outfield, Hayden Federico will remain in Oxford to man center field.
Ole Miss currently does not have a transfer to replace Bissetta, but Indiana outfielder Caleb Koskie could be a target for Bianco and the Rebels. Koskie hit .372 in 148 at-bats last year. He compiled 55 hits, 42 RBIs and 11 doubles.
Houston transfer Blake Fields should fix the hole in left field. He walked more than he struck out last year (34-to-29) and racked up 49 hits and 26 RBIs.
The remaining eight portal players are pitchers: Sean Carey, Kendall Hoffman, Andrew Rogovic, Charlie Foster, Eli Pillsbury, Charlie Willcox, Mavrick Rizy and Brent Stukes.
They will join returners Grayson Gibson, Walker Hooks and Hunter Elliott, who is back for a sixth year. Elliott was sidelined with Tommy John surgery for two years.
Gibson only made eight appearances as a freshman but should be a larger factor next season. Hooks was selected for the 2026 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team. Elliott will look to bounce back after a gritty but lackluster 2026 campaign.
Carey is a left-hander from Sacramento State. The junior pitched in 41 ⅓ innings out of the bullpen to a 4.57 ERA. He walked 20 batters and struck out 64.
Hoffman started 14 games as a junior for Houston. He had a 4.56 ERA in 79 innings. Pillsbury started 16 games for Jacksonville State as a redshirt junior. He struck out 89 batters in 77 ⅓ innings with a 4.07 ERA.
Rogovic pitched 39 ⅔ innings in 23 appearances as a sophomore for Northeastern. He ended the year with a 4.31 ERA. Pitching coach Joel Mangrum recruited Foster from rival Mississippi State. The southpaw made nine starts and had a 6.69 ERA.
The Rebels got another transfer from a rival in LSU’s Mavrick Rizy. The six-foot-nine-inch lefty had a 4.22 ERA in 21 ⅓ innings.
Stukes made 16 appearances for South Carolina Upstate and had a 5.65 ERA. Willcox only pitched 14 innings for ACC champion Georgia Tech as a freshman.
The Rebels also lost high school commits Cole Prosek (No. 41 overall) and Taj Marchand (No. 33 overall) to the draft.
