Memphis Tigers’ outfielder Pierre Seals shines brightly amidst a season filled with both triumphs and challenges for the team. Seals was recently named to the ACC honor roll after an outstanding performance in the Tigers weekend series against conference leader at the time University of Texas San Antonio (UTSA).
In the UTSA series Seals recorded two hits and two Rbi on Friday (highest on the team), three hits with an RBI on Saturday and Sunday he totaled two hits and his ninth home run of the season tying him with teammate Jacob Compton for the most on the team.
For that week Seals lead the league in hitting with a.583(7-for-12) batting average. He scored four runs totaling 13 bases over the week. “I give the credit all to our coaches with the approaches we have.” Said Seals “Just prepping us for the game and giving us a plan so I just try to execute within the plan they give us.”
Seals started his college career at Dyersburg State Community College where he committed to in high school. In high school he was ranked #27 in the state of Tennessee and top 500 in the nation for the class of 2021. At Dyersburg he would play in a total of 97 games 44 in his freshman season and 53 in this sophomore with a total batting average of .268 for his time there.
Seals credits his older teammate with easing his transition to Memphis by constantly offering him advice on the game and their system. With the addition of a new head coach everyone had to adjust and that also grew their bonds.
Now in his first year with the Tigers he leads the team in multiple categories including home runs with nine, batting average .328 and stolen bases with 13 on the season.
“Of course, I think I had the talent, but I think my coaches really helped put it all together, just staying with my approach knowing what I’m good at and my ability had helped me evolve as a player,” said Seals.
Seals has been a consistent bright spot for the Tigers in a turbulent season but knows there are still some parts of his game that can improve. “ My pitch recognition and swing and miss ratio, being able to recognize pitch is a thing to make sure I’m getting all the right pitches to swing at and being aggressive when I need to be.” Said Seals
Through the ups and downs of this seasons Seals stays focus by not letting the highs get too high and the lows get to and keeping a level head by remembering it’s just baseball. “Our coaches always talk about trusting the process, so just staying with the team playing for the team.” Said Seals “Staying consistent with focus day by day and going about it as a professional.”
With the season winding down and the Tigers’ still sitting 4 games below .500 Seals will for sure be a key piece in making a late season push.
“The key is to continue to work and execute the plan that the coaches have for us and stay consistent.” Said Seals.
Daunte Stuart prepares to face the opposing pitcher. Photo by Jacob Morgan/Tigerpen
Throughout the season, the Tigers have received contributions from a myriad of players. Although the offense as a whole has struggled to produce for much of the year, there are a few outliers who have consistently put together good at-bats for Memphis. Daunte Stuart, Pierre Seals and Will Marcy have been the three best hitters for the Tigers on a game-to-game basis. What do these three players have in common; they are all transfers.
Daunte Stuart transferred to Memphis from Northwestern State University in Louisiana. In his four previous seasons, Stuart’s batting average ranged between .270 and .285. This season for the Tigers, he is hitting a career-high, .314, in 40 games played. When asked about the difference in his plate approach this season, Stuart said, “My swings have become cleaner, as I have focused on becoming a more consistent hitter.”
Daunte Stuart celebrates after coming around the bases to score. Photo by Florian Krempel/Tigerpen
Not only is Daunte Stuart one of the best hitters for the Tigers; he is also one of the premiere offensive players in the American Athletic Conference. Among all qualified batters this season, Stuart ranks first in doubles with 15. He has also possessed great patience at the plate, drawing more walks than strikeouts. “The biggest aspect for me has been mental,” said Stuart. “I’ve been locked in on every pitch, looking for any advantage that I can get.”
Pierre Seals, unlike Stuart, transferred to Memphis after completing his freshman season in junior college. At Dyersburg State, Seals hit .294 with eight home runs and 36 RBIs. In just 39 games played, he has already amassed many of the totals from his previous campaign. “Having the guidance of the older guys in the locker room has been big for me and my development,” Seals said. “I’m from the Memphis area, so I have not had to go through an adjustment period with a change of scenery.”
Pierre Seals scores a run to extend the Tigers’ lead. Photo by Brock Busick/University of Memphis Athletics
Despite only being a sophomore, Pierre Seals can be seen at the top of several offensive categories for the Tigers. He leads the team in batting average (.324), on-base percentage (.429) and slugging percentage (.581). Along with Daunte Stuart, Seals is tied for the team lead in hits at 48. “I give credit to my coaches, especially our hitting coach, who has prepared me well to lean into my strengths when facing opposing pitchers,” said Seals.
Like Stuart, Pierre Seals has been one of the best offensive players in the AAC. He ranks fifth in total bases (86) among all hitters in the league. Seals has also been active on the basepaths this season, tallying 14 stolen bases, which places him fourth in the conference.
Will Marcy steps to the plate, awaiting a pitch he can hit. Photo by Ronald Todd/Tigerpen
Despite being named a preseason all-AAC first team selection, Will Marcy had a rough start to the 2024 season. Last season at North Carolina State University, Marcy hit .301 for the Wolfpack, but struggled at the plate late in the season. It took a few weeks for Marcy to become the Tigers’ everyday starter in center field. Once he settled in, Marcy began producing up to the expectations set for him.
In 35 games played this season, Will Marcy is hitting .304, which ranks third on the team (behind Daunte Stuart and Pierre Seals). He is also second in doubles (13) and stolen bases (12). Marcy has also been stellar defensively for the Tigers. He has a higher fielding percentage (.989) than every other starter on the diamond.
With more than half of the season played, the Tigers are still not sure where the team is standing. Bright flashes with big wins are promptly followed by devastating losses only a few days later. So far the Bullpen especially lacks any form of consistency. To one guy this does not apply – Brayden Sanders. He is coach Riser’s man when things get tight.
It is the seventh inning of game one against Florida Atlantic. David Warren has just delivered the best outing of his career as starting pitcher. He tallied seven innings, over a hundred pitches thrown and only one run allowed. But now, his arm gets tired. The score is 2 – 1 for Memphis and the bases are loaded for FAU. What now? For head coach Matt Riser, it is clear what to do. It is time for Brayden Sanders: “When Brayden is in the game, you know it is over.”
And so, it comes: Although FAU loads the bases twice in the last two innings, they are not able to score another run. After the final pitch the Tigers’ dugout erupts – a 2 – 1 victory for Memphis. After the game, Sanders talked about his performance: “As a closer, it is the best feeling ever. It is everybody’s dream. It is the best feeling in baseball.”
Brayden Sanders after his game-winning pitch against FAU. Jacob Morgan/Tigerpen
While Memphis’ season continues to be up-and-down, Brayden Sanders is one bright spot for the Tigers. So far, he has appeared in eleven games and has pitched for 16.1 innings. During these appearances, he only allowed three runs for the opponent. His ERA right now is at 1.65 and he has recorded a whopping 26 strikeouts.
His personal success also translates onto the whole team: From the eleven games he has played in, the Tigers won eight. In six of the matches, he was credited with a save, supporting the argument of coach Riser: When Brayden Sanders is in the game, the game is over most of the time.
Sanders was born in Olive Branch in Mississippi. He started his college career in Ole Miss in 2021. Before that, he attended Lewisburg High School, where he played baseball for the Patriots. During his time there, he started to show his potential: In March 2020, he pitched a complete game no-hitter, striking out 13 and driving in two runs himself. In his junior season, which was cut short due to the COVID-pandemic, he recorded a 1.71 ERA while striking out 27 hitters in only 16 innings. He improved these numbers even more in his senior campaign to a 1.50 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 37 innings.
With those stats he was ranked as the number four RHP and the number 10 overall player in Mississippi coming out of high school. After he spent his first semester at Ole Miss, he transferred to Northwest Mississippi Community College. For the Rangers, he appeared 13 times on the mound. During that, he struck out 53 batters across 36.1 innings. His season high came against Wallace State, when he recorded eight strikeouts in the game. Prior to the 2023 season, he signed with the Memphis Tigers.
Now, one season later, head coach Matt Riser values his skills as the closer highly. After the win against FAU, he had nothing but praise for Brayden Sanders: “If you want to win a championship or have an opportunity to win championships, you got to have a guy that can finish games. Brayden has proven that time and time again.”
What Sanders also has shown time and time again this season, is that he can stay focused on the bench during long games and take over when he is needed. “I have a routine that I do every single game, whether I come in or not. This keeps me in the game and lose, in case they need me in the eighth or the ninth inning”, he said after the FAU game.
Brayden Sanders right before a pitch. Jacob Morgan/Tigerpen
When his name gets called, Sanders has to deliver. For that, he often tries to remind himself that he is good enough and feed off the trust that his coach and his team have in him. Shortly before the pitch, he then shuts his head off: “I really don’t try to think too much, when I am out there. I don’t want a lot going through my mind out there,” said Sanders.
Then, he approaches each pitch individually. “I hit them with my best stuff. When they hit it, I trust my defense. When they swing and miss or I walk them, then I get the next batter,” said Sanders. A strategy that seems to be working.
Brayden Sanders loves team sports. He needs to feel the trust by his team to deliver consistently. Likewise, he also tries to pick up his teammates. Like in the game against Florida Atlantic: In the ninth inning, Jake Curtis missed a critical catch to load the bases for FAU once more. But Sanders stayed calm: “I told him: “Don’t worry, I got you”. And then I got out there and had his back.”
As the season progresses, the Tigers will definitely continue to turn to Brayden Sanders, when things get close. His ability to finish games might prove to be essential, if the team can become more consistent and stay in the game till the end. His team and most of all coach Riser rely on their best closer: “What he has overcome all year long and he continues to perform: I am just really proud of that young man.”
MEMPHIS – The University of Memphis baseball team went through a lot changes during this past off season. The team saw a few seniors graduate but replaced them with some very good acquisitions in the transfer portal. The biggest move that the team made was naming Matt Riser as their head coach for their 2024 campaign.
There was a lot of hope surrounding this squad early before this season started. They added some quality players while bringing back some upper classmen to maintain their culture. Riser had a lot of success Southeastern Louisiana, and the goal was for that success to roll over into Memphis.
So far, this season has been very up and down for the Tigers. They have had some quality wins and have shown that they do not quit and can erase big leads. The team has also blown some double digit run leads in late innings and has had some bullpen liabilities. They are never truly out of a game, but no lead feels exactly safe either.
The pitching woes have been a story all season long. The Tigers have had some decent starting pitching, but the bullpen has been giving up some big innings. “Real difficult to have success when your bullpen comes out and pitches like that (after Memphis’ loss to FAU). We got to stay in ballgames, obviously disappointing,” said Riser.
Memphis currently sits at 13-17. Conference play just started, and the team is 2-6 through the four games. They do have big home matchups coming up against Ole Miss and Mississippi State. If they can start winning some conference games and knock off these teams, they could start to make some noise towards the end of the year.
“Not a whole lot to say right now, it’s a matter of doing now,” said coach Matt Riser. “You get to a point in time where either you can do it or you can’t do it. That’s the point we’re at now.”
The season a is a little over the halfway point now. Memphis seems to think that it is do or die time for their team. Coach Riser said that some changes are going to have to be made right now in order for this team to turn things around.
“There has to be (major lineup changes). Some things have to shake up a little bit. We don’t have a whole lot to shake it with to be honest with you, what you see is what you got. There will be a few guys that get some more opportunities,” said Riser.
The locker room as well has a feel that is now the time for them to turn things around. Closing pitcher Brayden Sanders said, “After every game we tell ourselves that we are 0-0. The next one is the one that matters. We just got to attack it day by day.”
It will be very interesting to see how Memphis responds in the back half of this season. Their next game is at home against Ole Miss on April 2nd, at 6 p.m. “We’ve got 48 hours to reflect and see what we want to do. We are at the halfway point,” said Riser.
One thing every good team has, no matter what the sport, is the ability to be consistent. This is currently one of the main things the Memphis Tigers are lacking.
The Memphis Tigers once again find themselves at a neutral record after splitting the weekend doubleheader on Saturday against New Orleans. They won that series 2-1, but the last two weeks have been an up and down stretch for the Tigers, where they have only won 4 out of the last ten games.
The Grind City Classic was an especially ugly stretch for the Tigers, as they lost all three of those games. This was after dropping the previous two games to Ole Miss and Wright State University. So, before this week began, the Tigers were on a five-game losing streak and taking a large step back.
James Bristentine/Tigerpen Jake Curtis steps up at bat vs Wright State University during the second game of the series. This was the last game the Tigers won before going on a five game losing streak.
The following week, the Tigers put an end to the losing streak in the game against North Alabama. This win led to them going on a three-game win streak, which was ultimately stopped by New Orleans on Saturday afternoon in the first game of the doubleheader. Memphis lost that game 1-6, then won the next 12-10.
That has been the story for the Tigers. On a good hitting day, they seem like a complete team with few holes. In games they score ten or more points, their record is 7-0. Also, the Tigers average 10.9 runs in their wins. On the other hand, their losses are a completely different story, as so far this season they only average 4.54 runs in their losses. That is a huge drop off, and in three of their 11 losses they have only scored one run.
Pitching has also been a wildly inconsistent. In ten games the pitchers have allowed ten or more hits, and in six of those their opponents have scored ten or more runs. In the games they allow 10+ hits, they are 3-7.
Coach Matt Riser has said on multiple occasions that this team is a player-led team. However, after the weekend skid during the Grind City Classic, he was very transparent with what he wanted out of the players.
“If you’re still in, I expect to see you on Tuesday,” Riser said. “If not no big deal, come see me on Monday and we can set up the transfer portal.”
Robby Byrd/Tigerpen Matt Riser over looks the field while the Memphis Tigers are at bat.
Riser said no one showed up on Monday, and he said the seniors played a big role in the shift in play during the midweek series.
Another thing that Riser said that could be a key weapon for the Tiger’s is the energy from the dugout.
“The human mind is a beautiful thing. It’s probably the most complex machine that there is in the world, no matter what technology we have. And, you know, positive thinking and our positive reinforcement in the dugout with 37 guys in there bonding together. Makes it a huge difference.”
The Tigers are looking to build on their positive performance during Saturday’s second game when they face Mississippi State in Starksville. Following that, they have their weekend series at South Florida University. Memphis is just 3-5 on the road, so this may be a difficult stretch for them up ahead.
With the Tigers sitting at 11-11, there have been flashes of how good this team can be, especially with swinging the bat. In 22 games, the Tigers’ offense has had five or more runs 16 times. On the flip side, the Tigers’ pitching staff has given up five or more runs 15 times.
There are flashes where the pitching comes out and looks great like in their 16-2 win over North Alabama, or in back-to-back games where they gave up only three runs against UT-Martin and Wright State.
Unfortunately, those outing are few and far between. If not for the Tigers offense, it would be a much different story about this year up to this point.
Looking at the statistics compiled so far this season, the struggles of the pitching staff are laid bare.
Of every pitcher that has appeared in more than one game this season, only three pitchers have an ERA under four. Those three are not even starters. They are bullpen guys: Brayden Sanders, Kylan Stepter, and Jake Curtis.
The bullpen has shown moments of stability like in their loss against Ole Miss where the bullpen went almost eight full innings while giving up only one run.
“The encouraging part from tonight was that out of a bullpen, we pitched very well,” coach Matt Riser said after the March 6 loss.
The starting pitching has seemed like an issue all season. The stats back it up in every way with all but one regular starter, David Warren, having an ERA over six.
With all of those stats, the way to really show the struggles in the pitching staff is seeing where they rank nationally in pitching statistics.
Team ERA is one of the best ways to show how good or bad a team’s pitching has been. For the Tigers, a 6.47 team ERA puts them at 183rd nationally out of 295 Division-I teams.
In walks per nine innings, the Tigers are averaging 5.37, good for 189 overall. In strikeout to walk ratio, the Tigers are only 1.68 strikeouts to every walk, which is 169 overall. Hits allowed per nine innings show the Tigers giving up 10.37 for 200th in the country.
WHIP or walks plus hits per innings pitched is the statistic that most people in baseball use as their barometer to see how good pitching is. It is a statistic that shows how good a pitcher or pitching staff is at keeping opposing teams from getting on base. The Tigers rank 208 in the nation in team WHIP of 1.75.
Obviously, the Tigers are disappointed in being 11-11 at this point, but it could be a lot worse and are still in a place where they can turn the pitching around.
The new season does not only bring a new head coach in Matt Riser and new players for the Memphis Tigers. The 2024 season features a completely overhauled American Athletic Conference. Three teams have left the conference and a whopping five new teams have joined. What does that mean for the new season for the Memphis Tigers?
Which teams left the AAC?
In total, three teams have left the AAC for the new season: Central Florida, Houston and Cincinnati. All of them found their new home in the Big 12 conference.
The Houston Cougars had the most success of those three teams, as they finished the last season second in the conference. They won 17 conference games, only one less than the conference champions, East Carolina. In the AAC tournament they went on to eliminate the Memphis Tigers and fell short to the later conference champion, Tulane.
The University of Central Florida finished the regular season as the four seed with a balanced 12-12 record. After that, the Knights went on to beat Cincinnati in the first round of the AAC tournament, but would ultimately lose to their in-state rivals from South Florida.
The Cincinnati Bearcats finished the season as the worst of the three leavers. A 10-14 conference record meant the same number of wins as the Memphis Tigers, earning them the fifth seed. Their tournament ended with a first round loss to UCF.
All of the three leaving teams finished the 2023 season as a higher seed than the Tigers. Houston even ended their AAC tournament hopes, as they beat them in a close 6-5 contest in the second round.
Where are the new teams in the AAC from? A map of the five teams and their location.
Which new teams have joined the AAC?
Austin Baskin, going into his fourth year with the Tigers, commented before the season about the the changes: “They are bringing in a lot of new teams into the conference this year, but, I think, we have got a really good chance to be competitive this year.”
A lot of new teams indeed, as five new teams feature in the new AAC season. All of them are coming from the same conference—Conference USA. Namely, the UAB Blazers from Alabama, the Owls from Florida Atlantic University, the Charlotte 49ers, the Rice University Owls and the UTSA Roadrunners from San Antonio in Texas.
Charlotte was last year’s Conference USA champion, and they will be a featured team in the new AAC season. The 49ers beat Dallas Baptist in the C-USA tournament final to secure their spot in the NCAA tournament.
However, they lost their regional against the University of Tennessee, eliminating them in the first round. Still, the Charlotte 49ers will be poised to repeat their success in the new conference.
Not as successful in the tournament, but better than the 49ers in the regular season last year, were the Roadrunners from San Antonio. UTSA finished the season with a 38-19 record, second only to the conference-winning Dallas Baptist. Their season, however, came to an abrupt end as Charlotte blew them out 11-2 in the first round of the C-USA tournament.
Florida Atlantic finished the season with a positive record of 34-24, good enough for the five seed in the conference. They then went on to beat Rice in the first round, but fell short in the second round to Western Kentucky.
Last, but not least, there are the two teams from Rice University and the University of Alabama, Birmingham. Both had an underwhelming season, finishing as the eighth seed in the case of Rice and tenth and dead last in the case of UAB. Rice went on to exit in the first round of the C-USA tournament, and UAB did not even make a tournament appearance. Both teams will be poised to improve their performance in this season.
Memphis Tigers’ Brennan DuBose said in his press conference before the season that he is looking forward to the new challenges: “The road games are great experiences – getting to see some of the coolest places in college baseball playing at the highest level. We want to play the top teams and we have the ability to compete with everybody”.
What can we expect from the new teams?
With the first games of the new season already in the books, some early trends for the new teams are showing. Florida Atlantic (6-5) and Charlotte (7-6) are keeping their record positive after the first few games.
UTSA’s record hangs in the balance with 6-6 and the two bottom teams from last season are off to bad start once again as they sit at the bottom of the conference: UAB with 5-6 and the Rice Owls with 4-8.
In the coaches poll before the season three of the five new teams were picked to be in the top four of the conference this season. With East Carolina picked to getting their fifth straight regular season title, Charlotte, UTSA and Florida Atlantic were selected as the second, third and fourth seed. Not surprisingly, Rice was picked for the eighth seed, and UAB was once again projected to finish last.
Memphis head coach Matt Riser predicts a rise in the quality of the AAC this season.
“FAU has been in the regional for six of the last nine years, UTSA was in the top 25 for a few weeks last season and Charlotte was in a regional final last year,” he said. “It is a three or a four-bid league when it is all said and done.”
When do the Tigers play their new opponents?
The first series against a new conference opponent for the Memphis Tigers will not be played until the end of March. Beginning on March, 28th the Tigers will host Florida Atlantic University in their first conference matchup in a three-game-series. One week after that, coach Riser’s team will travel to Houston to face the Rice Owls for another three games starting April 5. The next two weekends will also feature new opponents for the Tigers as they host UTSA starting April 12 and travel to Charlotte for the start of the series on April 19.
The projected worst team of the five will also be the last new team Memphis faces: The Tigers will travel to Birmingham, Alabama on May, 10th to start their three-game-series against UAB.
The team, however, does not seem to be phased by the new opponents: Junior Aaron Smigelski said that they are not thinking ahead right now: “For us it is just taking each game at a time. We always try to get the job done in the next game.”
The new AAC season promises to be an interesting one for the Memphis Tigers, with three teams that all finished above them leaving. However, from the five teams joining, three are projected to finish above the Tigers in the new season. The end of March and the month of April will show how well coach Riser’s team will stack up against their new opponents.
Memphis Tigers RHP/INF Jake Curtis spoke about the leaders in the Tigers locker room. Curtis is a Memphis legacy, as his father and uncle suited up for the Tigers back in their colligate days.
Curtis started his college career at Lincoln Land Community College in Springfield, Illinois. While in Springfield, he boasted a .184 batting average alongside a 2.86 ERA. Since coming to Memphis, he is now coming off a season where he had a .266 average at the plate and a 2.60 ERA on the mound.
He has already had a few accolades under his belt throughout his college career including: Rawlings Juco All-American 2B, MWAC Player of the year, and Region 24 player of the year.
This is Cutris’ second season with the Tigers. His younger brother is expected to join the team next season. He has had a short stint with Memphis so far, but he already been very vocal on his leadership roles within the program.
During his tenure, Curtis has already had multiple head coaches and seen some roster shakeups. He is very optimistic about this season’s culture behind the scenes.
“It means a lot to have a coach that always has our back and we have felt that since day one,” Curtis said. “It’s good to see that we are headed in the right direction.”
Baseball can be a very individualist sport, but a team must have a strong sense of leadership behind the scenes.
Curtis has been a leader during his time with the Tigers. He said that the entire senior class has adopted a leadership role on the team and is trying to teach the younger guys.
“It is big to have a leader,” Curtis said. “As for this team, we don’t have an individual leader, we have multiple. Really it is the senior class that has been here, people that have been here even longer than me. They’ve been around it and we understand what skip wants from us, and that makes it a lot easier.”
He added that accountability is key to his role as a leader on the team because everyone has to feel responsible for their actions.
“Obviously, seniors are going to make mistakes too, so that’s why we got a lot of leaders,” Curtis said. “The good thing about this team is that we’ll hold each other accountable.”
This is also Coach Matt Riser’s first season with the Tigers and his seniors have had as many as three head coaches during their time at Memphis.
“They have shown that even if with their third head coach and the third system, they have been very selfless,” Riser said. “Tell me what to do and tell me where to go and I will do that to the best of my abilities.”
Even though it is only the beginning of his second season with the university, Curtis has adapted to his leadership well and takes pride in it. He and the rest of the senior class have gained these roles and are embracing them.
“I just want to make a difference and put this program in the direction that we want and get us back on the winning page,” Curtis said.
Memphis second baseman overcame injury to set records before transferring for final season
Long Road to Memphis
When Daunte Stuart was 14 years old, his parents moved the family from the Bahamas to the United States so his parents could attend college in Houston, Texas.
One of the things that traveled with Stuart on that long journey to the U.S.—his love of baseball.
“Growing up living in the Bahamas it’s different than over here,” Stuart said. “The biggest difference is that I was around family so much and the culture. It’s a smaller place where I’m from and I got to play a lot of baseball with my childhood friends.”
In Houston, Stuart played baseball for Woodlands High School before committing to Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana.
While at Northwestern State Stuart made his mark.
He tied the single-game school hitting record with three doubles, which scored two runs, in a loss against Stephen F. Austin.
During his senior season, he ranked second on the team with 40 RBIs and tied for third with seven home runs. Stuart broke the school record in single-game total stolen bases and single-game home runs (3).
His impressive season at Northwestern State caught the attention of Memphis, who reached out to Stuart when he announced his decision to enter the transfer portal as a graduate student for his last year of eligibility.
Stuart saw the chance to play for the Tigers as an opportunity to have his best season yet.
“I thought that Memphis would be a great program for me to play one of my best seasons possible,” Stuart said. “And be part of a team that I see having a successful season.”
The main goal for his final season? Putting it all out on the field so that when he looks back on his time at Memphis he can say he gave it his best.
Bouncing back from injury
A few years ago Stuart’s chances of playing for Memphis or any other school were in jeopardy.
In the last game of his Sophomore season at Northwestern State, he fractured his hamate bone, which forced him to be out for the entire summer.
When he returned for fall ball, the hamate bone fractured again, and surgery was needed right before his junior season.
“That whole process was a tough mental battle because I never had surgery before,” Stuart said. “So having to deal with that and understanding what it’s like to come back from a serious injury helped me become a stronger ball player.”
Missing out on baseball for seven months was a major setback, especially because the injury prevented him from being able to swing a bat. Despite months of recovering, Stuart said the injury made him stronger.
It was an emotional ride for Stuart, who felt like he was having to relearn how to swing a bat. But he came back in a big way.
The second baseman posted a career-high five hits in a game his junior season and went 4-for-9 with a double, four RBIs, and a home run in a doubleheader sweep of Alcorn State University.
“It’s easy to put in work when you just had a good game but when you haven’t got a hit in your last five or six games that shows this is something I really want to do,” Stuart said. “You have to love baseball and it has to be a part of who you are.”
Despite all the adversity, Stuart’s success on the baseball field is centered around his love for the game and those who inspire him to become the best version of himself.
Through the obstacles and challenges, Stuart defeated the odds and kept grinding no matter the circumstances. Stuart looks to finish his collegiate career with the Memphis Tigers baseball team, knowing that he left it all out there on the baseball field.
“We have a coach that’s ready to start winning now rather than rebuild a whole entire roster and start winning five years down the road. That means a lot to me.”
Austin Baskins, Senior Utility
A new season of Memphis Tigers baseball is upon us, and with the new season comes a lot of new faces. Last season they brought in Kerrick Jackson who was hired after longtime coach Daron Schoenrock announced his retirement after 18 years on the job. Jackson went on to lead the Tigers to a 29-28 record and their best conference finish since 2015.
After the season ended, Jackson left for his home state of Missouri to be the head coach for the Missouri Tigers, where he was previously an assistant. With the departure, Memphis welcomes in Matt Riser, from Southeastern Louisiana University.
“We’re trying to transform this program into a national program, you know, like football and basketball.” Coach Riser said at his press conference leading up to opening day.
The new head man also had the task of hiring a completely staff as all of the assistants from the previous were gone as well. “The first step obviously was having to get the staff put together that had the same vision I had. We did that quickly and very efficiently,” Riser said.
Riser brought one of his former assistants at SLU in hitting and field coach Ford Pemberton, former player under Riser at SLU now assistant coach Connor Manola, and former pitching coach at Mercer University Cory Barton
Riser brings quite a resumé to Memphis. He won 30 or more games in eight of his 10 seasons as the head coach at Southeastern Louisiana.
Riser had a challenge ahead of him of replenishing a Memphis roster that depleted with a mix of transfer portal entries and MLB Draft. Six of the top seven hitters for the Tigers last season are gone as well as their two best pitchers from last year, who were both selected into the MLB Draft.
The sole top bat that stayed through the coaching change was Utility player Austin Baskin. The Covington, Tennessee native said Riser’s win now attitude is what made him buy in and want to stay in Memphis.
“We have a coach that’s ready to start winning now rather than rebuild a whole entire roster and start winning five years down the road,” Baskin said. “That means a lot to me.”
The senior is looking to build off a season where he scored a team-leading 49 runs while hitting .287 in 216 at-bats
The pitcher that will begin the season for the Tigers is senior right-hander David Warren. Warren brings the most starting experience for the Tigers. The former Pensacola State transfer pitched 72.2 innings and ended with 5.57 ERA. He will be looked at as the anchor for the starting staff and be one of the veteran leaders for the team.
“Experience has been a big factor,” Warren said. “I started in junior college and working my way through junior college…and being able to play against a lot of different levels of competition is a big thing.”
The Tigers will begin their season with a weekend series on the road against Jacksonville State. The first game will be Friday at 3 p.m. on ESPN+.
The Tigerpen 