From D1 Baseball preview on Georgia Southern. Projected starter (Madden) is a graduate transfer who throws in the 90s.
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Georgia Southern put together an impressive 2021 campaign with a 34-win season, and it should be much of the same for Rodney Hennon’s club in 2022.
For starters, the Eagles should have a quality pitching staff. Lefthanded pitcher Ty Fisher joins the program after spending last season at Tennessee Tech and tallying a 4.26 ERA in 76 innings along with 60 strikeouts and 15 walks. He’s a strike-thrower who sits in the 86-88 mph range with his fastball and can throw multiple pitches for strikes. The next three arms in the pecking order are better prospects than Fisher, but have more to prove. Jaylen Paden only worked 25 innings for the Eagles last season, but has electric stuff. He has a quick arm from a 3/4 slot, and will sit anywhere from 91-94 mph with his fastball along with a sharp slider and feel for a changeup. Ben Johnson, another righthander, will have a larger role this spring after making just four starts (21 appearances) last season. He has excellent command of the zone and will get up to 93-94 mph with his fastball, along with a workable slider and changeup. Then, there’s Towson graduate transfer lefty Danny Madden, who was 90-92 and up to 93 mph with his fastball in the fall, along with good feel for the slider and changeup. Those arms are just the tip of the iceberg for GSU. Thomas Ross missed much of last season with an injury, but has a low-90s fastball along with a big-time swing and miss breaking ball. He’ll occupy the closer role.
From an offensive standpoint, the Eagles have some guys who will need to step up, and they also look for some newcomers to make an instant impact. For instance, Alabama transfer Will Patota didn’t have a great 2021 campaign, but has a physical lefthanded bat and will hit somewhere in the middle of the order. Parker Biederer was one of the team’s most improved hitters in ’21, and he’s back for another season after hitting .336 last season. Shortstop Austin Thompson is another dependable veteran, while Jarrett Brown is an athletic, special kind of player, who just needs to find a way to put all the pieces together at the plate. Furthermore, Jason Swan is back and the second baseman position belongs to Kennesaw State transfer Jesse Sherrill, who might lead off for the Eagles and who has plus speed. He can bunt for hits and puts immense pressure on opposing teams with his legs.
