Madness is around the corner, but baseball season is here!

    

 March Madness is looming, but this week is still a massive week for FSU sports as the Noles return to the diamond for an opening weekend series against JMU. There are a lot of expectations surrounding this year's FSU squad, coming off of a season where FSU made it all the way to the final four teams in the MWCS. 

    The Noles lost two of their biggest bats from a season ago, Cam Smith and James Tibbs III, to the MLB draft. Coach Jarrett and staff have worked hard to bring in talent to replace this whole lineup and may have done just that. 

Let's look at what the Noles' 2025 roster looks like.

Pitching

Righties:

• Joe Charles - 33.1 IP, 37 K, 19 BB, 5.94 ERA
• David Barrett - 15.1 IP, 8.80 ERA, 22 K, 18 BB (in 2023)
• Cam Leiter - 35.0 IP, 4.63 ERA, 56 K, 22 BB
• Maison Martinez (VCU Transfer) - 42.1 IP, 2.98 ERA, 41 K, 19 BB
• Ben Barrett - 13.2 IP, 5.27 ERA, 12 K, 4 BB
• Ryan Denison - 3.2 IP, 17.18 ERA, 5 K, 6 BB
• Evan Chrest (JU Transfer) - 68.2 IP, 6.82 ERA, 74 K, 25 BB
• Nick Greaney (JUCO Transfer) - 32.1 IP, 4.73 ERA, 33 K
• Chris Knier (JUCO Transfer) - 63.2 IP, 2.12 ERA, 88 K, 14 BB
• John Abraham - 34.1 IP, 4.72 ERA, 42 K, 31 BB
• Peyton Prescott (JU Transfer) - 55.1 IP, 6.02 ERA, 46 K, 22 BB
• Rhett Vaughn - 25.2 IP, 40 K when participated in Perfect Game high school events

Lefties: 

• Jamie Arnold - 105.2 IP, 2.98 ERA, 159 K, 26 BB
• Connor Hults - 34.2 IP, 3.89 ERA, 36 K, 15 BB
• Jacob Marlowe (2023 @ UCF) - 60.2 IP, 5.64 ERA, 41 K, 12 BB
• Joey Volini (USF Transfer) - 28.2 IP, 4.40 ERA, 26 KK, 14 BB
• Brady Louck - 21.2 IP, 7.06 ERA, 27 K, 15 BB
• Hudson Rowan - 14.2 IP, 9.20 ERA, 28 K, 22 BB
• Wes Mendes (Ole Miss Transfer) - 31.2 IP, 6.82 ERA, 43 K, 19 BB
• Payton Manca - No. 3 overall pitcher in Massachusetts, 2023 Perfect Game Preseason All-American
• David Davila (2024 Redshirt) - 2023 Perfect Game Preseason All-American, Florida All-Region 2nd team
• Matt Hoag - All state in Jr and Sr high school seasons, #3 lefty in FL, #21 LHP in the nation

    There are many familiar names on this pitching staff, though Coach Micah Posey had a lot of work to do in the offseason. There were 14 total departures from the pitching staff a season ago due to a mixture of the transfer portal, MLB draft, and eligibility. 

    There were many times throughout the 2024 season when the FSU relief pitchers would come in and not be able to hold on to the leads that Arnold, Leiter, or Whittaker were able to carve out in the early innings. Another concern about the pitching staff a season ago was the lack of diversity in the arms of the bullpen.

    Coach Posey seems to have been well aware of this and went out and got exactly what the Noles needed (two HS, two JUCO, 5 transfers).

    The most notable name on this list is, of course, Jamie Arnold. After breaking out a season ago, Arnold has earned just about as many preseason awards as you can possibly think of, including the Preseason ACC Pitcher of the Year. In his 2024 season, Arnold finished with the third-best ERA in the ACC, second-most strikeouts, and was tied for the most wins in the conference. This has every professional scout glued to what he does to back last year up.

Video Cred: Brett Nevitt Baseball

    The more interesting, and important, part of this pitching staff is looking at Arnold's supporting cast. Coach Jarrett has already listed the other two opening week starters as newcomers Joey Volini and Wes Mendes, three former Jesuit teammates. This three-headed monster includes three lefties who have more than their fair share of in college ball. 

    

    The relief staff is much improved. Players like Louck, Abraham, Rowan, and Hults all return from last year's roster with a full offseason under their belt. Those four relievers pitched a combined 105.0 innings last season. Now, you add weapons such as Peyton Prescott, Maison Martinez, Chris Knier, and Evan Chrest to your more experienced bullpen, and you create a whole different weapon. 

    Prescott will be a really interesting player to watch. Last season at JU, he earned ASUN pitcher of the week honors and made the ASUN All-Freshman team. However, Prescott also stepped into the batter's box. He finished the season with a 0.333 OBP with a double and six RBIs. We'll see how much play time he'll get on the offensive side of the plate, but he could turn into a fan favorite. 

    There are also some notable names returning from injury. Two of these names include Ben Barrett and Jacob Marlowe. Marlowe is getting his first opportunity to step back on the mound after 20 surgeries to help him get over heart complications. Barrett has been battling a couple different injuries over his career but is set to return to the mound as well. 

    The most important and influential question of this season is, will Cam Leiter play? Leiter was on fire in the early stages of last season before an injury kept him off the mound for the majority of last season. Jarrett said in some of the preseason press conferences that there is still no set timetable for Leiter's return. If Leiter does step back on the mound at some point this season, the Noles could very well have one of the best one-two combos in the nation.

Batting/Defense

Outfield:

• Max Williams - 0.311 AVG, 11 2B, 4 3B, 46 RBI, 14 HR
• Gage Harrelson (TTU Transfer) - 0.245 AVG, 2 @B, 1 3B, 11 RBI, 1 HR
• Chase Williams (NW Florida Transfer) - 0.379 AVG, 8 2B, 1 3B, 32 RBI, 2 HR
• 29 stolen bases
• Brody DeLamielleure - Redshirted last season

Infield:

• Blaydon Plain (Pensacola State Transfer) - 0.370 AVG, 12 2B, 3 3B, 47 RBI, 9 HR
• Drew Faurot - 0.286 AVG, 19 2B, 1 3B, 29 RBI, 6 HR
• Alex Lodise - 0.281 AVG, 14 2B, 44 RBI, 9 HR
• Carter McCulley (Pensacola State Transfer) - 0.302 AVG, 11 2B, 2 3B, 43 RBI, 5 HR
• Cal Fisher - 0.277 AVG, 5 HR
• Myles Bailey (HS) - 0.329 AVG, 6 2B, 1 3B, 22 RBI, 7 HR
• Noah Sheffield (HS) - 0.346 AVG, 14 2B, 51 RBI, 7 HR
• Jace Estes (HS) - Wakulla Christian's MVP 2022-2024, Wakulla's OPOY and DPOY 2022-2024

Catchers:

• Nathan Cmeyla (Dartmouth Transfer) - 0.350 AVG, 12 2B, 1 3B, 30 RBI, 7 HR
• Jaxson West - 0.274 AVG, 8 2B, 29 RBI, 3 HR
• Hunter Carns - 0.384 AVG, 7 2B, 16 RBI, 7 HR, No. 12 player

    Stating the obvious, the Noles have to replace two very large holes in the batting order with the departure of Smith and Tibbs III. Last season, FSU had the second-best batting average in the ACC (.315), tied for the most RBIs (531), second-highest slugging percentage (.558), and the most home runs (131). In fact, the offense was so prolific last season that FSU's HR total finished second in the program's history.

    There are five familiar faces in this lineup. The infield duo of Alex Lodise and Drew Faurot are back for another season at Dick Howser. Faurot and Lodise were a formidable defensive duo at SS and 2B a season ago. They both boasted pretty good fielding percentages (.946 for Lodise and .980 for Faurot) and were first and second in assists. Look for this infield duo to continue to keep the middle of the infield on lockdown and get those averages up on the bats.

    The former freshman duo, Max Williams and Cal Fisher are back for the Noles. Fisher was the only freshman to start on last year's team, but Williams got more opportunity with the injuries of DeAmez Ross. Both players are excellent batters with the ability to drive the ball to any part of the field. Watching these two second-year players grow in their expanded opportunities throughout the season will be key to FSU's success. 

    Out of the five transfer additions to this side of the plate, three of them are JUCOs. Chase Williams comes in from NW Florida and teammates Carter McCulley and Blaydon Plain come over from Pensacola State. All three of these batters are great plug-ins to this lineup as they all finished hitting above .300 a season ago and combined for 16 home runs.

    Nathan Cmeyla could make an immediate impact as well. After a great season at Dartmouth last year, Cmeyla earned All-Ivey League Honorable Mention. Speaking of the catchers on this team, this group is loaded. Cmeyla will be paired with the returning Jaxson West and freshman Hunter Carns. West didn't go yard very often last season, but he came up time and time again when FSU needed it the most. Defensively, he threw out two base runners against Duke in the ACC Championship and hit a two-run single against UCF in the Super Regional to advance the Noles. 

    Freshman Hunter Carns is the next elite catcher in FSU's history of them (Cal Raleigh and Buster Posey ring a bell?). In high school, Carns batted nearly .400 and was even more impressive on defense. In his senior season, Carns put out 756 and recorded a fielding percentage of 98.7%. This performance was good enough for him to get drafted to the Diamondbacks in the 20th round, but he ultimately decided to get on campus and play under Coach Jarrett. Although he's a freshman, I expect Carns to get reps throughout the season.

Freshman Hunter Carns at BP

Vid Cred: Brett Nevitt

Thoughts on the Season

    Is this team better than last year's team? There is no way to tell that yet. Last year's team was very special and went on a fantastic run in the postseason. I think this 2025 roster can be special in its own way and continue the success of last year.

    I think the offense may fall off a little this season, but keeping up with last year's production is an incredible task. There are solid bats throughout this lineup, but playing at the same level of a lineup with two top-15 picks in the draft is not something that always happens.

    I believe the heartbeat of this team will be its defense. The outfielders are slightly unproven at the Division One level outside of Williams, but the infield and the pitching of this team can be excellent. Arnold is poised to have another incredible season, and Coach Jarrett and the staff did a great job bringing in pitchers to stack that bullpen.