2025 Samford Baseball: Reload Not Rebuild
As the saying goes in and around baseball, hope springs eternal. Well technically it is still winter but Samford baseball is back this week. Head coach Tony David enters his fourth season and all Samford has done in the previous three is win games. Samford did fall short in their overall goal of making the NCAA Tournament a season ago losing twice in the SoCon Tournament Championship round.
Under David, Samford is 101-76 and 41-22 in SoCon play. Samford rewarded David with a five-year contract extension after last season.
Samford had a magical season in 2023 winning three games in one day to claim the SoCon Tournament title. The Bulldogs then went on to win a NCAA Tournament game in the Auburn Regional (Samford won more games than Auburn in that regional, 1-0). 2023 was the first time Samford had swept the regular season and tournament SoCon titles since joining the league in 2008. Before the 2023 season, former Samford head coach and now UAB head coach Casey Dunn hired away two of David’s coaches from David’s inaugural season over to UAB (both former Samford players).
In 2024, Samford had eight players make the All-SoCon team and All-Freshman team. This group was highlighted by ace pitcher Michael Ross who was named the SoCon Pitcher of the Year. Ross was also a first team All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. Ross was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the 18th round of the MLB Draft, so he is gone.
Along with Ross, Samford has to replace seven position player starters from a season ago. In what is becoming an annual occurrence, three of those players have transferred to Power Four teams. The SEC is continually poaching Samford year after year. 3B Garrett Staton is now at Alabama, C/DH Lucas Steele is now at Auburn, and CF Aaron Walton is at Arizona. That right there is a combined 41 home runs and 166 RBI.
The others needing to be replaced include SS Garrett Howe who was selected in the 11th round of the 2024 MLB Draft by the Cleveland Guardians. 2B John Anderson, OFs Josh Rodriguez and Andrew Bennett have also graduated.
In the bullpen, closer Carson Lore graduated. Lore had a 4.56 ERA and eight saves in 2024. Pitchers Alex Flood and Jake Holifield are gone as well. Flood finished with a 4.10 ERA in 37.1 innings pitched. Holifield had a 4.35 ERA in 39.1 innings pitched.
With all of this being said, some might think Samford is in for a rebuilding season. Samford definitely does not look at it that way, the Bulldogs just reload. Unfortunately Samford is used to bigger programs coming and taking their top talent. As Tony David told D1 Baseball after the fall season, “I think we’ve kind of proven the world we are in now. You can complain about it and curl up in the corner, or you can deal with it.”
The other SoCon coaches definitely do not believe that Samford is in for a rebuilding season. In the preseason SoCon coaches poll, Samford was picked to finish second in the league just behind UNCG. However, Samford and UNCG tied each other in first place votes.
Looking to 2025, here is who Samford is bringing back. From the position player group, OF/DH Angelo Prieto returns after a strong freshman season with a line of .263 AVG, 6 HR, 24 RBI, .850 OPS. He made 31 starts as a freshman and was on the SoCon All-Freshman team.
Another member of the All-Freshman team was 1B Jackson Harris. Harris from Vestavia, Alabama is a great defender who just made two errors last season. In his freshman campaign, Harris had a line of .252 AVG, 1 HR, 15 RBI, .731 OPS.
Cullen Horowicz also saw some time at first base last season. Horowicz had a line of .260 AVG, 5 HR, 19 RBI, .925 OPS but struck out 40 times in 73 at bats.
Even with the loss of Lucas Steele at Auburn, Samford is well equipped at catcher to handle the loss especially defensively. C Hayden Perry returns and in 28 games Perry finished with a .348 AVG, HR, 19 RBI, and a .858 OPS. He did miss the last month of the season due to an injury.
In the pitching staff, Samford had two pitchers on the preseason All-SoCon team in Miller Riggins and Evan Steckmesser. Riggins finished with a 4.50 ERA in 28 innings pitched. He shined in the SoCon Tournament, throwing six innings of four-hit baseball against Wofford.
Samford LHP Miller Riggins
Riggins will be in the starting rotation and has the chance to begin as Samford’s Friday night starter. Steckmesser will feature out of the bullpen. He had a 5.86 ERA but struck out 27 in 35 innings last season.
Someone to keep an eye on who came into 2023 with a lot of promise is P Brooks Rice. Rice was tabbed as one of the top pitchers returning in 2023 but did not have the season he thought he would have. Ross had a 6.33 ERA in 2023. If he could get back to form, that is just another strong option for Tony David in his starting rotation.
Pitchers Noah Berry, Will Lynch and John Whitney also return. Berry and Lynch started 13 games in 2023 and Whitney is a lefty reliever out of the bullpen.
Samford returns 22 players from 2023 while adding 19 players this offseason via the transfer portal and freshmen class.
Highlighting this new crop of Bulldogs via the portal is infielder Jeffery Ince, a transfer from Pearl River Community College. Ince made the preseason All-SoCon team before even having a plate appearance for Samford. The 5’10 junior originally signed with Mississippi State out of high school and spent time at Louisiana Tech.
Ince finished his last season at Pearl River with a .411 AVG, 8 HR, 43 RBI and 12 doubles. He will slide in at second base.
OF Trey Higgins transfers in from Snead State Community College and comes to Homewood with plenty of power. In two seasons at Snead, Higgins hit 28 home runs along with 23 doubles.
Sticking in the outfield, if Higgins brings power, then Gulf Coast Community College transfer OF Michael Gupton brings blazing speed. The 5’9”, 175 pound outfielder ran the fastest ever 60-yard dash time in the history of Perfect Game USA. Gupton ran a 5.96.
Gupton originally signed with NC State out of high school before playing last season at Gulf Coast CC. He hit .286 AVG along with eight homers. If Gupton can get on base (shoutout Billy Beane in Moneyball), he can use that speed on the basepaths.
Look for Higgins to potentially get the start in left field then Gupton due to his speed will see starting time in centerfield.
In regards to the freshman class, look out for IF Gus Gandy and DH/OF Jake Souders. Gandy was a four year starter at shortstop for Glynn Academy in Georgia. He was ranked as the number nine shortstop in the state of Georgia. In the release of Gandy signing with Samford, Tony David said that he will “arrive on campus with an opportunity to battle to take the reins of the shortstop position that will become vacant with the graduation of Garrett Howe.”
Jake Souders is a Briarwood Christian School product from Birmingham and started three seasons. He is also a Samford legacy as his father played at Samford. Souders was ranked as the eight best third baseman in the state of Alabama.
Looking to the bullpen, those additions are highlighted by Auburn transfer RHP Cameron Keshock. Keshock, who’s sister played volleyball at Samford, will get plenty of opportunities in this Samford bullpen. The 6’7” reliever pitched just 5.1 innings for the Tigers in 2024.
Other transfers include Birmingham Southern RHP Josh Leersen who helped them get to the D-III College World Series. Leersen had a 4.08 ERA with 86 strikeouts in 86 innings. RHP Joseph Lee transferred in from Ranger Community College in Texas. The 6’5” reliever posted a 4.29 ERA and 90 strikeouts in 77 innings pitched.
RHP Bodie Vail comes from Shelton State and he helped Shelton get to the JUCO College World Series. Vail finished with an 8-3 record while striking out 61 in 80 innings. RHP Drew Druckenmiller transfers in from Southern Miss. Druckenmiller started his career at Jones Community College in Mississippi. He struck out 16 in just 11 innings pitched.
So Samford does have a lot of production to replace but Samford does not see themselves in a rebuilding year. Tony David and his staff just reload year after year and stay competitive to get back into the NCAA Tournament.
Here is how the predicted finish from the SoCon Preseason Coaches Poll.
1. UNCG (3)
2. Samford (3)
3. Wofford (1)
T4. ETSU (1)
T4. Mercer
6. Western Carolina
7. The Citadel
8. VMI
Samford plays an interesting schedule in 2025. The season opens with a home weekend series against Valparaiso. Then after a road midweek game at Jacksonville State comes one of the biggest non-conference series in quite awhile. Samford goes on the road to a preseason consensus top five team in the Tennessee Volunteers. The Volunteers were also picked to finish second in the SEC.
The Bulldogs also have midweek series scheduled throughout the year with Alabama. Auburn, Troy, Jacksonville State, North Alabama and West Georgia. Samford does play at Mississippi State but does not play a return game at home. Samford took the Bulldogs to the wire last season before Miss State won in extra innings.
Samford also has two other intriguing non-conference home series against Evansville and Creighton. Evansville won the Greenville Regional in the NCAA Tournament before losing in the Knoxville Super Regional. Then Samford opens SoCon play at ETSU on March 21-23, the first home SoCon series is April 11-13 against The Citadel.
No matter the former starters the big schools may take, the goal remains the same. Anything less than a Southern Conference Tournament championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament is deemed a failure. That is the standard as Samford looks for their fifth NCAA Tournament berth.
Time will obviously tell if Samford can recreate the 2023 magic but one thing's for certain. This is a reload, not a rebuild.
