2024 Tigers On Opening Day Major League Roster’s

[LSUDad]

BATON ROUGE, La. – Seven former LSU players appear on Major League Baseball active rosters as the 2024 MLB season opens on Thursday. 

Former Tigers appearing on MLB active rosters include infielder DJ LeMahieu (New York Yankees), infielder Alex Bregman (Houston Astros), pitcher Aaron Nola (Philadelphia Phillies), pitcher Kevin Gausman (Toronto Blue Jays), outfielder Jake Fraley (Cincinnati Reds), pitcher Alex Lange (Detroit Tigers) and infielder Josh Smith (Texas Rangers). 

LeMahieu, a product of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., who is entering his 14th MLB season and his sixth with the Yankees, is a three-time MLB All-Star and has won batting titles in both the American League with the Yankees and the National League with the Colorado Rockies. 

A four-time Gold Glove recipient and a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner, LeMahieu played at LSU in 2008 and 2009 and signed with the Chicago Cubs after he was selected in the second round of the ’09 MLB Draft. LeMahieu was the starting second baseman for LSU’s 2009 CWS championship team. 

Bregman, who is entering his ninth season with the Astros, played at LSU from 2013 through 2015 and led the Tigers to two College World Series appearances. The No. 2 overall selection by the Astros in the 2015 MLB Draft, Bregman was a two-time first-team all-American at LSU, and he was named the recipient of the 2013 Brooks Wallace Award as the nation’s best shortstop. 

Bregman, a product of Albuquerque, N.M., made his MLB debut with Houston in July 2016, and he has helped lead the Astros to four AL pennants and the 2017 and 2022 World Series titles as the club’s starting third baseman. 

He was named the 2018 All-Star Game MVP after blasting the game-winning home run for the American League, and he was named the recipient of the 2019 Silver Slugger Award as the best offensive player at third base in the AL. 

Nola, a Baton Rouge native, enters his 10th season in the Philadelphia rotation, and he was instrumental in the Phillies’ drive to the 2022 National League pennant. He was selected in the first round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Phillies, and he was named a 2018 National League All-Star. 

Nola finished third in the 2018 NL Cy Young Award voting after posting a 17-6 record with a 2.37 ERA. In 2022, he registered the most strikeouts (235) with fewer than 30 walks (29) in Major League Baseball History. 

Nola was a two-time first-team All-American at LSU, and he was voted SEC Pitcher of Year in both 2013 and 2014. He completed his three-year LSU career with a 30-6 record, a 2.09 ERA and 345 strikeouts in 332.0 innings. 

Gausman, who pitched at LSU in 2011 and 2012, begins his 12th MLB season and his third with the Blue Jays. He was voted to the 2023 American League All-Star team, and he helped lead Toronto to a playoff berth last season by posting a 12-9 mark with a 3.16 ERA and 237 strikeouts in 185.0 innings. 

Gausman was a 2021 National League All-Star with the San Francisco Giants, recording a 14-6 mark with a 2.81 ERA and 227 strikeouts in 192 innings. The native of Centennial, Colo., earned first-team All-America honors at LSU in 2012, and he was selected in the first round of the MLB Draft by the Baltimore Orioles. 

Fraley begins his sixth MLB season and his third with Cincinnati after three years with the Seattle Mariners. The Tampa Bay Rays’ second-round draft choice in 2016, he was traded to Seattle in November 2018 and first advanced to the Major League roster in August 2019. 

Fraley, a native of Middletown, Del., helped lead LSU to the SEC championship and a College World Series berth in 2015, and he was named the recipient of LSU Baseball’s 2016 Skip Bertman Award as the player who best exemplifies the spirit of the program. 

Lange, a product of Lee’s Summit, Mo., made his MLB debut with Detroit in April 2021. He was the 2017 first-round draft selection of the Chicago Cubs and finished his three-year career (2015-17) at LSU with a 30-9 record, becoming the 10th LSU pitcher to record 30 wins. 

Lange compiled 406 career strikeouts, the second-highest total in LSU history, and he earned first-team All-America and All-SEC honors during his collegiate career. He was also voted the 2015 National Freshman Pitcher of the Year and the 2015 SEC Freshman of the Year. 

Smith, a Baton Rouge product, was called up to the Rangers’ MLB roster in May of 2022, and he helped lead Texas to the club’s first World Series title last fall. He was the second-round selection of the New York Yankees in the 2019 MLB Draft and was traded in July 2021 from the Yankees to the Rangers. 

Smith played at LSU from 2017-19, and he was the Tigers’ starting shortstop in 2019 after missing most of the 2018 season with a stress reaction in his vertebrae. He was the starting third baseman for LSU’s 2017 College World Series runners-up team, earning Freshman All-America and Freshman All-SEC recognition. 

Smith, a three-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll as a finance major, was LSU’s leading hitter in 2019, batting .346 (89-for-257) with 17 doubles, two triples, nine homers, 41 RBI, 72 runs and 20 steals in 24 attempts. 

LSU has had at least one former player make his MLB debut in 29 of the past 33 seasons. The Tigers have produced a total of 83 Major Leaguers during their illustrious baseball history.

[LSUDad]

FYI:

 

Toronto Blue Jays ace Kevin Gausman will make his season debut on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays, manager John Schneider announced Saturday, according to Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun.

Gausman had a late start to his spring buildup after dealing with a shoulder issue. The 33-year-old threw a successful bullpen session on Friday.

Gausman looked sharp in his one spring start, striking out seven batters over three innings. 

With Gausman set to get the ball on Sunday, Schneider also announced that right-hander Bowden Francis will start Monday's series opener against the Houston Astros.

Francis earned the No. 5 spot in the rotation after a shoulder injury to Alek Manoah. The 27-year-old posted a 2-1 record with a 3.38 ERA and 15 strikeouts over five spring appearances (four starts).

[LSUDad]

FYI:

Jake Fraley started in right field and went 2-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and two runs scored in Thursday's 8-2 win over Washington on Opening Day.

Analysis:

As usual, Fraley got the start with a right-hander throwing for the Nationals. The left-handed hitting outfielder had just 41 plate appearances against lefties in 2023. Fraley can be useful in a less-than full-time role, as evidenced last year, when stole 21 bases in 111 games.

[LSUDad]

Bregman went 1-for-2 with two walks, an RBI and a stolen base Friday against the Yankees.

Analysis:

The Astros couldn't muster much offense in a 7-1 loss, but Bregman had a productive game. He swiped his first bag of the season on a double steal with Kyle Tucker in the third inning and also tallied his first RBI of the campaign two frames earlier. Bregman attempted only four stolen bases in 2023, so his aggressiveness on the basepaths early in the new campaign is significant.

[LSUDad]

Nola:

 

The Philadelphia Phillies crossed off a major need on their to-do list this offseason. 

Philadelphia announced it agreed to a seven-year contract with right-hander Aaron Nola on Sunday that will keep him under team control through the 2030 season. 

The deal is worth $172 million, sources told Jeff Passan of ESPN.

[LSUDad]

Alex Lange:

 

Lange tossed a scoreless inning with two strikeouts in a Thursday Grapefruit League contest against the Blue Jays, lowering his spring ERA to 12.00.

Analysis:

Lange has pitched in three Grapefruit League games and this was his first time not allowing a run. It's not a great start to spring training for the righty, though he figures to have a fairly firm hold on Detroit's closer role heading into the regular season. Lange recorded 26 saves last year and had 79 strikeouts across 66 innings, though he struggled with command at times, walking a whopping 45 batters.

[LSUDad]

Josh Smith:

 

Smith (hand) is starting at shortstop and batting second in Wednesday's Cactus League game against the Reds.

Analysis:

The 26-year-old exited Tuesday's contest after being hit by a pitch on the hand, but his return to the lineup a day later indicates it isn't a significant issue. Smith is expected to serve as a utility infielder in 2024, but he could see more action early on since Nathaniel Lowe (oblique) is likely to open on the injured list and Corey Seager's (groin) status is also up in the air.