LSU Baseball Lands Commitment From Tennessee Volunteers Transfer Pitcher

"If you're a pitcher out there, high school or portal, you should want to come here largely because of Nate [Yeskie]. And Jamie Tutko is our director of pitching development and analytics and has helped take this thing to a new level as well," Johnson said after winning the title.

"We've got it all. We've got it all. I'm just really proud of that side of the ball. We had to elevate the talent in the LSU baseball program on the mound when I took over here. And we have and we've executed it at developing them as good as I ever would have dreamed of or imagined."

Smart is the fourth addition for the LSU Tigers this offseason with the program fresh off of capturing the 2025 National Championship.

The Newcomers: Brayden Simpson and Seth Dardar

No. 1: Brayden Simpson - Infielder

The LSU Tigers landed a commitment from High Point infielder Brayden Simpson in June as the program's first portal addition.

Simpson, one of the top prospects in the NCAA Transfer Portal, is coming off of a career season in North Carolina.

The coveted infielder primarily handled business as a third baseman for High Point this past season where he shined for his Panthers squad.

Simpson had a dominant two-year stretch at High Point with his 2025 campaign quickly putting his name on the map.

He rounded out the season batting .389 with 22 home runs, 77 RBI and a .477 on base percentage this past season.

Simpson is a Swiss Army Knife in the infield and has also spent some time at first base in 2024 and second base in 2023. 

In 2024, the talented High Point transfer started in all 62 games where he batted .300 with 12 home runs and 45 RBI. He started in 58 games this year.

No. 2: Seth Dardar - Infielder

Dardar, a Louisiana native, began his career at Columbia prior to making the move to join the Kansas State Wildcats.

During the 2025 season, he logged a team best .326 batting average with 18 doubles and a 1.065 OPS.

A consistent hitter, Dardar tallied 60 hits, 45 RBI and 13 home runs last season for his Wildcats squad.

The New Orleans (La.) Holy Cross standout started in 50 games for Kansas State on his way to becoming a coveted transfer in the portal.

Now, he's made his move. Dardar will head home to suit up for the Bayou Bengals in his final season of eligibility.

No. 3: Danny Lachenmayer - Pitcher

Lachenmayer, a coveted freshman in the NCAA Transfer Portal, selected the National Champion LSU Tigers over the Arkansas Razorbacks after visiting Fayetteville this week.

The talented southpaw was used as a relief option in 2025 for the Bison where he made 24 appearances and recorded nine saves for North Dakota State.

Lachenmayer pitched 38 innings with a 2.37 ERA, 56 strikeouts, 18 walks and a .192 batting average against him during his freshman campaign.

Johnson and Co. have their recruiting caps on this week with the program intensifying its pursuit for multiple top targets in the NCAA Transfer Portal.

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