Top 25 transfer classes entering the 2024 college baseball season, ranked

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The advent of the transfer portal and the elimination of the rule that required players to sit out for a year upon transferring from one four-year school to another have radically transformed the way many Division I teams construct their rosters. Accordingly, the new landscape has prompted us to change the way we rank newcomer classes. In years past, it was a simple matter of considering which teams brought in the strongest groups of freshmen and JUCO transfers. Now we also must consider four-year transfers, most of whom make a shorter impact — but oftentimes make a more significant immediate impact than freshmen.

Every team has a different combination of needs and philosophies when it comes to roster construction, so for the second straight year, we are breaking up our newcomer rankings into two separate lists: the top 25 freshman classes, and the top 25 transfer classes. For this exercise, we are including JUCO transfers with all the other transfers, because the immediacy and duration of the impact of a JUCO transfer is more in line with the impact of a four-year transfer, even though the recruiting process for a JUCO transfer is more similar to the recruiting process for a freshman.

1. Wake Forest

Tennessee Athletics

THE HEADLINERS: Chase Burns, formerly of Tennessee, was the biggest name among pitchers in the transfer portal. After excelling as a reliever late last season for the Volunteers, Wake Forest plans to move him back to the rotation, where his elite stuff, led by a high-90s fastball and a wipeout slider, could make him one of the most effective starting pitchers in the country, just as he was as a freshman two seasons ago. Seaver King was a late bloomer, which is part of how he ended up at Division II Wingate (N.C.) to begin his career, but after growing significantly in terms of size and strength and putting up huge numbers over two seasons for the Bulldogs, he appears ready for superstardom. He excelled both with Team USA and in the Cape Cod League over the summer, showcasing elite hand speed, excellent plate discipline, and pull-side power offensively and plenty of athleticism, arm strength and speed defensively. He could be a fit at second base or in center field for the Deacs. 

RANKINGS: Wake Forest, Florida, Arkansas, LSU lead 2024 D1Baseball preseason poll

2. LSU

THE HEADLINERS: The Tigers once again did a strong job in the transfer portal last summer, with Alabama transfer righthanded pitcher Luke Holman, UCLA transfer lefthanded pitcher Gage Jump and Arizona transfer outfielder Mac Bingham as the headliners. Holman jumped on the scene in a big way for Alabama last season, tallying solid numbers and showing consistent overall stuff. Holman will sit in the low-90s with his fastball and exhibits high-end pitchability. He’s a what you see is what you get type of pitcher. Jump, a 6-foot, 200-pounder, was a highly acclaimed young arm for the Bruins two seasons ago before an injury sidelined him last season. Jump had a strong fall and is up to 94-95 mph with his fastball, along with very strong overall metrics, similar to fellow UCLA transfer Thatcher Hurd, who’s expected to start on Friday or Saturday for the Tigers. The most high-impact offensive addition is Arizona transfer outfielder Bingham, who is coming off a strong 2023 out in the Pac-12, hitting .360 with 10 homers and 51 RBIs, along with a 1.006 OPS and 20 doubles. Bingham can do it all and should flourish with Jay Johnson. There’s also shortstop transfer Michael Braswell. Braswell is a solid defender who left something to be desired offensively for the Gamecocks last season. However, Braswell did show improvements at the plate this past fall and is expected to take a sizable step forward.

3. Tennessee

THE HEADLINERS: Clemson transfer Billy Amick came alive midway through last season and finished batting .413/.464/.772 with 17 doubles, 13 home runs and 63 RBI. He’s a pure hitter with a balanced setup at the plate and a quick, compact swing that produces plus raw power. He’s a lock to hit in the middle of the lineup and will likely begin the season playing third base. The ACC provided another middle-of-the-order hitter for the Volunteers in NC State transfer Cannon Peebles, who batted .352/.456/.697 with 12 home runs and 50 RBI for the Wolfpack last season. The sophomore catcher is stocky and strong at 5-foot-11 and 200 pounds. He’s relatively unproven behind the plate — he was mostly a DH in his one season in Raleigh — but he shows promising tools at the position, including above-average arm strength and a clean exchange.

4. Texas A&M

Texas A&M Athletics

THE HEADLINERS: The Aggies have several headliners in this transfer class, but none is bigger than picking up hard-hitting two-way talent Braden Montgomery over the summer. Montgomery is one of the premier prospects in college baseball and has massive power. He also has a mid-90s fastball to go with a high-quality changeup. However, his greatest impact this spring is expected to be felt in the middle of the offensive lineup with sophomore Jace LaViolette. Montgomery, a 6-foot-2,220-pounder, finished the 2023 campaign with a .336 average, 17 homers and 61 RBIs, along with a 1.036 OPS … Shortstop Ali Camarillo was another solid pickup. Camarillo showed smooth and consistent defensive actions this past fall, while also providing quality offensive production. Camarillo finished last season with a .371 average, seven homers and 44 RBIs to go with a 1.032 OPS. Ivy League additions Hayden Schott and Jackson Appel provide a combination of consistent offensive production and experience, while on the mound, keep an eye on Jacksonville State transfer righthanded pitcher Tanner Jones. The Aggies loved Jones during the fall — he was up to 95-96 mph with his fastball, along with a quality slider. Last season while at JSU, Jones struck out 84 in 79 innings of work and held teams to a .256 OBA. 

5. Florida State

THE HEADLINERS: Florida State gave its pitching staff a dramatic makeover by reeling in a pair of the nation’s top 10 JUCO recruits (No. 3 Gavin Adams and No. 10 Carson Dorsey) plus a potential ace through the portal in UCF transfer Cam Leiter. Lean and loose at 6-4, 195 pounds, Adams pumped 94-97 mph heat with good ride up in the zone in two scoreless innings during our fall look, also flashing a plus slider at 86-90 and a solid-average changeup at 88-90. FSU coach Link Jarrett said he can run his heater up to 100, and he’s getting better at harnessing his fastball command. Leiter and Adams both seem like locks for the weekend rotation, giving the Seminoles a pair of bazooka-armed righties with sky-high upside if they can continue to develop their pitchability. Leiter made 14 starts as a true freshman for the Knights last year, going 4-2, 4.92 with 80 strikeouts but 41 walks in 56.2 innings. An athletic 6-foot-5, 215-pound righty who repeats his simple high three-quarters delivery well, Leiter clearly has elite stuff, with a fastball that sat 95-96 in our fall look, along with an above-average power slider at 86-87 and a good 79-82 curveball with tight spin into the 2700 rpm range. He also has a solid changeup. Dorsey, a funky lefty with deception in his over-the-top delivery, might not have the same kind of overpowering velocity as those two righties, but he has a chance to step right into a weekend starter role alongside them. His 90-93 mph fastball “climbs a little bit on you,” as Jarrett put it, and he has good feel with his changeup, but the key will be whether he can develop confidence in either his slider or curveball.

Read the full breakdown of each transfer class: