Playing in Omaha Blew Up Texas's Roster, And College Baseball Isn't Ready For It
Alright, folks, can we talk about what went down in college baseball? Because what happened to the Texas Longhorns right after their College World Series exit is an absolute gut-punch, and it shows just how wild the transfer portal game really is. You'd think making it to Omaha, the pinnacle of college baseball, would be the ultimate recruiting tool, right? Turns out, for Texas, it might've actually been a massive handicap!
The CWS Advantage Turned Into a Portal Nightmare
Texas got bounced from the College World Series after a tough 2-0 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs. That's a rough exit, sure, but what followed is where the real drama started. Longhorns head coach Jim Schlossnagle was clearly frustrated, and who could blame him? He had to pull himself together to even address his team, let alone make a pitch to potential recruits. He laid it out plain: "You’d think that the kids that are at home, whether they be draft picks or high school potential draft picks or whether they be portal players, you’d think they would want to play for the teams that are in the College World Series, a place like Texas."
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But here's the kicker: his staff was trying to balance competing in the postseason with snatching up players from the NCAA transfer portal. That's a tightrope walk! Meanwhile, teams that were already done with their seasons were out there, full steam ahead, focusing solely on recruiting. We saw the fallout almost immediately. Clemson transfer catcher Nate Savoie, who 64Analytics called the top player available in the portal, chose rival Texas A&M over Texas. Think about that for a second. The Aggies were seeded No. 12, got eliminated from their regional more than two weeks ago after getting outscored 24-4 by the Trojans, and they still landed the top guy! It gets worse. Notre Dame transfer outfielder Bino Watters, ranked No. 1 by On3, picked LSU. LSU went 30-28 and didn't even make the postseason!
"Timing Is Everything" and Schlossnagle's Desperate Plea
LSU's coach Jay Johnson nailed it when he talked about the advantage: "I will say what these last two weeks probably taught me more than anything is how much more of an advantage you have if you’re not playing right now." He went on, "we’ve been able to attack it with a good plan. We’ve been able to spend more time. And that’s important to the players you’re recruiting , that you can give them the right kind of attention and, we’ve done a good job so far.” Texas simply didn't have that luxury. Schlossnagle admitted it's a "timing issue." He said, "You’re doing Zooms with guys the entire time you’re in Omaha , you don’t really get to enjoy it as much as you’d like , but you’re doing Zooms, and you’re just trying to get people to hold off making decisions.”
It's wild how fast the portal moves! Last year, Texas was on the other side of this, getting upset in their regional and taking advantage, signing Carson Tinney and Aiden Robbins. Now, Schlossnagle is even floating the idea of changing the portal window itself to prevent this kind of dilemma. That's a big question, for sure. The staff is back on the Forty Acres now, throwing all their energy into portal recruiting. They desperately need a catcher and outfielders. At least they did land Texas Tech transfer infielder Linkin Garcia early on; he's expected to start at third base next year. But man, the work ahead to fill those other spots is huge.
This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.