The 2023 high school baseball season is quickly approaching and as usual, our staff is excited for the upcoming spring season.  Players and coaches have been working all fall and through December, in preparation for the upcoming season and as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Louisiana.

Programs across the state have goals and aspirations to finish the year in Sulphur, LA at the LHSAA State Tournament, but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes a reality.  We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams and players across the state, as we preview many of the great programs from Louisiana.  We will take you right up to the first pitch of this season with these team previews and we'll continue providing coverage throughout the spring. 

Please keep checking back throughout the season, as we strive to be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across Louisiana.  Each week we will release our players of the week, as well as our Power 25 Rankings, which encompasses the top 25 teams in the state, regardless of class.  

*Please note that all information is based on team preview questionnaires that were sent out and returned by the participating high school coaches.  If you did not receive a questionnaire and would like to fill one out, please send an email to [email protected].

-High School Name: Sulphur High School

-Coach’s Name: Sam Moore

-Classification: Class 5A

-District: 3-5A

-No. of Returning Positional Starters: 7

-No. of Returning Pitchers: 5

-Team Strengths: Experience

-Top Returning Players: 2023 LHP/OF Jake Brown (Louisiana State University signee), 2023 SS Gage Trahan (McNeese State University signee), 2023 1B/RHP Dillion Bird (Southeastern Louisiana University signee), 2023 RHP/OF Kohl Navarre (McNeese State University signee), 2023 UTIL/RHP Luke Benoit (University of Texas at Tyler signee), 2023 C Cooper Devall (McNeese State University signee), 2023 RHP Landon Arrant, 2023 OF Pierce McCormick, 2023 OF Gunner Gremillion, 2024 INF Bryce Fontenot, 2024 OF/RHP Carson Cauvin, 2024 LHP Braxton Landry

-Top 2023 Prospects: 2023 LHP/OF Jake Brown (Louisiana State University signee), 2023 SS Gage Trahan (McNeese State University signee), 2023 1B/RHP Dillion Bird (Southeastern Louisiana University signee), 2023 RHP/OF Kohl Navarre (McNeese State University signee), 2023 UTIL/RHP Luke Benoit (University of Texas at Tyler signee), 2023 C Cooper Devall (McNeese State University signee), 2023 RHP Landon Arrant, 2023 OF Pierce McCormick, 2023 OF Gunner Gremillion

-Top 2024 Prospects: 2024 INF Bryce Fontenot, 2024 OF/RHP Carson Cauvin, 2024 LHP Braxton Landry, 2024 UTIL Espyn Trahan

-Top 2025 Prospects: 2025 INF Jackson Beddoe, 2025 UTIL Slade Shove-Knox, 2025 1B Tajhai Smith, 2025 3B/RHP Jay Michael Stelly

 

 

Team Outlook

Sulphur High School enjoyed one of the best season's in program history in 2022, as they finished the year with a 32-8 overall record and made it all the way to the semifinals of the LHSAA Class 5A playoffs.  The good news for Head Coach Sam Moore and the Sulphur Tors faithful, is that they return almost every single position player from last season's team and a bulk of their pitching staff.  Leading the way for the Tors will be senior LHP/OF Jake Brown.  The LSU signee was last year's District 3-5A MVP, after compiling an 8-3 record on the mound with a 1.73 ERA and a whopping 131 K's in 73 innings pitched.  He also finished the year hitting .477 with 2 HR, 28 RBI, and 40 RS.  What's even more impressive with Brown, is after all of the success, Coach Moore told us that Brown has been his most "coachable" player over the fall.  The pitching doesn't stop there for the Tors, as they also return senior RHP Kohl Navarre.  The McNeese State recruit, works his FB in the mid-upper 80's and will likely reach the 90 mph mark this spring, to go along with a much improved SL.  Senior RHP Landon Arrant also returns this spring for Sulphur, after battling injuries last spring.  Arrant isn't your conventional right-handed hurler, but he's super effective, as he pounds the zone with a four-pitch mix that starts with his low-80's cut FB.  Seniors Dillion Bird and Luke Benoit, as well as juniors Carson Cauvin and Braxton Landry should all see mound time this spring.  Turning to the offensive and defensive side of things for Sulphur, we mentioned that lead-off hitter Jake Brown is back, but there are a slew of other experienced Tors back this season.  Senior SS Gage Trahan, a McNeese State recruit, has been a fixture in the middle infield for Coach Moore over the last few seasons and will likely hit right behind Brown, in the two-hole.  Behind the dish, Sulphur brings back both catchers in seniors Cooper Devall and Luke Benoit.  Devall, another McNeese State recruit, recently hit a homerun in an intersquad game that we saw last week.  Benoit, a UT-Tyler recruit, will also see time in the infield, in addition to his catching duties.  Joining Trahan on the infield is another starter from last season in Junior Bryce Fontenot, who had a stellar junior season.  Keep an eye out for sophomore INF Jackson Beddoe as well.  Beddoe is a solid defender who could play 2B or 3B, depending on situation and need, and is a really good gap to gap type of hitter.  Coach Moore has plenty of options to choose from on who will join Brown in the outfield as well in seniors Pierce McCormick and Gunner Gremillion, as well as junior Carson Cauvin.  The Tors will be battle tested heading into the playoffs, as they compete in a tough District 3-5A with the likes of rivals Barbe and Sam Houston both returning really good clubs this year.  Coach Moore believes that this group of players have really come together this off-season and are super motivated by last year's semifinals exit against St. Amant.  There aren't many teams in the state that return as much pitching, offense, and defense as Sulphur, so we firmly expect them to be one of the favorites in Class 5A this spring.

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