LSU right-hander Thatcher Hurd entered the NCAA transfer portal, according to On3, in search of a place to pitch in case he slides in the Major League Baseball draft.
Hurd, a rising senior, threw LSU through key stretches of its run to the 2023 national title, including the first six innings of the College World Series championship game. But in the following season, he struggled to find consistent work in the Tigers’ rotation. He finished the 2023-2024 year with a 6.55 ERA and a 3-4 record.
MLB.com ranks Hurd as the 114th-best prospect in the 2024 draft, and ESPN has him slotted among the draft pool’s top-100 players. His fastball touches the mid-90s, and his slider has enough movement that former LSU catcher Hayden Travinski once estimated that it can break 2 feet.
Hurd used those pitches to help LSU advance to the championship game of its 2023 NCAA regional. A weather delay cut starter Ty Floyd’s outing against Oregon State short, and Hurd entered in relief, striking out a career-high 12 hitters across five innings. His performance helped LSU save its entire bullpen for the game that decided whether it’d reach the super regional round.
At the College World Series, Hurd worked 12 innings across three appearances. He tallied 13 strikeouts and allowed only three runs on six hits.
But in his second season at LSU, the righty from Manhattan Beach, California, never recaptured that magic. He appeared in five fewer games, threw 19 fewer innings and increased his ERA from 5.68 to 6.55.
"I think he's probably one of the most self-aware pitchers that I've ever had in terms of (knowing) what he needs to do to improve and his commitment to sticking with it and doing it," coach Jay Johnson said in March. "He's incredibly intelligent. He's incredibly diligent in his work. And I trust him to make his adjustments."
Hurd, who began his collegiate career at UCLA, is the eighth LSU pitcher to enter the transfer portal this offseason. He’s one of three former Tigers pitchers — along with Gage Jump and Luke Holman — expected to be chosen in the first four rounds of the MLB draft, which begins July 14 in Arlington, Texas.
On3 reported Tuesday that Hurd entered the portal with a no-contact tag.
Koki Riley contributed to this report.