Five names to watch from early portal hours

By Hunt Palmer

Silly season is here.

It’s not silly because players can transfer. It’s silly because 21 teams are fighting for their lives, 10 today, and hundreds of players are going to flood the transfer portal for next year. Some coaches have to balance game plans, Super Regional prep and the portal.

Jay Johnson is not one of those coaches.

LSU is open for business, and you can bet business will be done. At the time of publishing, the portal has only been open for 12 hours. Social media direct messages are being fired off. Phone calls are happening. Zooms, too. Visits are to come, and the process will play out over time. Monday, June 1, is not time for commitments. It’s time for contact.

I’m watching the Twitter timeline update and checking out names that would make sense for LSU. I’m not reporting interest on either side. It’s very early for that. I’m just listing some names who would make sense.

Let’s take a look.

Jamie Laskofski, SS, William & Mary – LSU needs a portal shortstop. Steven Milam is not gone officially, and Jack Ruckert will compete. Still, neither is a sure thing to help at shortstop next year. Competition is vital, and Laskofski fits the mold. He’s a 6-foot sophomore who was Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year after hitting .355 with 13 homers, 12 doubles and 36 steals. That’s the kind of athlete Johnson is looking for. Laskofski is considered a top two round pick in next summer’s draft. He fits.

Westin Boyle, SS, Purdue – Boyle just finished his freshman at Purdue where he was the starting shortstop. He started 57 games and made 11 errors, a .958 fielding percentage. The 6-foot-3 middle infielder hails from the same Overland Park, KS., high school as Ashton Larson. He hit .285 with 15 doubles and pair of homers. He’s a couple of notches below Laskofski, but he’s a solid player, and LSU is going to have to take an infielder.

Bino Watters, OF, Notre Dame – Watters is a left-handed bat and a good one. He was 1st Team All-ACC for the Irish this year and was an All-Freshman Team member in 2025. As a sophomore, he hit .362 with 10 homers and an OPS of 1.062. He was the designated hitter a lot, making just 57 put outs on the season. From what I can tell, must of that including the game against LSU, was in left field. This is a bat, but those are necessary, too.

Jackson Hotchkiss, OF, Washington – Hotchkiss hit a ton for Washington this year, .339 with 20 homers. He’s a slugger. The strikeout numbers were high, 57 in 45 games. Only Cade Arrambide struck out more for LSU this year. But an OPS of 1.138 is loud. The Big Ten is a bad league, but Hotchkiss did have 11 hits including five homers against Oregon, USC and UCLA which all had good seasons.

Brody Trosclair, LHP, Northwestern State – An elbow injury ended his season in April, but Trosclair was still the Southland Freshman of the Year. He made juts 10 appearances with four starts, posting a miniscule 1.89 ERA. Trosclair’s strikeouts numbers were great, 55 in 38.1 innings. I like the walk total more, 11. He did not face any high-major competition, which is a concern, but he’s a strike-throwing lefty with the ability to spin the ball. Plus, he’s from Thibodaux, so he may have interest in LSU. Elbow surgery is a big deal, but Trosclair has three years to play.