Top 3 SEC Pitchers I can’t wait to watch in 2026

Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images

By Chris Marler

On Wednesday we talked about three SEC hitters I can’t wait to see the most this upcoming season. One freshman, one transfer, and one returnee. Here are our three pitchers we can’t wait to see take the bump in 2026.

Freshman – LHP Jack Bauer, Mississippi State

A true freshman lefty throwing 102 mph?! Good lord. Sign me up. Bauer is basically Aroldis Chapman, but with better morals and 70 less pounds on his frame. Still, his arm is absolutely electric, and he decided to forego the MLB Draft last season to head to Starkville. We’ve seen electric arms like this in the past in the SEC. Ben Joyce comes to mind from Tennessee and obviously Paul Skenes at LSU. A true freshman from the left side though? This is a first and should be awesome to watch in year one.

Also the fact that his name is Jack Bauer and he wears No. 24 is hilarious. I’ll be pulling for him for that reason alone this season.

LHP Jack Bauer (@HailStateBB) sat 97-100 w/ silly arm spd over an inning. Mixed the SL in 85-88 range w/ huge sweep, got a K on the CH. Strong 6’4 frame, will be a fun watch over next few yrs.

Fr./’28 elig. pic.twitter.com/mbVYcFva1q

— PG College Baseball (@PGCollegeBall) November 4, 2025

Transfer – LHP Tomas Valincius, Mississippi State

There are two Stanford transfers at Georgia that I originally wanted to put here. Both would have made logical sense considering how bad Georgia’s pitching was a season ago. It was the main reason they were unable to make it out of their own regional after being a top ten team most of the season.

But a lefty throwing 97 mph with a 1.25 WHIP and 70 strikeouts in 64.1 innings? Give me that. I’ll take the Sunday starter for Mississippi State, please. Valincius has electric stuff, and while he still has some things to iron out after posting an ERA over 4.5 last season, he is the real deal and should be fantastic this season in Starkville.

Transfer News: LHP Tomas Valincius has entered the portal. 4.59 ERA w/ 70 K to 17 BB in 64.2 IP. FB up to 97 (Avg 93.8) w/ arm side life. Mid-80s SL consistently flashes plus w/ long, lateral tilt (44% whiff). CH flashes AA – fade/late tumble (32% whiff).pic.twitter.com/frZ883ITj5

— Peter Flaherty III (@PeterGFlaherty) June 2, 2025

Returnee – RHP Casan Evans, LSU

Evans was awesome last year for the defending national champions. He finished the season with a 2.05 ERA and 71 strikeouts in just 52 innings. He closed the season with seven saves which led LSU and was top ten in the SEC. Now he heads to the weekend rotation where he should thrive. Evans was incredible all season long in 2025, but he was at his best in big moments. Case in (or Cas-an) point being the 5.2 shutout innings with 12 strikeouts he had against Arkansas Little Rock in the Baton Rouge regional last season. Evans is intriguing because of his versatility. His fastball doesn’t touch triple digits, but he has great stuff and is already proven at this level heading into his sophomore season.

I asked Hunt Palmer for a scouting report on him, and here’s what he had to say about the sophomore right hander.

“Immediately carved out a high leverage role in the bullpen as a freshman and finished the season with a 2.05 ERA in 52 innings with 71 strikeouts. Fastball sits in the mid 90s, and he has an excellent change up. The development of his curveball will be the key to his emergence as a great SEC starter.”