Matt Deggs has firmly established himself as a winning baseball coach for the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns.
After all, he backed up the first NCAA Regional appearance by returning last year, and this time doing so as an at large team. The team has also increased their win totals each of the last three seasons, from 32 in 2021 to 37 in 2022 and then 41 last season in 2023.
This year’s team will look to have their postseason opportunity secured sooner than they have the past two seasons. The 2022 team had to win the Sun Belt Tournament do get to the regionals, and they did so, beating multiple top 25 teams along the way. Last year, the Cajuns entered the Sun Belt Tournament on the wrong side of the bubble but picked up two wins against top-10 ranked Coastal Carolina before falling to Southern Miss in the championship game. That was enough to earn the elusive at-large bid, but it still caused some nerves during the selection show.
The buzz around Acadiana this season has been about the pitching staff. Last year’s team pitched well when it needed to, but the depth was lacking and it was often a battle to get through weekends with the needed number of arms.
This year, Deggs is confident that will not be the case, largely because of new pitching coach and former Cajun great himself Gunner Leger.
“Gunner has done an amazing job of really developing roles inside of that staff and identifying what’s what,” Deggs said.
While the offensive lineup lost several contributors such as Carson Roccaforte, Heath Hood, and Julian Brock, Deggs has always been an offensive-minded coach and usually puts his stamp on the lineup. Additionally, Preseason Sun Belt Player of the Year Kyle Debarge returns at the shortstop position as a leader on and off the diamond.
“I think Kyle has probably set the tone on whatever team he has ever been on… It is a team effort, and we’re a pack, but he is definitely that alpha dog,” Deggs added about Debarge.
Along with Debarge, returners John Taylor and Conor Higgs headline a lineup that will look to cause chaos on the basepaths once again. Another theme of the offense is returning players who look to step into larger, more regular roles this season. That group consists of players like Trey LaFleur, Caleb Stelly, and Luke Yuhasz.
When it comes to the new-look offense, Deggs recognizes that this year’s group has different strengths, and that might change the way they approach their at-bats to an extent.
“You could see us utilize the short game and still continue to utilize our legs. I’d like to be a tougher out for sure and put the ball in play and put in play on command, Deggs said.
The pitching staff that has so much hype around it is built with plenty of newcomers as well. The staff features highly touted newcomers such as Jack Martinez and Chase Morgan, both of which will make appearances in the starting rotation on opening weekend. While unproven in a Cajuns uniform, those two along with plenty of other names have performed throughout fall ball and preseason practice, and Deggs is confident in their abilities.
While the Cajuns have had plenty of success in the past few seasons, they do have to navigate a vastly improved Sun Belt Conference. That works both ways. On one hand, it will be more difficult to navigate the conference slate, and Louisiana will consistently have to play very good teams on the weekend. However, that should help the chances of earning an at-large bid without winning the conference tournament. After all, the Sun Belt has now been putting multiple teams in the field consistently and the Cajuns’ berth in the regionals last year was indicative of that.
All in all, this Louisiana team has many around the program buzzing with excitement. Their first opportunity comes this weekend at Russo Park, when they welcome in the Wright State Raiders for three games, the first of which is scheduled for Friday night, February 15th, at 6:00 PM.