Press release from LSU Athletics
Five members of LSU’s National Championship squad have been named to the 2023 American Baseball Coaches Association All-South Region team.
The LSU players honored by the ABCA are centerfielder Dylan Crews, right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes, third baseman Tommy White, second baseman Gavin Dugas and right-handed pitcher Ty Floyd.
Crews, a junior from Longwood, Fla., batted .426 (110-for-258) for the 2023 National Champions with 16 doubles, two triples, 18 homers, 70 RBI and 100 runs. He was the No. 2 overall pick in the MLB Draft on July 9 by the Washington Nationals.
Crews, the 2023 Golden Spikes Award winner and the SEC Male Athlete of the Year, finished No. 1 in the nation in runs scored (100), No. 1 in walks (71), No. 2 in on-base percentage (.567), No. 2 in base hits (110) and No. 3 in batting average (.426). He completed the year with a reached base streak of 75 games, which included all 71 games of this season and the last four games of the 2022 season.
Crews is a two-time member of the SEC Community Service Team for his exemplary work in the Baton Rouge area with families affected by autism, and he was voted to the 2023 SEC Academic Honor Roll.
Skenes, a junior from Lake Forest, Calif., was the No. 1 overall pick in the MLB Draft on July 9 by the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 2023 Dick Howser Award winner and the SEC Pitcher of the Year, Skenes compiled a 13-2 record and a 1.69 ERA in 122.2 innings with 20 walks and an SEC-record 209 strikeouts.
He finished No. 1 in the nation in strikeouts (209), strikeouts per nine innings (15.33) and WHIP (0.75). Skenes also finished No. 2 in the nation in ERA (1.69), No. 3 in strikeout-to-walk ratio (10.45), and No. 5 in hits allowed per nine innings (5.28).
Skenes, who was named to the 2023 SEC First-Year Player Academic Honor Roll, pledged $10 for every strikeout he recorded this season to Folds of Honor, a nonprofit organization that provides educational scholarships to the spouses and children of military and first responders who have died or been disabled.
White, a sophomore from St. Pete Beach, Fla., batted .374 (102-for-273) with 24 doubles, 24 homers, 105 RBI and 64 runs scored. He finished No. 1 in the nation in RBI (105), No. 3 in total bases (198) and No. 4 in RBI per game (1.59).
White completed the season No. 1 in the SEC in RBI (105), No. 2 in total bases (198), No. 2 in hits (102), No. 2 in doubles (24), No. 4 in homers (24), No. 6 in batting average (.374) and No. 7 in slugging percentage (.725).
White pledged to donate a portion of his NIL earnings to Empower 225, an organization in Baton Rouge aimed to empower youth to escape the cycle of violence and poverty by providing them with resources such as educational support, life skills training, career preparedness, housing and mentorship.
Dugas, a Houma, La., native, batted .290 (65-for-224) in 2023 with 12 homers, two triples, 17 homers, 46 RBI and 74 runs, starting 66 games at second base. He finished No. 1 in the nation in hit-by-pitch with a school-record 33 on the year.
The sixth-round selection of the Washington Nationals in the MLB Draft, Dugas was voted to the 2023 College World Series All-Tournament Team, as he hit .308 (8-for-26) with two doubles, two homers, four RBI and four runs scored.
Dugas has earned two degrees from LSU – a bachelor’s in Sport Administration and a certificate in Construction Management. He was a four-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll, and for the past two seasons he wore the coveted jersey No. 8 that is awarded each year to the upperclassman who best exemplifies the spirit of the LSU Baseball program.
Floyd, a native of Rockmart, Ga., was voted to the 2023 College World Series All-Tournament Team, as he made two starts and recorded 27 strikeouts in 13.0 innings while limiting opponents to five runs on seven hits and a .156 batting average.
Floyd, the 38th overall pick in the MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds, recorded a brilliant outing in Game 1 of the College World Series Finals vs. Florida (June 24), working 8.0 innings and allowing three runs on eight hits with one walk and a career-high 17 strikeouts. The 17 Ks represented the most by an LSU pitcher in a CWS game, and it tied the CWS record for most strikeouts in a game prior to extra innings.
Floyd posted a 7-0 record on the year with a 4.35 ERA in 91.0 innings, recording 37 walks and 120 strikeouts. He finished No. 4 in the SEC in strikeouts (120) and No. 5 in the league in opponent batting avg. (.208), and his strikeouts total placed him No. 12 in the nation.
Floyd is a three-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll, and he will graduate from LSU next month with a degree in sport administration.