The 2023 season Prairie View A&M baseball team returns several starters at key positions but lost two players to the transfer portal. As a result, the panthers brought in more pitching depth with seven coming from Texas junior colleges. In all, this year team will feature 14 junior college transfers and one four-year transfer.
The Panthers will incorporate seven freshmen on the roster that consist of 44 players that were used for fall camp. In addition, 25 returnees will round out the fall roster for this semester. Due to the NCAA rules, the panthers can have a roster of 40 this upcoming season.
The Panthers key players in the infield from last season: third base Ben Ybarra, shortstop Zachary Trevino, second base Blake Redman, first base Alex Martinez, utility Sebastian Coria, and catcher Paul Castro.
At the conclusion of fall ball, the coaching staff saw some dynamic play from some junior college transfers (Isaac Davila, Cameron Upchurch, and Marshall Jonas) and true freshman (Ahmar Donatto and Cameron Franklin) that has bolster the depth on this year team because some of the new players have made a case to vie for playing time and make it harder for Head Coach Auntwan Riggins.
In the outfield, it has been real tough competition because this is the only position that returns no every day starter from last season. Jayden Williams is the only current outfielder that has played a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) game last year, but JUCO transfers and freshman have competed well this fall that have demonstrated strong promise for the outfield group.
Also, expect dual sport athlete Dejuan Lewis-football, true freshman, to compete for an opportunity in o make an impact to the outfield group.
On the mound, the panthers have several JUCO transfers that have been dominate in some of the fall scrimmages which will make the pitching staff stronger than this past season.
Some of the returnees like, Ty Tubbs, Victor Mendoza, Matt Krall and Michael Dews have displayed great stuff but expect several newcomers (Austin Bell, Eli Breeden, Cody Smith and Gentry Busch) all fire ballers to compete for starting rotational spots for this season.
In all, the fall started later than expected but demonstrated the making of an athletic and strong team that should compete for the Divisional and SWAC Championship. The Panthers will start their season by participating in the Cactus Jack foundation HBCU Classic February 17, 2023, at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas.