Two Tigers Receive 2026 Preseason All-America Recognition From D1 Baseball
by Staff Reporter
January 21, 20260 Comments
Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images
BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU outfielder Derek Curiel and right-handed pitcher Casan Evans have received 2026 Preseason All-America recognition from D1 Baseball.
Curiel was voted to the D1 Baseball First Team, and Evans was a Second Team selection.
Curiel, a sophomore from West Covina, Calif., was voted the 2025 National Freshman of the Year by D1Baseball.com after a superb rookie season in which he helped lead LSU to the NCAA National Championship.
A 2025 Second-Team All-America, First-Team Freshman All-America, Second-Team All-SEC selection and First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll member, Curiel hit a team-high .345 with 20 doubles, two triples, seven homers, 55 RBI and 67 runs.
He was named to the College World Series All-Tournament Team after collecting six hits, three RBI and three runs in LSU’s five CWS games. Curiel hit a team-high .571 in the Tigers’ NCAA Super Regional sweep of West Virginia with one double, one homer, five RBI and six runs.
Evans, a sophomore from Houston, Texas, earned 2025 Third-Team All-America and First-Team Freshman All-America recognition, as he posted a 5-1 mark with 2.05 ERA and seven saves in 19 appearances (3 starts). He worked 52.2 innings, recording 19 walks, 71 strikeouts and a .228 opponent batting average.
He posted and excellent relief outing versus UCLA in the College World Series, earning the win and limiting the Bruins to two runs on four hits in 4.1 innings with no walks and five strikeouts. Evans earned the save versus Arkansas in LSU’s CWS opener, working 1.0 inning with no runs on one hit and one strikeout.
Evans, who was named to the 2025 First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll, delivered one of the best postseason outings in LSU history on June 2 in the Tigers’ NCAA Baton Rouge Regional championship game win over Little Rock. He entered the game in the second inning and allowed one run on four hits in 6.0 innings with three walks and a career-best 12 strikeouts.
The 2026 season begins at 2 p.m. CT on Friday, February 13, when LSU plays host to Milwaukee in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
Curiel was voted to the D1 Baseball First Team, and Evans was a Second Team selection.
Curiel, a sophomore from West Covina, Calif., was voted the 2025 National Freshman of the Year by D1Baseball.com after a superb rookie season in which he helped lead LSU to the NCAA National Championship.
A 2025 Second-Team All-America, First-Team Freshman All-America, Second-Team All-SEC selection and First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll member, Curiel hit a team-high .345 with 20 doubles, two triples, seven homers, 55 RBI and 67 runs.
He was named to the College World Series All-Tournament Team after collecting six hits, three RBI and three runs in LSU’s five CWS games. Curiel hit a team-high .571 in the Tigers’ NCAA Super Regional sweep of West Virginia with one double, one homer, five RBI and six runs.
Evans, a sophomore from Houston, Texas, earned 2025 Third-Team All-America and First-Team Freshman All-America recognition, as he posted a 5-1 mark with 2.05 ERA and seven saves in 19 appearances (3 starts). He worked 52.2 innings, recording 19 walks, 71 strikeouts and a .228 opponent batting average.
He posted and excellent relief outing versus UCLA in the College World Series, earning the win and limiting the Bruins to two runs on four hits in 4.1 innings with no walks and five strikeouts. Evans earned the save versus Arkansas in LSU’s CWS opener, working 1.0 inning with no runs on one hit and one strikeout.
Evans, who was named to the 2025 First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll, delivered one of the best postseason outings in LSU history on June 2 in the Tigers’ NCAA Baton Rouge Regional championship game win over Little Rock. He entered the game in the second inning and allowed one run on four hits in 6.0 innings with three walks and a career-best 12 strikeouts.
The 2026 season begins at 2 p.m. CT on Friday, February 13, when LSU plays host to Milwaukee in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
Filed Under: LSU Baseball
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Originally published on TigerDroppings.com
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