The Southern Miss baseball program has one of the most talented, if not the most talented, freshmen classes coming to Hattiesburg in 2027. That is, unless they
Outfielders Trey Barnes , Henry Abt , along with right-handed pitchers Alex Richardson and Taylor Latham , all earned spots on the rankings while remaining committed toFew players in Mississippi enjoyed a better senior season than Petal standout Trey Barnes.
Barnes helped lead the Panthers to the MHSAA Class 7A State Championship and was named State Championship Series MVP after delivering multiple key hits and elite defensive plays throughout the title run. The Petal product maintained a .380 batting average during his senior campaign and established himself as one of the state's most complete players. Barnes looks to become a versatile outfielder capable of contributing immediately both offensively and on the basepaths.
Hartfield Academy's Henry Abt enters college baseball as one of the most dynamic athletes in the region. The left-handed hitter posted a remarkable .472 batting average while collecting 51 hits and 25 RBIs during his senior season. His combination of speed, power, and athleticism gives him the potential to make an immediate impact at Southern Miss. One of the top arms committed to Southern Miss, Richardson is coming off a dominant senior season at Belle Chasse .
Richardson posted an incredible 0.47 ERA over 59.2 innings while allowing just 22 hits and recording 124 strikeouts. During his senior campaign, Richardson elevated his stock even further by reaching nearly 92 mph with his fastball at Prep Baseball Report Scout Days. He also threw a complete-game no-hitter and established himself as one of Louisiana's premier pitching prospects. His pitching ability and power arm could allow him to contribute early to the Southern Miss pitching staff.
Taylor Latham would bring impressive velocity to the Golden Eagles' future roster. After transferring to Hartfield Academy from Columbia Academy for his senior year, Latham continued to impress scouts throughout his senior season. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound right-hander touched 94 mph at the Prep Baseball Report Super 60 Showcase and showed the ability to dominate hitters during postseason play last season.
With his physical frame and arm strength, Latham could be someone we see sooner than later on the mound at the Pete. From all of us here at Southern Miss on SI, we are looking forward to seeing how these four commits transition to college ball come next season. That is, assuming they all actually get to campus. We'll be monitoring these four closely as the MLB Draft runs from July 11 to July 13.
Dalton Trigg is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Southern Miss Golden Eagles on SI and the lead host of the Nasty Bunch & Beyond podcast. Trigg graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Business and Economic Development with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship in 2016. Trigg entered the sports journalism industry in 2017, covering the Dallas Mavericks for 247Sports.
He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, where he continued to cover the Mavs until 2024. He also owns and hosts the Mavs Step Back Podcast, which has been going strong since 2019. You can find Trigg on all social media platforms, including X : @dalton_trigg.
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