Privateer Baseball 2024 Preview: Infielders

Faced with having to replace a strong middle infield in Salo Iza and Darren Willis after the 2021 season, New Orleans head coach Blake Dean and his staff sought out Tyler Bischke and Kasten Furr who formed one of the best defensive middle infield tandems in the country in 2023.

Fast forward to this year with Dean and his staff tasked with replacing an All-Region performer in Bischke and Furr who wound up seventh on the Privateers’ all-time runs scored list.

The guys battling for those spots include third-year returner Collin Loupe and a trio of transfers, Kai Hori, Diego Villescas and Dalton Hurst.

Villescas (Hill College) hit .315 with 10 homers and also stole 25 bases in ’23. He was selected to the Texas-New Mexico JUCO All-Star Game. Hori hit .304 as a freshman at College of San Mateo and earned Second Team All-Conference honors. Hurst played for Southern Union State after beginning his collegiate career at FIU. Last year, Hurst hit .360 with nine doubles. He joins his father, Phillip who is an assistant coach on the Privateers. Loupe prepped at nearby Jesuit High School where he earned All-District and All-Region honors. He played in eight games last season.

“This year we basically brought in a whole new regime,” said Head Coach Blake Dean. “Collin Loupe was injured but he’s been here a couple of years. His defense is solid. Diego hit over .300 in the fall and led the team in on-base percentage in the fall. We also brought in Kai who had a great fall and he’s a great defender. Dalton is a switch hitter who brings great baseball knowledge. There’s four guys for two spots. We just have to find the right combination.”

At third base, Dylan Mach is the one incumbent on the roster. He played in 41 games with 33 starts. He hit .276 with two home runs and 19 RBI in his first year with the Privateers after transferring from Gulf Coast State. Rowan Watt is also battling for the third base starting job. He is a transfer from UNCG where he played in 66 games. In his freshman year, the Spartans won a conference championship and made it to an NCAA Regional.

“Mach hits the ball with pop in certain situations. He’s become more comfortable defensively at third. Rowan has been at a Division I program and he’s a tough nosed kid who works hard and goes about his business. We have six to seven guys going for three positions between second, third and short. I’ve told all these guys you have to enjoy the competition.”

First base has been perhaps the competition with the most intrigue among infielders as far as number of potential options. It’s another spot the Privateers had to replace after having Anthony Herron Jr. at that spot last year.

The options Coach Dean mentioned include freshman, Colton Harrison, and two outfielders who have gotten looks at first base in Maika Niu and Alexander Saunier. Also, Coach Dean mentioned Bryce Calloway who is a two-way player and Miguel Useche as a potential option on days when he isn’t behind the plate.

“It’s an open competition and we’ve tried a lot of guys over there. Calloway has played first before but when he’s pitching that takes him out of play. Useche can do it on days when he’s not catching. Colton is a freshman who has a lot of strength but just needs to develop. We’ve also moved a couple of outfielders in Maika and Alexander and I think we have two good options there in guys who are athletic and understand the position well. From there it’s going to be who can help us the most with the bat.”

Niu showed pop in limited action last year with four of his eight hits going for extra bases. Saunier played two seasons at a strong JUCO in LSU-Eunice where he hit .322 in 86 career games. Harrison played baseball and football at St. Thomas More and had seven homers with 39 RBI in his junior season.

Asking Useche to have spot duty at first base is not new. Miguel also played some in left field during his time on the Lakefront. He was All-Louisiana Honorable Mention in 2023 and has 32 doubles through his first two seasons. Calloway was a First Team All-Conference selection at Central Alabama CC last year. He hit .357 with 11 doubles and had 80 strikeouts in 62 innings on the mound.

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