HOOVER, Ala. — Eleven months ago, LSU swept Coastal Carolina at Charles Schwab Field to claim the program’s eighth national championship — the most in modern college baseball, and the second title in three years under Jay Johnson. This week, the Tigers arrive in Hoover as the No. 14 seed at the SEC Tournament, opening Tuesday night against No. 11 Oklahoma in a single-elimination first-round game. That’s how brutal a year in the SEC can be: defending champs to bottom-four seed in twelve months. LSU isn’t the only program with a story in this seed tier — Monte Lee is in his first season as South Carolina’s interim head coach after Mark Kingston’s departure; Kentucky is playing one year removed from its first College World Series appearance in program history; Missouri is rebuilding under Kerrick Jackson in his third year. But LSU is the story everyone in Hoover will be watching.
This is the fourth and final World Baseball Network preview of the 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament. The tournament runs May 19-24 at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, single-elimination, with first-round play opening Tuesday on the SEC Network and the championship game scheduled for Sunday, May 24 at 2 p.m. EDT on ABC. This piece covers the No. 13 through No. 16 seeds.
The bracket’s bottom four:
- Kentucky (31-20, 13-17 SEC) — Nick Mingione, 10th season
- LSU (29-27, 9-21 SEC) — Jay Johnson, 5th season
- South Carolina (22-34, 7-23 SEC) — Monte Lee, 1st season (interim)
- Missouri (23-30, 6-24 SEC) — Kerrick Jackson, 3rd season
No. 13 Kentucky Wildcats (31-20, 13-17 SEC)
Head coach: Nick Mingione, 10th season
Two years ago, Kentucky made the College World Series for the first time in program history under Mingione — a stunning run from a program that hadn’t been to the NCAA Tournament since 2017 before that. The 2026 group hasn’t matched that trajectory; the Wildcats are 31-20 overall, 13-17 in conference, unranked in the D1Baseball Top 25, and matched against Vanderbilt — last year’s tournament champ — in a Tuesday first-round game.
Shortstop Tyler Bell — MLB Pipeline‘s No. 23 prospect — is the headliner.
Players to watch:
- SS Tyler Bell — 1st-Team All-SEC (SS) · (Top 150: No. 23) · Projected first-round 2026 MLB Draft pick. Drafted No. 66 overall by Tampa Bay in 2024 but returned to school.
- RHP Jaxon Jelkin — 2nd-Team All-SEC (SP) · Houston transfer, back from Tommy John surgery. Named by head coach Nick Mingione as Kentucky’s Tuesday starter against Vanderbilt.
- RHP Nate Harris — Sophomore returning weekend starter. Pitched 6.0 IP of 3-run ball to help eliminate top-seeded Clemson in the 2025 Regional.
Program resume: CWS Appearance 2024. NCAA Regional Champions 2017, 2023, 2024. SEC Regular Season Champion 2024.
No. 14 LSU Tigers (29-27, 9-21 SEC)
Head coach: Jay Johnson, 5th season
The defending national champions are the No. 14 seed. That sentence is going to feel strange every time it appears in print this week. LSU swept Coastal Carolina at the 2025 College World Series to bring the program its eighth national title — Johnson’s second as head coach after the 2023 championship over Florida. The Tigers went 9-21 in SEC play in 2026, finishing 14th in conference and 29-27 overall. Whether that record reflects roster turnover after the 2025 title run or a more durable downturn, the calendar doesn’t care: LSU plays Oklahoma on Tuesday night at 9 p.m. ET, and a tournament run is the only thing standing between this team and a long offseason.
The bats to watch: outfielder Derek Curiel (MLB Pipeline No. 15) and outfielder Jake Brown (No. 45) are both on the Top 150 draft board.
Players to watch:
- OF Derek Curiel — 2nd-Team All-SEC (OF) · All-SEC Defensive Team · (Top 150: No. 15)
- SS Steven Milam — 2nd-Team All-SEC (SS) · All-SEC Defensive Team (SS)
- OF Jake Brown — (Top 150: No. 45)
- C Omar Serna Jr. — Freshman All-SEC
- RHP Mason Braun — Freshman All-SEC
Program resume: Eight CWS Championships (1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2009, 2023, 2025). CWS Runner-Up 2017. 20 CWS appearances. SEC Tournament Champions 1986, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2000, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2017. The eight national titles are the most among active Division I programs.
No. 15 South Carolina Gamecocks (22-34, 7-23 SEC)
Head coach: Monte Lee, 1st season (interim)
A difficult year in Columbia. South Carolina is 22-34 overall and 7-23 in conference, second-worst record in the league. Mark Kingston was removed from the head-coaching position during the season, with longtime college coach Monte Lee — formerly of Clemson and College of Charleston — taking over on an interim basis. The Gamecocks open Tuesday evening against Tennessee, a program that just won the national title two years ago.
The history at South Carolina is real: back-to-back national championships in 2010 and 2011 under Ray Tanner, four CWS Finals appearances, a top-three SEC program for most of the 2000s. The current group is rebuilding from that foundation rather than near it. When the SEC released its 2026 postseason awards Monday, no South Carolina player appeared on any All-SEC team — first, second, freshman, or defensive. Left-hander Jake McCoy is the program’s only player on MLB Pipeline’s Top 150 draft board.
Players to watch:
- LHP Jake McCoy — (Top 150: No. 139)
Program resume: CWS Champion 2010, 2011. CWS Runner-Up 1975, 1977, 2002, 2012. 11 CWS appearances. SEC Tournament Champion 2004.
No. 16 Missouri Tigers (23-30, 6-24 SEC)
Head coach: Kerrick Jackson, 3rd season
The No. 16 seed in single-elimination tournaments has a clear job: arrive, play one game, and try to make it two. Mizzou is 23-30 overall and 6-24 in SEC play in Jackson’s third season — last in the conference, lowest seed in Hoover. The Tigers open Tuesday morning against No. 9 Ole Miss, the 2022 College World Series champions, at 10:30 a.m. ET. The smart money says it’s one and done. The smart money is also exactly what gets upset on Tuesday morning at the Hoover Met.