⚾ 🥎 Roster updates as Vaughn rebuilds the Alabama baseball team

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

A little more good news this week, after the draft, C Mac Guscette officially announced he will return...


Bama also added Ole Miss transfer TJ McCants (Sr.)… speedy outfielder who can play multiple spots.

 

[RTB X Bot]

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

A big righty... Opponents hit just .180 against him and had a 1.071 WHIP.

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

Not mad, just disappointed. (Also, pretty mad)

 

[ElephantStomp]

Not mad, just disappointed. (Also, pretty mad)

Might be idiotic on my part, but no way in hell could I transfer to a rival school….NIL be damned

 

[BamaFan334]

Might be idiotic on my part, but no way in hell could I transfer to a rival school….NIL be damned

I was thinking the same thing. This is what will kill college football's/sports pageantry. Rivalries will only be for the fans, and the players would not care less. Year round Rivals camps and social media already make these guys best buddies on the recruiting trails and at events, so they already don't hate one another. Add on top money and the transfer portal and most of them are making decisions based on the those ideals and nothing to do with the university and what it stands for or their passionate fanbase. It's seriously all over with, and that's not a knee jerk reaction to this news, it's what is happening everywhere.

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

Might be idiotic on my part, but no way in hell could I transfer to a rival school….NIL be damned

In some circumstances I understand it, even support it… a coaching change that the player isn’t comfortable with, player makes a move to get more playing time elsewhere, player transfers to a higher profile school/league to help his draft status, etc. What I don’t care for is dumping the school that was loyal to you out of HS, and simply chasing (more) money from that school’s rival(s). This is the 3rd player that’s done it, regardless of what they say publicly. It’s obviously their right and within the (dumb) rules to do it, but that doesn’t make it any less shitty of a practice.

I do hope it makes our fans appreciate guys like Alton Davis II even more though. There’s others too, but I’ll use him as an example. He could have easily bolted for more money too, and gone pretty much anywhere he wanted. He didn’t give it a second thought and turned away the callers, because he and his family understand the value loyalty over short term money gains. And I hope, and believe, it is going to (literally) pay off big for him in the long run. [sarcasm]Would be a damn shame if the same didn’t happen for the other 3…[/sarcasm off]

 

[TerryP]

Might be idiotic on my part,

What's idiotic about getting paid?

 

[ElephantStomp]

What's idiotic about getting paid?

I wouldn’t go to a rival school NIL be damned

 

[BamaFan334]

What's idiotic about getting paid?

In theory it's nice for that party, but it also has you not paying attention to football recruiting anymore. More of that and there won't be that money anymore, or not nearly as lucrative.

 

[Justneedme81]

I wouldn’t go to a rival school NIL be damned

Interesting. More than 80 percent of athletes will take the money over loyalty. Rivalry isn't what it used to be these days. Shit, I would take the money if offered me to come and play for Hugh.

Only reason Tauila didn't take the money is because he has NIL deals and his brother is supporting him as well. If not for that, he would be in Auburn right now.

We had a baseball player transferring from Alabama to LSU because of money.

 

[BamaFan334]

Shit, I would take the money if offered me to come and play for Hugh.

This is where college football is failing. You say you're an Alabama fan, but would go play for Auburn for a price. That's selling out. To me, that just shows you're not as much of a fan as you think. That amount of money isn't life changing for a serious athlete to turn on your program that has coached you up and given you opportunity. As we have seen with multiple schools, NIL can go wrong and players can get screwed over, so is it worth turning your back on your school to play for a rival that you talked shit about for years?

 

[TerryP]

In theory it's nice for that party, but it also has you not paying attention to football recruiting anymore. More of that and there won't be that money anymore, or not nearly as lucrative.

I'm still paying attention. I'm not actively seeking information ... on occasion I will. Amari Jefferson is committing this week...been committed to play baseball at UT. I don't know where but I know Bama's in the mix ...

 

[TerryP]

That amount of money isn't life changing for a serious athlete to turn on your program that has coached you up and given you opportunity.

We aren't seeing eye to eye here. $500 a month can be life changing for some folks.

 

[BamaFan334]

We aren't seeing eye to eye here. $500 a month can be life changing for some folks.

Well, I can speak from experience that an extra $100 can keep you from overdrafting and mean the world to you, but when you are getting a full ride, $100-$500 isn't moving the needle anymore with what college's give to you. Too many ways to make money out there to sell my soul for $500 a month to a rival. You can't even get a car for that anymore in most cases. I would never wear an Auburn, Tennessee, Florida, Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, or LSU helmet for that. Now it's different if you begin your career at one of those schools because they offered and showed you the most love, but different to me once you give your heart and soul to a team and then leave and go to a rival.

I also want to say that someone's shoe fettish or wearing a certain designer clothing means zero to me in how that money can make a difference. With the money schools will pay to get your parents to games, the free tickets, clothing, room and board, meals, and all of that, it's not life changing considering it eventually runs out and then you have that issue again depending on how your career turns out. All this being said, I'm a "younger" guy, but old school in my loyalty and appreciation for what I am given. I'm as loyal to Alabama and paid my own way, but thankful for the opportunity it gave me, and I reward them for giving me a chance by continuing to pay them for that. Some of us are givers and a lot of us are takers though.

 

[TerryP]

@BamaFan334 let's assume that the rumored money Bryce received was three million. Would you don orange for that?

Now, you grew up a Georgia fan, right? Allegiances switched. At 17, or 18, or 19 if we look at Holman ... money moves kids.

Look at Riddick. A good NIL deal, promised starting role in his frosh year, and he has his goals. Being at Auburn won't affect his ability to make it to the league. NIL affects his life now.

 

[BamaFan334]

@BamaFan334 let's assume that the rumored money Bryce received was three million. Would you don orange for that?

Now, you grew up a Georgia fan, right? Allegiances switched. At 17, or 18, or 19 if we look at Holman ... money moves kids.

Look at Riddick. A good NIL deal, promised starting role in his frosh year, and he has his goals. Being at Auburn won't affect his ability to make it to the league. NIL affects his life now.

Riddick didn't play for Georgia for one, two, or three years and go to Auburn. That's a different story. I can entertain that idea because his allegiances aren't set.

As far as Holman, how many Roll Tide's and Eff Auburn's have been said? I imagine a ton, but now all of a sudden it's War Eagle and Eff Alabama and it's supposed to mean something? I get it, you can entice a kid that is mentally weak and willing to bend for a dollar so he can live like these YouTubers and musicians they love, but it does more damage to your reputation in my book. Teams ask these questions like crazy at the combines and in interviews. it'll all come up and they'll have to answer for it.

I also want to state it is completely different going from Alabama to say Cal State Fullerton or LSU to Texas (maybe not in a couple of years). No rivalries or school pride affected there. No issues with those moves, I just think you're a hypocrite to play and do well at one school and then all of a sudden transfer to another and scream their praises for a buck.

 

[UAgrad93]

Just my opinion, but from my coaching experiences, baseball and other sports are different from football and there just isn’t that level of “hate/rivalry” like football has. So many of these guys have been playing ball together/against one another for so long, camped together etc, they have instead built friendships. Football has similar circumstances, but we are teaching them to be violent between the lines. We ( the fans ) were raised differently and built those allegiances at an early age. Today’s kids are more of a passing “fan” of a school because they have seen them win.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Holman hadn’t played with a lot of the LSwho roster at some time or another along his baseball career leading to this point. Throw in NIL and we have already said before, the Corndogs are A LOT more deeply vested into their baseball program than what BAMA is when it comes to NIL money.

 

[ElephantStomp]

Interesting. More than 80 percent of athletes will take the money over loyalty. Rivalry isn't what it used to be these days. Shit, I would take the money if offered me to come and play for Hugh.

Only reason Tauila didn't take the money is because he has NIL deals and his brother is supporting him as well. If not for that, he would be in Auburn right now.

We had a baseball player transferring from Alabama to LSU because of money.

I could be privileged, stupid, or both, but I wouldn’t go to a rival. You couldn’t pay me enough to leave Bama and go to Tennessee

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

I could be privileged, stupid, or both, but I wouldn’t go to a rival. You couldn’t pay me enough to leave Bama and go to Tennessee

I can't really imagine a scenario in which I would either if I was a high level player that was just a year or 2 away from big professional money MLB, NFL, or NBA... If I felt I had to transfer to a rival get that big professional money, then that's a different story, but that's not what we're seeing with these intraconference transfers in baseball.