NEW ORLEANS – Our Privateer preview series will be divided into three parts this year. First up is a general overview of the New Orleans Privateers baseball squad, which begins the season on Friday, Feb. 14 against Southern.
Coach
Blake Dean enters his fifth season at the helm of the Privateers after achieving his 100
th win during the course of the '19 season. Dean guided the Privateers to a 29-27 record last year and has a career mark of 119-113-1.
What has stood out about the 2020 squad is the amount of depth and the bevy of returners in the starting lineup. Seven starting hitters return and both catchers who were behind the plate for the majority of last season in
Jorge Tejeda and
Beau Bratton also are back.
That statistic figures to bode well in the field also with
Salo Iza and
Darren Willis both returning for their senior years. Iza was the first Gold Glove winner in program history and Willis helped form one of the most dynamic infields that helped the Privateers turn 50 double plays (second most in the Southland).
Gaige Howard had a breakout year in his first season on the Lakefront. He hit .330 and was named Third Team All-Southland in the preseason. He also was named to Perfect Game's Preseason All-Southland team.
New Orleans will open the schedule with a Southern squad that won the SWAC in 2019. The Jaguars are the first of five teams the Privateers will play who made the tournament along with UConn, Southern Miss, LSU, and McNeese.
The schedule also offers some stiff competition in the build-up to Southland play. Along with UConn, who made the NCAA Tournament with 39 wins, VCU is another squad that was on the cusp of 40 triumphs. The Rams finished last year 39-19.
The Privateers have historically had great success in the Andre Dawson Classic. They've only lost one game in this invitational since 2015 and have played in it every year but one since the '15 season. The Privateers also face Grambling and Prairie View A&M in the opening weekend.
Usual strong competition in the midweek dots the schedule with mainstays like South Alabama, Tulane, and Louisiana joining the aforementioned Southern Miss and LSU.
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