Coming off a 56-13 record, including a 26-4 mark in the Sun Belt Conference, Schnall said he has 16 returning players and 18 new additions this season.
He said the returning pitchers accounted for 311 innings and a 2.40 ERA, and returning position players accounted for 1,500 plate appearances with a nearly .400 on-base percentage.
Five returning position starters are junior Colby Thorndyke at first base, senior Blake Barthol at second base, junior Walker Mitchell at third base, junior Blagen Pado in right field and senior Dean Mihos in center field.
Coastal Carolina’s Dean Mihos rounds the bases after hitting a home run in the second inning of a 2025 College World Series game against LSU at Charles Schwab Field Omaha. (Coastal Carolina Athletics photo)
“We’ve got a very talented team here this year, a lot of really good players, more importantly a lot of really good people,” Schnall said.
Among the added position players this season, Schnall is high on senior Jordan Taylor, an outfielder who transferred from Stetson, where he batted .318 with 78 hits, 26 extra-base hits and 22 steals last season. He is a prospective replacement in left field for the departed Sebastian Alexander.
“Every year you need somebody to emerge,” Schnall said. “I feel Sebastian was that player who emerged for us last year position-player wise. … He’s got a very Sebastian Alexander look to him, and maybe even more talented, which is scary, because Sebastian did a lot of special things on the field for us last year.”
Schnall said he vetted the incoming players by contacting his connections throughout college baseball to bring in the right pieces with the correct character, work ethic and competitiveness.
“It’s more to it than just talent,” Schnall said of his additions this season. “Talent is a piece of it. You’ve got to bring in the right people who have the right mental makeup, the right competitiveness to understand what it means to compete at Coastal. … That’s not lip service, that’s real. If you don’t have the mentality that you absolutely love showing up to Springs Brooks Stadium every single day, you’re not going to make it at Coastal.