The transfer portal is open in college baseball and thousands of Division 1 players are expected to move to new programs between now and July 1.
Mizzou has had a handful of key players announce their departures from the team already, including center fielder Kaden Peer, second baseman Blaize Ward, third baseman Chris Patterson and pitcher Keyler Gonzalez, moves all confirmed Monday by Mizzou Athletics.
Meanwhile, versatile ex-Arkansas player Ty Waid announced he will transfer to Mizzou following two seasons at a junior college. Waid hit .368 with 28 home runs for Weatherford College in Texas last season.
The losses could prove particularly costly to a lineup that is already expected to lose its two biggest stars. Slugger Jase Woita is out of eligibility and shortstop Kam Durnin could sign professionally after the MLB draft in July.
Key lineup changes
Peer belted a grand slam in the Tigers’ SEC Tournament win over Ole Miss, perhaps the season highlight. He dazzled with his defense and contributed with the bat all season. Peer started 42 games for the Tigers and produced a .718 OPS. Peer had 102 putouts without making an error.
Ward took over the starting second-baseman job from Eric Maisonet and provided a boost for Mizzou. He finished third on the team in hits with 45, clubbed four homers and had an OPS of .825 while playing solid defense. Ward will be a sophomore next year.
Maisonet could be the frontrunner to start at second base barring a big pickup in the offseason and, of course, presuming Maisonet stays in Columbia.
Patterson was another big defensive asset for the team. He went into the final game of the tournament without an error, though he would be charged with two costly ones in the run-rule loss to Mississippi State. Patterson will be entering his junior year after starting 30 games as a freshman and 24 as a sophomore. He batted .234 over his time at Mizzou.
Rotation shakeup
Keyler Gonzalez started three games on the mound and came in for eight relief appearances this season. Over his 28⅔ innings, he had a 5.02 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. Gonzalez will be entering his senior season after spending two years at Nova Southeastern and one at Mizzou. He collected 36 strikeouts this year, third-best among the staff.
PJ Green also started a pair of games for the team while making seven bullpen appearances. Apart from his performances against Kansas and UIC in which he allowed four and three earned runs respectively, Green was a solid option for the Tigers this year.
Other players entering the portal include outfielder Sam Parker, right-handed pitchers Kadin Muckley and Keagen Kohlhoff and lefty Todd Feurtado. Parker started eight games this year and saw action in three more. Kohlhoff got injured and only saw action in four games.
Next steps
As the Tigers look to bring in portal players over the coming weeks, they will have a few areas of emphasis.
The tallest task will be replacing the outgoing offensive production. Woita, Durnin, Ward, Peer and Pierre Seals (who was a graduate student this year) combined for 378 of the team's 720 total bases in 2026.
To fill that production, the Tigers will need at least two high-end offensive infielders and two outfielders.
On the mound, the team will need to plug in at least one starter as standout Josh McDevitt will likely be taken in the draft. They will also be in search of quality relievers, one of the weak spots from the past season.
As Tigers coach Kerrick Jackson pulls pieces together for next year’s team, he will have a lot of holes to fill.