BIRMINGHAM, Ala.- The Southwestern Athletic Conference announced its 2024 SWAC Baseball Predicted Order of Finish along with its Preseason Teams and Individual Award selections on Thursday afternoon. The predicted order of finish, preseason teams and individual awards were voted upon by the league's head coaches and sports information directors.
Alabama State was picked to finish in 1st place in the SWAC's Eastern Division. The Hornets tallied seven first place points and 74 total points. Bethune-Cookman (2nd), Florida A&M (3rd), Jackson State (4th), Alabama A&M (5th) and Mississippi Valley State (6th) round out the list of SWAC East Preseason selections.
Grambling State was tabbed to finish in 1st place in the SWAC's Western Division. The Tigers amassed seven first place votes and 79 total points. Prairie View A&M (2nd), Southern (3rd), Texas Southern (4th), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (5th), and
Alcorn State (6th) highlight the SWAC West Preseason selections.
Grambling State's Cameron Bufford was named Preseason Player of the Year, while Bethune-Cookman's Daniel Gaviria was tabbed Preseason Pitcher of the Year.
Bufford landed on the first team after a regular season that saw him belt 12 home runs, the third most in the SWAC. He also contributed a batting .321 average to go along with 13 doubles and five triples. The South Holland, Ill. native also stole six bases during regular season competition.
Gaviria quickly cemented himself as the Wildcats Sunday starter and one of the top arms in the SWAC in 2023. In 75 innings – a top ten mark in the conference – he recorded a 3.84 ERA with five wins on the season as a starter. Of those 13 starts, three of them ended in a complete-game effort. Gaviria struck out 46 batters this past season walking only 14 – tied for the second-lowest mark in the SWAC among qualified arms.
The upcoming 2024 SWAC Baseball regular season is set to begin next week with league teams returning to action. The 2024 SWAC Baseball Tournament will be held May 22-26 at Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta, Ga.
A complete listing of the predicted order of finish, preseason team selections and individual awards winners is listed below.
Predicted Order of Finish
SWAC East
- Alabama State- 74 points (7)
- Bethune-Cookman- 63 points (4)
- Florida A&M- 61 points (3)
- Jackson State- 46 points (1)
- Alabama A&M- 35 points (1)
- Mississippi Valley State- 15 points
SWAC West
- Grambling State- 79 points (7)
- Prairie View A&M- 67 points (3)
- Southern- 56 points (2)
- Texas Southern- 55 points (1)
- Arkansas-Pine Bluff- 46 points
- Alcorn State- 33 points (3)
*First place votes listed in parenthesis ( )
Preseason All-SWAC Baseball Teams and Individual Award Winners
Preseason Player of the Year
Cameron Bufford, Grambling State
Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Daniel Gaviria, Bethune-Cookman
Preseason All-SWAC Baseball First Team
C – Jamal George, Alabama State
1B – Jack Hay, Alabama State
2B – Randy Flores, Alabama State
3B – Cameron Bufford, Grambling State
SS – CJ Castillo, Texas Southern
DH – Sebastian Greico, Florida A&M
OF – Trevor Hatton, Grambling State
OF – Ty Jackson, Florida A&M
OF – Janmikell Bastardo, Florida A&M
SP – Daniel Gaviria, Bethune-Cookman
SP – Caleb Granger, Florida A&M
RP – Erick Gonzalez, Jackson State
Preseason All-SWAC Baseball Second Team
C – Jared Tribett, Alabama A&M
1B – Blake Martin, Alabama A&M
2B – Kyle Walker, Grambling State
3B – Cristian Lopez, Alabama State
SS – Kyler McIntosh, Alabama State
DH – Diego Lopez-Molina, Alcorn State
OF – Ali Lapread, Alabama State
OF – Garrison Weiss, Prairie View A&M
OF – Tiger Borom, Grambling State
SP – Sebastian Colon, Alabama State
SP – Michael Dews, Prairie View A&M
RP – Ethan Bates, Grambling State
About the SWAC
The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is considered one of the premier HBCU conferences in the country and currently ranks among the elite in the nation in terms of HBCU alumni playing with professional sports teams.
Current championship competition offered by the league includes competition for men in Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field, and Tennis.
Women's competition is offered in the sports of Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field, Soccer, Softball, Tennis, and Volleyball.
Follow the SWAC
For complete coverage of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, please follow the SWAC on social media at @TheSWAC (Twitter), @TheSWAC (Facebook), and @TheSWAC (Instagram) or visit the official home of the Southwestern Athletic Conference at
www.swac.org.
FOLLOW THE BRAVES
For complete coverage of Alcorn State University Braves, please follow @BRAVESSPORTS on Twitter and @alcornsports on Instagram. You can also find up-to-date information on all things Alcorn State Athletics at www.alcornsports.com.
