BREAKING: Ole Miss RHP Grayson Saunier Enters Transfer Portal
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss right-handed pitcher Grayson Saunier has entered the transfer portal, according to The Rebel Walk sources.
A starter as a true freshman for the Rebels in 2023, Saunier’s talent and experience will no doubt be missed in Oxford next season.
In his first season as a Rebel, the four-year letterwinner from Collierville High School started 12 games for head coach Mike Bianco, making the second-most starts of any pitcher on the team that season. The Texas native earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors for his outings against Mississippi State and Georgia.
Heading into his sophomore campaign, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound Saunier was named Ole Miss’ Sunday starter. He remained a weekend starter until his outing against the No. 1 Tennessee Vols on March 24. After that loss in Knoxville, Saunier was used the following weekend in relief against Kentucky, entering the game in the fourth inning when the Rebels were already down 7-1 with bases loaded to the Wildcats, and was then used only as a midweek starter the remainder of the season.
After the Kentucky game, the Rebels faced six weekend series vs. SEC foes (Mississippi State, Georgia, Alabama, Auburn, A&M, and LSU) and Saunier saw no action in any of those.
He did take the mound one final time against SEC competition when the Rebels faced off against Mississippi State in the Governor’s Cup action in Pearl on May 1st; although, that does not count as an SEC game. In that outing on May 1, Saunier held the Bulldogs scoreless for four innings and finished with a final line of 4.0 IP, four hits, zero runs, two strikeouts and one walk.
During his sophomore season, Saunier made the third-most starts (10) behind Riley Maddox (14) and Liam Doyle (11), and he pitched the third-most innings on the team (44.2), behind Maddox (69) and Doyle (55.0).
With respect to wins and losses, ERA, and numbers of innings pitched, here are the numbers for Saunier and the others on the staff, in order of most innings pitched (those with 19 innings pitched or more on the season):
Riley Maddox (3-7): 69 IP | 5.48 ERA
Liam Doyle (3-4): 55 IP | 5.73 ERA
Grayson Saunier (4-3): 44.2 IP | 5.64 ERA
Gunnar Dennis (4-2): 40 IP | 7.88 ERA
Mason Nichols (4-2): 39.0 IP | 4.15 ERA
Mason Morris (1-2, 1 save): 33.o IP | 6.55 ERA
Wes Mendes (2-1, 1 save): 31.2 IP | 6.82 ERA
Josh Mallitz (0-1, 1 save): 27 IP | 4.28 ERA
Brayden Jones (1-0, 1 save): 26 IP | 5.54 ERA
Connor Spencer (0-2, 7 saves): 19.0 IP | 6.16 ERA
JT Quinn (1-3): 19.1 IP | 8.84 ERA
Of the Ole Miss pitchers on the team with 30 or more innings pitched this season, only two held a better ERA than Saunier: juniors Riley Maddox (5.48 ERA in 69 IP) and Mason Nichols (4.15 ERA in 39 innings pitched).
Saunier, with his repertoire of four pitches, will be highly sought after in the portal, and we wish him the very best on his journey.
Evelyn Van Pelt
Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn’s love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.
