NC State made its way to the Men\u2019s College World Series with just four Division I transfers this past season. But in the first month since it left Omaha, the Wolfpack has already added a quartet of transfers for next year\u2019s roster.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wolfpack coach Elliott Avent<\/strong> touted his mostly homegrown roster at Charles Schwab Field<\/a>, but he noted that he would utilize the transfer portal to plug holes on the roster. And, well, NC State had plenty of gaps to fill after multiple key contributors ran out of eligibility after the season concluded.\u00a0<\/p>\n NC State\u2019s newcomers include a proven outfielder with a solid right-handed pitcher and a pair of inexperienced yet high ceiling players. Here\u2019s a look at how the Pack\u2019s transfer portal additions will impact the 2025 roster by order in which they committed to NC State.\u00a0<\/p>\n The first transfer portal addition of the cycle, Campbell outfielder Dalen Thompson<\/strong> brings an intriguing skill set to the Wolfpack\u2019s batting order. In his first full season as a starter with the Camels, Thompson impressed with a combination of power and speed with 10 home runs and 20 stolen bases.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Dunn, N.C., native hit .313 with 25 extra-base hits (13 doubles and two triples included) and 47 RBI. Thompson\u2019s bat had its biggest impact of his career in Buies Creek, N.C., where he was able to score 44 runs in 233 plate appearances. The outfielder also drew 30 walks with 42 strikeouts at the plate.\u00a0<\/p>\n Thompson will arrive at NC State with an opportunity to earn a starting spot in the Wolfpack\u2019s outfield. All three spots in the outfield will likely be up for grabs with right fielder Noah Soles<\/strong> out of eligibility, while left fielder Chase Nixon<\/strong> entered the transfer portal and center fielder Eli Serrano III<\/strong> will most likely hear his name called early in the MLB Draft.\u00a0<\/p>\n The 6-foot-1, 190-pound outfielder projects as a corner outfielder for the Wolfpack and his speed is a much-needed addition on the base paths. Thompson\u2019s ability to put pressure on opposing defenses by swiping bases with ease, is an underrated part of his game.\u00a0<\/p>\n Impact: <\/strong>High NC State\u2019s starting pitching rotation will have a different look to it next spring. Sam Highfill<\/strong> and Logan Whitaker <\/strong>are out of eligibility, while Dominic Fritton <\/strong>is likely an early-round MLB Draft pick. There is a significant chance that the Wolfpack will have a brand-new starting pitching staff.\u00a0<\/p>\n That, in turn, opened the door for a need for a pitcher with starting experience. The Wolfpack found that in UNC Greensboro right-handed pitcher Julien Peissel<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Peissel, a rising junior, emerged as one of the Spartans\u2019 top starters this past season. He began the year as a midweek arm, so he could square off with Wake Forest and NC State in early season action.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Hickory, N.C., native impressed against the ACC competition. He gave up just one run on two hits with four strikeouts and a walk against Wake Forest to open the year before conceding three runs in 4.2 innings against NC State at Doak Field.<\/p>\n Peissel brings starting experience to the stable of Wolfpack pitchers with 20 in his two years at UNCG. The righty has a 4.69 career ERA in 128.2 innings, where he has fanned 93 batters with 45 walks. That history bodes well for Peissel\u2019s chances to break into the Wolfpack\u2019s starting rotation.\u00a0<\/p>\n At the moment, Peissel projects to be in the mix for the Pack\u2019s Sunday starter role and could start the season as the team\u2019s midweek starter. Fall ball will be crucial in the starting competition as a whole, where Peissel will be able to prove he belongs on the mound to begin games on the weekend.<\/p>\n Impact:<\/strong> High Third base was a key need in the transfer portal after Alec Makarewicz\u2019s<\/strong> eligibility ran out following a productive year on the hot corner for the Wolfpack. This was a transfer portal addition that the Wolfpack needed to nail, and it went with the upside pickup to fill the hole.\u00a0<\/p>\n Georgia Tech third baseman Ryan Jaros<\/strong> was the Pack\u2019s selection from the portal, one NC State was very familiar with. The rising sophomore nearly committed to NC State out of high school, putting the Wolfpack in his final two before picking the Yellow Jackets.\u00a0<\/p>\n Jaros, the former No. 6 third baseman in the Class of 2023, was behind a veteran third baseman in Atlanta this past season, thus holding his playing time back. He appeared in 26 games with 11 starts, hitting .343 with four doubles and a home run in 35 at-bats.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Cranford, N.J., native, a former high school teammate with current reliever Shane Van Dam, has immense upside that could be unleashed under hitting coach Chris Hart at NC State. If he can tap into Jaros\u2019 potential, he could become a multi-year impact player at third for the Wolfpack.\u00a0<\/p>\n Impact:<\/strong> Moderate with high upside Similarly to third base, NC State had a massive hole at first after Garrett Pennington\u2019s<\/strong> uber productive lone season with the Wolfpack came to a close. And like the hot corner, the Wolfpack went with another high upside portal player to fill that gap.\u00a0<\/p>\n NC State nabbed Vanderbilt transfer first baseman Matt Ossenfort<\/strong> from the portal, and he brings a sky-high potential to the Pack\u2019s order. He only had 11 at-bats this past year with two hits \u2014 a double and a home run \u2014 but Ossenfort was a highly-touted player out of Marjory Stoneman Douglass High.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ossenfort was the No. 10 first baseman nationally, according to Perfect Game, which gave him a 9.5 rating out of 10. Originally from Sioux Falls, S.D., Ossenfort hit .392 with 10 homers and 35 RBI has a senior.\u00a0<\/p>\n The slugger impressed in the Cal Ripken League, a collegiate wood bat league, last summer. He hit .376 with eight doubles, eight home run and 35 RBI with the Alexandria Aces going into his freshman season. If he can bring that bat with him to Raleigh, Ossenfort will be an automatic contributor to the Wolfpack\u2019s batting lineup.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ossenfort projects to start at first base, but he could also serve as a designated hitter if needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n Impact:<\/strong> Moderate with high upside The post How NC State\u2019s transfer portal additions will help in 2025<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" NC State made its way to the Men\u2019s College World Series with just four Division…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59092"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59092\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59131,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59092\/revisions\/59131"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}OF Dalen Thompson, Campbell<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Projected role:<\/strong> Starting corner outfielder<\/p>\nRHP Julien Peissel, UNC Greensboro<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Projected role:<\/strong> Sunday or midweek starter<\/p>\n3B Ryan Jaros, Georgia Tech<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Projected role:<\/strong> Starting third baseman\u00a0<\/p>\n1B Matt Ossenfort, Vanderbilt<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Projected role:<\/strong> Starting first baseman<\/p>\n