Mississippi State Baseball 2023 Season Preview: INF Wil Hoyle

Of the many offseason transfers that the SEC added this past offseason, few join the conference more experienced than Wil Hoyle, who is entering his sixth season of college baseball after joining Mississippi State baseball from Duke. A player who could play a key role for the Bulldogs in 2023, what might the first season at Mississippi State look like for Hoyle?

Mississippi State Baseball 2023 Season Preview: INF Wil Hoyle

Hoyle, as mentioned previously, comes to Mississippi State after five seasons at Duke, a span in which he slashed a combined .207/.326/.333 across 140 career games, a vast majority of which came defensively at second base.

When looking at his time in Durham as well, Hoyle originally joined the Blue Devils in 2018 as a true freshman, but did not see any time that season. Hoyle would however play largely a reserve role in 2019, appearing in 27 games for the Blue Devils with six starts.

In 2020, Hoyle would play in 13 games for Duke during the shortened season, and was on his way to a breakout campaign slashing .265/.324/.500. That breakout season would eventually happen for the infielder in 2021, with Hoyle slashing .227/.344/.400 with three HR and 13 RBI across 47 games.

As for last season, Hoyle is coming off a 2022 campaign in which he appeared in 53 games for the Blue Devils, slashing .201/.333/.299 with four HR, 17 RBI, and 12 SB. Starting for Duke at second base, Hoyle would also see the most at-bat’s of his collegiate career a year ago, which would help translate to career-high’s in almost every statistical category.

Looking ahead to this spring, Hoyle could be a name to watch for this season in multiple different areas, whether that be in a starting or reserve role.

A switch-hitting infielder, Hoyle is an experienced addition for the Bulldogs infield picture, and will likely see a significant number of appearances for Mississippi State this season. Defensively, Hoyle will likely play second base similar to his time at Duke, while the graduate student will primarily be a threat offensively when on the basepaths.

No, Hoyle won’t necessarily lead the Bulldogs offensively, but you should expect the Duke transfer to have a solid 2023 season, one in which the infielder could play a key role for Mississippi State’s infield.

2023 Season Prediction: .230 AVG, .335 OBP, .345 SLG, .680 OPS, 4 HR, 20 RBI, 10 SB