AUBURN, Alabama–To say it has been a hectic week for Auburn baseball would be an understatement. After winning the regional last weekend, the Tigers had to prepare to face Coastal Carolina while at the same time coach Butch Thompson and assistants Karl Nonemaker, Gabe Gross, Everett Teaford and Scott Foxhall had to jump headlong into the transfer portal that opened last Monday.
Working the phones and scheduling visits from the portal while working to win games is what every team in the country is dealing with in every sport. It happened last year in college football and it has become another part of the norm in college sports. Already with five commitments from the portal for next year’s roster with the additions of pitchers Garrett Brewer from Michigan State, Jake Marciano from Virginia Tech and Drew Whalen from Western Kentucky along with position players Todd Clay from UAB and Ryne Farber from Texas State, there was no time to sit back and enjoy this season for the Auburn coaching staff.
Auburn associate head coach and recruiting coordinator, Nonemaker said it has been a balance for them in this first week of the portal period because they first wanted to make sure the current team and roster was taken care of in every aspect.
“Your players have done such a great job,” Nonemaker said. “You win a regional on your home field and that’s an unbelievable feeling, you’re so excited. You wake up Monday morning and you want to get your team ready, but you also can’t do nothing in recruiting. You have to continue to work. If you don’t do anything for a couple of weeks you could look up and be left behind.
“It’s just a double-time effort. It’s weird timing and every team that’s still playing goes through it. It’s definitely an interesting experience. 285 teams were done playing and their sole focus was recruiting. And all of the teams that are still playing are trying to put their teams on the field and keep enjoying a run and also not taking their hands off the steering wheel about future plans.”
The future starts with the current players on Auburn’s roster. Veterans like Lucas Steele, Eric Snow, Eric Guevara, Cade Belyeu and Bristol Carter along with a talented group of freshmen like Chase Fralick, Chris Rembert and Bub Terrell gives the Tigers a strong group of position players to build around. With arms like Andreas Alvarez, Christian Chatterton, Cade Fisher, Griffin Graves, Ryan Hetzler, Mason Koch, Jackson Sanders, Dylan Watts and potentially returning Cam Tilly and Hayden Murphy, there are pieces in place for the Tigers.
Nonemaker said they were the most important parts of this recruiting process for the staff.
“We have a great nucleus of kids that we think will be a part of this program for a long time,” Nonemaker said. “Our belief is that they’ll help to take it to great heights. We didn’t have a very big transfer class on purpose. The rosters are shrinking a little bit. You’re really recruiting a few specific areas to replace some upperclassmen that are leaving. The majority of our next year’s roster, our hope and plan is that it’s already in that locker room.
“The most important recruits that you have are the ones that are in your locker room. There are some teams that may have a bunch of seniors and has to replace the whole team, they have a lot more to do. The way that it has worked here the last few years, there are a lot of guys that have eligibility to come back and play college baseball. The foundation of what we think our team is, it’s already here and playing. You’re always trying to get that one or two players that might help you get over the hump the next time you have that opportunity.”
With the NCAA House Settlement taking place, there are still questions for Auburn baseball about how many full scholarships they’ll have this coming season and still how everything is going to work. The belief is that the sport will eventually be at 34 full scholarships, but how you get to that point and how long it takes is still to be determined.
Auburn will continue to try to add pieces from the transfer portal, but here is a short rundown of the five new Tigers that have committed this week.
Drew Whalen Western Kentucky
A 6-1, 215 RHP, Whalen has been really good in his first two seasons for Western Kentucky. The Conference USA Pitcher of the Year as a sophomore, he finished 9-3 with an ERA of 3.53 this past season. In 81.2 innings, Whalen struck out 90 with 31 walks.
Jake Marciano, Virginia Tech
Started 14 games this season as a true freshman for the Hokies. Finished the year 4-2 with a 6.08 ERA but has elite tools. In 60.2 innings, the LHP struck out 71 with just 18 walks.
Todd Clay, UAB
The Auburn native spent his first two seasons at junior college before having a breakout season at UAB in 2025. The corner infielder was the team leader in hits (69), average (.361), on-base percentage (.473), slugging percentage (.593), total bases (103) and walks (39). He also added seven home runs, 13 doubles and 51 runs batted in.
Ryne Farber, Texas State
After playing center field as a true freshman and batting .340 with two home runs and 10 doubles, Farber moved to shortstop as a sophomore and while he struggled some down the stretch to finish with a .267 average, he still had four home runs, 13 doubles, 33 runs batted in and stole 15 bases. A switch-hitter, he gives Auburn a lot of position versatility next season.
Garrett Brewer, Michigan State
A 6-3 LHP that played his first two seasons for the Spartans, Brewer was 2-2 with one save this season while making 17 appearances. He finished with an ERA of 4.46 and struck out 41 in 34.1 innings with 13 walks. In his last 10 outings, Brewer allowed just five total earned runs with three of those coming to Minnesota on May 17 in 4.1 innings of work. In 25 innings to finish up the year he allowed just five earned runs on just 18 hits with 25 strikeouts.
