Florida State baseball's failure to advance past the Tallahassee Regional was a huge disappointment for Nole fans, especially after the softball team failed to do so shortly before that. It was a disappointing season for several reasons, and blame can be placed in several areas.
A certain segment of the fanbase loves to point fingers towards Florida State pitching coach Micah Posey. Has the pitching staff had its issues in recent years? Absolutely, but the 2026 season was the best the pitching staff has performed in quite some time. They didn’t have much depth and had some great injury luck for a change, which resulted in some outstanding overall numbers from the staff: Â
In command on the mound. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/XNkrmjZUee
— FSU Baseball (@FSUBaseball) June 10, 2026
FSU pitching was better than most give it credit for, and the FSU offense was the biggest issue plaguing the Noles in 2026
Micah Posey helped develop Wes Mendes and John Abraham into All-Americans, and Mendes won the ACC Pitcher of the Year this season. Jamie Arnold could have won that award in 2025, but settled for becoming a top 15 overall selection in the 2025 MLB Draft. The biggest issue for the Florida State baseball team in 2026 was the inept offense. Some folks will point to the injury to Myles Bailey, and sure, that impacted the team. However, one injury shouldn’t cripple an entire lineup, and the lineup wasn’t close to elite when Bailey was healthy. Â
FSU struck out way too much for a team (over 25 percent of their at-bats) with very little power. The sheer number of uncompetitive at-bats per game was astounding, and the inability to get runners home when they had ducks on the pond ultimately cost them. Florida State scored 18 runs in four home games in the Tallahassee Regional, and it’s not like the pitching they faced was elite. In fact, most of the pitching they faced wasn’t fresh, was going off short rest, and was affected by long weather delays.
In fact, most of the pitching they faced wasn’t fresh, was going off short rest, and was affected by long weather delays.
The inability to score ultimately gave Florida State pitchers zero margin for error. FSU pitchers didn’t allow more than six runs in any game in the Tallahassee Regional, and FSU went 2-2. Two of the four losses were by one run, and FSU won one of the games 2-1. Â
Link Jarrett has a lot of production to replace on both sides of the ball, and added his first addition from the transfer portal on Tuesday in Jackson McKenzie from nearby FAMU. He’ll need to replace all three starting pitchers, multiple bullpen arms, and position players. The biggest question is what tier of player will Florida State attract? Will Link Jarrett rely on the JUCO ranks, mid-major standouts, or proven players from the P4 ranks?
It was a mixture of those groups in the last portal cycle, and I'd expect the same again this year. However, FSU has to find the right combination on offense moving forward. The offense has regressed each year under Link Jarrett in a sport where offense is a must.
Add us as a preferred source on Google