Who will be the Catcher for the 2025 Ole Miss Baseball Team?

Transfer Portal Acquisitions

It was clear to everyone, both inside and outside of the program, that the catching position was just not good enough, and that was why the room was cleared out, and Bianco turned to the portal to add reinforcements. First, they added BYU catcher Colin Reuter in what is a homecoming, as Reuter is originally from Olive Branch. Second, Kentucky transfer Austin Fawley committed to the Rebels. Setting up the catching core to be Smithwick, Reuter, and Fawley for 2025.

Colin Reuter

Colin Reuter seems to provide a decent option behind the plate. The MS native played a lot of baseball during his two years in Provo, appearing in nearly 100 games. Most of these came at catcher but in 2025 he appeared in 15 games at 1B, hinting at some positional versatility. Reuter seems to be a serviceable option defensively but provides a bit more at the plate. In 2024, he had a slash line of .265/.379/.486 with an OPS of over .850. He also tallied ten homers to go along with 6 in his freshman campaign. The reports on Reuters' fall performance seem to be limited.  

Campbell Smithwick

The wildcard is what the development of Smithwick looks like. Following the season, Smithwick headed up to the Cape Cod League, the most prestigious summer league destination. The goal was for him to catch a lot and work on his defense. Smithwick swung it well, hitting over .300, yet the power still didn’t develop. There were signs of improvement behind, but it still appears to be a way off. He posted only an 18% caught-stealing rate and still allowed four passed balls.

The question is if he did enough to be an SEC catcher defensively. Judging by his performance I think it is best for Smithwick to put his time elsewhere. He has the bat to play at this level and should focus on developing there and honing skills to man a corner outfield spot. Most MLB scouts had major question marks about his defensive abilities prior to the draft and never saw him as a catching prospect. The Ole Miss staff likes his positional versatility and he will be competing for a spot in the outfield as well as for the DH spot in the lineup.

Smithwick absolutely tore it up this fall. He led the team in walks with 16. He also posted an OBP of over .500 and the power showed signs of coming alive with four home runs and five doubles. Smithwick developing into a middle-of-the-order bat would be massive for this team, but I am not convinced that it will come from behind the plate. 

Austin Fawley

The player I am most excited about is transfer Austin Fawley. His stats have not been impressive throughout his young career, but I think Fawley might be primed for a break out with the Rebels. He appeared in only ten games with Kentucky last season. Fawley packs a lot of power. Slugging over .600 and hitting two home runs on only 18 at bats. He does need to work on cutting down on strikeouts, which he showed this summer. He also posted an OBP of .395 in summer ball, a major improvement. The reviews for him coming out of Ole Miss have been great. He was apparently tearing the cover off the ball, at one point hitting over .400, and looks really polished behind the plate. If Fawley improves his plate discipline and provides a stable defensive option at catcher with significant power upside at the plate, then I think there is a real shot that he will settle into the full-time role at catcher.

We will see how things shake out shortly as we are 65 days away from first pitch in Arlington, Texas.