With the February 13th opener right around the corner, we continue previewing the loaded Georgia Tech lineup as we take a look at first baseman Kent Schmidt. A returning junior, the left-handed hitting Schmidt will slot right into the middle of the lineup where he found a lot of success in his sophomore season a year ago.
Prior to opening his college career at Georgia Southern in 2024, Schmidt played his high school ball in the greater Atlanta area at Pope High School in Marietta where he was teammates with Jackets shortstop Carson Kerce. An .857 OPS and a 15.4% walk rate to just a 12.7% strikeout rate at Georgia Southern earned him a spot as the starting first baseman for Georgia Tech in the transfer portal prior to 2025. Schmidt went on to establish himself as a legitimate bat in the ACC last year as he posted a .391/.459/.583 (1.042) slash line and a 143 wRC+ across 183 plate appearances.
Had it not been for an injury that sidelined Schmidt for 20 games during the season, he likely would have qualified for an All-ACC conference selection. Regardless, he enters 2026 healthy and ready to be an important piece to Georgia Tech’s lineup. D1 Baseball recently ranked Schmidt as the 13th best first baseman in college baseball, ranking only behind Florida State’s Myles Bailey, Wake Forest’s Kade Lewis, and Louisville’s Tague Davis among the ACC first baseman.
Schmidt doesn’t possess your typical power-hitting first baseman profile. It’s more of a hit over power profile at the moment, but that’s not to say the power won’t show up. He has an excellent approach at the plate and solid contact skills that help him tap into his present power. It’s more of a line drive approach, but as he improves upon getting the ball in the air more often as well as continuing to mature physically, it’s likely we see Schmidt unlock his best power numbers yet. Regardless of what he may provide in the power department, his current offensive skills set a high floor of production for this Georgia Tech lineup. Although it didn’t qualify due to lack of plate appearances, his .381 batting average in conference play would have ranked sixth in the ACC a year ago.
On the dirt, Schmidt presents himself as an excellent defender at first base, rounding out the Jackets infield as sneakily one of the best defensively in the ACC. The lineup is highly regarded for its offense, but the defense is also going to be a game changer for the Jackets.
Schmidt is draft eligible in 2026 and the skill set suggests he could certainly join a number of Jackets on the current roster in the pro ranks this July.
More on Georgia Tech baseball:
Georgia Tech Weekend Series Preview: Bowling Green
It has been a long time since the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets came into a baseball season with as much hype as they have in 2026, and it’s finally time to see if they can live up to it.
Georgia Tech Baseball Player Preview: Drew Burress
Opening day for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets is just two days away so it’s time to wrap up the player preview series with one of the best players in the entire country – Drew Burress.
Georgia Tech Baseball Player Preview: Vahn Lackey
With the February 13th opener this Friday, it’s time to round out the player preview series, with Vahn Lackey being the second to last player we’ll be specifically taking a look at.
Georgia Tech Baseball Focus 
Leave a comment