Report: LSU star Derek Curiel moving to centerfield for 2026 season

According to Kendal Rogers of D1 Baseball, LSU star Derek Curiel is making a position change ahead of the 2026 season. Curiel will play in centerfield for the Tigers moving forward, moving Chris Stanfield over to left. A big move for head coach Jay Johnson, making sure the outfield defense sets up nicely.

“SCOOP: This shouldn’t come as a surprise, but @LSUbaseball is officially moving @d1baseball Freshman All-American Derek Curiel to center field, w/ veteran outfielder Chris Stanfield shifting over to left field for the fall/2026 campaign,” Rogers said via X.

Curiel won all kinds of individual awards as a true freshman, while LSU went on to win the national championship. D1 Baseball dubbed him the National Freshman of the Year after hitting .345 with a .990 OPS. A perfect fielding percentage pops up too, adding two outfield assists.

You can add the likes of College World Series All-Tournament Team and second-team All-SEC to the resume as well. Some other impressive stats include a total of 29 extra-base hits — 20 doubles, two triples, and seven home runs. Curiel nearly walked as much as he struck out, taking 53 free bases and getting punched out on 56 occasions.

“He was born to hit,” Johnson said of Curiel during the College World Series. “His disposition, his demeanor is made for hitting with runners on base, made for playing in games like the College World Series. He’ll probably play in the major league World Series someday because he’s got that ‘it factor’ character.”

Our first official look of Curiel in centerfield comes in just under a month. LSU hosts a few fall ball exibitions, traveling to Biloxi, MS, on Nov. 2 to face Samford. Three seven-inning exibithon games will take place. One week later, the Tigers head to Southeastern Louisiana for another game.

A few more months will pass before Opening Day takes place at Alex Box Stadium. Milwaukee‘s is LSU’s first weekend series of the regular season. Looking even further ahead, March 13 is the SEC opener against Vanderbilt. The journey for another national championship begins, hoping to make it three in five seasons under Johnson.

Curiel figures to play a massive role if LSU is going to get the job done. His bat already is one of the most important of the lineup, no matter where Johnson puts him defensively. But getting into center should help the Tigers out a good amount.