Former Southern Miss slugger Matt Wallner named among MLB’s best outfielders

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Just over five years after Matt Wallner last swung a bat at Pete Taylor Park in Hattiesburg, the slugger has been named one of the best right fielders in all of Major League Baseball. 

The Minnesota native was ranked No. 9 in MLB Network’s list of the top 10 right fielders on the game’s highest level. It’s the first time Wallner has been recognized on the preseason list since he debuted for the Minnesota Twins in 2022. He was drafted as a first-round competitive balance pick in the 2019 MLB Draft. 

The former Golden Eagle has steadily grown into his role as a power-hitting lefty with a big arm in the right field corner for the Twins. In 2024, Wallner posted a .259 batting average, bashed 13 home runs, and collected 37 RBI. 

Wallner became the all-time home run king for Southern Miss in his final regular season game in black and gold, punctuating a decorated career that also included tying the single-season home run record, starting 188 of 189 possible games in his three years, and a litany of MVP and Conference USA Player of the Year awards.