With former Coug catcher Will Cresswell getting drafted in 2025, the Cougs have a major hole behind the plate.
Cresswell batted 0.329, slugged 0.523, had an OPS of 0.927 and launched five long-balls in his senior year. That impressive senior showing is why he is now in the Toronto Blue Jays’ system.
Although the Cougs only had one returning catcher, they made up for it with five offseason pick-ups behind the dish.
Who are these new Cougs? Let us take a look…
Brock Cross (Freshman)
As the youngest addition behind the plate, the Cougs signed the No. 16 overall player from Arizona.
With four other catchers on the roster, Cross has quite a few roadblocks in his way. However, his high school numbers may give him a leg up over his competition.
In his four years at Lake Havasu High School, Cross absolutely mashed the baseball. He recorded a 0.461 average, 1.381 OPS, 112 RBIs, 34 doubles and 19 home runs in his high school career. During his senior year, he narrowly missed batting 0.500, posting a 0.494 average, 1.495 OPS, seven home runs, 12 doubles and 37 RBIs.
Granted, these stats are at the high school level, but the sheer insanity of these numbers highlight how much of an impact bat Cross can have.
With senior Noah Thein most likely taking most of the reps behind the dish, it will be interesting to see what role Cross serves on the depth chart.
Joel Fernandez (Transfer – Sophomore)
After one year with the Pierce College Raiders, Fernandez makes the cross-state trip to don the Crimson and Gray from behind the dish. Players typically spend two years with their JUCO programs before inevitably transferring to D1 schools, but Fernandez decided to expedite the process.
While with the Raiders, Fernandez was not exactly a slugger. He batted 0.257, slugged 0.333 and posted an OPS of 0.674 in his singular JUCO campaign.
In 48 games behind the dish, he recorded only 37 hits, 18 RBIs and 28 strikeouts. However, he swiped seven bags on the base paths during his Raider tenure.
While the bat tool does not jump off the page, Fernandez makes up for it on defense. Last year, he cut down 16 runners on the base paths, three shy of Cresswell last year, who threw out 19.
With both his speed and defense, Fernandez adds depth to the Cougar roster that can help them go deep into weekend series.
Alexandre Giguère (Freshman)
Despite graduating in 2024, Giguère joins the Cougs as a freshman. Why is that? Because he spent this last year playing for the Canadian Baseball Academy.
In 2024, the Quebec native played for Canadian Premier at the Perfect Game WWBA World Championship, and was one of 75 players chosen for the 2024 Canadian Futures Showcase.
Giguère finds four other Canadians in his midst. Shortstop Gavin Roy, right-handed pitcher Scott Rienguette, catcher Cam Macleod and outfielder Max Hartman make up the quartet of northerners waiting to welcome Giguère to the locker room.
The 5-foot-11 and 185-pound freshman joins the Cougs with four years to develop. On a squad with five catchers, Giguère has an uphill battle ahead of him.
Cam Macleod (Transfer – Junior)
With Roy, Rienguette and now Macleod, the Cougs seem to be collecting Cloud County Community College players like infinity stones.
The Vancouver, Canada, native spent his last two years in Cloud County, where he locked down the basepaths. On top of throwing out 10 base runners, Macleod only committed one error in his 2025 season, making him a lights out defender behind the dish.
At the plate, the stats are equally impressive. He recorded a career 0.310 average, 0.609 slugging, 1.038 OPS, 91 hits, 20 home runs and 26 doubles.
Macleod slugged the baseball during his time in JUCO, and as the second oldest catcher on the roster, chances are he will get the chance to do the same in Pullman.
Similar to Rienguette, Macleod finds some familiar faces in the locker room from his Cloud County days. With Roy and Rienguette aiding the transition, Macleod may be primed for success in the Crimson and Gray.
