Former LSU-Shreveport Pilot Cade Gibson Makes MLB Debut

Ruston, Louisiana native Cade Gibson is living the dream. Its a dream that nearly everyone who has ever picked up a baseball has had; he's a Major League Baseball player.

Gibson made that dream a reality on Easter Sunday 2025 as he made his MLB debut with the Miami Marlins. But it wasn't a fast track to a major league mound. It took Cade years of work to go from playing baseball at LSU-Shreveport, to a Major League mound.

Cade Gibson Played Baseball At LSU-Shreveport

In high school, Gibson played for the Ruston Bearcats, where he earned three varsity letters in baseball. He was a 2-time All District selection, All-Area Pitcher of the Year, and was an honorable mention All-State Selection. Those accolades, and his ability, earned him a spot on the LSU-Shreveport Pilots baseball program.

While at LSUS, Gibson found himself playing both outfield and pitcher. As a hitter, he started 16 games for the Pilots, and played the field in 33 total games over two seasons. He hit .341 with seven doubles and 9 RBIs.

As a pitcher at LSUS, Gibson started 11 games, and made one relief appearance. His career record was 6-4, with 42.2 innings pitched, and 37 strikeouts. With the highlight of his LSU-Shreveport career coming in the 2017 Red River Athletic Conference Tournament, where he was named to the All-Tournament Team.

How Did Cade Gibson's MLB Debut Go?

Jumping ahead to his MLB debut with the Miami Marlins, Gibson looked great making a relief pitching appearance.

He entered in the 6th inning with the Marlins down 4-1 to the Philadelphia Phillies. Gibson ended up pitching 2.1 innings, and notching two strikeouts. After Gibson left the game, the Marlins continued to battle the Phillies, and ended up winning the game 7-5 in 10 innings.

Though Gibson didn't get credit for the win in the scorebook, his 2+ innings of scoreless work were vital to the Marlins win.

Who Is Cade Gibson Playing For?

Gibson will be a nice addition to the Miami Marlins pitching staff if he can keep up the same pace he had in his debut. The Marlins are 9-12 on the season after yesterday's extra innings win.

The Marlins are third right now in the NL East standings; 5.5 games back of the New York Mets, and 3.5 games behind the Phillies. The season is still very young, and if the Marlins can be as scrappy as they were against the Phillies on Sunday, they could make up ground in this ultra-competitive division.

What Did Cade Gibson Do At Louisiana Tech?

Back to Gibson's college career...it didn't end after his run at LSU-Shreveport. Gibson took his skills down I-20 across north Louisiana to play for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. He was a part of the Bulldog program from 2019 to 2022, when he was drafted in the MLB Draft.

His first two years in Ruston, Gibson was redshirted and injured. He made his first appearance for the program in the 2021 season. That year he would make 11 starts on the mound, and even made relief appearances, tallying 71.2 innings that season.

The first start of his Louisiana Tech career will forever be a legend. He faced Ole Miss, who was ranked #4 in the nation at the time. Gibson threw 7.1 innings against Ole Miss, giving up just 5 hits and one run. The Bulldogs won the game 13-1 against the #4 ranked Ole Miss.

In his final year with Tech, Gibson went 6-4 with 85 innings pitched. His first start of that year was once again against an SEC powerhouse...this time it was LSU. That night, Gibson threw 5 innings, giving up 3 earned runs while striking out 8. Tech once again won their SEC challenge, beating LSU 11-6.

For his work in 2022, Gibson was named Second-Team All-Conference USA, and made the Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll.

When Was Cade Gibson Drafted?

After his time at Tech, Gibson was selected in the 10th Round of the 2022 MLB Draft by the Miami Marlins. He was pick number 292 overall that year.

Gibson would immediately start his minor league career with stints in A-ball and Rookie-ball that summer. Playing for Jupiter of the Florida State League and throwing 7 innings in the Florida Complex League.

By 2023, Gibson had earned his first trip to High-A ball, playing for the Beloit Sky Carp in Wisconsin. While his stats weren't eye-popping in 2023, the organization saw something in Gibson's stuff that caused them to move him up to AA baseball with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos in 2024. The elevation continued in 2025, as he started the year at AAA Jacksonville, before getting called up this past weekend.

Now, if Gibson can continue to pitch the way he did in his MLB debut, he's going to get some extended time with the Marlins at the big league level.