Shortly after the conclusion of LSU’s Baton Rouge Regional championship win over Oregon State, Georgia officially announced the hiring of Tigers’ pitching coach Wes Johnson.

Johnson, who joined LSU staff last summer after leaving the Minnesota Twins as the team’s pitching coach late last June, has been instrumental in the accelerated development of LSU staff ace Paul Skenes, the SEC Pitcher of the Year and the Collegiate Baseball newspaper Player of the Year.

“There's multiple pitchers he helped propel them forward in a big way,” LSU catcher Hayden Travinski said of Johnson. “He's a great baseball mind. Great human. He's going to do great things at that school. And I couldn't be happier for a person.”

Johnson replaces Scott Stricklin, who Georgia fired in May after 10 seasons. The Bulldogs finished Georgia went 29-27 this past season and 11-19 in the SEC in 11th place.

“I love him like a brother,” LSU head coach Jay Johnson said of Wes Johnson (no relation). “I can't imagine only spending 11 months with somebody and connecting the way that we have. I just love working with him. And he's made a big impact on our guys, and it's been great.”

Johnson, a native of Sherwood, Ark., has also coached in the SEC at Mississippi State and Arkansas.

“We are extremely excited to welcome Wes Johnson and his family to Athens and the University of Georgia,” Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks said. “Wes has a proven track record of developing student-athletes while helping teams achieve impressive results.

"We aim to compete for postseason success and championships, and Wes has done that throughout his coaching career at every level, from high school to college and up to the Major Leagues. We are confident he will make Georgia baseball one of the premier programs in the country.”

Johnson will stay with LSU until the Tigers conclude their season. As the No. 5 overall national seed in the NCAA tournament, LSU will host fellow SEC member in a Super Regional this weekend.