Middle Tennessee Head Baseball Coach Jim McGuire has announced that former DeKalb County High School pitching standout Cody Puckett has signed a letter of intent to continue his career with the Blue Raiders.

Puckett has played two seasons for Columbia State Community College since his graduation from DCHS. He is expected to fill an immediate need for the program as a left-handed pitcher. Blue Raider southpaws Johnathan Frebis and Nathan Foriest exhausted their eligibility following the 2015 campaign.

Puckett (6-0, 190), who starred as a pitcher/outfielder at DCHS, posted a 9-4 record and registered more than 125 strikeouts in two seasons at Columbia State. Puckett was a member of the weekend rotation during both of his seasons at Columbia State, and helped lead the team to the JUCO World Series in 2014, when he posted a 5-0 record.

Puckett was the District 8-AA Pitcher of the Year as a junior at DeKalb County, where he led the Tigers to two Class AA state tournament appearances.

"With the left-handed pitchers we are losing we felt we needed to add another lefty to the class," McGuire said. "Cody can start or relieve for us. He will definitely help us from the left side. He has a strong body, strong arm and could be a draft pick before his career is complete at Middle Tennessee."

Puckett and four additional transfers are expected to make an immediate impact in the MTSU program following the loss of nine seniors who exhausted their eligibility following a 32-win season in 2015.