There may still be plenty of snow on the ground and forecast still has plenty of freezing temps still to come, but that’s not going to slow the approaching college baseball season.
The Cardinals have started season preparation and will soon meet the public as a team.
Leadoff Dinner
The annual leadoff dinner is a week away. Friday, Jan. 24 at the Downtown Marriott.
Louisville greats Henry Davis (Pittsburgh Pirates) and Tyler Fitzgerald (San Francisco Giants) will be the featured guests at the event, which will also feature auction items with the proceeds benefiting UofL baseball.
Keeping with tradition, the team will be introduced at the event, a moment that head coach Dan McDonnell calls “the realization moment” for the players.
“Whether we got these guys in the transfer portal, whether they’re super talented freshmen, even if they’re a local kid – Jake Gregor and guys like that – they’ve never experienced this. Walk up on that stage, it’s 800 people or maybe more, and then you lookout in this ballroom and it’s like, ‘wow, this is for real.’
“What’s cool is it’s literally three weeks from opening day and we scrimmage those three weekends. And so it’s here. It’s like right around the corner and I call it that ah-ha, realization moment, like ‘this is big time man, I gotta make sure I’m ready to go.”
Perfect Game Honor
A few Cardinals have received preseason honors from Perfect Game.
Patrick Forbes is No. 19 on Perfect Game’s list of top juniors for the 2025 season, one of six ACC players in the top 20.
The publication also listed three Cardinals among the nation’s top sophomores, with Zion Rose at No. 20, Parker Detmers at No. 43 and Lucas Moore at No. 86.
LISTEN: Zion Rose visits with Cardinal Authority
Player Camp
Louisville’s annual winter camps are this weekend. The camps provide an opportunity to learn from UofL head coach Dan McDonnell and his staff, plus members of the team.
“We like to call this a spring training camp,” McDonnell said. “Great opportunity to get that rust off. For me, all of our players are working and all of our coaches are here, so I always say you learn a lot when you teach. It’s good to have our Louisville Cardinals out there teaching the game of baseball. It’s a win-win on many fronts.”
Dates below. For more information, visit this LINK.
Saturday, January 18 (Grades 1-12)
9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Sunday, January 19 (Grades 1-12)
9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
** These camps are open to any and all entrants, limited only by number, age, grade and gender
Five Captains for the Cardinals
Tucker Biven, Eddie King Jr., Matt Klein and Zion Rose along with newcomer Kamau Neighbors were selected as captains for 2025.
From the UofL release:
King Jr. is the longest-tenured player on the roster in 2025, heading into his fourth season in a Louisville uniform. The senior outfielder hit .322 last spring, leading the Cardinals with 14 home runs and 43 driven in.
A local Trinity High School product, Klein will put on the uniform for his hometown school for the third season in 2025. He posted a .297 average with 15 extra-base hits and 24 RBIs while splitting time behind the plate.
A Freshman All-American in 2024, Rose returns for his second season in The Ville. The Chicago native led the Cardinals with a .380 average, notching 19 extra-base hits, driving in 32 and finishing with more walks (19) than strikeouts (18) in his freshman campaign. Like Biven, Rose played with the USA Collegiate National Team in the summer.
Neighbors is set to play his first season with the Cardinals after transferring to Louisville from Cal State Northridge. For the Matadors in 2024, the switch-hitter finished with a .305 average, 12 doubles, 29 RBIs and 48 runs scored.
Season Opener
The Cardinals will once again open the season on the road. Louisville will participate in the Shriners Children’s College Showdown Feb. 14-16 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. UofL will face Texas, Oklahoma State and Arizona over the season-opening weekend.
Louisville’s home opener is Wednesday, Feb. 19 vs Xavier at Jim Patterson Stadium.
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