LOUISVILLE, Ky. – We have just a few days left in the month of January, and that means only one thing: a new season of college baseball is just around the corner.
For the Louisville baseball program, they will be looking to bounce back in a major way, and re-establish themselves as a powerhouse in the sport. After putting together a 32-24 campaign last season, they missed out on the NCAA Tournament for the third time in a four year span. Prior to that, they had missed the Big Dance just once since 2007, while also making five trips to the College World Series.
Head coach Dan McDonnell will be entering his 19th season with the program, sporting an overall record of 751-333-1. The Cardinals also return pitching coach Roger Williams, who has been with McDonnell at 3rd & Central since day one, as well as hitting coach Eric Snider and assistant coach Adam Vrable, both of whom are entering their 11th seasons at Louisville.
The first pitch of the 2025 season is set for Friday, Feb. 14 at 8:00 p.m. EST against Texas down in Arlington, Tex. for the Shriners Children’s College Showdown, with their home opener set for Wednesday, Feb. 19 at 3:00 p.m. EST vs. Xavier.
Louisville is no stranger to losing talent year in and year out due to the amount of high level ball players they produce on a regular basis, and this offseason was no exception.
When it comes to the MLB Draft, the Cardinals wound up losing just two players. Left-handed pitcher Sebastian Gongora was taken in the 11th round by the Baltimore Orioles, while right-handed pitcher Kaleb Corbett was picked up in the 20th and final round by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Louisville also lost multiple players to the transfer portal. Most notably, infielders Brandon Anderson and Gavin Kilen, outfielders Korbyn Dickerson and Isaac Humphrey, plus right-handed pitcher Carson Liggett were among the over a dozen Cards to continue their collegiate careers elsewhere.
Fortunately, Louisville did a good job at replacing the talent that departed the program. The Cardinals didn’t lose any high school signees to the MLB Draft, and brought in the No. 17 class in the 2024 cycle according to Perfect Game. This includes five top-300 prospects, and three in the top-200.
Additionally, while McDonnell has not typically been one to utilize the transfer portal outside of the JUCO ranks, he appears to have changed his stance on the subject. Nine players wound up joining the Cards via the portal this offseason.
Even with the amount of contributors returning and the talent coming into the program, because of the fact that they have missed the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons, Louisville has not been generating the preseason hype that they have been accustomed to under McDonnell. As of this writing, the Cardinals are unranked in all of the major college baseball polls.
As far as the schedule goes, it’s another hefty one. It includes 32 games against 2024 NCAA Tournament teams, and four of the eight teams from the College World Series.
The non-conference portion is highlighted by the Shriners Children’s College Showdown to begin the season, the annual home-and-home series with Kentucky, the Battle for the Barrel vs. Vanderbilt and a late season matchup with Indiana. In ACC play, the Cardinals host Boston College, Cal, Florida State, North Carolina and Wake Forest; while traveling to Clemson, Georgia Tech, NC State, Notre Dame and Virginia Tech.
Now that we’re caught up, time to get into the actual team.
Louisville might have missed out on the NCAA Tournament last season, but it wasn’t because of their offense. Both their .311 batting average and their .535 slugging percentage ranked 17th in the nation, while their 8.1 runs per game was 39th.
Considering they only bring back five of their 11 qualified hitters (2 PA/G, 75 percent of games played) from last season, the makeup of this team will certainly be a little bit different than it was last year. But while Louisville did have some noteworthy roster turnover, both in terms of numbers overall and quality of player, they are actually in a good spot when it comes to their projected production and depth
Just like last season, the strongest area of the field for the Cardinals is in the outfield. It’s an area of the field bolstered by their two best players by OPS from last year, a pair of key rotational outfielders from 2024, an All-American transfer and one of their top high school prospects.
Zion Rose (.380, 5 HR, 32 RBI, 10 SB) is not only the top player in the outfield, he’s probably the best player on the entire team. Not only did the Freshman All-American’s season batting average lead all Power Five true freshmen, his .396 mark in ACC play was the second-best in the conference (VT’s Ben Watson). He’s got elite contact hitting skills, while also possessing the raw power to hit double-digit homers. Defense lags behind the offense a bit, but he can still hold down left field, and can occasionally take reps behind the dish at catcher.
While Rose has an argument to be the best player on the team, centerfielder Eddie King Jr. (.322, 14 HR, 43 RBI, 8 SB) is certainly the most well-rounded – to the point where he has true five-tool ability. After an Achilles injury robbed his 2022 season and he showed flashes in 2023, he finally had his breakout campaign last year. He can hit for both contact and power at a high degree, is a good base runner and is probably Louisville’s best defender (not to mention he can play all three outfield spots). Getting him back for another season was a massive recruiting win.
With Rose at left and King in center, who takes the spot in right field? That likely belongs to Toledo transfer Garret Pike (.360, 21 HR, 55 RBI, 29 BB, 13 SB). The left-hander not only set the Rockets’ single-season home run record, but was named an ABCA/Rawlings Third Team All-American. He’ll have to make a slight defensive adjustment after playing almost exclusively in center last season, but he has more than shown to capability to play right in the past.
But as we all know, McDonnell loves to tinker with lineups, and rarely sticks with the same one on a game-to-game basis. Fortunately, not only does Louisville has a strong starting group of outfielders, they have a handful of quality options behind them as well.
The top outfield option behind the projected starters is Lucas Moore (.318, 14 RBI, 17 SB), whose great freshman season was just slightly overshadowed by Rose’s. Despite starting just 22 games and having only 88 at-bats, his stolen base mark was still second on the team, and he finished with the Cards’ fourth-best batting average among qualified hitters. He’s one of the fastest player on the team, and is an underrated fielder. Don’t be surprised to see him get a fair amount of starts in the field this season.
Two other options to potentially look for in the outfield are Michael Lippe (.345, 1 HR 8 RBI, ) and Cole Crafton. Lippe can play all three outfield spots, did well hitting for contact early in the season, and has the frame/tool set to suggest he’s due for a surge in power hitting. As for Crafton, he’s Louisville’s third-highest ranked position prospect in their 2024 high school class, coming in at No. 269 in the country. He played mainly infield in high school, but his quickest path the playing time is likely in the outfield.
Speaking of the infield, it’s nearly a complete overhaul in this area of the field. Of the six qualified hitters who mainly played in the infield last year, only one is coming back for the 2025 season.
That one player is who will likely be Louisville’s leadoff man this year – Alex Alicea (.291, 1 HR, 25 RBI, 4 SB), who’s coming off of, you guessed it, a standout freshman 2024 season. The switch hitter is a plus-contact hitter, and flashed some serious speed this past fall. He played mostly at second base last year, but could also slide over to shortstop. Either way, he can play either spot in the middle of the infield.
So who would take Alicea’s old spot in the infield at second base should he move to short? That will likely be Cal State Northridge transfer Kamau Neighbors (.305, 3 HR, 29 RBI, 38 BB, 8 SB). If Alicea doesn’t leadoff, it’s almost certain that the left-handed Neighbors will, as he has fantastic plate discipline. Not only did he have 28 more walks than strikeouts, he ranked fourth nationally in the NCAA’s “Toughest to Strike Out” metric. Time will tell how this translates to the ACC, and he doesn’t bring a ton to the table in terms of power, but at the minimum, he gets on base and is a versatile defender.
Moving to the corners is where Louisville will get the bulk of their power hitting in the infield. At the hot corner, this where we’ll likely see Tennessee Tech transfer Tanner Shiver (.296, 9 HR, 35 RBI, 24 BB, 10 SB) – although he can also play shortstop (sense a theme, here?). Shiver actually began his collegiate career with Tennessee Tech’s football team as a wide receiver, then made steady progress once he transitioned to baseball.
Over at first base, the frontrunner to start there is JUCO transfer Nate Earley (.335, 16 HR, 58 RBI, 30 BB). The left-hander was a very productive power hitter during his two seasons with Florida SouthWestern State, earning First-Team All-State honors in the FCSAA last season, and flashing that power over the last two years in summer ball. The last left-handed power-hitting JUCO first basemen panned out well for Louisville, and Earley could fill those shoes nicely.
The infield depth behind the starters might not be what it is for the outfield, but there are a handful of players that are sure to get included in the mix on a regular basis.
While Shiver will get the lion’s share at starts at third base, don’t be shocked to see JUCO transfer Jake Munroe (.415, 23 HR, 81 RBI, 40 BB) get his share of time at the hot corner too. The John A. Logan product had a busy and productive summer, playing for a USA JUCO All-Star Team in the Netherlands and posting a 1.025 OPS in the Northwoods League.
Marist transfer Bayram Hot (.278, 7 HR, 37 RBI, 29 BB) can play at either third base or shortstop, and sometimes second base when he has to. However, he’ll need to have a bounce-back season after seeing all three of his slash line numbers go down following a breakout freshman campaign where he hit .382/.446/.518.
Whoever winds up at second base between Alicea or Neighbors, JUCO transfer Ethan Edinger (.376, 14 HR, 50 RBI, 40 BB, 26 SB) will likely be their main competition for regular playing time. Between hitting for contact, power, plate discipline and base running, he’s one of the more well-rounded offensive infielders on the roster.
Behind Earley at first base, Tague Davis has the potential to be this season’s true freshman star. He’s Louisville’s second-highest ranked prospect in their 2024 class at 112th overall by Perfect Game, and was named a MaxPreps Second-Team All-American. He not only hit .347 for six homers and 37 RBI as a senior, the southpaw posted a 1.50 ERA with 62 strikeouts in 50 innings.
So now that leaves us with catcher. Fortunately, last season’s primary starter behind the dish in Matt Klein (.297, 3 HR, 24 RBI, 15 BB) is back for another year, and could be poised for a breakout junior year after hitting .375 in summer ball. He might not have the power that previous Louisville catchers have had, and does need to work on his arm some, but he’s a very good contact hitter.
There are a few options behind Klein at catcher, but Collin Mowry stands out the most, He is Louisville’s top high prospect from the 2024 class, ranked 107th nationally in the cycle by Perfect Game, and has a good blend of power hitting and defensive ability. George Baker and Tagger Tyson are also options, but neither looked particularly impressive offensively in summer ball. Though Baker does have the defensive chops to potentially earn some late game substitution playing time.
When it comes to offense, Louisville has a good mix when it comes to hitting for contact and hitting for power. While neither aspect is “elite” per se, they performing well in one category without being super deficient in the other. The biggest question revolves around the chemistry and cohesion of this group, which features more newcomers – especially through the portal – than any recent McDonnell-led team.
But if this group of position players is going to to reach their potential, they will have to improve in two categores: defense and base running.
Last season, the Cardinals posted a fielding percentage of just .968, which ranked 199th out of the 295 teams in D1. That national ranking was the worst of the Dan McDonnell era at Louisville. It doesn’t matter how good you are offensively, if you’re giving up extra outs to the other team, it doesn’t matter.
When it comes to base running, Louisville is still one of the most aggressive teams in all of college baseball, with their 105 stolen bases ranking 20th last season. But anyone who watched the Cardinals play knows that they ran themselves out of multiple innings either due to being over-aggressive, or just not paying attention.
While Louisville was one of the better teams in the ACC and nationally when it came to offensive production, conversely, they were anything but effective from the mound. Their team ERA of 6.50, which was the worst in the McDonnell era by a full run, ranked 200th nationally. Their 7.72 ERA in ACC play was also the worst in the conference.
Much like with the position players, Louisville’s pitching staff will be a lot different in 2025 – which is probably a good thing. Of the 483.0 innings pitched by Louisville players, only 169.0 are back for the 2025 season. As a result, this year’s staff consists of a mix of a few of last year’s top arms, other returners who positioned for a step forward, and a lot of newcomers (both transfer and freshmen).
There are a couple options as to who will be the Friday night starter for the Cardinals, but signs point to it being right-hander Patrick Forbes (3.72 ERA, 29.0 IP, 32 K, 15 BB). He had a little bit of a slow start last season and did have to miss a month’s worth of time due to injury. But when he came back, he was able to have the breakout season many expected him to have. Couple that with posting a 3.29 ERA in the Cape Cod League over the summer, and he seems ready to make the jump from reliever to starter.
If Forbes for some reason is not the Friday starter for the Cardinals, look for Indiana State transfer right-hander Brennyn Cutts (3.69 ERA, 83.0 IP, 75 K, 40 BB) to assume that role. While there were times where he did get roughed up a bit against NCAA Tournament-caliber teams last season, he still took home Missouri Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year honors. Plus he seems to be making a smooth transition from the MVC to the ACC based on how he looked in the Pizza Bowl and fall as a whole.
As for who gets the final spot and the weekend rotation, that’ll likely come down to Parker Detmers vs. Colton Hartman, with the loser of that battle probably getting midweek starting duties.
Detmers (7.23 ERA, 18.2 IP, 17 K, 14 BB) is a former top-150 prospect, but did struggle some his freshman year in mainly a relief role, and followed that up with a 7.48 ERA last summer in the Cape Cod League. That being said, the right-hander has also flashed some high end potential at times – he just needs to work on becoming more consistent with it.
The left-handed Hartman (5.90 ERA, 29.0 IP, 37 K, 18 BB) had a little bit more success last season. Plus, he already has a good amount of starting experience after becoming the midweek starter and then cracking the weekend rotation in the final month of last season. Like with Detmers though he’ll have to become more steady after having ups and downs in 2024, getting shellacked for a 15.26 ERA in summer ball, then bouncing back for a strong fall.
Now lets move on to the bullpen. While Louisville certainly had their struggles late in games when it came to keeping opposing teams off the scoreboard, there is reason to believe that the Cards’ group of relievers can have a much better showing in 2025.
Left-hander Ty Starke and Northwestern transfer right-hander Peter Michael will likely serve as this team’s middle inning relievers. Starke (3.72 ERA, 19.1 IP, 17 K, 11 BB) put together a sneaky good freshman campaign in 2024, and was routinely one of the first pitchers out of the bullpen last year. While Michael (15.68 ERA, 10.1 IP, 8 K, 10 BB) struggled in his final year at Northwestern, he bounced back for a fantastic showing in the Northwoods League last summer, posting a 3.23 ERA over 39.0 innings, as well as a 62/22 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Left-handers Justin West, Jared Lessman and Wyatt Danilowicz could also be some players to watch for as bridge pitchers from the middle innings to the closer.
West (5.40 ERA, 16.2 IP, 23 K, 5 BB) and Lessman (6.00 ERA, 21.0 IP, 15 K, 15 BB) are in the same boat as Michael in terms of progression. Neither had particularly noteworthy 2024 campaigns, but took big steps forward in summer ball. West posted a 3.00 ERA with 25 strikeouts to six walks over 15.0 innings in the Cape Cod League, while Lessman had a 3.38 ERA with 26 strikeouts over 29.1 innings in the NECL – although he did walk 20. As for Danilowicz, he couldn’t pitch at last season due to injury, but seemed to be bouncing back nicely in the fall.
Right-hander Tucker Biven (3.82 ERA, 35.1 IP, 40 K, 10 BB) will likely be this team’s go-to closer. As the team’s middle/long reliever last season, he performed exceptionally well, allowing earned run in just eight of his 24 relief appearances.
But don’t count out JUCO transfer Eli Hoyt (3.52 ERA, 23.0 IP, 26 K, 12 BB) as someone who could step into that role as well. The right-hander has overcome a plethora of injuries over the last few years, including Tommy John in 2023 while at Madison College, but he hasn’t let that slow him down. He also pitched for that JUCO All-Star team in the Netherlands, and shined in summer ball.
Of course, there’s always the potential of a freshman or two earning a significant role on this staff. The two most likely candidates here are right-handers Jake Gregor and Jack Brown, who are ranked as the No. 175 and 241 prospects, respectively, by Perfect Game. There’s also the chance that Tague Davis pitches some, but he seems to be trending towards being a full-time position player.
As previously mentioned, it’s understandable why Louisville isn’t generating a ton of preseason hype, save for their Collegiate National Team players in Biven, Forbes and Rose. Recently, the Cardinals haven’t been the powerhouse that they were during the 2010’s, and they did have a lot more roster turnover than what they normally experience.
That being said, while Louisville isn’t a top-25 caliber squad as of this writing, there’s a chance they sneak into that mix sooner rather than later. They feature a well-balanced offense in terms of both contact vs. power that anchored by a couple stars, and their pitching staff has a chance to collectively get back on track after a plethora of roster moves and offseason progression.
The biggest question mark with this team will be the roster’s cohesion. McDonnell and his staff have never had a team that features as many transfer newcomers as this one does, and it remains to be seen how they will handle it once games start. Not to mention there are still ongoing questions surrounding the pitching coach, and if he’s still a viable option for this program.
But on paper, you can make the argument that Louisville has one of the more talented and high-upside teams in the ACC – and this is a league that has seven teams ranked in D1Baseball’s Preseason Top 25. It just all depends on how this team comes together once the games start.
Position Players:
- Alex Alicea (SS)
- Kamau Neighbors (2B)
- Zion Rose (LF)
- Eddie King Jr. (CF)
- Garret Pike (RF)
- Tanner Shiver (3B)
- Nate Earley (1B)
- Lucas Moore (DH)
- Matt Klein (C)
Pitching Rotation:
- Patrick Forbes
- Brennyn Cutts
- Colton Hartman
- Parker Detmers
(Photo of Zion Rose via University of Louisville Athletics)
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