Will the Hoos Return to Omaha? Virginia Baseball 2022 Season Preview
The 2022 Virginia baseball season begins on Friday. The Cavaliers head to Boiling Springs, North Carolina to play three games in the Jerry Bryson Classic, beginning with a matchup against Bellarmine on Friday at 1pm.
As the Hoos begin their campaign for a second-straight trip to Omaha, here's a breakdown of the 2022 Virginia baseball roster and schedule.
Roster
Pitching
Virginia lost a great deal of its pitching staff from the College World Series team a season ago. Starters Andrew Abbott, Griff McGarry, and Mike Vasil were all drafted in the 2021 MLB Draft. UVA also lost relievers Zach Messinger and Kyle Whitten as well as the eccentric fan-favorite closer Stephen Schoch.
Although somewhat lacking in experience, head coach Brian O'Connor believes the Cavaliers have more than enough talent to replace the pitching losses. O'Connor has named senior Brandon Neeck as the opening-day starter for Friday's game against Bellarmine. In 2021, Neeck made relief appearances in 22 games and recorded an ERA of 1.93, the second-lowest of any Virginia bullpen pitcher. In nearly six scoreless innings of relief work against ODU in the Columbia regional, Neeck struck out 16 batters, setting a UVA postseason record as well as the school record for strikeouts by a reliever. Now, the lefty will step into the starting role on opening day.
READ MORE: Baseball American Ranks Virginia No. 5 in Preseason Poll
O'Connor has also named junior Nate Savino and Brian Gursky, a grad transfer from USC, as Virginia's starters against Gardner-Webb and NJIT, respectively, this weekend. Savino struck out 34 batters in 54.2 innings pitched last season. 10 of his 16 appearances were starts, but he recorded a 2.03 ERA as a reliever.
Gursky joins the Virginia pitching staff after spending the last four seasons at Southern California. In his senior season, Gursky struck out 26 batters in just over 30 innings pitched.
For the first time in O'Connor's tenure at Virginia, all three of UVA's opening-weekend starters are left-handers. O'Connor also says that sophomore Jake Berry, junior Matt Wyatt, and Will Geerdes, a grad transfer from Columbia, could see time as starters this season.
The battle for the closer position will apparently come down to Matt Wyatt, Will Geerdes, North Colorado transfer Dylan Bowers, and Virginia quarterback Jay Woolfolk, who will split his time between the UVA baseball and football teams this spring.
Devin Ortiz is also likely to be leaned on to contribute some innings. The Most Outstanding Player of the Columbia Regional pitched six scoreless innings in the regional final against ODU, allowing just one hit, and then delivered the walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning.
Fielding
From the field positions, Virginia loses third baseman Zack Gelof, shortstop Nic Kent, catcher Logan Michaels, and outfielder Marc Lebreux, among others. But, the Cavaliers do return a number of starters at other positions who have experienced a deep postseason run and have learned what it takes to get to Omaha.
Kyle Teel and Jake Gelof are back after stellar first-year campaigns. After making 19 starts in right field, 15 at catcher, and 19 at DH, Teel will make the full-time move to the catcher position to replace the departed Logan Michaels. Gelof will move from first base over to third base to replace his older brother. Virginia is going with a true freshman to fill in for Nic Kent, as Griffin O'Ferrall has been dubbed the starting shortstop. Junior Max Cotier will return to his position at second base and Brian O'Connor says that first base will come down to Devin Ortiz, Alex Tappen, or freshman Ethan Anderson.
READ MORE: Kyle Teel Named to Golden Spikes Award Watch List
Junior Chris Newell returns in center field and Alex Tappen likely occupy one of the other two outfield positions, as he had 19 starts in right field and 11 starts in left field in 2021. It is possible that Virginia could start a true freshman in the outfield early in the season.
Schedule
Virginia's 2022 college baseball season includes a total of 55 games, including 35 home games, 18 away games, and two games at neutral locations.
Here's the full 2022 UVA baseball schedule:
| Date(s) | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|
February 18 | Bellarmine | Boiling Springs, NC |
February 19 | Gardner-Webb | Boiling Springs, NC |
February 20 | NJIT | Boiling Springs, NC |
February 22 | VMI | Charlottesville, VA |
February 25-27 | Cornell | Charlottesville, VA |
March 1 | William & Mary | Charlottesville, VA |
March 4-6 | Penn State | Charlottesville, VA |
March 8 | George Washington | Charlottesville, VA |
March 11-13 | Duke | Durham, NC |
March 15-16 | Rider | Charlottesville, VA |
March 18-20 | Boston College | Charlottesville, VA |
March 22 | Towson | Charlottesville, VA |
March 25-27 | Wake Forest | Charlottesville, VA |
March 29 | Richmond | Charlottesville, VA |
March 30 | Longwood | Charlottesville, VA |
April 1-3 | Georgia Tech | Charlottesville, VA |
April 6 | Liberty | Charlottesville, VA |
April 8-10 | Miami | Miami, FL |
April 12 | Old Dominion | Norfolk, VA |
April 15-17 | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh, PA |
April 19 | VCU | Richmond, VA |
April 20 | Georgetown | Charlottesville, VA |
April 22-24 | North Carolina | Charlottesville, VA |
April 26 | Old Dominion | Charlottesville, VA |
April 27 | George Mason | Charlottesville, VA |
April 29-May 1 | Virginia Tech | Charlottesville, VA |
May 3 | VCU | Charlottesville, VA |
May 13-15 | Clemson | Charlottesville, VA |
May 17 | Mount St. Mary's | Charlottesville, VA |
May 19-21 | Louisville | Louisville, KY |
The Cavaliers will begin their 2022 campaign with the Jerry Bryson Classic from February 18th through February 20th. UVA will play Bellarmine, Gardner-Webb, and NJIT on opening weekend in Boiling Springs, North Carolina.
UVA’s non-conference schedule includes home series against Cornell and Penn State as well as midweek home contests against VMI, William & Mary, George Washington, Rider, Towson, Richmond, Longwood, Liberty, Georgetown, Old Dominion, George Mason, VCU, and Mount St. Mary’s. Virginia also has non-conference road matchups at Old Dominion and VCU.
Virginia’s ACC slate includes 30 games against conference opponents, including five away series and five home series.
UVA plays road series at Duke, Wake Forest, Miami, Pittsburgh, and Louisville. The Cavaliers host Boston College, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Virginia Tech, and Clemson.
Virginia is scheduled to play nine opponents that made the NCAA Tournament in 2021, including Old Dominion, who Virginia defeated in the Super Regional to advance to the College World Series.
The top 12 teams in the ACC will compete in the ACC Baseball Championship from May 24th-May 29th at Truist Field in Charlotte, North Carolina.
UVA is coming off of the program's fifth College World Series appearance last June. The Cavaliers are ranked No. 5 in the Baseball American preseason poll, No. 24 in the Collegiate Baseball preseason poll, but are unranked in the D1 Baseball preseason poll.
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