Four Virginia Tech Position Players Announce Return For 2027 Season

Six total players are now confirmed returnees for the 2027 campaign.

Virginia Tech Athletics

Virginia Tech baseball announced the return of four players to the program for the 2027 season between Wednesday and Thursday. Senior infielder Ethan Gibson, junior right fielder/first baseman Sam Grube, junior utility player Hudson Lutterman and junior left fielder Nick Locurto are set to be back with the program in 2027.

𝙉𝙞𝙘𝙠'𝙨 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙛𝙤𝙧 '𝟐𝟕 🔨

≫ @NickLocurto#Hokies 🦃⚾️ pic.twitter.com/7CWAQG8eTG

— Virginia Tech Baseball (@HokiesBaseball) June 11, 2026

Gibson paced Virginia Tech in batting average last season, hitting at a team-high .329 clip. He totaled 53 hits, 14 doubles and eight home runs on the season, also logging a .565 slugging percentage and a .401 on-base percentage. Against William & Mary Feb. 14 (Game 2 of the series), Gibson went 3-for-5 with two runs, proving instrumental in the Hokies' 8-7 victory over the Tribe. Gibson finished with a hit in 11 of Virginia Tech's final 12 games.

Grube occupied the leadoff hitter spot for 17 of iIrginia Tech's final 18 games, and he also settled into the right fielder role to close the season. Thirty-five of Grube's 56 starts came at the position, though he also logged 17 starts at first base. Grube hit at a .296 clip in his first season with the Hokies, logging 66 hits in 223 at-bats and finishing with 15 doubles and eight home runs. Grube finished with seven games where he totaled three of more hits — perhaps the strongest outing was against Rutgers Feb. 21, where he went 4-for-5, coming across the plate four times, logging two home runs and finishing with 11 total bases in a 9-8 walkoff victory. Grube also went 3-for-4 against UNC Greensboro on May 10 with 10 total bases in a 11-9 victory.

Lutterman finished fourth in batting average of the Hokies' mainstay hitters, slashing at a .299/.543/.369 clip. Against Mississippi State on Feb. 28, Lutterman went 2-for-3 against the Bulldogs, finishing with seven total bases. Against Notre Dame May 20, the then-sophomore went 3-for-5 with two runs and four RBI, persevering through an ankle injury that hampered his mobility for the final month of the season. Lutterman finished the 2026 season with 16 multi-hit outings.

Locurto started almost entirely at left field, logging 40 starts at the position (and eight as designated hitter). Locurto finished with a .278 clip, logging 52 hits, 11 doubles, 31 RBI and six home runs. His 37 strikeouts were tied for the second lowest of the team's mainstay hitters, knotted with Lutterman and only behind third baseman Owen Petrich (30 SOs). Locurto mashed two home runs against Radford March 31, going 3-for-4 at the dish and finishing with 10 total bases in a 13-5 win.

At the time of writing, the only position player set to enter the transfer portal is catcher Anderson French. French played sparingly last season at the catcher position with starter Henry Cooke firmly entrenched at the spot. As of now, the only members of the Hokies' mainstay lineup with eligibility remaining that are not confirmed to return are shortstop Pete Daniel and second baseman Ethan Ball.