One thing that Kentucky baseball proved with its 2024 season is that it properly arrived in the SEC in 2023 and is here to stay.
After a stellar 2023 campaign, the biggest question surrounding the program was whether that run was a flash in the pan or the beginning of bigger things to come.
This season proved that it was indeed a sign of bigger things to come as, for the first time ever, Kentucky baseball was amongst the final eight teams standing in Omaha, Nebraska, for the Men’s College World Series, becoming the final SEC team to make it to Omaha.
How the Wildcats pulled this off and why they can easily remain near the mountain top in the sport is because of the excellent recruiting by head coach Nick Mingione and recruiting coordinator Austin Cousino.
Looking at last year’s team, the biggest contributors came from schools certainly not known for baseball such as Jackson Gray from Western Kentucky, Hunter Gilliam from Longwood, Ryan Waldschmidt from Charleston Southern and even Jase Felker, who came from Rend Lake College.
Mingione and his staff were able to find these players who had all the tools, but maybe just needed a change of scenery to change their careers.
This strategy paid off in a big way as the team exceeded all expectations and not only hosted a regional, but won it before being eliminated by the would-be National Champion LSU.
With limited returnees, the offseason forced the coaching staff to get back to recruiting and, once again, they delivered in a huge way.
This season, Ryan Nicholson came in from Cincinnati, Johnny Hummel from Erskine, Trey Pooser from the College of Charleston, Dominic Niman from Central Connecticut State and Mitchell Daly from Texas, among others.
All of the names above played critical roles in the Wildcats’ success in 2024, along with returnees from that 2023 team like Waldschmidt, who solidified himself as a legitimate draft pick in the upcoming 2024 MLB Draft.
The transfer portal is not the only way Kentucky baseball has recruited talent, though.
To have continued success, teams have to be able to bring players in as freshmen and develop them, even if that work may not pay off until their junior or senior years. Looking for that this season, fans need to look no further than guys like Mason Moore, Émilien Pitre and Devin Burkes, among others.
All three of those players were recruited directly out of high school and were big time players this year for the Bat Cats with Moore and Pitre becoming likely draft picks this summer.
Another key weapon of Kentucky’s recruiting ability is being able to retain players. High school recruiting only pays off if the player is here long enough to make an impact on the team, which has now become harder than ever with players leaving at the drop of hat all across college sports.
Lastly, with the success of the team the past few years, the Wildcats will likely be able to begin drawing bigger names to Lexington who enter the portal because those kinds of players want to end up on successful teams and, in recent seasons, Kentucky is right up there at the top of that list.
With Mingione, Cousino and the rest of staff’s ability to find talent at “lesser” schools, recruit out of high school and the growing status from success drawing bigger names in, the perfect storm is brewing for Lexington to become a college baseball talent hotbed.
Kentucky baseball may have been the last in the conference to make it to Omaha for the Men’s College World Series, but if Mingione and Co. can continue building upon the strong foundation it created, the Bat Cats certainly won’t be a stranger to the event.
