Simon Gregersen did not get off to the start he might’ve hoped for in a Kentucky uniform, but he has been a major part of the bullpen turnaround in recent weeks.
When the 2024 season came to a close, it was unknown what the pitching staff would look like as so many players were leaving, but when Gregersen joined the Bat Cats out of the transfer portal, it seemed like the closer question was answered.
Most predictions backed that claim as Gregersen was on the 2025 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch list, which is an award given to the best reliever in college baseball.
Gregersen was an electric arm at Indiana State and actually pitched against the Wildcats in the 2024 Lexington Regional, where he tossed 2 2/3 innings and did not allow a hit.
The pitching staff cruised through non-conference play, but once SEC began, the staff hit a wall. Gregersen was a part of that struggle as he gave up five earned runs in just three appearances. A midweek appearance also got away from the right-hander as he allowed three runs in a 9-3 loss to Xavier.
This resulted in a losing streak for the Bat Cats, many of which came down to late-game pitching woes from the bullpen.
Entering the Ole Miss series, Gregersen had given up 11 earned runs across 10 1/3 innings of work.
As the right-hander took the mound in game two against the Rebels, he abandoned his traditional wind-up that he had used all of the 2025 season and went fully from the stretch even with no runners on-base.
The adjustment seemed to pay off for Gregersen as he tossed 2 2/3 scoreless innings in a big bounce back outing.
Kentucky and Gregersen faced an even bigger challenge in the next series as it welcomed No. 2 Texas into Lexington for three games.
The Bat Cats dropped the first game of the series and found themselves down 4-3 when Gregersen took the hill with one on and one out in the ninth.
The righty struck out the first batter he faced, and Devin Burkes threw out a runner stealing to end the frame.
Ethan Hindle sent Gregersen back to the mound in the 10th after he clobbered a game-tying home run to extend the game.
This began a marathon as Gregersen went on to pitch four more scoreless innings in a game the Bat Cats ultimately won 5-4 in 15 innings.
“How about Simon Gregersen, golly man,” Kentucky Head Coach Nick Mingione said. “That was absolutely phenomenal.”
Overall, the right-hander turned in his best outing of the season as he finished with 4 2/3 scoreless innings of relief in which he struck out five along with only allowing one walk and one hit.
While the early struggles might have caused some to be less confident in Gregersen, the other half of the pitcher-catcher battery never wavered.
“He’s been that guy,” Burkes said. “He just let a couple pitches get away from him in the outings previous, he’s been that guy, and I have trust and faith in him to continue to be that guy.”
What may be even more important is that Gregersen’s confidence in himself also never went anywhere.
“He’s a guy that believes in himself,” Mingione said. “When you go around our team, we have a lot of guys that have never done it in a Kentucky uniform. He’s just settled in; he’s made the adjustments and man our team loves playing behind him. It’s been awesome, and I was super happy for him, he deserved that opportunity.”
With it being a critical time in the season for Kentucky, Gregersen has morphed into the late relief arm he was advertised to be when he arrived in Lexington.
The going does not get any easier for Kentucky pitching as its next task will be to hit the road for a three-game set against No. 4 Tennessee. Game one is set for Friday, April 18, with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m. ET.
