Will Bolt reveals Nebraska pitching rotation for opening weekend

With Nebraska baseball set to open the 2025 season Friday, coach Will Bolt revealed his pitching rotation for the weekend. The Cornhuskers will play four games total through Monday, and Bolt pointed to four names whom they will lean on.

In order of preference, the coach listed Mason McConnaughey, Ty Horn, Will Walsh and Jackson Brockett as the arms that will be used. First up is a game against UC Irvine, and McConnaughey will presumably get the first start.

The junior brings experience after appearing in 17 games with 11 starts during the 2024 season. He finished the year with 91 strikeouts, including a season-high 11 in a Big Ten Tournament win against Ohio State.

Bolt also spoke highly of Walsh, who will focus solely on pitching this season after spending the past two years as a two-way player for the Cornhuskers. The coach explained how that has allowed him to improve his game on the mound as he looks to make even more of an impact there this spring.

“I think it’s helped him,” Bolt said. “Just him staying here this summer, I think he’s transformed his body a little bit. He’s stronger in some different areas that are more suitable for pitchers. I think he did some things this summer that got him moving a little faster on the mound. His misses are always really small, but when he’s moving faster his margin for error is a little bit bigger because his stuff is a little sharper. He doesn’t have to rely on trying to sneak 87 by guys any more.

“So I think it’s benefitted him. More than anything, just him staying home this summer and making that decision to kind of go to work on some of that stuff has allowed him to be in this position to start opening weekend.”

Walsh started 10 games as a pitcher last season to finish with a 5.06 ERA and a total of 43 strikeouts. Presumably he will play an even bigger role this season as Nebraska looks to carry over its momentum after winning the Big Ten Championship last year.

Brockett also brings plenty of experience with 19 career starts in his previous three seasons at Nebraska, while Horn started four games last year as a true freshman. That’s a solid bullpen to start out the season and we’ll see how it works out when the Cornhuskers face UC Irvine on Friday at 2 p.m. CT.