Bat 'Cats continue to load up in transfer portal with more big splashes

Kentucky baseball head coach Nick Mingione and his staff have already had quite the eventful offseason, attacking the transfer portal at any opportunity they can. While the work already done can be considered solid, the two most recent portal commitments have the chance to become real centerpieces for the Bat ‘Cats come next season.

High impact players join the fray

Earlier this week, Kentucky picked up a commitment from Patrick Herrera, a stud freshman from Northwestern. Earning Second Team All-Big Ten in his first year of collegiate ball, the second basemen posted a .336/.457/.478 slash line in one of the tougher conferences in the country.

I want to thank all of my friends, teammates, and coaches at Northwestern for making my freshman year there special. With that said, I am extremely excited to announce that I will be continuing my baseball and academic career at the University of Kentucky! @UKBaseball pic.twitter.com/CKLOPf7kkQ

— Patrick Herrera (@PatrickcHerrera) July 7, 2022

Though the power numbers aren’t necessarily there yet for Herrera, his low strikeout rate combined with a near .500 on base percentage makes him an exciting player to add. It works perfectly as he would likely slide in at second, looking to match the type of season Daniel Harris had at the plate this past season for the ‘Cats.

E3 | @PatrickcHerrera with an RBI double!

NU 5
MKE 0#GoCats | @NU_Sports pic.twitter.com/uKdhtJH1L3

— Northwestern Baseball (@NUCatsBaseball) April 26, 2022

Speaking of Harris, the ‘Cats went back to his stomping grounds to pick up another high impact bat. D1Baseball is reporting that Kendal Ewell, an outfielder from Eastern Kentucky, is taking his talents up I-75 and will join UK next season. That is, if he even gets there.

The Golden Spikes Award semifinalist is eligible for the 2022 draft after a stellar sophomore season with EKU. Should he forego his draft eligibility and return to college, Kentucky just picked up a consistent power bat in the outfield that they have been desperately missing.

𝗞𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗔𝗟 𝗘𝗪𝗘𝗟𝗟 @ewellkendal | @FrederickKeys

▪️1.152 OPS | 8 XBH | 6 SB
▪️98.5 mph EV avg. on LD/FB
▪️21.1° LA avg. on hard hits
▪️.508 xBA vs. FB
▪️9% Chase%@mlbdraftleague #RaiseYourStock pic.twitter.com/nyv41WhF2b

— MLB Draft League Data (@draftleaguedata) June 17, 2022

Ewell slashed .361/.482/.607 in his sophomore campaign this past season for the Colonels. Good for a 1.089 OPS, the Illinois native launched 14 home runs on the year as well.

We’ve already seen a bit of Ewell at Kentucky Proud Park, who went 1-3 while scoring two runs in EKU’s upset win over the ‘Cats this past year.