Brief History of the Kentucky and Louisville Baseball Rivalry

Kentucky and No. 14 Louisville will meet on the baseball diamond for the 125th time on Tuesday. The ‘Cats lead the all-time series 73-50-1 and won the first ever game played between the two programs on April 13, 1925 (8-2).

With Louisville being ranked No. 14 in the latest D1Baseball Top 25 Rankings, Tuesday’s game will mark the 28th since 2003 with the Cardinals inside the Top 25. Kentucky is 9-18 in those games.

Although Louisville has won 13 of the last 17 meetings, Kentucky has won two of the last three games that were played at Jim Patterson Stadium in Louisville. This includes last season’s win, in which the then No. 3 ranked ‘Cats exploded for 17 runs on 15 hits.

Future First Round MLB Draft pick Ryan Waldschmidt had the best game of his collegiate career in the win, as he went 3-5 at the plate with a double, two home runs and six RBI. Ryan Nicholson also hit a long ball for the fourth consecutive game, setting the program record for most consecutive games with a home run. Following its victory over the ‘Cards, Kentucky broke its three-game losing streak in the series en route to a 2024 Men’s College World Series appearance.

“I was only there for the one game but it was a great experience in the rivalry,” said former Kentucky right-handed pitcher Cameron O’Brien. “The way the fans show up and show out for both schools is something you don’t see everyday. It’s a hard fought battle every time the two match up it is was awesome to be on top at the end. Just seeing the red every where was super cool, but nothing better to see all the blue that was filling in the stadium. Definitely a game I’ll never forget just knowing how much it means to the fans, the university, and the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”

O’Brien, who made a program record 36 appearances out of the bullpen last season, allowed just one hit in 1 2/3 innings pitched against the Cardinals.

NCAA Tournament History

Unfortunately, the ‘Cats are 0-2 in postseason series against Louisville. Back in 2014, 35-23 Kentucky was placed in the Louisville Regional of the NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 seed. The ‘Cats opened the Regional with a 10-6 loss to No. 3 Kansas before bouncing back and defeating both No. 4 Kent State and No. 3 Kansas in a rematch. However, No. 1 Louisville knocked the ‘Cats out of the Regional with a 4-1 defeat.

The Cardinals made it to the 2014 Men’s College World Series, but were eliminated in their opening game by Vanderbilt.

Kentucky and Louisville would match up once again in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, but this time in the Louisville Super Regional. The ‘Cats won the Lexington Regional by taking down NC State in back-to-back games, moving one step closer to the MCWS. Kentucky however lost to Louisville in two games in the Louisville Regional, propelling the ‘Cards back to Omaha.

“It’s almost indescribable the emotion & excitement leading up to the game and during the game,” said former Kentucky right-handed pitcher Brett Marshall (2017-2019). “Especially as in state kids. Usually the first games you circle on the schedule every year. Crowds are always buzzing. Always a little extra juice in your step that day. Blue vs Red. Big on big. It’s awesome exposure for both programs & for the entire state.”

This time, Louisville opened play with a win but lost back-to-back games to Florida and TCU and was eliminated.

Since Nick Mingione took over as head coach at Kentucky, he is just 4-9 in 13 games against Louisville. He’ll be looking for win number five Tuesday night, as first pitch between the ‘Cats and ‘Cards is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EST at Jim Patterson Stadium.