Kentucky Bat 'Cats 2022 season preview

It’s baseball season again, folks. Unlike those at the MLB level, Kentucky is preparing to kick off its 2022 campaign with a sense of hopeful optimism. Something that’s been desperately missing during the past couple of years. A litany of returning veterans mixed with some talent infused from the transfer portal should give fans a reason to tune in to this year’s squad. They probably won’t be near the top of the SEC once conference play gets going. Though, I wouldn’t expect to see the near-disastrous results that we were forced to witness last season.

Head coach Nick Mingione’s 2022 team should absolutely be improved from a year ago. NCAA tournament good? We’re not sure yet. Either way, let’s take a look at what Kentucky will be working with as they attempt to make it to the dance for the first time since 2017.

Returning veterans in the staff lead the charge

Putting it bluntly, the success of 2022 for Kentucky will significantly rely on the pitching staff and how they react once conference play rolls around. Kentucky returns every win from the SEC last year and should see significant improvement from some of its top pitchers. This has been a staff that has been hindered because of inexperience and immaturity over the past couple of years. Those breakout stars we’ve been waiting for are starting to turn into upperclassmen. Kentucky finally has the depth and experience as a staff to make competing against SEC competition continuously a reasonable goal they should achieve.

It all starts with Cole Stupp for Kentucky this season. The Friday starter from last season, Stupp got the experience needed to know what to expect in the league. Remember, last season was his first chance in conference play after his freshman season was cut short. At face value, his first run as the main starter didn’t go entirely ideal. The Georgia native finished with a pedestrian 4.76 ERA while allowing an almost .300 batting average against him. But that’s cumulatively against some of the best batters in the country, and honestly, it just tells me that he got unlucky and people put the barrel on the ball.

Looking deeper though you can still get giddy over what Stupp can turn into. In 75.2 innings, he finished with 71 strikeouts compared to only 15 walks. Control has never been a real issue, which is so important going into the 2022 season for Stupp.

“I just call him Mr. Consistent,” Mingione said during Media Day. “He’s the same guy but also the same player… just proud of him and the growth he’s made with his delivery, with his velocity, the leader he’s been.”

It’s behind the junior starter where things become a bit murkier. Mason Hazelwood has supplanted himself as one of the weekend guys over the past couple of seasons. We learned recently though that Hazelwood will begin the year coming out of the bullpen before ramping up back to a starting role. Which now leaves an obviously massive hole on the weekend. What’s different about this year’s team is that they have the depth to withstand it without fear of a major drop in production.

Using the next-man-up approach, Zack Lee has a chance to step in as the No. 2 starter to begin the year. The Junior right-hander could be looking at a breakout campaign as recruiting services all over the country still adore him as an MLB prospect. Baseball America currently has him tabbed as the No. 80 overall prospect in this upcoming draft. For that to happen though he’s really going to need to make tangible improvements to his game. Projections and potential are cool, but at some point, results are going to have to show.

After a disastrous freshman season in 2019, Lee returned as a full-time starter and underperformed. The Illinois native finished with a 5.31 ERA while hitting 12 batters in only 57.2 innings. His walk/strikeout rate wasn’t all that impressive either. Lee has the body type and the talent to become an elite pitcher, Kentucky is absolutely going to rely on him as a weekend starter. Now we just have to see the results come to fruition.

Others set to make an impact in the rotation

Well, there is one more returner who should make a serious run at a weekend spot on the mound. Though it’s hard to call him a veteran, Ryan Hagenow returns to Lexington for a second season after an up-and-down initial campaign with the Wildcats. The numbers were just about as advertised for someone coming in as the second-highest rated recruit in Kentucky history. In nine appearances last season, the Knoxville native put up a 3.00 ERA while holding opponents to an under .200 batting average. He did allow 15 walks in only 24 innings, but that’s something that is relatively easy to fix, especially for someone so talented.

That’s where it’s unusual though. The second-best recruit to ever walk into Lexington only saw nine appearances in his first year. A mixture of injury and inconsistency played a part in that. Despite that, Hagenow still may be the best of them all on Kentucky’s staff this year. He still should be considered the gem of the Kentucky pitching staff — whether or not he actually becomes that this season is still up for debate.

Kentucky brought in a few newcomers as well to fight for some starting nods this season. Most notable is Magdiel Cotto, a lefty sophomore who exited South Carolina to become a Wildcat. No matter what he does on the mound, poaching a potential starter from an in-division rival is a win. Now, if he becomes the pitcher Nick Mingione and his staff believe he is, Kentucky just found an absolute steal. Cotto only saw 8.2 innings during his freshman year, and I can’t lie, they seem ugly at first glance. He allowed 10 hits and eight earned runs in that span while also allowing four free bases. The numbers were partly because of him allowing five earned runs during his last appearance as a Gamecock.

In limited exposure here, Cotto looked absolutely great during the fall scrimmages. He pitched a few scoreless innings without giving up a walk. Cotto is considered a borderline top-50 prospect for the 2023 draft. Mingione and his staff have unearthed talent with the former SC pitcher, and he’ll become a huge asset for Kentucky if they can find it.

Finally, don’t sleep on Darren Williams seeing some starts this season. The graduate transfer from EKU started 13 games last season and finished with a 4.10 ERA. While I wouldn’t expect him to be a major player, don’t be surprised if you see him take the mound more than a few times during the week this season.

The transfer portal needs to be a success for Kentucky

Nick Mingione told the media that he and his staff consider the group of transfer players that they brought in this year a “grand slam.” To be honest, they’re all going to have to be that good for Kentucky to become what they think they can be this season.

We saw Will Levis and Wan’Dale Robinson continue the meteoric rise for Kentucky Football. We’re currently seeing the impact that transfers have on Kentucky Basketball. Mingione and his staff are yearning for the same thing to occur at Kentucky Proud Park

Cotto and Williams headline some of the throwers out of the transfer portal for Kentucky. As a whole, the pitchers Kentucky brought in resulted in more depth rather than a breakout stud reliever like we saw with Sean Harney. Tyler Bosma and Tyler Guilfoil join as the other two newcomers on the mound, and both of those two should be seeing time once the season gets going.

The real impact should come at the plate in terms of newcomers. Kentucky used the portal incredibly efficiently compared to what they lost the year before. They snagged the American East player of the year and Third-Team preseason All-American with John Thrasher. The Hartford product slides in seamlessly to Kentucky’s lineup. An incredibly patient hitter, Thrasher is a great defensive center fielder with elite speed on the base path. Any intuition would lead you to believe that he’ll be at the top of runs scored for Kentucky this year.

Kentucky also went out west to grab a pair of outfielders to help fortify their lineup. They secured Hunter Jump from the party capital of the world, Arizona State. A career .316 batting average for the Sun Devils, Jump provides elite on-base production and should be a staple early in the Kentucky lineup.

UK also went out to the Pacific to snag Adam Fogel away from Hawaii: a career .297 hitter who holds a career .370 on-base percentage while slugging .470. Seems decent enough to add to any team. He was Second-Team All-Big West last season before bolting off to Lexington. It’s another bat with a great eye who shouldn’t be striking out all that much, which is exactly what Kentucky was missing last season. However, Fogel may be out to begin the season due to a minor injury.

Players need to improve all around the diamond

While there’s legit warranted optimism about everyone that Kentucky is bringing into the program this year, we’re still going to have to see some major jumps from some returning starters. It all starts with Ryan Ritter, the Third-Team All-American this preseason who is primed for a breakout season. Returning as already one of the best defensive players in the country, Ritter’s performance over the summer and subsequent change in approach give reason to believe that he could become a first-round talent in this upcoming draft.

Ryan Ritter credits a simple change to his approach as to why his offensive game jumped so much over the off-season pic.twitter.com/Eb4H3uuLuT

— Eric Decker (@Edecker17) February 8, 2022

Around the infield, we should see some new faces on the right side. Along with Williams, Kentucky also snagged Daniel Harris IV from Eastern Kentucky. Harris, a .290 hitter from last year, looks to solidify the second base position. Something not that difficult given the production from the past few years at second. 2022 will also see Jake Plastiak as the new first basemen for the Wildcats after TJ Collett left for good at the end of last season. Plastiak has had limited time so far in Lexington, but Mingione made it clear that he has become a vocal leader of this team. Whether or not he catches up to SEC pitching in time for conference play is up for debate, but at least he should provide some value as a leader.

Chase Estep could be a sneaky x-factor for this team. The Corbin native stuck at third last season and produced pretty well defensively. Offensively though, he struggled slightly during his first run of SEC play. Estep finished with a .252 average and a .615 OPS — nothing to fawn over. That may change this season, though. Mingione was singing praises for how Estep has completely changed his body this offseason. He expects Estep to be a major player this year, so we should too.

“The most improved guy for me from a year ago was Chase Estep. When you think about mentally, physically, when you guys see him, what he’s done with his body, he looks incredible. Behaviorally, what he’s done offensively, he is a special, special player. Looking forward to a big year and just proud of the growth he’s made.”

Overall Expectations for 2022

Fans are used to seeing Kentucky not make it to the tournament and expectations aren’t set very high heading into 2022. The top of the SEC is once again loaded with talent and teams among the top-10 of the country. It’s not entirely Kentucky’s fault that they have to deal with such a difficult schedule, but you prepare to face this kind of competition when you come here. This Kentucky team is improved compared to last season’s 12-18 conference record. Being in competition for the 4-6 spot in the East this year should be reasonable.

Will that be enough to make the tournament? It’s too early to tell. Kentucky made significant changes over the offseason to improve their teams. And by all accounts, it seems like they have. The talent is there once again, we just need to see it happen.