Kentucky's pitching staff off to a dominant start in 2025

The Kentucky pitching staff is off to dominant start over its first five games of the 2025 season.

Sure, the competition hasn’t been great. Lipscomb took the second game of the Opening Day doubleheader, but was swept by West Virginia over the weekend and Belmont fell to 0-7 following the Kentucky sweep. But no matter what the competition is like, it is very impressive what the staff has done through five games. Pitching dominates early in the season and that is truly the case with Dan Roszel’s staff.

Senior right-hander Nic McCay was nearly untouchable in his first two starts at Kentucky. The South Dakota State transfer is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 11 innings pitched. He’s allowed just four hits and no earned runs while striking out 11 batters. McCay is just one of four pitchers in the SEC with a 0.00 ERA with at least 10 innings pitched.

Sophomore left-hander Ben Cleaver was a little shaky in his season debut, as the Bisons dinged him for three earned runs in just 3 2/3 innings. However, the “Slim Reaper” bounced back in a major way against Belmont and delivered one of the best pitching performances in all of College Baseball this season.

Cleaver held Belmont to just one hit over six innings, retiring 18 of 19 batters. He also struck out 11 Bruins, including his final six batters in a row. His 16 total strikeouts this season are tied for fifth most in the SEC.

The Wildcat bullpen has also been lockdown, led by senior light-hander Jackson Nove and senior right-hander Scott Rouse. In 16 2/3 innings of relief this season, the ‘Cats have allowed just one earned run and eight hits. In just five innings pitched, Nove has allowed just two hits while striking out 11 batters. He is the lone pitcher in the entire SEC with more than 10 strikeouts in less than six innings pitched.

As a team, the pitching staff boasts a 1.58 team ERA with a 11.9 K/9. Four of Kentucky’s seven earned runs allowed this season were given up by junior left-hander Ethan Walker, who started Sunday’s game against Belmont. He however was not originally scheduled to be in the rotation, as projected starter right-hander Ryan Verdugo (transfer from CSU Bakersfield) was plucked in the 2024 MLB Draft and turned pro. That will get itself worked out as the season goes along.

The competition will begin to ramp up over the coming weeks, but the strong start to the season for Kentucky is extremely encouraging as the lineup slowly begins to get more consistent.

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