Meet Ryan Hagenow: Kentucky's Dugout Captain

Senior right-hander Ryan Hagenow isn’t just Kentucky’s dugout captain, he’s also Nick Mingione’s right hand man.

“If we need anything, if any of our coaches need anything, I just go to him,” Mingione said at Wednesday’s press opportunity. “He literally runs that dugout. Not only is he performing on the field, think about the impact he’s making in the dugout.”

When Hagenow committed to the University of Kentucky in 2020, he was the second-highest ranked player to ever arrive at UK. He was expected to become Mingione’s starter of the future, but that just never happened. However, Hagenow forged his own path through college baseball.

After making seven starts in 2021, he would make just three starts over the next three seasons. The right-hander has pitched 97 1/3 career innings in four seasons at Kentucky (55 appearances), posting a 3.88 ERA with a 7-3 record.

Hagenow was named a Third-Team Midseason All-American by Perfect Game in 2023 after not allowing a single run in his first 16 1/3 innings of the season. He however struggled down the final stretch, posting an 11 ERA over his final 9 innings pitched.

He then dealt with an injury at the beginning of the 2024 season, limiting him to just two appearances through Kentucky’s first 30 games of the season.

“Ryan has had a couple of injuries that have kinda set him back some and to his credit, what has he done every time?” Mingione said. “He just keeps coming back, and back, and back.”

Since returning from injury on April 9 against Samford, Hagenow has emerged as Kentucky’s most reliable bullpen arm. He’s allowed just four earned runs in 13 1/3 innings, good for a 2.75 ERA. He pitched the final two innings in Kentucky’s 6-1 Regional victory over Illinois, holding the Fighting Illini to just one hit with three strikeouts to cement the win.

“You guys know the story from a year ago,” Mingione said. “We were at Southern Illinois and we were not happy with the way the team was competing. I basically gave [Hagenow] the keys to the Lexus. I basically told him, ‘this is yours. You’re driving this dugout. It is yours.”

Since then, the Wildcat dugout, which has made headlines with its goofy antics, has been run by the Knoxville, TN native. Although many, such as Florida’s Jac Caglianone and Tennessee’s Tony Vitello, have complained about the dugout, it’s working.

If you were to glance over at the Kentucky home dugout, you could see many things. You could see massive bubbles blown, cowboy hats, pink hats, yellow hats, Spiderman and Wildcat plushies, spraying water, and just about any synchronized celebration you could possibly think of.

Keeping those dugout vibes high became a necessity after the Cats were punked by Kennesaw State back in March, where the vibes were as low as they have been all season.

“We didn’t have the dugout as involved, we didn’t really have our identity as a team yet,” Kentucky shortstop Grant Smith said on Wednesday.

“It’s more than just the dugout captain,” Hagenow said on Wednesday. “I think it’s somebody that can kinda keep the vibes good in the dugout. Being that person that others can rely on means a lot to me.”

Hagenow pitched two innings in Kentucky’s win over Vanderbilt on May 17, where he saw years of work culminate with a co-SEC Regular Season Championship, the second in program history. “It’s unbelievable,” the right-hander said. “It’s something you work all fall for. Every year that’s the goal and we’ve never been able to do it. Hopefully it’s just one little milestone along the way to something bigger.”

Kentucky opens the Lexington Super Regional against Oregon State Saturday night at 6:00 p.m. EST.