Top Five Moments from Kentucky Baseball's 2023 Season
The 2023 Kentucky Bat ‘Cats were special.
Nick Mingione’s squad entered the season facing a ton of pressure, as many members of Big Blue Nation were unsure whether or not Coach Minge was still the guy. It’s safe to say that they delivered. The Kentucky Baseball program finished the season with 40 wins, their most in a season since 2017 (43). They hosted a Regional for the first time in six years and made just their second run to a Super Regional in program history. The exciting thing is that this is just the start.
Some of Kentucky’s biggest pieces are eligible to return next season. NCAA Tournament star Mason Moore, Second Team All-SEC selection Émilien Pitre, Lexington Regional MOP Devin Burkes, and flamethrower Travis Smith are just a few ‘Cats who will run it back next season. Austin Strickland, Nolan McCarthy, Ryan Waldschmidt, and Jackson Nove are also all eligible to return. Grant Smith and Zack Lee have an extra year if interested, but Lee is expected to pursue a professional career.
Things may not have ended the way fans had hoped, but the Bat ‘Cats were a beam of sunshine in what had been an unremarkable year for the University of Kentucky athletics programs. Here were some of their best moments.
No. 5: Kentucky Proud Park Sets Attendance Record Three Times
Coach Mingione repeatedly pleaded for the Big Blue Nation to show up at Kentucky Proud Park this season, a brand-new stadium yearning for big-time games and big-time moments. Kentucky fans did just that. Flashback to April 25th, when a then-record crowd of 5,292 filed into KPP for the Battle of the Bluegrass between the ‘Cats and the Cards. Things didn’t go in the favor of Kentucky, as they were shutout 7-0. The faith however didn’t waiver, and fans really made their presence known in their final regular season series against Florida.
The attendance record wasn’t broken, but it was definitely the loudest crowd of the season. The crowd that helped celebrate Senior Night on May 19th was what college baseball is all about. A large, loud crowd willed the ‘Cats to a massive 6-4 victory over the No. 4 ranked Florida Gators. Coach Mingione was nearly brought to tears following the massive win, saying “The crowd was awesome. That was as good as the crowd has been all year in the ninth. That was a perfect example of what BBN can do for our players.”
Although Kentucky went one and done in the SEC Tournament, they put themselves in position (with a great RPI and SOS) to host a Regional for the first time since 2017. And boy did the fans show up. After winning the Lexington Regional opening game against Ball State on June 2nd, 6,094 members of the Big Blue Nation made their way to KPP for Kentucky’s second-round matchup against Indiana. The ‘Cats lost 5-3, putting them in the Loser’s Bracket. But Mingione’s resilient team won elimination games against West Virginia and Indiana, setting up a winner-take-all Regional Final on June 5th.
A record 6,796 Wildcat fans showed up and showed out to will the ‘Cats to just their second Super Regional victory in the history of the program. Kentucky fans really showed that the baseball program could be really special if there was enough fan support, and this season was definitely a step in the right direction.
No. 4: Kentucky Sweeps No. 3 South Carolina at Home
Heading into Kentucky’s home series against South Carolina, vibes were at a season low.
The ‘Cats were on a bit of a skid, having lost eight of their last 11 games including a sweep at Vanderbilt. Although their RPI and SOS were still tops in the country, many were suggesting that the Wildcats were hovering near the bubble. They put all of that talk to rest on the weekend of May 5-7th, as the ‘Cats cemented their spot in the NCAA Tournament with a dominant sweep of then-No. 3 ranked South Carolina at KPP.
The ‘Cats went and outscored the Gamecocks 30-12 on the weekend, a dominant showing of offense and pitching from the Wildcat staff. Kentucky’s 30 runs scored this weekend were their most runs scored in a three-game sweep of a ranked opponent since 2006 vs No. 19 Mississippi State (31).
Zack Lee put on an absolute show in the third and final game of the series, striking out a career-high 12 batters while allowing just two earned runs over 6.2 innings pitched. This series showed that the ‘Cats were legit and not just number merchants. This series also reeled back in some fans that may have fallen off the bandwagon during the rough stretch, bringing them along for an exciting end to the season.
No. 3: ‘Cats Win Wild One in Baton Rouge
The Super Regional trip to Baton Rouge didn’t go the way they wanted it to go, but their regular season series featured one of the most exciting games in Kentucky Baseball history.
After a brutal game one of the series that saw Kentucky lose 16-6, a pissed-off Wildcat team came out and played an absolute barnburner in game two against one of college baseball’s most talented teams.
The ‘Cats went down 6-2 early, but an electric five-run fifth inning headlined by a Nolan McCarthy three-run triple gave Kentucky their first lead of the weekend. Not content with their 7-6 lead, Kentucky scored five more runs in the seventh inning, setting themselves up with a safe 12-6 lead through seven. Ryder Giles finished the final two frames off, sitting down the Tigers in order in the ninth to mark the second consecutive season that Kentucky had earned a win over the nation’s top team (2022 vs. Tennessee).
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Kentucky was *this* close to earning a series victory in the third and final game of the weekend. But they fell just short of the Tigers, dropping game three 7-6 following an eighth-inning, go-ahead LSU score on a bases-loaded HBP. Although they didn’t secure the series victory, that weekend really opened some eyes in the college baseball world.
No. 2: Wildcats Win 23 of 24 Games
It was a bit of a rough start to the 2023 season.
Kentucky opened the season with a 2-0 shutout loss to Elon on the road, a concerning sign for a team full of young talent and transfer portal additions. The ‘Cats, however, bounced back with the series win over Elon and a victory over Evansville before hosting Wright State at home. After opening the series with an 8-3 win, the ‘Cats fell to Wright State in Lexington 12-9, leaving many fans shaking their heads. What they did next would propel them to the top ten in the nation.
Nick Mingione’s squad proceeded to win 23 of their next 24 games, including 17 in a row from February 26th to March 26th. Following their series victory over Alabama and a sweep of Missouri, the Bat ‘Cats cracked D1Baseball’s April 3rd edition of their Top 25, the program’s highest ranking since 2018. The dominant run featured victories over Morehead State, Murray State, Ohio, Southern Illinois, Mississippi State, Eastern Kentucky, Western Kentucky, Missouri, Dayton, and three NCAA Tournament teams in Indiana State (who hosted a Regional), Indiana, and Alabama. The ‘Cats finally ran into a roadblock on Easter Sunday, losing both games of a doubleheader to Georgia.
This string of wins finally began to bring fans out of the woodwork to Kentucky Proud Park to cheer on the ‘Cats. What a run that was, as it was a large reason that Kentucky was able to host a Regional for the first time in six years. Going the entire season with a top-three RPI after building a strong Strength of Schedule came back to reward Nick Mingione’s squad in the end. That would set up the best moment of the season, their Lexington Regional victory.
No. 1: Wildcats Win Lexington Regional
What else could have possibly been number one?
A Kentucky Proud Park record crowd of 6,796 showed up for one of the biggest games in Kentucky baseball program history and were met with a barnburner of a game against Indiana, with the ‘Cats taking control in the seventh thanks to a three-run inning. Mason Moore, who had been phenomenal in the Regional, finished his impeccable Lexington Regional run by forcing a groundout to end the game, sending Big Blue Nation into a frenzy.
KPP erupted with Kentucky fans feeling a sense of joy that hasn’t been felt much lately. Nick Mingione reflected on the night during his call into KSR on June 9th.
“I’m just so thankful for all the people that watched and showed up on Monday night because I asked Grant Smith, our starting shortstop, Tuesday morning after he rolled up into the facility and I said, ‘Grant, was that awesome or what? How’d that feel?’ He goes, ‘Coach, that was the best night of my life. That was the best night of my life.’
KSR’s Drew Franklin summarized the night perfectly: “As Kentucky Baseball celebrated the school’s second-ever NCAA regional championship, a faint chant of ‘baseball school’ rang out from the stands. Though only a playful callback to last summer’s family drama, the University of Kentucky felt like a baseball powerhouse Monday night.”
The team did laps around the stadium as James McCoy ran around with a Powerade cooler on his head, signifying that the Kentucky Baseball program has arrived and was ready for this to be a yearly event. If everyone is on the same page, baseball in the Bluegrass could be a real thing. This season was a massive step forward for the program and the only way to go is up.
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