Nic McCay (Vicky Graff Photo)
Could Kentucky baseball make another NCAA Tournament run like it did in 2024 when it reached the College World Series for the first time?
It definitely will not be as easy. Last year Kentucky was Southeastern Conference champion, this season it was 13th in the league standings. Last year UK was a No. 1 seed in the regional that it got to host. This season UK is a No. 3 seed in the Clemson regional.
“It’s a lot to ask with the injuries they’ve had but they really could go on a run,” said former UK coach Keith Madison. “Once you get into a NCAA regional, especially in the first round, the competition is really good but likely not as good as you competed against in the SEC.
“I would expect that they can win a regional again. The super regional is a different animal.”
Why could UK win this weekend’s regional at Clemson?
“With (pitchers Ben) Cleaver and (Nic) McCay, they can win a series against anybody (even in a super regional). It’s not likely to happen due to injuries but it could happen with the pitching UK has,” Madison, an analyst for the UK Radio Network.
Kentucky plays No. 2 seed West Virginia today at noon on ESPNU.
“We are now five wins away from going back to the College World Series,” UK coach Nick Mingione, who has 14 of UK’s 28 NCAA Tournament wins in his nine seasons as head coach.
West Virginia was the regular season champion in the Big 12 Conference. The Mountaineers are 41-14 overall and have six players who hit at least .300.
Mingione has not indicated who he will start on the mount. Sophomore southpaw Cleaver is 6-3 with a 3.39 earned run average. McCary is 5-0 with a 4.37 ERA. Freshman Nate Harris went 4-2 with a 4.72 ERA.
Friday’s second game is between the host Clemson and USC Upstate. Today’s losers will meet Saturday in an elimination game at noon, while the winners of today’s games will meet at 6 p.m. on Saturday. The double-elimination tournament continues through at least Sunday, and possible Monday, until a winner is crowned.
