UK baseball insider notes as it prepares for West Virginia scrimmage

The Kentucky baseball team will travel to Mason, Ohio, to play West Virginia at Prasco Park on Sunday at noon. It's the first of two scrimmages against outside competition during October. The Wildcats close out fall ball against Morehead State on Sunday, Oct. 26.

The scrimmage on Sunday against the Mountaineers is free to attend. Here's more information on Prasco Park. The Wildcats played Wright State at Prasco last year. The scrimmage consisted of two seven-inning games, so I expect the format to be similar this year. Bat Cats Central will have a report from the scrimmage either late Sunday evening or early Monday morning.

Here's our coverage of fall practice to this point to prepare you for Sunday:

Before turning the focus to West Virginia, here are the latest insider team notes from speaking with sources around the program.

Team Notes

Those who have kept up with the scrimmage reports know how well outfield transfers Jayce Tharnish (St. Bonaventure) and Scott Campbell (USC Upstate) have hit so far this fall. Those two have quickly established themselves at the top of the outfield depth chart in the early portion of fall practice. Campbell mostly played right field for the Spartans, but he's impressed in center field and will likely play there some on Sunday against West Virginia. Tharnish was a center fielder for St. Bonaventure and logs innings there in practice as well, but he's also playing some left field. The season is still months away, but as things stand now, a good projection would be Tharnish and sophomore Ryan Schwartz in the outfield corners with Campbell in center field.

With Carson Hansen and Will Marcy as options in the outfield as well, this seems like one of the deepest outfield rotations the Wildcats have had in recent years. Hansen has spent quite a bit of time at first base this fall and could DH as well – in addition to playing corner outfield – and Marcy is capable of playing all three outfield spots. Last season's small sample size notwithstanding, Marcy is a proven, capable hitter at the college level. There are some high upside younger outfielders in the program, but it will be tough to break into the lineup this spring with the current upperclass depth.
There has not been a clear separation yet behind the plate. Elon transfer Alex Duffey, Louisville transfer Tagger Tyson and freshman Owen Jenkins are all competing for playing time. One source described Duffey as the best in the group at blocking, with Tyson being the best receiver and Jenkins being solid all-around. Another source believed Jenkins was a little further along defensively than expected when he enrolled. Jenkins has the most physical tools, but the other two have experience in their favor. Duffey is coming off the best season of his college career (.349/.463/.479 with a 140 wRC+) offensively, but there's always an adjustment period to be expected when jumping up a level.
Third base is another spot with an ongoing position battle. Indiana transfer Tyler Cerny has been excellent defensively, making both the routine and difficult plays. That's an encouraging development considering he spent nearly the entirety of his college career thus far in the middle infield. The bat has been behind his glove this fall, however. Junior Ethan Hindle has been a participant in scrimmages, but he's still trying to get back to 100% health from a couple of injuries earlier in the year. Ultimately, I think there are two good options to choose from here.
Not a ton to add about shortstop Tyler Bell and second baseman Luke Lawrence. Both are doing what's expected of them this fall.
Quite a few players have gotten scrimmage reps at first base – Duffey, Hindle, Schwartz, Hansen, Caeden Cloud – but the sense I get is Hudson Brown is doing what he needs to earn a spot in the middle of the lineup. Brown is what a prototypical first baseman looked like in the past: 6-foot-6, 220 pounds, who should blossom into a power hitter over time. But since he only plays one defensive position – a spot long perceived as less important on the defensive spectrum – he has a harder needle to thread since he's only getting in the lineup as a first baseman or DH. If he's hitting, he's likely the best option for offense and defense at first.
Senior righthander Jaxon Jelkin will make his fall debut against West Virginia. He'll pitch one inning, but the other pitchers who throw could be used for one or two innings. The other available pitchers are Leighton Harris, Jackson Soucie, Ira Austin, Tristan Hunter, Tommy Skelding, Cam Owens and Nile Adcock.
Junior lefthander Ben Cleaver is slated to pitch for the first time this fall during the scrimmage on Sunday, Oct. 12. I anticipate several scouts will show up for practice on that day.