Media day was held on Tuesday for the Kentucky baseball and softball programs. Here are a few takeaways from Nick Mingione's time with the media.
This Kentucky roster has far more returning experience than a year ago
One of the main storylines at media day in 2025 was how well Kentucky could replace nearly all of the production from the 2024 College World Series team. But after a transition year, which still saw the Wildcats reach the finals of the Clemson Regional, Kentucky will have a much more experienced team in 2026.
"I sat here last year and we returned one start on the mound," Mingione said. "Just what all that comes with, the challenges that comes with. This year is different. We actually return 29 starts."
Mingione pointed to the six returning players with experience, which are senior reliever Nile Adcock, junior lefty Ben Cleaver, redshirt sophomore right-hander Tommy Skelding and sophomores Tristan Hunter, Nate Harris and Leighton Harris.
"We have 142 SEC starting pitching innings that return," Mingione said. "That experience is going to be good for us."
Mingione said that Skelding had "as good of a fall" as anyone on the staff.
"He's commanding the ball. His pitches are moving all over the place. He's covering all directions of the place. He's had a great fall and early spring," Mingione said.
Positionally, Kentucky brings back 219 starts from last season. Second baseman Luke Lawrence and shortstop Tyler Bell led the way with 57 and 56 starts last season. In addition, first baseman Hudson Brown and outfielder Carson Hansen made 29 starts and sophomore Ryan Schwartz made 18 starts. Prior to being lost to season-ending injuries, junior Ethan Hindle made 22 starts and center fielder Will Marcy made eight starts.
Though he's not a returner from last year's team, Indiana transfer Tyler Cerny is the most experienced player on the roster. Cerny played in 174 games over three seasons at Indiana, starting in 171 of those games.
More media day reading, courtesy of Jonathon Bruner. He details Ben Cleaver's growth as a leader as he enters his junior season.
Jonathon Bruner
Could Kentucky use up to three different catchers this season?
Mingione mentioned third base and first base as positions with ongoing position battles, but no spot has been more up in the air since the fall than catcher. The three contenders are Elon transfer Alex Duffey, Louisville transfer Tagger Tyson and freshman Owen Jenkins.
Derek Terry
Under Mingione, Kentucky has typically not rotated through many catchers. Recently graduated catcher Devin Burkes handled the majority of games over the past three seasons, but one primary catcher was typically the standard before Burkes' time as well.
Still, it sounds like all three of the catchers mentioned above will get their shot to earn the job.
"We've got a good battle," Mingione said. "We have three really talented catchers and they're all gonna play... Duffey has really shown up like a different man this spring. Tagger Tyson, in his third year of college baseball, is a transfer from Louisville. And then Owen Jenkins is just an uber-talented freshman. They're all three going to play. We're going to catch all three guys. They're going to get opportunities, and we'll find ways to mix them in. I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of them end up DH'ing for us some. But a really talented position where we have some of the depth maybe, quite frankly, we haven't had in my time here. It's going to be a good battle and they continue to grow."
One stat that might surprise you
Since returning to NCAA Tournament play in 2023, Kentucky has the fourth-most tournament wins of any SEC program. The Wildcats have racked up 12 postseason wins over the past three years.
"It's LSU, it's Florida, it's Tennessee and it's Kentucky," Mingione said. "It's because we've recruited at a high level. But we have talented players. We have great people, we've had a great culture and that's why we're winning."
LSU, of course, has once again become a powerhouse under head coach Jay Johnson. The Tigers have won two of the last three national championships and enter the 2026 season as one of the best teams once again. Tennessee, which lost head coach Tony Vitello in the offseason to the San Francisco Giants, won the 2024 national championship. Florida eliminated Kentucky in the 2024 College World Series before being eliminated by Texas A&M. The Gators were defeated by LSU in the finals of the 2023 College World Series and have racked up 19 postseason wins over three seasons.
The three programs ahead of the Wildcats are some of the best in the country, so it's good company to be in. Kentucky will look to keep pace with the elite programs once again in 2026.
