Kentucky finished out its roster build for the 2027 season with the addition of San Jacinto Junior College pitcher Dylan McIntyre. McIntyre, who spent one season with the Ravens, is a native of Union, Kentucky, and pitched for Ryle High School.
"I feel like it was a pretty easy decision for me," McIntyre told Bat Cats Central. "Just being a hometown kid, rooting for Kentucky my whole life, I feel like that's exactly where I want it to be."
McIntyre adds a final piece to the Wildcats' pitching staff. He was dominant in his final season of high school in the Bluegrass State, finishing his senior year with a 0.62 ERA and 84 strikeouts in 56.2 innings. McIntyre was named Second Team All-State in 2025, joining Kentucky players Grayson Willoughby and Jack Sams on the list.
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Despite having offers from a few smaller Division I programs, McIntyre chose to go the junior college route. He picked San Jacinto because of its historical team success and its track record of producing players for the next level.
"I learned a lot just about myself, about the person I am and the pitcher I am," McIntyre said. "I just got a lot better and got to the point where I want to be. Obviously, I'm not where I need to be in the future, but for now, I think I'm in a good spot because of it... I started throwing harder in the last year that I was there. All my offspeed stuff got a lot better, and I just learned how to pitch a little bit more and what I'm good at and how I get people out."
The 6-foot-1 right-hander appeared in 11 games and made eight starts in 2026 for San Jacinto, logging a 4.20 ERA over 40.2 innings pitched. He struck out 47 batters and walked 23, with opponents hitting .294 against him on the season.
McIntyre competed in the Future Stars Series JUCO Pre-Draft Combine in Vermont in late June. Mike Ashmore called McIntyre "one of the more intriguing JUCO freshman arms" in the country.
McIntyre is one of the more intriguing JUCO freshman arms in the country, and showed why at Centennial Field, getting his fastball up to 96 over two innings of work. While there was a hiccup or two later in the outing, the 6-foot-1, 195-pound San Jac righty showed everything you want from a power arm and manipulated the zone well, working in and out and up and down effectively during his two innings of work with a fastball, sinker, slider and change. – Mike Ashmore
Kentucky's 2027 roster
With McIntyre on board, Kentucky is expected to be done with its 2027 roster. The number in parentheses beside the player represents how many years of eligibility remain.
Righthanded pitchers (16)
- PJ Craig (1)
- Ryan Mullan (1)
- Mason Snyder (2)
- Chase Alderman (2)
- Will Pryor (2)
- Logan Hastings (3)
- Cameron Owens (3 – Owens has been a pitcher at UK but could be moving to a position player this fall)
- Burkley Bounds (3)
- Nate Harris (3)
- Jack Sams (4)
- Dylan McIntyre (4)
- Matt Ponatoski (5)
- Logan Sorrel (5)
- Aiden Smith (5)
- Sammy Swank (5)
- Grayson Willoughby (5)
Lefthanded pitchers (6)
- Ben Cleaver (2)
- Kale Hammer (2)
- Leighton Harris (3)
- Will Coleman (4)
- Joey Ansell (5)
- Cole McLean (5)
Catchers (3)
- Riley Jackson (1)
- Brayden Ricketts (3)
- Carson May (5)
Infielders (7)
- 1B Hudson Brown (2)
- INF Ethan Hindle (2)
- INF Owen Lee (2)
- INF/UTIL JP Peltier (2)
- INF Lee Ellis (2)
- 3B/SS Caeden Cloud (4)
- 1B Kaden Powell (5)
Outfielders (6)
- Jayce Tharnish (1)
- Brody Chrisman (2)
- Alex Kelsey (3)
- Braxton Van Cleave (4)
- Ryan Foscolo (4)
- Rob Czarniecki (5)
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