In seasons past, Virginia baseball fans could expect the season’s opening lineup to feature significant continuity from years prior. Former Coach Brian O’Connor frequently deployed Cavaliers who spent three-plus years with the program.
O’Connor is gone now. He left for SEC pastures, and Coach Chris Pollard has taken over as head coach. Pollard, formerly Duke’s coach from 2013-2025, immediately made his mark in Charlottesville by bringing along a slew of ex-Blue Devils.
On the staff side of things, Pollard brought key assistants in pitching coach Brady Kirkpatrick, infielders coach Derek Simmons, hitting coach Eric Tyler, director of recruiting Brian Sakowski and director of player development John Natoli.
But that’s not all. Pollard classified his 2026 roster into distinct groups — former Duke players and recruits, non-Blue Devil transfers and Virginia returners and recruits. This season, those Cavaliers of various backgrounds come together to fight for the program’s ever-elusive second national championship.
Outfielders
The headliner of the outfield corps is junior AJ Gracia, a Preseason All-American who transferred in from Duke. Gracia is a two-time All-ACC honoree with power aplenty and a .299 career batting average. He is penciled in as Virginia’s starting center fielder and will likely hit in the first third of the Cavalier lineup.
Next to Gracia in left field, senior Harrison Didawick is back for a fourth season patrolling the grass at Disharoon Park. Among current Virginia players, Didawick has the most career starts for the program with 153. He starred in 2024 with a .292 batting average and tied for the single-season program record with 23 home runs. Unfortunately for Virginia, Didawick slumped in 2025, posting a .225 average with six home runs. He will aim to return to form in his first season under Pollard.
Over in right field, junior Kyle Johnson is expected to start. However, Johnson is also currently penciled in as the team’s No. 1 pitcher. Johnson cannot pitch and play outfield at the same time, so another Cavalier will have to step in when Johnson pitches Friday nights.
Aside from the primary trio of Gracia, Didawick and Johnson, other contributors mentioned at media availability include sophomore Zach Jackson, freshman Griffin Enis and freshman LJ Edwards. Both Enis and Edwards were among the top 15 outfielder recruits nationally, according to Perfect Game. However, as the more experienced option, Jackson could have the inside track at earning some starts in right field.
Infielders
The certainty for Virginia lies in one of the nation’s top middle infield tandems — junior shortstop Eric Becker and junior second baseman Joe Tiroly.
Becker, a 2026 Preseason All-American, is a returner. He spent his first two seasons of college ball in Charlottesville, highlighted by a 2025 campaign in which he started all 50 games and led the squad with a .368 batting average among players with at least 20 starts.
Tiroly spent his first two seasons at mid-major Rider, where he slashed .377 with 18 home runs in 2025 en route to Third-Team All-American honors. Tiroly was one of the best middle infielders available in the transfer portal this offseason.
Becker and Tiroly are firmly entrenched in their starting roles, and so is junior first baseman Sam Harris. Harris broke out with a .297 batting average and nine home runs in 2025 in his second season as a Blue Devil. Although Harris was mostly a designated hitter during his first two years at Duke, he was the fourth-best first-base recruit in his high school class — and Pollard said Harris will man first base at Virginia.
But while three quarters of the infield are set, Pollard noted that there is a four-man competition for the third base gig between junior transfer Noah Murray, sophomore Aiden Harris, freshman RJ Holmes and freshman Jayden Stroman.
Murray could be the favorite to win the job due to his status as the most experienced player of that bunch — he boasts a .349 batting average in 43 career at-bats. However, the job is open, and anyone could claim it.
Harris was the 15th best recruit nationally in his high school class, and also the top third base recruit. The Commonwealth native only took 10 at-bats in his 2025 campaign but he hit .400. Even if Harris does not win the starting third base job, he could very well slot in at designated hitter with his powerful 6-foot-4, 240-pound frame. Junior infielder Antonio Perrotta is another option at designated hitter.
Catcher
Junior Jake Weatherspoon, a junior college star both offensively and defensively, is set to be Virginia’s catcher. Weatherspoon transferred in from Indian River State, where he was named the 2025 NJCAA Division I Defensive Player of the Year while also posting a .374 batting average.
Graduate Noah Jouras is the primary backup. He hit .319 last year at his previous school, Davidson. Behind him, freshman Thomas O’Connell brings promise as the No. 13 catcher recruit in his high school class.
Pitching staff
At media availability, Pollard confirmed that Johnson is the ace of Virginia’s staff. The rest could shift around, but the opening weekend rotation could feature the left-handed sophomore duo of Max Stammel and Henry Zatkowski. It is important to note that this trio is entirely left-handed — it is unusual for a pitching rotation to exclude a right-handed pitcher.
Intriguing right-handed options are sophomore Michael Yeager and freshman Noah Yoder, the nation’s No. 7 right-handed pitching recruit from the class of 2025. Pollard mentioned that Yoder will receive opportunities to earn playing time in his freshman season — which could turn into opportunities as an occasional weekday starter.
Behind the starters, there is a high-quality bullpen at Pollard’s disposal, which, in years past, was a major weakness for the Cavaliers. Now it could be a strength.
Junior righty Drew Koenen will be a frequent contributor, as he made 17 appearances in 2025 with a steady 2.70 earned run average. Along with Koenen, another reliable right-handed reliever is available in graduate Lucas Hartman. He was a valuable portal acquisition, as he was named to the All-Conference USA First Team in 2025. The third sub-3.00 ERA reliever is senior Kevin Jaxel, who is entering his fourth season as a Cavalier. Jaxel is the only active reliever on the roster to have made 10-plus appearances in three straight seasons with Virginia.
That trio will be utilized early and often. According to Pollard, graduate righty Tyler Kapa is expected to be Virginia’s closer in close games. Others could get involved out of the bullpen in various capacities, including talented freshmen Stroman, righty John Paone and righty Christian Lucarelli.
Virginia kicks off its season Friday with a weekend home series against Wagner — the first act of a 50-plus game season for Cavalier baseball. In due time, the Virginia faithful will get its first look at a brand-new pitching rotation, a national megastar and Coach Chris Pollard’s first season as the leader of a new era.
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