Wahoo Wire

With two trips to Omaha, ACC regular and postseason championships, and the number one national ranking, University of Virginia baseball coach Brian O’Connor has turned the Cavaliers baseball team into a household name in college baseball.  Unfortunately for O’Connor and the Cavaliers, many of the players that helped build this tradition of success have now either graduated or moved on to play professionally.  Eight players from the last year’s team were selected in the 2011 MLB draft, including number two overall pick Danny Hultzen.

Still, despite being picked to finish tied for third in the ACC Coastal division in 2012, Brian O’Connor and the Cavaliers baseball team are entering the 2012 season with the same confidence as before.  O’Connor recognized that he had “lost a number of tremendous players” but he also was “excited to see this club compete.”  O’Connor did address the biggest holes left that last season’s departures created for the Wahoos.  O’Connor recognized that the team “lost 70 percent of the innings on the pitching mound and the top four starters” which is something that “you can’t replace right away…but we have talent on the pitching mound.”

One of the reasons for O’Connor’s optimism is third year right-handed pitcher Brandon Kline.  Last season, Kline shut the door on the Cavaliers’ opponents by primarily working out of the bullpen as the team’s closer, recording 18 saves.  This season, O’Connor and the Cavaliers hope Kline can make the adjustment from reliever to starter.  When asked about Kline, O’Connor’s confidence was unmistakable, and said that Kline should have an “easy transition to a starter because he’s done it before.”   Kline also showed the maturity, confidence, and unselfishness fans have come to expect from the UVa baseball team by saying “I’ll do whatever it takes to help the team win.”

Besides Kline, the Cavaliers are also returning several key contributors from last year’s team including pitcher Kyle Crockett (1.97 era), outfielder Reed Gragnani (hit .272 in 136 plate appearances), shortstop Chris Taylor (started all 68 games), and right-handed pitcher Justin Thompson (3-1 in 39.0 innings pitched).  Another player that O’Connor hopes to boost his lineup is junior third baseman Stephen Bruno, who was sidelined by injuries in 2011.  O’Connor recognized Bruno’s potential and said that “Stephen Bruno’s a name that’s been talked about for three years; he really can impact our lineup.”

The 2012 Virginia Cavaliers team is also fresh with new faces.  O’Connor said that he has a “group of first-year position players that will make an impact for us” and he expects “5-6 will have an immediate impact.”  Bruno also saw the necessity of the new guys earning playing time right away, stating that a “lot of these young guys are gonna step in right away and fill these roles” while also using the experience he has gained to say that the “veterans have a lot of confidence in these guys.”  This type of confident yet team-first attitude has become standard for the Cavalier baseball team; and also explains the success the program has enjoyed these past three years.  O’Connor understands that now the Cavaliers “can’t sneak up on anybody anymore…we just need to go out and play UVa baseball.”  So despite the relatively low preseason predictions, nobody inside the UVa baseball program will be surprised by another late postseason run this year.