The 2025 season began on a sour note for No. 9 Virginia baseball. Losses to Michigan and then-No. 7 Oregon State were frustrating but reasonable, considering the talent of those two squads. However, troublesome trends are brewing. Namely, a few starters are slumping at the plate. Junior outfielder Harrison Didawick is hitting .189 with just two extra-base hits, and graduate catcher Jacob Ference has just seven hits in eight starts thus far.
While half of the lineup excelled, the other has not, even after the reprieve of playing winless Dartmouth and 4-8 William & Mary. That begs the question — can the Cavaliers recover from a trio of early-season losses and reassert themselves as a top-five team? Two baseball beat writers discuss their thoughts below.
The good — what has gone well thus far?
Stephen O’Dea, Staff Writer: The silver lining of the season thus far perhaps lies in the performance of the newcomers that have been scattered throughout the lineups at various points in the early stages of the year. In some cases, the numbers jump off the page. Freshman outfielder James Nunnallee, despite displaying the initial requisite faltering of a newcomer to a top program, has thrived. A .345 average in 29 at-bats makes him the third-most productive starter by that metric.
With the ball in hand, it’s difficult to look past transfer graduate reliever Matt Lanzendorfer. He has been unceasingly destructive, toting a 13-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in five appearances.
David Sewall, Staff Writer: Virginia’s overall pitching effort has been instrumental in the Cavaliers’ performance thus far this season. Freshman starter Tomas Valincius has been dominant thus far — sporting a 2.12 ERA and a strong 25-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 17 innings. In addition, senior Jay Woolfolk and sophomore Bryson Moore have also delivered in their three starts, Woolfolk with a 2.63 ERA and Moore a 3.18 ERA.
In addition to the starting pitching, Virginia’s bullpen has been magnificent. After arguably holding the team back and notably struggling in recent years, this bullpen has been dominant. Sophomore Drew Koenen and juniors Kevin Jaxel and Ryan Osinski have all been excellent and durable for the Cavaliers. Additionally, Lanzendorfer has yet to give up an earned run in seven innings.
Assuming the Cavaliers’ offensive talent finds its stride to complement their red-hot pitching staff — Virginia has the opportunity to contend down the stretch.
The bad — in order for Virginia to be in the top five, who needs to step up the most?
SO: Aside from stating the obvious about veterans holding their weight with the bat, I think that one pivotal concern is the brevity of starts from top-of-the-line senior pitcher Jay Woolfolk. He has only lasted 13.2 innings in three starts and gave up 15 hits in that limited action.
It is hard to expect the Cavaliers’ offensive unit to be firing on all cylinders when they have to keep themselves afloat with a rotating carousel of relievers. If Woolfolk in particular could stretch his starts even one or two more innings, it would make a huge difference in the way that the entire team perceives game situations.
DS: While several players have struggled relative to their preseason expectations, the most glaring case is Didawick. After an impressive sophomore campaign in which he recorded a .292/.414/.642 slash line, earned Second Team All-ACC honors and led the team with 68 runs batted in, Didawick was primed for another dominant season for Virginia.
Thus far, Didawick has fallen well short of those expectations, hitting just .189 through his first 37 at-bats. Perhaps even more concerning than his low average is the absence of power, with only one home run and one double, a stark contrast to the offensive force he was projected to be. There is no question that Didawick has the power and talent to anchor this Cavaliers team. His ability to make mechanical adjustments and reestablish himself as one the premier bats in college baseball could be a deciding factor in Virginia’s season.
The ugly — is the large slump a one-off, or the sign of a bigger issue?
SO: At the end of the day, these are premier talents that just need a bigger sample size. Eleven games are hardly enough to judge players who performed to the highest degree in a full season of work last year.
Didawick’s home run shows just how rapidly things can change for the best in the game. The Cavaliers have had to play a slew of some pretty tough games to open the season, and they are just getting to a stage in their schedule where they can build up some confidence at the plate against some more manageable competition. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the Cavaliers’ slump is a minor blemish in what is sure to be an exciting season for this offense.
DS: Yes, Virginia’s offensive struggles are concerning, but they seem to reflect a temporary slump rather than a deeper, fundamental issue. The Cavaliers were tested in highly competitive extra-inning games versus the Wolverines and Oklahoma. Their struggles with situational hitting have played a major role in their early record, but a handful of timely hits could have flipped the outcome — and the overall perception — of the season so far.
As Virginia settles in, experience should allow the team to execute better in pressure situations, and talent should enable them to showcase their offensive firepower down the stretch.
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