⚾ 2025 Baseball Offseason

Baseball
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The recent success he’s had along with having arguably the best mid major team in the country this season certainly gives him a lot of momentum. The only thing I’d be curious about is how well his hyper aggressive style on the basepaths would translate here, that part of the game can be very hit or miss when making the jump from the mid major to high major level.

His pitching staffs at Northeastern having generally been great as well though. Assistant coach Kevin Cobb is a very well respected guy within college baseball and they’re ranked #1 in the country in ERA this season. Only team below a 3.00.

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Mike Glavine seems like he’d be a good hire and has a good resume. And his brother might visit every now and then too which can’t be a bad thing.

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The pitching is what I love. Him and Cobb are elite.

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FWIW this is my personal list I assembled early this week of sitting head coaches and then assistant coaches that would interest me and you wouldn’t get laughed out of the room for suggesting.

I think I only need to caveat one name on the head coaching side.

But first, you quietly offer Mac the job even with the understanding he’s probably going and probably doesn’t want to be head coach anywhere. He’s earned the courtesy, even if only ceremonially.

HEAD COACHES

Jim Penders - UCONN

Chris Pollard - Duke: I don’t like him personally because his demeanor is a little gruff and he’s tough competition (made Duke good). But I like winning. Would be a tough pull and has turned down Miami previously. Born in Durham, NC but appears to have grown up in Amherst County, VA and attended Virginia Episcopal School in Lynchburg for high school.

Mark Wasikowski - Oregon

Mike Glavine - Northeastern

Skylar Meade - Troy

Alex Sogard - Wright State

ASSISTANT COACHES (added details / baseball is weird and some guys are content in not sitting in the big chair - may have at least one listed here.)

Corey Muscara (Pitching coach at Wake Forest): This may be Oak’s pitchign coach at Miss State so could be an ahhh, nevermind situation. Considered an elite pitching coach and one of the top young assistants in college baseball. A no brainer if you go the assistant route and can grab him.

Scott Jackson (UNC Assistant Coach & Recruiting Coordinator): Jackson returned to UNC from Liberty after the 2024 season. Jackson had been the head coach at Liberty since 2017. With Liberty, he made three NCAA tournaments and won .576 of his games. Winchester, VA native. Prior to taking the Liberty job, he was at UNC for 7 years where he was also an assistant and recruiting coordinator. Has a reputation as a really good recruiter and excellent ties in VA, NC, and SC.

Bryant Gaines (UNC Pitching Coach): An original Oak type hire (UVA hiring Oak from Notre Dame) as Gaines is roughly 38 years old. He pitched at UNC and his wife is a former UNC student athlete. He’s been the pitching coach at UNC for the last six seasons. Prior to that, he was the pitching coach at Liberty from 2017-2019 under Scott Jackson. He graduated from UNC in 2011 and I believe he was the unpaid, volunteer assistant coach at UNC from 2012-2015. UNC has traditionally had a very strong pitching staff and that has continued under Gaines. They have one of the top staffs in the country this year. He may be a UNC lifer but the pull to be head coach can be strong.

James Ramsey (Georgia Tech OF and Hitting Coach): Just 35, he’s a former FSU player and rising star in college baseball coaching circles. His arrival at Georgia Tech coincided with a revitilaztion in their program late in the Danny Hall era. I suspect he’s been the guy pulling the strings the last couple seasons. Had 1 year (2018) as an assistant at FSU in same role at GT. With GT since 2019. Would have to move rapidly if the was the guy as he’s largely expected to be the successor at GT to Danny Hall who is retiring after GT’s postseason run.

Scott Brown (Vanderbilt Associate Head Coach & Pitching Coach): Elite assistant in college baseball. Everyone would want this guy. May be content to run the ptiching staff at Vandy, but if you are going the assistant route you need to ask. Has been at Vandy for 13 seasons. NY native and played college baseball at a small school in New York. Was the pitching coach at St. John’s prior to Vanderbilt. Can recruit nationally and would be able to work our northeast pipeline.

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I gotta admit, I’m pissed off. I’m bitter. Will take restraint not to resurface Oaks presser from the Florida game 2 years ago where he left Jay out as a human sacrifice and then said he had no regrets postgame.

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Yeah it’s gonna take a while to really have this set in, not to be overly dramatic but it’s put me in a perpetually bad mood over the past couple of days. I don’t want it to get lost in any of these conversations that a lot of my opinions about what’s currently happening are almost entirely emotion based, not really looking at or for the logistics of the situation we’re in.

I’m probably one of the younger people on this board which is to say that I grew up with the baseball program over the past twenty or so years, haven’t ever known UVA baseball without Brian O’Connor attached to it nor has it ever not been wildly successful as long as I’ve been able to pay attention to it. Baseball has always been my #1 sport as a UVA fan and my #1 priority in terms of what I want us to succeed in, and with BOC at the helm that was never really a concern.

I mention all of this to say that I understand our baseball program for some in the fanbase is an afterthought, or that its needs shouldn’t be viewed as important as other sports like football or Men’s and Women’s basketball. But for me at least this is very personal and speaking personally I’m absolutely fucking livid that this is happening or was even allowed to happen in the first place.

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It bothers me how Oak was apparently uninterested in A&M but jumps at MSU. If we lost him to A&M, I’d get it. They have unlimited resources and spend them irrationally to make themselves feel better. MSU simply doesn’t have unlimited resources. They spend what they have on baseball but what you have in this era is very important. I think this is a bad move by Oak. He’s a great coach so maybe it will work but stepping back it just kind feels like he was done with UVa. Not really buying the notion that he really wanted to stay anymore.

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I can say with certainty that there’s only a handful among the UVA fan diaspora that paid any attention to UVA Baseball before Oak. And they generally played for the program pre Oak or had a personal connection to the pre Oak program.

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Look at Oak’s first handful of years here — 125, 127, and 147 SB attempts.

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It’s a little different, in that day and age we recruited specifically to that style and sacrificed a lot of power in our lineup in the process. Northeastern over the last couple of years has been able to have their cake and eat it too in terms of having pop at the plate and also being menaces on the basepaths. And generally speaking it’s just easier to steal bases at the mid major level.

It’s not impossible to do both, there’s programs that balance it like Louisville or Vandy or Oklahoma. But generally speaking you’re gonna have to lean one way or the other.

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It was our style for years. But even in 2009 — we hit 59 HRs and went 119-145 in SB.

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Oak was very interested in Texas A&M despite his public comment. It was touch and go for a few days last summer.

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I know there was mention yesterday of UVa trying to raise funds to keep O’Connor. Seems if his relationship is as bad with Williams as some have said, nothing was gonna keep him at UVa.

BOC raised a program from the dead to make it a power. Pretty sad couple of days.

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So is he officially gone?

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I don’t know but people who do seem pretty convinced he’s gone.

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There been no announcement or official acknowledgment by anyone.

But the Miss State version of Jacquie said he had agreed to terms with State earlier today. And late this afternoon, the most connected poster anywhere with the baseball program said on The Sabre that it was game over - “turn out the lights, the party is over.”

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Shocked you would trade cville for Starkville…. Can’t wait for the official reason he left

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Root for Parker to win the natty as interim.

No way in hell their fans will allow him to get away at that point.

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Addendum to my list above, I really liked what I saw from Cincy against Wake today when I had the chance to watch and their coach is thought to be potentially a future star. He also grew up in Green Bay when Dick Bennett was coaching UWGB. I’d absolutely include him on my list and not hate it if we made that hire.

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Yep. I know lot of these guys you allude to as does @chavlicek15

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