Baseball

Morgantown, WV - In front of the largest home crowd ever for WVU Baseball, the Mountaineers took down the Pitt Panthers on Tuesday afternoon, 6-3. The Mountaineers, now 23-13 on the season, saw production from several players. Spencer Barnett, Logan Sauve, Sam White, and Reed Chumley also tallied an RBI. The Mountaineers travel to Texas Tech on Friday for a three-game series. (Photo by WVU Athletics)

MORGANTOWN, West Virginia -- Yesterday, it was announced that West Virginia baseball head coach Randy Mazey will step aside and Steve Sabins, the current associate head coach, will take over the program. Sabins, who has been with the program as an assistant coach, recruiting coordinator and associate head coach for the past 8 seasons, took to social media today to explain his feelings about being named the future head coach: "My family is proud to be a small part of what Coach Mazey has built at WVU. We are thankful we get to continue to be surrounded by the players, staff and families we cherish. The outpouring of love and support has been insane and appreciated. Nobody does it like WVU." Sabins has been responsible for some of the best recruiting classes in West Virginia baseball history and is widely-regarded as the perfect person to replace Randy Mazey following next season. https://twitter.com/stevesabins/status/1681400446752047115?s=20

WVU’s J.J. Wetherholt is expected to be a top pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, according to MLB.com. Morgantown, WV - WVU’s J.J. Wetherholt is expected to be one of the best players in College Baseball in 2024. After a stellar sophomore season that saw him finish with a .449 batting average, 16 home runs, and 60 RBIs, the Pennsylvania native will be on the radar of several professional teams. According to Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com, Wetherholt will be one of the top picks in the 2024 MLB Draft. In his mock draft, Mayo has Wetherholt going 2nd overall to the Kansas City Royals. Here is what Mayo had to say about his selection of Wetherholt at #2 in the MLB Draft:   “Wetherholt won the Division I batting title by hitting .449 as a sophomore in 2023. He also slugged .787, with 16 homers and 24 doubles, while striking out in just 8.2 percent of his plate appearances. He could raise his profile even more if he gets the chance to play shortstop next year, but the bat alone is enough to put him here.“ (Photo by WVU Athletics)

MORGANTOWN, West Virginia -- Randy Mazey, the long-time head baseball coach at West Virginia, has announced that he will step down in two seasons. Mazey will continue to coach next season, but a succession plan is in place where current Associate Head Coach Steve Sabins will take over the team when Mazey officially steps down. Sabins, who has been with the program for 8 seasons, is also the program's recruiting coordinator and was responsible for bringing in one of the Mountaineers' top recruiting classes ever.  It was rumored that Sabins received significant interest from other programs as a head coach and several key players would have followed him if he left, but ultimately he decided to remain with West Virginia and will likely get the title of "head coach in waiting" for the Mountaineers. Mazey, who has been at West Virginia since 2013, is 296-230 at WVU and is the fourth-winningest coach in the program’s history. Mazey, 57, was named the Big 12 Baseball Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2023, and led the Mountaineers to a 40-20 overall record last season and a Big 12 Regular Season Championship. Mazey had the following to say about his retirement: “I would like to thank President Gee, Wren Baker, and Matt Wells for their tremendous support of our baseball program,” said Mazey. “I would also like to thank Oliver Luck and Keli Zinn for giving me the opportunity to come to WVU and bring our baseball program to a Top 25 level. I am not stepping down, I am stepping aside after the 2024 season to let Coach Sabins, Coach Ginther, and Coach Garcia continue to take WVU Baseball to levels it has never reached before. I am 100% confident that Coach Sabins and this staff have the ability to do just that, and I am just as excited for the future of Mountaineer baseball now as I have ever been.” “I love WVU Baseball, and I am very proud of what we have accomplished in my time here,” continued Mazey. “Amanda, Weston, Sierra and I have fallen in love with Morgantown, the people here, the fans, and the entire state of West Virginia. This is our home, and I will continue to help this baseball program within the community and the state to the best of my ability. “However, since next season will be my last on the field, I do ask our great fans for their continued support to help make it our best season yet. Let’s Go!” https://twitter.com/wvubaseball/status/1680956589866467328?s=46&t=USDKe35TLtcCPitgUlQ1PA

West Virginia's long-time head baseball coach is expected to step away from the program within the next couple of years.   MORGANTOWN, West Virginia -- According to a source close to the situation, it's expected that Randy Mazey, the long-time head baseball coach at West Virginia, will announce his retirement soon. Mazey will continue to coach next season and perhaps the following season after that, but a succession plan is reportedly in place where current Associate Head Coach Steve Sabins will take over the team when Mazey officially steps down. Sabins, who has been with the program for 8 seasons, is also the program's recruiting coordinator and was responsible for bringing in one of the Mountaineers' top recruiting classes ever.  It was rumored that Sabins received significant interest from other programs as a head coach and several key players would have followed him if he left, but ultimately he decided to remain with West Virginia and will likely get the title of "head coach in waiting" for the Mountaineers. Mazey, who has been at West Virginia since 2013, is 296-230 at WVU and is the fourth-winningest coach in the program’s history. Mazey, 57, was named the Big 12 Baseball Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2023, and led the Mountaineers to a 40-20 overall record last season and a Big 12 Regular Season Championship. An official announcement from the university is expected in the coming days. Stay tuned to The Voice of Morgantown for more on this developing story!

WVU RHP Carlson Reed has been selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2023 MLB Draft. Pittsburgh, PA - The Mountaineers have witnessed one of their own see their professional dreams come true. In the 4th-round in the 2023 Draft, with the 104th pick, the Pittsburgh Pirates have selected WVU RHP Carlson Reed. https://twitter.com/wvubaseball/status/1678474468492976156?s=46&t=cXIQ4JQG-pp-P6qrRwLwjw Reed made 25 appearances during the 2023 season. He accumulated a 2-1 record in starts, a 2.61 ERA, and 60 strikeouts over 38 innings. Given the amount of Pirates fans in the region, this is the perfect landing spot for Reed as it gives those a chance who followed him through college to make the short trip to watch him with the Pirates. (Photo by WVU Athletics) 

The Mountaineers have suffered their first loss to the transfer portal following a successful 2023 season. Morgantown, WV - West Virginia experienced their most successful baseball season in decades in 2023. After winning their first regular season conference championship in nearly 30 years, the Mountaineers hoped to keep the bulk of their roster for another run in 2024. Well, they are not off to the best start in transfer portal season. According to Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball, WVU pitcher Ben Hampton has entered the transfer portal. https://twitter.com/KendallRogers/status/1665828460508377091?s=20   Hampton, who spent three seasons in Morgantown, started 41 games for West Virginia. He was one of the team’s starting pitchers, and was expected to have a big role in a highly anticipated 2024 season. Stay tuned to The Voice of Motown for any transfer portal updates. (Photo by WVU Athletics) 

The West Virginia Mountaineers have been eliminated from the 2023 NCAA Baseball Tournament.   Morgantown, WV - After a historic run, the West Virginia University Mountaineers saw their 2023 baseball season come to an end today in a 10-0 loss to the Kentucky Wildcats. https://twitter.com/wvubaseball/status/1665432624397950981?s=46&t=cXIQ4JQG-pp-P6qrRwLwjw After climbing to as high as 6th in the nation, the Mountaineers simply couldn’t get it done. In the end, WVU lost 7 of their last 8 games to finish with a 40-20 record. The Mountaineers won their first Big 12 Baseball Championship in 2023. It was their first regular season conference championship since 1997.

(Photo by WVU Athletics)  Star WVU baseball player JJ Wetherholt is expected to be highly sought after this offseason. After putting together a solid 2023 season so far, accumulating 15 home runs, 56 RBIs, a .466 batting average, and 35 stolen bases, many assume that other programs will reach out to him with NIL money. While most players would jump on that opportunity, it doesn’t appear Wetherholt will be one of them. The sophomore confirmed on the 3 Guys Before the Game podcast that he will return in 2024. https://twitter.com/3Guys__/status/1658592471004200966?s=20 “I’m not going anywhere.” During the discussion with Brad Howe, Hoppy Kercheval, and Tony Caridi, Wetherholt claimed that his status moving forward “shouldn’t even be in question.” He intends on finishing his career with the Mountaineers. This is great news for Mountaineer Nation, whose fandom for baseball has been rejuvenated with the team’s success!

MORGANTOWN, West Virginia -- D1Baseball released its weekly Top 25 Rankings and the West Virginia Mountaineers have entered the Top 10! West Virginia is 39-13 overall and sits atop the Big 12 Conference with a 15-6 record, and they are now ranked #6 in the latest rankings. The Mountaineers are coming off yet another series win this past weekend against Texas Tech, who they beat 5-3 yesterday. West Virginia is back in action on Thursday, May 18 at Texas to finish their regular season schedule. https://twitter.com/d1baseball/status/1658095386790092800?s=20

(Photo by WVU Athletics)  According to Gold and Blue Nation, the stadium attendance record for Monongalia Couny Ballpark was set today with 4,387 fans showing up for WVU’s matchup against Oklahoma. https://twitter.com/GoldAndBlueNtn/status/1654969760843550721?s=20 The Mountaineers have had an incredible season thus far, sitting with a 35-11 record and a 10-game winning streak that is best in the nation. West Virginia University is quickly becoming a baseball school!

MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — The West Virginia Mountaineers have moved up to just outside the top ten in the latest Division 1 baseball rankings! The Mountaineers, currently 33-11 overall and 11-4 in the Big 12 Conference, are #12 in the latest Top 25! West Virginia is 9-1 in its last 10 games and are back in action this Wednesday, May 3rd at Mon County Park against the Pitt Panthers in the Backyard Brawl baseball style! https://twitter.com/voicemorgantown/status/1653036268979208193?s=46&t=USDKe35TLtcCPitgUlQ1PA https://twitter.com/NCAABaseball/status/1653026341791383552?s=20