Kentucky Baseball Cracks the Top 25 for First Time in 2023

The Kentucky baseball team started off SEC play with a bang. Now they’re receiving some well-deserved recognition as one of the best 25 teams in college baseball.

Kentucky improved to 18-2, winning its 14th straight game with a 17-3 victory over Mississippi State on Sunday. The Wildcats won in extra innings Friday night, then blew out the Bulldogs on Saturday for a third-straight series sweep, and the first of an SEC opponent.

Monday morning Kentucky was in not one, but two Top 25 polls. The Wildcats are ranked No. 23 by D1Baseball and No. 25 by Baseball America. It’s the first time Kentucky has been in the Baseball America Top 25 since 2018.

But wait — THERE’S MORE!

Kentucky currently has the No. 4 RPI in all of college baseball. I will not pretend to know the stats that are punched into the algorithm to create the formula for RPI, but it’s clearly an indication that the Bat Cats are not only winning, they’re putting up impressive numbers while handing opponents Ls.

The Wildcats are scoring 8.7 runs per game with an overall .319 batting average. Hunter Gilliam leads the Cats with 32 hits, 33 RBIs, seven doubles and five home runs while batting .421. Émilien Pitre has a .429 batting average with 30 hits and seven doubles. From the mound UK has a combined 2.88 ERA, with Zack Lee picking up three wins in five starts.

This week the Kentucky baseball team will host EKU Tuesday at Kentucky Proud Park. They’ll return to SEC play this weekend on the road at Alabama, who dropped out of the Top 25 after losing a series 1-2 at No. 2 Florida.

Entering the season pressure was mounting on Nick Mingione, now six years removed from Kentucky’s last NCAA Tournament appearance. There’s still a lot of baseball still to be played, but the Cats have responded with an excellent start to the 2023 campaign.