Kentucky seeks bounce-back against rival Louisville

Another baseball week gets started on Tuesday for the Kentucky program. The penultimate midweek game of the season has arrived just over a week before the Kentucky Derby. Nick Mingione‘s squad needs to bounce-back after a tough home series loss to Vanderbilt. There will be four Quad 2 opportunities this week.

Each will be on the road.

Before traveling to South Carolina this weekend, Kentucky (26-12, 8-10) will travel to face in-state rival Louisville. UK will be going for the season sweep. The Bat Cats got a masterful pitching performance in a 4-2 win two weeks ago at Kentucky Proud Park in a similar spot. Can they run it back on Tuesday night at Jim Patterson Field?

A big week has arrived for Kentucky baseball. This team needs some quality wins.

Bases Loaded: Kentucky is treading water after another SEC series defeat

What is this week’s pitching plan?

Jaxon Jelkin (6-1, 3.22 ERA, 58.2 IP, 66 K) is Kentucky’s Friday night ace and we know that he will be taking the mound when the series begins against South Carolina this weekend. What we do not know is how the other games will be handled and who will be available.

Nate Harris (4-2, 5.08 ERA, 39 IP, 36 K) popped up on the availability report this week and did not pitch over the weekend. Ben Cleaver (1-3, 4.45 ERA, 28.1 IP, 33 K) also didn’t throw for the first weekend all season against Vanderbilt. Top relievers Jack Bennett (1-2, 5.66 ERA, 20.2 IP, 19 K) and Connor Mattison (2-1, 5.13 ERA, 26.1 IP, 27 K) got weekend starts. The latter put together a third consecutive solid start while the former was pulled in the second inning. Mattison will not be starting this midweek game.

What will the plan be?

Kentucky could give Cleaver a start after giving him the weekend off. From there, the Bat Cats must figure out what to do with the weekend rotation. Getting Harris back is the first priority. Mattison appears poised to the third weekend starter for now. All of these change also impact how the coaching staff manages the bullpen.

This team has a lot of pitching question marks entering the final stretch of the season.

Can Braxton Van Cleave get on a heater?

Braxton Van Cleave (.129/.229/.290, 3 XBH, 35 plate appearances) was a major recruiting win for the Kentucky baseball program in the 2025 recruiting cycle. The Texas native missed his senior high school season, but was a top-300 recruit, and seen as one of the best prospects in the Lone Star State. D1 Baseball and Perfect Game each had Van Cleave as a top-100 freshman in the sport this season.

At 6-foot-3 and swinging from the left side, Van Cleave projects to have the tools to become a slugger who can produce extra-base hits consistently and become a top guy in the Kentucky lineup. This young player generates easy power. We hadn’t really seen that power until this past weekend.

The true freshman earned three designated hitter starts against Vanderbilt. Van Cleave finished the SEC series hitting 3-12 with one double, one home runs, and six RBI.

The rookie likely earned some more at-bats. Van Cleave could receive some in the middle of Kentucky’s lineup against Louisville.

Bio Blast: Louisville Cardinals

Ole Miss assistant coach Dan McDonnell became a head coach for the first time following the 2006 season. McDonnell took a job at Louisville and inherited a program with just one NCAA Tournament appearance. To say he has flipped this program would be an understatement.

McDonnell is now in year 20 at Louisville. The head coach has led this program to 14 postseason appearances, nine conference regular season titles, two conference tournament titles, and six College World Series berths. The Cards are still searching for a national championship but have become a true nationally relevant program under McDonnell.

Louisville (22-18, 7-11) entered this season with extremely high expectations after making a run to Omaha as a No. 2 seed in the tournament in 2025. The Cards have some work to do to secure an at-large bid in 2026. This team is coming short of those expectations. The latest UofL team can absolutely rake but has some real pitching issues this season. McDonnell’s club enters this game ranked No. 118 in RPI and is fresh off a long West Coast road trip to Berkeley where they lost another ACC series.

Who To Watch For: Louisville Cardinals

— Jake Bean (RHP | 6-3, 190): A former All-MAC selection at Kent State, Bean has started games and come out of the bullpen for Louisville this season. The 20-year-old has a high ERA (7.58) and WHIP (1.68) across 29.2 innings with 26 strikeouts and 18 free passes. Bean did not pitch over the weekend after giving UofL five innings in a midweek start against WKU last week. Expect to see him on the mound on Tuesday.

— Tague Davis (1B | L/L | 6-4, 220): The Pennsylvania native and former top-150 recruit started 62 games for Louisville as a true freshman and earned Freshman All-American honors. Davis recorded 18 home runs and 52 RBI on a .283/.390/.571 slash line for a College World Series team. Those numbers have all improved in year two. Davis has clubbed 24 home runs across 186 plate appearances this season on 61 total hits. The slugger is slashing a ridiculous .389/.478/.911. Davis has been one of the best players in college baseball this season. This left-handed hitter is fresh off a three home run game.

Tague FOR THE THIRD TIME‼️

T8 | Cards 8, Bears 5

📺 ACCNX#GoCards pic.twitter.com/nTQ3YSauwR

— Louisville Baseball (@LouisvilleBSB) April 19, 2026

— Zion Rose (DH | R/R | 6-1, 200): The Chicago native was an All-ACC selection in 2025 when he slashed .310/.396/.552 with 32 extra-base hits over 301 plate appearances and 31 stolen bases. The outfielder has dealt with injuries for most of 2026, but is back in the lineup and has 10 extra-base hits across 83 plate appearances with 14 stolen bases. Rose is a dangerous hitter with speed.

How To Watch: Kentucky at Louisville

Another midweek game has arrived. Louisville will host Kentucky in another edition of the rivalry before a big road SEC series against South Carolina.

The ACC Network will have the call.

Date	Opponent	Venue	Time	Broadcast
April 21 (Tuesday)	Louisville	Jim Patterson Field	7 p.m. ET	ACC Network