Brotherhood and Bulldogs: The Valincius brothers reunite at Mississippi State

It’s a Saturday afternoon in Wisconsin, and Tomas and Vytas Valincius are spending it like many others in their lifetime.
The two baseball stars are fishing and talking trash about the live at-bats coming in the fall. For the first time in their collegiate careers, they’ll be playing for the same team.

This week, both Tomas and Vytas came together on a recruiting visit to Mississippi State—and they left, along with their families, committed to head coach Brian O’Connor. Vytas had only met O’Connor once before, back when he was recruiting Tomas in high school, so this visit was his first real opportunity to sit down and get to know the coach.

“His intensity is strong,” Vytas said of O’Connor. “He just wants to win, and that’s how I feel, too.”

Trip to Starkville locked down Valincius brothers

It was no secret why O’Connor and his staff wanted a big crowd of transfer visitors on campus this week. Just a few days after landing in Starkville to take over the program, O’Connor went straight to work in the portal—and the first to show interest were players from Virginia.

The Valincius brothers, along with Chone James, Eric Becker, and James Nunnallee, came for visits and were present for the celebration at Dudy Noble Field announcing O’Connor’s hire. What they saw sealed the deal for most of them.

“What sold it for me was going to the ceremony,” Vytas said. “We were walking across home plate and the fans started ringing their bells. It was pretty much a done deal after that. It was beautiful. I couldn’t believe how big the campus and stadium were. I used to live in the South, so I’m kind of used to it. It’s nice to get some southern charm back.”

Unlike the other visitors, Vytas didn’t play his collegiate ball at Virginia. After finishing as one of the top first basemen in the country at Baylor School, he started his career at South Carolina.

Vytas played in five games for USC before tearing his ACL, and he entered the transfer portal after the season. He stepped back and took the junior college route, landing at J.A. Logan CC, where he hit .403 with nine home runs and 58 RBIs.

His second chance in Division I came at Illinois in 2024, where he batted .267 with 52 hits, 10 doubles, and 12 home runs. However, he struck out 51 times and posted an OBP of .396. After working with Illinois’ mental skills coach in the offseason, he rebounded in 2025 with a .348 average, 71 hits, 14 doubles, seven home runs, and only 28 strikeouts.

“As a freshman, I didn’t have the right mentality to play (in the SEC),” Vytas said. “JUCO was probably one of the best seasons I’ve had, and I wouldn’t trade that experience for the world. I hit some home runs and won a Big Ten championship my first year at Illinois, but I didn’t have the mental part right. I’m starting to figure it out now, but I still have steps to take.”

Tomas Valincius brings elite skill set to the mound

Though a few years behind his brother, Tomas went through a similar mental adjustment. After earning Gatorade Player of the Year honors in Tennessee, Tomas landed at Virginia and quickly became one of the Cavaliers’ most promising pitchers.

O’Connor put Tomas in the rotation, and success came early. In his first three starts—against Rice, Oklahoma, and Dartmouth—he threw 17.0 innings, allowed just four runs, walked three, and struck out 25. ACC play, however, proved more difficult, as Tomas couldn’t get through five innings for four straight games.

“I needed to develop more and get better against college guys. I had a couple of good starts and then got rocked three weeks in a row,” Tomas said. “Learning from my mistakes was big. The biggest thing was becoming a pitcher, not just a thrower. Anyone can hit velocity. So when you make mistakes, you have to limit them. Hitting your spots and executing pitches—that’s everything.”

Tomas finished his freshman season 5–1 with a 4.59 ERA in 12 starts. He threw 64.2 innings, walked only 17, and struck out 70. His fastball jumped from the low 90s in high school to 94–96 mph, and his slider earned a 44% swing-and-miss rate.

O’Connor saw the potential in his big lefty from the beginning and never wavered. That confidence made it an easy decision for Tomas to follow him to Starkville. The visit to Mississippi State just confirmed it.

“Coach O’Connor is the best and a big reason I decided to come to Mississippi State,” Tomas said. “At the welcome party, he talked about relationships—and with him, it’s unmatched. He cares about you, wants the best for you, and wants to win.”

Now officially at Mississippi State, Tomas will also work with new pitching coach Justin Parker.

Parker has built a reputation for developing pitchers to their full potential—and doing it quickly. He’s worked with top arms like Khal Stephen, Jurrangelo Cijntje, Tyson Hardin, Pico Kohn, and others.

“I talked to him a lot during the two days I was there, and I’m excited to get started,” Tomas said of Parker. “He seems like a great guy, and I don’t think there’s a better coach for pitchers. I also met (Dane) Burns, (Ryan) McPherson, and Evan Siary—they were very welcoming. We talked a lot about the expectations and what to expect next year. We all can’t wait to get to work.”

Tomas will also have familiar faces on the roster next season. Fellow Virginia freshmen Chone James and James Nunnallee have committed to State. And with his brother on the team—and more Saturday fishing trips and live BP sessions ahead—it’s shaping up to be a fun ride in Starkville.

“I feel like it’s great to have them,” Tomas said. “I got really close with Chone—he was my roommate—and we got to experience college for the first time along with James Nunnallee. And with my brother, being on the team together is going to be huge. We’re most excited to build relationships with the guys on the team and come in ready to do something special.”