In these times, no. In the past when he wouldn't be paid simply for showing up, maybe.
Tracy Woodson Out as UR Baseball Coach - Mik Aoki Hired
- Thread starter MDspider8
- Start date
Severna Park, where I grew up, is a solid baseball program in the State of MD. They churn out a lot
of top level kids. I wish him well.
Only know about this one because the baseball instagram account tagged him in a post - we have another grad transfer OF for this upcoming year in Aaron Whitley from D3 University of Rochester. Has great career numbers and last year slashed .377/.448/.587 with 63 hits, 25 RBI, and 23 stolen bases. Had an insane season in 2021, where he was a 2nd team All-American and conference POY, with an unbelievable slash line of .475/.572/.847.
Should be a no-doubt starter with those numbers at the D3 level.
uofrathletics.com
Should be a no-doubt starter with those numbers at the D3 level.
Aaron Whitley - Baseball - University of Rochester Athletics
Aaron Whitley (15) Outfield - At UR 2023: Finished the year as Rochester's top hitter, appearing in and starting all 42 contests...Earned ABCA Third-Team All-Region
uofrathletics.com
He's from next to my home town (Granby, CT), although technically I was born in East Granby. Impressive since that is such a small town. They have a HS of about 150 kids.
Looks like we are starting to update the 2024 roster on the official website, as a lot of newcomers are starting to get added in. Most notably, there are three new transfer additions that we hadn't found out about yet:
1: Connor Larson, IF, Junior - Wofford transfer. A bench infielder who had a .154/.365/.205 slash line in 34 games over two years at Wofford (10 starts).
2. R.J. Rickabaugh, C, Sophomore - Notre Dame transfer. Didn't see action in his freshman year with the Irish.
3. Kyle Roche, RHP, Grad Student - Franklin & Marshall transfer. Had a great season in 2021, was a second team All-American with a 7-0 record and a 1.00 ERA over 45 innings. Came back to earth a bit over the last few years, posting a 5.40 ERA in 2022 and a 4.33 ERA last year, but there's clearly talent here. 6'8, 230 lbs.
Bernstein, Elko, Kraemer, Peacock, Sannes, Shockley, Siesky, Whitley, and Ymker are all accounted for, but this is still clearly being finalized. Still, looks like we'll have at least 12 transfers and 6 freshman - 18 newcomers vs. 18 returners as of now.
richmondspiders.com
woffordterriers.com
fightingirish.com
godiplomats.com
1: Connor Larson, IF, Junior - Wofford transfer. A bench infielder who had a .154/.365/.205 slash line in 34 games over two years at Wofford (10 starts).
2. R.J. Rickabaugh, C, Sophomore - Notre Dame transfer. Didn't see action in his freshman year with the Irish.
3. Kyle Roche, RHP, Grad Student - Franklin & Marshall transfer. Had a great season in 2021, was a second team All-American with a 7-0 record and a 1.00 ERA over 45 innings. Came back to earth a bit over the last few years, posting a 5.40 ERA in 2022 and a 4.33 ERA last year, but there's clearly talent here. 6'8, 230 lbs.
Bernstein, Elko, Kraemer, Peacock, Sannes, Shockley, Siesky, Whitley, and Ymker are all accounted for, but this is still clearly being finalized. Still, looks like we'll have at least 12 transfers and 6 freshman - 18 newcomers vs. 18 returners as of now.
2024 Baseball Roster - University of Richmond Athletics
The official 2024 Baseball Roster for the University of Richmond Spiders
Connor Larson - Baseball - Wofford College Athletics
Connor Larson (45) Infielder - 2023: Played in 22 games with 10 starts… Hit .132 with five hits, one triple, four RBI and 13 runs scored… Made season debut as a
woffordterriers.com
RJ Rickabaugh
fightingirish.com
Kyle Roche - 2023 - Baseball - Franklin & Marshall College
Kyle Roche (36) RHP - Career Honors Edward Garrigues '25 Outstanding Male Senior Athlete Award (2023) Second-team D3Baseball.com All-American (2021) Third-team
godiplomats.com
Well, regarding the construction of the roster, he really had no choice. We lost 18 players from last years roster, including 6/9 lineup regulars and the entire pitching rotation besides one player. It is exciting to see that many of the transfers are multi-year guys from P5 schools as opposed to one year guys, though.
Hopefully he'll be able to make some of his goals a reality when it comes to stadium upgrades, fan/viewing experience, etc.
Good for him and we wish him the best. But you can't keep an underperforming coach on staff just because his kid - who certainly was not guaranteed to play for his dad - is talented.
Got an e-news letter from Aoki the other day.
Spider Baseball friends and family,
I hope this note finds you and yours doing well. Classes at UR are up and running, as is our baseball activity. The student-athletes are lifting three times each week and they come to Pitt to hit, field, throw pens, etc., a few times each week as well. The hitting facility is an excellent place for our student-athletes to get their work in – rain or shine! We will start team practices on Friday, September 22. We plan to scrimmage every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday until the first weekend of November. If you’re around, please come out to see us.
This year marks one of significant transitions for Spider Baseball, but we also have some stability. We have 18 new players and a new head coach. We did, however, retain all our assistants and we have 18 returners. To return 18 players to a team that underwent a head coaching change is remarkable in the age of the Portal. It speaks volumes about the University of Richmond and the fact that our players are truly committed to both academics and athletics and not just the latter.
We will have a casual Alumni gathering during Family Weekend (this Friday, September 29). We’ll have a scrimmage followed by an opportunity to socialize. If you’re in the area or traveling from out of town to UR for the football game against Campbell, please come by the field. We will have an official Alumni weekend in the Spring with one of our home weekends.
I’d like to recognize Vinny Capra, who debuted with the Blue Jays in 2022 and got his first extra base hit in late August now with the Pirates. How awesome! It’s so great to have another Spider make it to the Show. He spent some time under the tutelage of fellow Spider, Mark Budzinski, who is the hitting coach for the Jays. Pretty cool twist of fate in my book.
I am excited to see our players work this fall. Our practices are always open to you, so please drop by if you’re in town. Our weekly schedule after the 22nd will be practices on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Midweek workouts will start around 2:30pm and weekends will be around 11:00am.
Thank you, as always, for your support of Spider Baseball as we make our climb back to the top of the Atlantic 10.
Go Spiders!
Mik Aoki
You're right but I don't think anyone was suggesting that. It was past time to move on. and I don't see the son playing for dad at UR if he was still the coach. But I didn't realize he had a prospect son. Not really a surprise either, but still relevant to post & good to know, plus he's at a local HS.
Thx for sharing the Aoki email
It sounds as if we are investing in our baseball program. Is the "Director of Baseball Operations/Player Development" a new position?
College baseball perfectly fits our academic demographic. No excuse for us not excelling.
College baseball perfectly fits our academic demographic. No excuse for us not excelling.
