After a postseason appearance last spring, the Kentucky Wildcats men’s baseball team’s hopes of making the 2018 NCAA Tournament fell short. The Wildcats were among the “last four out” to just miss the bubble.
Head coach Nick Mingione saw his team fall from 43-23 last season to 34-22 this year. The Wildcats also fell from 19-11 in SEC play (2nd in the East) to 13-18 in SEC play (5th in the East).
It wasn’t long ago that Kentucky was ranked in the top-10. The Cats also finished the season with 16 wins over top-50 RPI teams.
However, losing multiple arms in their rotation and finishing with a negative record in SEC play didn’t help their case. Losing four of their last five (including a first-round loss in the SEC Tournament) also led to the crash of their stock.
The light does get brighter, however, as the Wildcats will play in their new stadium next season. The team will move from the 24-year old Cliff Hagan Stadium to a new $49 million dollar stadium that will be located next to the new Kentucky Football Training Facility.