Virginia Begins Nine-Game Homestand Wednesday

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia (3-0) will play its home opener on Wednesday (Feb. 23) when VMI visits Disharoon Park. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. and the game will be carried live on ACCNX.

GAME COVERAGE: ACCNX is available to authenticated subscribers of the ACC Network through the ESPN app and ESPN.com. Links to live stats are available on VirginiaSports.com. Fans can get in-game updates on the team’s official twitter page (@UVABaseball).

PARKING INFORMATION
Due to the men’s basketball game against Duke at John Paul Jones Arena on Wednesday evening, baseball fans without a men’s basketball parking pass will have to vacate the JPJ South lot by 5:30 p.m. and the JPJ West lot by 4 p.m. Vehicles that are not vacated will be subject to towing.

Baseball fans are encouraged to utilize the Emmett/Ivy garage for free parking with no vacate times. The ParkMobile app is needed to take advantage of free parking. Use the access code “UVABaseball2022” for this date. Those who do not have the ParkMobile app, can register for free parking in advance online at https://uva.pmreserve.com/ and follow the instructions here.

Courtesy shuttles from the intersection of Copeley Road and Coogan Way, as well as a shuttle from the Klöckner Stadium ticket office, will be running one hour prior and one hour after the game.

PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
Wednesday – 3 p.m.
VMI: RHP Tyler Kaltreider (0-0, 2.43 ERA, 3.2 IP, 2 BB, 8 SO)
Virginia: RHP Devin Ortiz (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 2.0 IP, 0 BB, 4 SO)

LEADING OFF

• VMI serves as the opponent in Virginia’s home opener for the sixth time in the last seven seasons.
• UVA is 3-0 for the first time since 2017 and the eighth time (2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2022) under Brian O’Connor.
• The Cavaliers are 15-3 in home openers at Disharoon Park since 2004.
• Virginia and VMI will meet for the 141^st time on Wednesday. The Cavaliers own a 108-32 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to 1889, the first year of Virginia baseball.
• UVA has won four-straight and is 15-5 against the Keydets in the O’Connor era.

HOT START

• Virginia is one of 62 D-1 college baseball programs to come out of opening weekend without a loss. All but five ACC schools have started the year undefeated.
• Over the course of three games at the Jerry Bryson Classic hosted by Gardner-Webb, Virginia allowed three runs, 11 hits and did not commit an error 109 chances.
• It marked only the second time since 2000 that Virginia has started the season errorless through the first three games (2016). The Cavaliers committed their first error in 2016 in the fourth game against VMI.

ON THE MOUND

• The Cavaliers recorded consecutive shutouts at the Jerry Bryson Classic to open the season for only the second time in program history (2009).
  • It marked the first time since 2019 (March 2 vs. Seton Hall & March 4 vs. Wagner) that Virginia pitched consecutive shutouts.
• Virginia is one of six teams in the country to record multiple shutouts on opening weekend (Texas Southern-3, Belmont, Sacramento St., Tennessee & UCF).
• The three runs surrendered by Virginia in the first three games are the fewest since allowing one in the first three games of the 2009 season.
• UVA pitchers allowed 11 hits over its first three games, tied for the fourth-fewest by any program in the country.

Fewest Hits Allowed to Start Season (2022)

ORTIZ’S FIRST START OF 2022

• Righthander Devin Ortiz will make his first start on the mound since his start against ODU in the 2021 Columbia Regional Final. He was named the regional’s most outstanding player after pitching four shutout innings and eventually hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10^th to send Virginia to the the super regionals.
• His pitching career will come full circle on Wednesday. His first career win on the mound came in his second collegiate appearance on Feb. 27, 2018 against VMI as a true freshman.
• Ortiz has not allowed an earned run in his last 27.1 innings pitched, a streak that started back in 2019. His last earned run came on April 20, 2019 against Florida State.

LAST MEETING

• On Feb. 23, 2021, Virginia erased a 3-0 deficit in the second inning and scored 14 consecutive runs over the next seven turns at the plate to secure their fourth-straight win over VMI.
• Chris Newell hit his second career grand slam in the sixth inning as part a five-run sixth inning. Newell went 2-for-5 with a double, home run, two runs scored and four RBI in the contest.
• Eight different pitchers combined to strikeout 18 VMI batters in the contest. It was the first of five different occasions that Virginia struck out 18 or more batters during the 2021 season.

ON THE BASEPATHS

• Chris Newell stole three bases in the season opener against Bellarmine, the first UVA player to steal three in a game since 2017 when Adam Haseley swiped three against VCU on March 29.
• Newell’s three stolen bases are tied for the most in the ACC.
• Newell’s .923 career stolen base percentage (24-26) is the third highest of any Cavalier with 20 or more attempts since 2000.

SB Pct. Since 2000 (Min. 20 attempts)

Other Cavalier Notables

• Virginia climbed up to No. 4 in the Baseball America Top-25. The Cavaliers ascended as high as No. 2 after the first week of action last season according to Baseball America.
• Catcher Kyle Teel reached safely in all three games of the Jerry Bryson Classic, extending his reached base streak to 29 games that dates back to the 2021 season.
• Freshman Casey Saucke homered in his first collegiate game, serving as the designated hitter against Gardner-Web. He leads the team with a .571 batting average (4-for-7) going into midweek action.
• At the plate Devin Ortiz is five hits away for 100 for his career.