2017 College Preseason Top 25 Capsules: No. 7 Louisville

7. Louisville

2016 Record (Ranking): 50-14 (11). RPI: 2.
Coach (Record at school): Dan McDonnell (456-191, 10 years).
Postseason History: 10 regionals (active streak: 5), 3 CWS trips (last in 2014), 0 national titles.

The casual observer might look at all of the premium names Louisville lost from last year’s super regional team—Corey Ray, Zack Burdi, Will Smith, Nick Solak, Drew Harrington, Blake Tiberi and Kyle Funkhouser—and assume 2017 will be nothing more than a rebuilding year.

After all, all seven of those players were picked in the first four rounds of the draft, all of them significant pieces on what was one of the most talented teams in college baseball last season.

But a closer look at Louisville reveals a roster that remains well-stocked with talent. Maybe the Cardinals don’t have quite the embarrassment of riches they had a season ago, but they retain a veteran core and several key players that should keep the team safely among the country’s elite.

“You lose six guys for $11 million, and yeah, you would think the cupboard’s bare, they just got wiped out,” head coach Dan McDonnell said. “But it was unique that we had a lot of other guys that were in the mix or really good role players that now have a chance to step up and be everyday guys.”

Chiefly among those holdovers is junior star Brendan McKay, the top two-way player in the college game the last two years, serving as the team’s lefthanded ace and slugging first baseman. Through two seasons, McKay has been among the best weekend starters in the country, going 21-7, 2.05 and striking out 245 batters to 76 walks in 206.1 career innings. The towering 6-foot-7 junior righthander Kade McClure slots in behind him, coming off a 12-0, 2.54 season as the team’s fourth starter—speaking to the Cardinals’ tremendous pitching depth a year ago.

“I’m looking at teams, and I’m like, I know they’ve got a lot of guys back,” McDonnell said, “But I can argue my first two guys are—holy cow, these two bodies of work that these guys have.”

While it seems more likely that McKay will be drafted as a pitcher, there are evaluators who like him more as a pure hitter, and his offensive game has been just as crucial for the Cardinals. In two years, he has hit .321/.416/.474 with 10 home runs over 439 collegiate at-bats. Along with junior catcher Colby Fitch and junior third baseman Drew Ellis, McKay will be expected to provide much of the thump in the middle of Louisville’s lineup, while junior shortstop Devin Hairston will set the tone at the top.

“I think Fitch, Ellis, McKay are probably three of your double-digit home run guys,” McDonnell said. “On paper, it’s hard to show as much power as we did last year, but I think we’ll be fine offensively.”

Certainly, the Cardinals have their fair share of questions, too. Who, if anyone, can replace Ray’s offensive production from the outfield? At second base, sophomore Devin Mann will have to take over for Solak, one of the team’s leading hitters. Mann showed glimpses last year, replacing Solak when he went down with an injury, but can he sustain that production over a full season? On Sundays, redshirt freshman Bryan Hoeing will throw his first collegiate innings after missing all of last season due to Tommy John surgery. He was highly touted out of high school, but how quickly can he adjust to a higher level of play?

While these Cardinals face more uncertainty than they did a year ago, McDonnell is confident he has answers on his roster. The role players from last season will have to take on larger responsibilities this season, and the Louisville coaching staff has done its best to prepare them for that task.

“I think in college baseball, it’s hard to put a price tag on experience, and where programs struggle is where you have that turnover and then you’re playing a bunch of freshmen,” McDonnell said. “So we like to have that balance of if we have to throw you into the fire, we will, but we hope to get you ready and get you as much experience as we can.”

2017 LINEUP
Pos.	Name, Yr.	AVG	OBP	SLG	HR	RBI	SB
C	Colby Fitch, Jr.	.339	.451	.596	5	25	0
1B	Brendan McKay, Jr.	.333	.414	.513	6	41	0
2B	Devin Mann, So.	.303	.414	.404	0	17	1
3B	Drew Ellis, Jr.	.309	.426	.468	3	22	3
SS	Devin Hairston, Jr.	.361	.415	.478	3	45	3
LF	Ryan Summers, Jr.	.195	.250	.220	0	3	1
CF	Logan Taylor, Sr.	.280	.354	.387	0	18	18
RF	Colin Lyman, Sr.	.301	.364	.392	0	30	9
DH	Logan Wyatt, Fr.	HS—Shepherdsville, K.Y.
Pos.	Name, Yr.	W	L	ERA	IP	SO	SV
LHP	Brendan McKay, Jr.	12	4	2.30	110	128	0
RHP	Kade McClure, Jr.	12	o	2.54	78	77	0
RHP	Bryan Hoeing, R-Fr.	DNP—Injured
RP	Lincoln Henzman, Jr.	0	o	4.50	24	27	1