Louisville players and coaches huddle prior to their game with Notre Dame at Patterson Stadium on May 19, 2018.
Five Cardinals Named Captains for 2019 Season
January 08, 2019 | Baseball
Bennett, Fitzgerald, Pinkham, Smiddy and Wyatt chosen as Louisville baseball captains
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Lefthanded pitcher Nick Bennett, infielder Tyler Fitzgerald, catcher Zeke Pinkham, righty pitcher Shay Smiddy and first baseman Logan Wyatt have been selected by University of Louisville players and coaches as team captains for the Cardinals baseball team in 2019.
The announcement from Louisville baseball head coach Dan McDonnell followed the return to campus for the Cardinals, who kicked off the spring semester with individual skill instruction on Monday. Ranked No. 9 in the Collegiate Baseball newspaper preseason poll released last month, Louisville will continue its individual workouts until Jan. 25, the first day of full-squad practices for NCAA Division I teams.
Bennett, a junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, closed his sophomore season with an 8-2 record, 2.84 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 73.0 innings pitched, including 11 starts. He was an All-ACC Second Team honoree and was an All-ACC Academic Team selection in 2018. During his first collegiate season in 2017, Bennett earned Freshman All-America honors and was an All-ACC Third Team selection while accumulating a 5-1 record, 3.18 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 65.0 innings pitched and 15 total appearances, including 13 starts.
A junior from Rochester, Illinois, Fitzgerald had a .264 batting average with three home runs, 17 doubles, 24 RBIs, 57 runs scored and 23 stolen bases in 24 attempts while playing in all 64 games in 2018, including 63 starts. Fitzgerald was named to the 2018 All-ACC Academic Team.
Hailing from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, Pinkham has made 58 appearances with 26 starts behind the plate during his three seasons with the Cardinals. After missing the 41 games of 2018 recovering from off-season injury, Pinkham closed his junior season with 17 appearances and 11 starts.
Smiddy, a junior from Defiance, Ohio, finished 2018 with a 5-1 record, 2.96 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 45.2 innings pitched and 23 appearances, including four starts. As a freshman in 2017, Smiddy had a 1-0 record and 3.48 ERA in 20.2 innings.
A Louisville native, Wyatt earned Third Team All-America recognition from Collegiate Baseball newspaper and was an All-ACC First Team honoree as a sophomore after hitting .339 with six home runs, 69 RBIs, 22 doubles, 63 walks, 51 runs scored, .559 slugging percentage and .490 on-base percentage. He closed the 2018 season ranked third in the NCAA in walks, 15th in on-base percentage, 17th in RBIs and 18th in doubles. Wyatt was also named to the 2018 NCAA All-Lubbock Regional Team after finishing 6-for-16 with two home runs and 10 RBIs in four NCAA Regional games.
Guided by McDonnell, who is entering his 13th season as head coach, the No. 9 Cardinals are scheduled to open the 2019 season against UConn with a three-game series on Feb. 15-17 at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Florida, the spring training home of the Detroit Tigers. Louisville's home-opener at Jim Patterson Stadium is set for Feb. 20 at 3 p.m., ET against Eastern Kentucky.
2019 LOUISVILLE BASEBALL SEASON TICKETS
After one season of ticketed admission for all home games, the Cardinals are giving free admission back to the fans in 2019. Louisville's 15 ACC games as well as non-conference games against UK and Vanderbilt will be ticketed events at Jim Patterson Stadium. All other non-conference matchups, including games against Ole Miss, Western Kentucky and Xavier, will have free admission.
The 2019 reserved chairback ticket packages, which include one ticket to each of the 17 ticketed games, are priced at $110 for adults, $90 for senior adults/youths and $90 for families of four or more. Season tickets for the Left Field Berm are also available at $50 per ticket. Season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online here, by calling 502-GO-CARDS or by visiting the Louisville Cardinals Ticket Office, located near Gate 2 at Cardinal Stadium (2800 South Floyd Street) on weekdays from 9 a.m., until 5 p.m., ET. Complete details on 2019 UofL baseball tickets can be found at gocards.com/bsbtickets.
FOLLOWING THE CARDINALS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter at @UofLBaseball and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ulbaseball.
The announcement from Louisville baseball head coach Dan McDonnell followed the return to campus for the Cardinals, who kicked off the spring semester with individual skill instruction on Monday. Ranked No. 9 in the Collegiate Baseball newspaper preseason poll released last month, Louisville will continue its individual workouts until Jan. 25, the first day of full-squad practices for NCAA Division I teams.
Bennett, a junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, closed his sophomore season with an 8-2 record, 2.84 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 73.0 innings pitched, including 11 starts. He was an All-ACC Second Team honoree and was an All-ACC Academic Team selection in 2018. During his first collegiate season in 2017, Bennett earned Freshman All-America honors and was an All-ACC Third Team selection while accumulating a 5-1 record, 3.18 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 65.0 innings pitched and 15 total appearances, including 13 starts.
A junior from Rochester, Illinois, Fitzgerald had a .264 batting average with three home runs, 17 doubles, 24 RBIs, 57 runs scored and 23 stolen bases in 24 attempts while playing in all 64 games in 2018, including 63 starts. Fitzgerald was named to the 2018 All-ACC Academic Team.
Hailing from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, Pinkham has made 58 appearances with 26 starts behind the plate during his three seasons with the Cardinals. After missing the 41 games of 2018 recovering from off-season injury, Pinkham closed his junior season with 17 appearances and 11 starts.
Smiddy, a junior from Defiance, Ohio, finished 2018 with a 5-1 record, 2.96 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 45.2 innings pitched and 23 appearances, including four starts. As a freshman in 2017, Smiddy had a 1-0 record and 3.48 ERA in 20.2 innings.
A Louisville native, Wyatt earned Third Team All-America recognition from Collegiate Baseball newspaper and was an All-ACC First Team honoree as a sophomore after hitting .339 with six home runs, 69 RBIs, 22 doubles, 63 walks, 51 runs scored, .559 slugging percentage and .490 on-base percentage. He closed the 2018 season ranked third in the NCAA in walks, 15th in on-base percentage, 17th in RBIs and 18th in doubles. Wyatt was also named to the 2018 NCAA All-Lubbock Regional Team after finishing 6-for-16 with two home runs and 10 RBIs in four NCAA Regional games.
Guided by McDonnell, who is entering his 13th season as head coach, the No. 9 Cardinals are scheduled to open the 2019 season against UConn with a three-game series on Feb. 15-17 at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Florida, the spring training home of the Detroit Tigers. Louisville's home-opener at Jim Patterson Stadium is set for Feb. 20 at 3 p.m., ET against Eastern Kentucky.
2019 LOUISVILLE BASEBALL SEASON TICKETS
After one season of ticketed admission for all home games, the Cardinals are giving free admission back to the fans in 2019. Louisville's 15 ACC games as well as non-conference games against UK and Vanderbilt will be ticketed events at Jim Patterson Stadium. All other non-conference matchups, including games against Ole Miss, Western Kentucky and Xavier, will have free admission.
The 2019 reserved chairback ticket packages, which include one ticket to each of the 17 ticketed games, are priced at $110 for adults, $90 for senior adults/youths and $90 for families of four or more. Season tickets for the Left Field Berm are also available at $50 per ticket. Season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online here, by calling 502-GO-CARDS or by visiting the Louisville Cardinals Ticket Office, located near Gate 2 at Cardinal Stadium (2800 South Floyd Street) on weekdays from 9 a.m., until 5 p.m., ET. Complete details on 2019 UofL baseball tickets can be found at gocards.com/bsbtickets.
FOLLOWING THE CARDINALS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter at @UofLBaseball and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ulbaseball.
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