Cavaliers Now

Report: Virginia Relief Pitcher Chase Hungate Enters Transfer Portal

Matt Newton

Chase Hungate throws a pitch during the Virginia baseball game vs. Florida State at the ACC Tournament in Charlotte.
Chase Hungate throws a pitch during the Virginia baseball game vs. Florida State at the ACC Tournament in Charlotte. / Scott Kinser-USA TODAY Sports

Virginia baseball lost a key piece from its pitching staff as right-handed relief pitcher Chase Hungate reportedly entered the transfer portal on Wednesday night. Perhaps UVA's top bullpen arm on the team's run to the College World Series, Hungate should immediately become one of the top pitching names in the transfer portal. Hungate was the second Cavalier pitcher to enter the portal on Wednesday, joining sophomore righty Cullen McKay.

This will be the second time into the transfer portal for Hungate, a 6'1" righty from Abingdon, Virginia who began his career at VCU before transferring to UVA in 2022. Over the last two seasons as a Cavalier, Hungate appeared in 46 total games and pitched 78.0 total innings, but his role increased significantly from 2023 to 2024.

After logging 16 appearances and 25.0 innings last season, Hungate emerged as Virginia's top reliever in 2024, appearing in 30 games and pitching 53.0 innings. He lowered his ERA from 5.76 to 3.74 and recorded 37 strikeouts to 13 walks. Hungate posted a 7-2 record and recorded two saves, both of which came in the NCAA Tournament as he finished off key victories against Penn and Kansas State.

Hungate was called out of the bullpen in the bottom of the seventh with a runner on second base and two outs in a 2-2 game against North Carolina in the College World Series. He got the Cavaliers out of that jam and retired the first four batters he faced, but then surrendered a leadoff double to start the bottom of the ninth and ultimately gave up the walk-off RBI single to Vance Honeycutt that gave the Tar Heels a 3-2 victory over Virginia. That was Hungate's first and only run he gave up in the NCAA Tournament in 8.1 innings pitched.

It didn't seem likely that Friday's outing would be Hungate's last as a Cavalier, as he has another year of eligibility remaining, would be one of Virginia's top pitchers on staff next year, and could have probably competed for a spot in the starting rotation if he wanted. Instead, Hungate enters the transfer portal and UVA loses a pitcher who ranked second on the team in ERA (minimum 15 innings), fourth in strikeouts, third in innings pitched, and second in total appearances.

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Matt Newton

MATT NEWTON

Managing Editor and Publisher, CavaliersNow Email: mattnewton@virginia.eduTwitter: @mattynewtssWebsite | LinkedIn | Instagram Matt Newton is the managing editor and publisher at CavaliersNow. He has been covering UVA athletics since 2019 and has been the managing editor at CavaliersNow since launching the site in August 2021. Matt covers all things UVA sports, including Virginia basketball and football news and recruiting, former Wahoos in the pros, and coverage of all 23 of the NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. A native of Downingtown, Pennsylvania, Matt grew up a huge Philadelphia sports fan, but has also been a UVA sports fanatic his entire life thanks to his parents, who are alums of the University of Virginia. Matt followed in his parents' footsteps and attended UVA from 2017-2021, graduating with a degree in Media Studies and a minor in Economics in May of 2021.