WVU Baseball Opening Day Lineup Projection

Five starters need replacing in the Mountaineer nine.

Photo by Christopher Hall-Mountaineer Maven

The West Virginia baseball team has a lot of production to replace in 2020 but there is enough young talent in the program for the Mountaineers to still have an outstanding season.

Replacing three out of the four outfielders who played the majority of last year’s games, one starting infielder, and the starting catcher, there is quite a bit of opportunity for newcomers to find their way onto the field early for coach Randy Mazey.

As the season opener nears on Friday, it’s time to take a look at who may be striding to the plate for the Mountaineers against Jacksonville.

Catcher

West Virginia has one catcher returning with Division I baseball experience. Luckily, it’s All-Big 12 preseason team member, Paul McIntosh.

The Miami Gardens, Florida native was a major injection of power into the lineup last year, leading the team with ten home runs and driving in 34 runs as the designated hitter. Continuing his high output from his time at Motlow State Community College, McIntosh became an important run producer in a Mountaineer lineup that needed big bats in the middle of the order.

His ability to hit for power and average, picking up hits at a .277 clip last season, look to give McIntosh not only potential Big 12 honors, but also the possibility of joining eight of his former teammates in the professional ranks with a strong performance this season.

There are a lot of question marks for West Virginia this season but if there is a sure bet on the field, it's Paul McIntosh behind the plate.

Corner Infield

The Mountaineers only need to replace one starter but it's a big pair of shoes to fill with veteran starting first baseman Marques Inman no longer with the program. Thankfully for coach Mazey’s sake, one returning starter has the ability to move across the diamond and fill that role.

Kevin Brophy will be relied on even more in 2020 as a middle of the lineup producer. The senior spent the majority of his time at third a year ago but often slid over to first as a defensive replacement late in games and made 14 starts at the position in 2018.

Brophy cranked nine home runs in 2019 and will look to pair with McIntosh as the power hitters in the middle of West Virginia’s lineup. His move to first will also facilitate the introduction to the lineup of one of the most promising young players on the roster.

That will be the freshman taking over at third base, Matt McCormick. McCormick comes in as one of the most talented and well-regarded freshman in recent memory for the Mountaineers.

Earning Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year honors and a First-Team All-American nod from Collegiate Baseball Magazine as a senior, the newcomer is expected to be the catcher of the future for West Virginia but has experience at third base and has too strong of a bat to keep out of the lineup.

The addition of McCormick makes for a strong pair of bats at the infield corners and some athletic versatility in the field as well.

Middle Infield

This is one of the few places where West Virginia can say everything looks to be nailed down. With All-Big 12 preseason selection Tyler Doanes back at second base and sophomore Tevin Tucker returning after starting all 60 games at shortstop a year ago, it looks to be another spectacular season up the middle for the Mountaineers.

Doanes is emerging as one of the best players West Virginia has seen in a while, now entering his third season as a starter and coming off of a year in which he led the team in batting average and saw a major increase in power with 21 doubles.

Additionally, his athleticism lends to an advantage both on the bases and in the field, swiping 20 bags and collecting a .944 fielding percentage in 2019.

His double play partner will be Tucker who became an integral part of the lineup last year as a freshman. He struggled to get on base with the bat in his first season but made up for it with a careful eye at the plate, drawing a team-high 39 walks and bringing his on-base percentage all the way up to .365.

Tucker also showed an aptitude for web gems as a freshman as well, making more than one outstanding play in the field for the Mountaineers.

With the return of both middle infielders for West Virginia, as well as McIntosh at catcher, there is certainly an argument to be had that the Mountaineers’ biggest strength will be up the middle in 2020.

Outfield

Technically, West Virginia will have to replace all three starters in the outfield this season. However, there are two extremely experienced and talented players that will be able to fill a pair of those spots this season.

One of the biggest factors that will help this group of inexperienced Mountaineers is the return to the lineup of Braden Zarbnisky. The two-way star missed the entire 2019 season with injury and his extra year of eligibility makes the loss of Brandon White and Darius Hill to the pros a little less impactful.

“Zarbs” will help the Mountaineer bullpen lock down wins in the later innings but his contributions in right field will be just as important. The senior spent the majority of his time in left field the last few years but his strong arm and range will make him a perfect replacement for Hill on the right side.

TJ Lake is graduated and gone, but luckily West Virginia still has Austin Davis, a sophomore who platooned in left with Lake late in the 2019 season. With a full-time role available, Davis could be seen by some as a breakout candidate in 2020.

As a freshman, Davis acquitted himself well, improving considerably over the course of the season with his coup de grace coming in the NCAA Regional, replacing the injured Brandon White against Texas A&M, going 1 for 2 with a double, a stolen base, and a run scored.

He will combine with Zarbnisky to put together one of the Big 12 conferences best base-stealing duo as well, swiping 12 bags last season while his counterpart took 27 in 2018.

The third, and often most important, a spot in the outfield will more than likely be filled by another freshman. All signs point to West Virginia’s opening day centerfielder being newcomer Victor Scott.

Scott is a native of Powder Springs, Georgia and considered one of the biggest gets of Mazey’s 21st ranked recruiting class. His performance in the spring only served to reinforce that he will be ready to play right away and profiles as the type of player that will do big things in the style of play the Mountaineers employ.

The outfield holds the biggest questions for West Virginia in 2020 but the return of a former stalwart will help and a pair of young upstarts have the chance to make this a position of strength in the coming season.

West Virginia baseball is going to take some time to get things figured out while replacing five starters. Once the newcomers and youngsters come along, there could be as much talent in this lineup as the Mountaineers have put on the field in quite a while.