Baylor Baseball Off to Strong Start in 2025, Looks Ahead to Major Test at Globe Life Field

Baylor baseball is off to its best start since 2019 in head coach Mitch Thompson’s third season at the program's helm. At this exact point last spring, the Bears stumbled out of the starting blocks to a 1-7 record. One year later, Thompson’s veteran squad has completely flipped that number and sits at the 7-1 mark.

While the early season competition — Youngstown State (1-5), UTSA (6-3), Gonzaga (2-4) and Stephen F. Austin (4-5)  — hasn’t been the most challenging, the Bears have taken care of business against inferior opponents, something that wasn’t a foregone conclusion in years past. 

Baylor’s first big test of the season will come this weekend at Globe Life Field in Arlington, where the Bears are set to face No. 8 Oregon State, Ohio State and No. 25 Auburn. Unlike last year’s Opening Weekend trip to Arlington, which saw Baylor get swept, confidence is brewing inside the clubhouse, and vibes are high following a successful start to the spring.

“You’re seeing that we can win games in different ways, and we’re beating different styles of pitching; we’re going out there and doing our thing,” Thompson said on Saturday. “I like that we’re able to win in different ways, and we’re not relying on one or two guys up and down the lineup. … I think everybody’s believing in everybody. It really truly has been complementary baseball.”

Jack Mackenzie - SicEm365.com

Baylor baseball is off to its best start since 2019 in head coach Mitch Thompson’s third season at the program's helm.

Across the first eight games, Baylor has out-scored opponents 68-to-25, and the pitching staff has appeared to take a significant stride forward after back-to-back seasons in which the Bears were toward the bottom of the conference in nearly every pitching category.

“All fall, we threw the ball really well, and we wanted to see some outside competition to see how we fared — I think it’s going really well so far,” Blinn College transfer right-handed pitcher Lucas Davenport (RSo.) said on Saturday.

First baseman Gavin Brzozowski (RSo.) added, “We got our butts kicked in the fall by them, and I’m glad it’s showing now. It’s so much fun to watch and play behind. With no walks — whenever that’s happening — you’re rolling on defense, and it makes the game so much easier.”

The Bears pitched back-to-back shutouts against UTSA on Feb. 18 and Gonzaga on Feb. 21, marking the first time since 2021 Baylor has tossed consecutive shutouts. Some of that success can be attributed to first-year pitching coach Sean Snedeker, whom the players continually rave about at every opportunity.

“The biggest thing with him is that he instills confidence in everybody on the pitching staff,” right-handed pitcher Will Glatch (Sr.) said on Sunday. “He’s the greatest pitching coach I’ve had in my 20-something years playing this game. He literally knows how to make you the most confident and makes you want to perform the best that you can.”

On paper, the senior-heavy batting order was the Bears’ strength going into the season, but so far, the top performer has been a bit unexpected in the form of nine-hole hitter and shortstop Tyriq Kemp (Sr.). Across eight games, Kemp is hitting .520 and leads the team in multi-hit contests (5), extra-base hits (6) and on-base percentage (.606).

“If you can look at your nine-hole and say that he’s batting .500 and he’s putting up the same number of stats as a guy on another team that’s batting one-through-three, that’s a big confidence booster,” designated hitter Hunter Simmons (RSr.) said of Kemp. “Tyriq really is a sparkplug on and off the field. Seeing him have some success gets everybody going.”

Another early-season top performer has been infielder Pearson Riebock (Fr.), who has made just three starts, but his impact is being felt all over the field. Riebock is batting .556 (5-for-9) and is already proving that he’s a tough out at the plate, highlighted by a go-ahead two-run single on Sunday against Gonzaga following a nine-pitch at-bat. 

“He’s going to be a stud; he’s a freshman left-handed bat that plays great defense — middle infield, third base — he’s going to be so good,” Brzozowski said of Riebock. “I’m ready to watch him play a little more and see how he’s going to develop.”

Defensively, Riebock has looked confident and made two potential game-saving plays in Friday’s 4-0 win over Gonzaga, where both times, he charged a tough dribbler down the third base line, fielded it cleanly and delivered a strike to first base.

“He’s not afraid to play; it’s been fun to watch him,” Thompson said of Riebock. “Those two plays on defense at the end of the game were pretty special plays. Those are plays that, if you have any fear, it shows itself, and he handled it great. I was really proud of him for that.”

Baylor’s lone early-season loss came to Gonzaga, 8-7, in extra innings in the series finale on Sunday, Feb. 23. The Bears were ahead going into the ninth inning before a pair of infield singles and a costly throwing error helped give the Bulldogs the late lead. 

Jack Mackenzie - SicEm365.com

Another early-season top performer has been infielder Pearson Riebock (Fr.), who is making an impact all over the field.

Even then, center fielder Ty Johnson (Sr.) delivered a game-tying, one-out RBI triple in the bottom of the ninth but was left stranded at third base before Gonzaga clinched the victory with a run in the 10th inning.

While the loss was avoidable, Thompson and his team believe the back-and-forth contest featuring six lead changes can help them prepare for the challenge ahead this weekend at Globe Life Field.

“It was tough for us,” Glatch said post-game. “We played hard and fought for 10 innings. It sucks to see it, but I’m glad we got to face this today. I think it’s definitely going to help us grow as a team. … We learned a little about ourselves. We’re going to fight back. And if they punch us in the mouth, we’re going to punch right back.”

The Bears (7-1) will travel to Arlington to take on No. 8 Oregon State (5-2) at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 28, at Globe Life Field. Saturday’s contest against Ohio State (1-5) is slated for 2 p.m. on Saturday, and Sunday’s finale is scheduled for 3 p.m. against No. 25 Auburn (8-1). All three games will be streamed on Flo College.

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