The Terps lost seven players from last year’s team to the MLB.
Last year, Maryland baseball posted one of its most successful seasons in the last decade, led by a star-studded roster.
The Terps ruled the Big Ten, winning the Big Ten regular season title and the Big Ten Tournament championship.
They also finished the season with a 42-21 overall record and made the NCAA Tournament Winston-Salem Regional, but ultimately fell short, as No. 1-seeded Wake Forest won the region.
Despite a disappointing ending, Maryland was one of the best teams in the country last year.
The Terps saw some notable departures following the season’s conclusion, though. Head coach Rob Vaughn packed his bags for Tuscaloosa, Alabama, becoming the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. Additionally, seven Terps made the leap to professional baseball, including Maryland’s top three hitters: shortstop Matt Shaw, third baseman Nick Lorusso and catcher Luke Shliger.
As a result, this year’s team has experienced a major drop-off in success. Matt Swope serves as the new head coach, but the real issue lies in the fact that the current roster has failed to fill the void left by last year’s stars.
Maryland currently sits in seventh place in the Big Ten with a 10-11 conference record, and is in danger of completely missing out on the Big Ten Tournament. While the team has a 34-19 overall record, it has faced a much easier schedule than last year and struggled against weaker opponents.
As well, Shaw, Lorusso and Shliger played three of the most important positions on the diamond, and their replacements have been significantly less productive.
Shortstop
In 2023, Shaw, one of the greatest players to ever don a Maryland uniform, occupied shortstop. He holds the program record for career home runs (53), extra-base hits (102) and total bases (432).
Selected by the Chicago Cubs with the 13th overall pick in July, Shaw became the highest-drafted player in program history. He currently plays Double-A ball with the Tennessee Smokies and is ranked No. 44 in the MLB.com prospect rankings.
In 2024, Maryland replaced Shaw with a familiar face: Kevin Keister, who spent the last two seasons as the starting second baseman. He assumed a leadership role role this year, being named team captain and bestowing the No. 3 jersey, which represents the three pillars the program embodies: ownership, toughness and a growth mindset.
However, Keister has put up his worst statistical season offensively as a starter, which also dwarfs in comparison to Shaw’s production. Shaw was statistically better than Keister in every category except strikeouts.
The table below compares the total and per-game statistics of Shaw in 2023 and Keister in 2024.
The table below compares Keister’s total and per-game statistics in each of his three seasons as a starter.
Third Base
In 2023, Lorusso posted one of the best individual seasons in program history, totaling 100 hits, 26 home runs, 105 RBIs, 202 total bases and 48 extra-base hits, each of which were single-season program records.
Lorusso was drafted in the ninth round, 276th overall, in the 2023 MLB draft by the New York Mets. He currently plays for the Mets’ high-A affiliate, the Brooklyn Cyclones.
This season, Chris Hacopian has been the team’s third baseman, and is in the midst of a solid freshman campaign. Hacopian was originally committed to Wake Forest, but flipped to Maryland to stay home and play with his brother, Eddie.
In all fairness, Hacopian was never expected to match Lorusso’s production as a freshman; however, Lorusso was still better in every statistical category except hit-by-pitches and strikeouts.
Below is the comparison between Lorusso last year and Hacopian this year.
Despite Hacopian’s inferior stats, he’s been a fantastic addition and is tied for the team-lead in home runs with 14.
Catcher
Shliger was Maryland’s catcher and captain in 2023. He wore the No. 3 jersey and was incredibly impactful at a position that’s particularly vital. Last season, Shliger broke the program single-season record for runs scored (93), walks (69) and hit-by-pitches (24). He also holds the program record for career walks (138) and runs scored (189).
Shliger was selected in the sixth round, 180th overall, of the MLB Draft by the San Francisco Giants. He currently plays for the Giants’ single-A affiliate, the San Jose Giants.
This year, Maryland’s catching situation has been a mess. Three different players have attempted to replace Shliger, but the void is still glaring.
Devin Russell has been Maryland’s primary catcher, and entered the season with high expectations. Swope has repeated that Russell had “the best fall I’ve ever seen,” and earned the starting job because of it. But the spring has not been nearly as kind to Russell, as he’s just barely hitting over .200.
Meanwhile, Alex Calarco transferred from Northwestern to be a catcher, first baseman and designated hitter. However, he didn’t catch until March 25 because he was recovering from offseason shoulder surgery, but he’s been a mainstay in Maryland’s lineup since then. Calarco has looked great at times, but he has often struggled at the plate.
Lastly, Charlie Glennon was brought in from a Division III program to compete for the starting catcher role. He’s been more of a backup catcher, but has seen a bit of action this season. Typically described as a defensive catcher, his offensive stats don’t size up very well.
In comparing Shliger to this year’s catching core, he outshines them in every offensive category.
Below is a breakdown of Shliger’s 2023 season and Russell, Calarco and Glennon this year.
Hitting from Maryland’s catchers this season has been a major flaw, amplifying Shliger’s departure.
Overall team hitting
Maryland’s pitching this year has been slightly better than last year, so the drop in success can primarily be attributed to its fall-off on the offense.
No longer are the Terps able to win games 25-11. When they give up more than 10 runs, it’s almost a foregone conclusion that they are going to lose, as Maryland is 2-7 when doing so.
Maryland’s offense was better in 2023 than 2024 in every category. Below is the stat breakdown between the overall team hitting from last year to this year.
Three things to know
1. Matt Shaw in 2024. Shaw has a .204 batting average, .694 OPS, 17 RBIs and three home runs in 31 games for the Smokies.
2. Nick Lorusso in 2024. Lorusso has a .277 batting average, .820 OPS, 16 RBIs and two home runs in 25 games for the Cyclones.
3. Luke Shliger in 2024. Shliger has a .241 batting average, .735 OPS and eight RBIs in 22 games for the Giants.