It’s a new year for the Kentucky Wildcats, a school that’s turned into a budding powerhouse in the SEC over the past few years. But last year was a complicated one for Kentucky, who nearly ousted West Virginia in the Regionals before the Mountaineers pushed back and knocked the former out. Heading into a new year, the 2027 Wildcats will have a different look.
The Returnees
The Wildcats lost 2026 seniors Jaxon Jelkin and Nile Adcock, the two pitchers who led Kentucky in strikeouts. But the school will see Ben Cleaver return for his own senior season.
Cleaver was a workhorse for Kentucky two seasons ago, when he punched out 92 over 83 innings. But last season, Cleaver worked just 45 innings in 14 starts. The left-hander went more than five innings in a start once last season, which happened on May 1 against Tennessee. He walked 28 batters.
Aside from Cleaver, two other notable junior pitchers are back for Kentucky. Those two would be Nate Harris and Burkley Bounds. Harris worked as a starting pitcher for the Wildcats in each of the past two seasons. Last year, he struck out 43 over 46 innings. Bounds, meanwhile, struck out 27 over 19 innings in a relief role for Kentucky.
Will Coleman, Chase Alderman, and Leighton Harris are also among the returning pitchers.
The offense is going to look a little different. Luke Lawrence and Owen Jenkins are gone, while Tyler Bell was taken in the first round by the Colorado Rockies. Yet, the Wildcats will return many of their regulars from the 2026 campaign.
Team hits leader Jayce Tharnish is back. Tharnish notched 84 hits, 22 of which went for extra-base hits last season. He’ll be joined by senior Ethan Hindle, whose 12 home runs from last season wound up leading the Wildcats.
Hudson Brown slashed .333/.475/.553 with seven home runs as a sophomore for the Wildcats in 2026.
The Newcomers
Power is a hard resource to come by in Lexington. So, it made sense to add some in the transfer market, and Kentucky did with senior JP Peltier.
Peltier hit 30 home runs over the last two seasons, 20 of which came with the Wright State team that had a Cinderella story during the 2025 tournament. There is some swing-and-miss in his game. Peltier posted a 31.9% Whiff% in the Cape Cod League this past summer, and struck out 123 times over the last two years with the Raiders.
Infielder Lee Ellis bounced around over his collegiate career. Ellis started at South Carolina, went to Ohio State afterwards, and is now back in the SEC with Kentucky. This past season with the Buckeyes, the infielder led Ohio State in stolen bases (17) and notched 44 hits.
The Wildcats also landed now-junior outfielder Alex Kelsey from Saint Joseph’s University in the A-10. Kelsey was tied for the team lead in hits (81) last season for the Hawks in a year in which he batted .373 with a .489 on-base percentage.
As for the pitching newcomers, the Georgia Bulldogs landed one of Maryland’s top two strikeout men from 2026. The other landed in Lexington, as Logan Hastings is now with the Wildcats. Last season with the Terrapins, Hastings finished with a team-high 71 strikeouts over 62 innings.
Kentucky’s roster includes 10 freshmen, most notably Grayson Willoughby and catcher Carson May. Willoughby was pounding high school hitters with a mid-90s fastball before he moved to the collegiate ranks.
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