After Making History in 2024, UConn Baseball Sets Sights on Omaha in 2025
More than 250 guests trekked through wintery conditions to help celebrate the UConn baseball team at a dinner in Plainville. After another successful season in 2024, head coach Jim Penders and the Huskies reflected on last year’s achievements before turning the page to 2025, where the team hopes to return to Omaha, Nebraska in the College World Series for the first time since 1979.
Through the dinner, donations, and silent auction, donors raised thousands of dollars for the team’s NIL fund. ESPN’s Karl Ravech was the first guest speaker and discussed the state of baseball from Little League to MLB as one of the few announcers in the sport that calls the game at the youth, collegiate, and professional levels.
Former Husky Matt Barnes, an 11-year MLB veteran and 2021 All-Star, was in attendance and donated a ball for the auction signed by himself and fellow 2021 American League All-Stars such as Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, and Shohei Ohtani.
While Penders wasn’t always on board with the idea of NIL, the long-time Huskies’ head coach has embraced it after seeing what it has done for other programs on campus. By offering programs such as camps and clinics to youth baseball programs around the state, UConn can boost its NIL earnings while developing the next generation of great in-state baseball talent.
“I wasn't crazy about NIL when I first heard about it, but I’ve learned that if we want to compete for a national championship, you better embrace it. Dan Hurley taught me that. He said ‘You don’t have to like it, but you have to embrace it.’”
The evening started out with opening remarks from announcer Chris Jones and, along with a video highlighting the Huskies’ impressive 2024 season. UConn won the Big East Tournament title last season - the program’s fourth-straight - and made its sixth-consecutive NCAA tournament. For the second time in the last three years, the Huskies won their Regional and made a Super Regional before Florida State ultimately put an end to its season. Members of the 2024 Big East title team received their Big East championship rings and were honored for helping to lead UConn to a 35-26 overall record.
In an emotional moment, Penders and the team presented an honorary ring to AJ Salisbury, the Huskies’ Team Impact member, that was accepted posthumously by his parents. Salisbury sadly passed away at age 10 in April due to cancer, but Penders pointed to the joy and toughness Salisbury brought to the team and how it inspired them to dedicate their season to him.
After Salisbury passed away on April 10, the Huskies rattled off two miraculous wins, including a 20-2 blowout over Maine. UConn finished the year 22-10 after Salisbury’s passing, and every Big East title ring was engraved with the phrase “#AJStrong” signifying his importance to the team’s successful season.
Following the ring ceremony, Penders stressed the importance of continuing to improve the program’s NIL status while maintaining its focus on developing talent.
“We’ve got to win in the NIL room. It’s vitally important,” Penders said. “We’re going to continue to build, but we’re also going to buy when necessary.”
Penders specifically mentioned the likes of stars like Ian Cooke and Bryan Padilla, who in years past may have left UConn for other programs or opportunities outside of baseball. With NIL money flowing in, the Huskies were able to retain two major pieces of last year’s Super Regional run. Unlike sports like basketball and football, baseball student-athletes do not commonly receive full scholarships, as the team currently splits roughly 12 scholarships across an entire 40-player roster.
“These guys aren't going out and buying sports cars. They aren’t flying their parents all over the country. They’re buying groceries. They’re paying rent. They’re paying tuition for a graduate degree,” Penders said.
With players like Padilla, Dalena, and Cooke back in the fold, expectations remain high for the Huskies for 2025. UConn is once again the favorite to win the Big East, with Cooke taking home Big East Preseason Pitcher of the Year honors and first baseman Maddix Dalena being named Big East Preseason Player of the Year, while Padilla was an All-Conference selection.
When the season starts Feb. 14 against Stetson - the first game of the college baseball season as a whole - UConn’s journey to Omaha officially begins. After coming so close twice in the past three seasons, Penders knows what it will take to get to Omaha and thinks that this team has as good a chance as ever to get there thanks to the foundation they’ve built through coaching, recruiting, and NIL.
“We know it’s 1,234 miles from Elliot Ballpark to Charles Schwab Field in Omaha. Every time we break the huddle, we don’t do ‘1-2-3 team,’ we do ‘1-2-3-4 team.’” Penders said. “We’re reminded of that distance every time we break the huddle. If we have to buy those last few miles [via NIL], I’m not against it. Nights like this help us reach that destination.”
