Two things were made clear at Virginia Tech baseball’s annual media day in early February.
First, the Hokies’ “hammerin’” reputation is likely that of a bygone era. The second thing? A shift towards defense could be what takes them to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022.
“I think that it’s by far the best pitching staff on any team that I’ve ever coached on paper,” Hokies head coach John Szefc said. “Teams have success when they’re solid on the mound. We feel like we’ve attacked some areas that we struggled in in the past — on the mound and defensively.”
Senior shortstop Clay Grady and junior pitchers Brett Renfrow and Griffin Stieg (redshirted last year) were also available to the media on Wednesday, Feb. 4. Each of them will draw heavily into Tech’s newfound defensive identity.
Renfrow and Stieg are expected to be weekend starters because they carry a wealth of experience. Renfrow was selected to the All-ACC Third Team in each of the last two seasons, though he improved his ERA from 4.92 to 3.89 between his freshman and sophomore years.
This season, which is Renfrow’s last before he’s eligible for the MLB Draft, projects to be his best — much in part to the tutelage of first-year pitching coach Doug Willey. With stops in the Chicago Cubs organization and, most recently, Xavier, Willey’s analytics and mental-based approach has shown early success at Tech. Renfrow noted that he’s more consistent across the board, and his mobility and pitch shapes have improved markedly.
“The structure and everything [Willey] does pushes everyone to be the best they can be,” Stieg said. “The use of technology, his knowledge, pitch scripts — all those different things. How he talks to you in bullpens leading up to starts. It’s been great to work with him. The cues he gives us, command — everything’s been huge for my development. I’ve added a pitch, the shapes are really good right now. He does a really good job with all of that.”
Stieg has 14 starts and 70 innings under his belt at Virginia Tech. The McLean native missed all of last season with a UCL injury, though his return to the Hokies was more complicated than that. He entered the transfer portal in June — citing the unknowns that came with the firing of former Tech pitching coach Ryan Fecteau — before committing to Alabama shortly before the MLB Draft. He was selected in the 18th round by the Seattle Mariners but opted to return to college — just not in Tuscaloosa.
“Once everything got settled down, and the draft didn’t work out the way we wanted it to, being closer to home and talking to the coaches — it felt like being back here was the best option,” Stieg said. The team right now is really special, and that’s what led me back here.”
There are a number of contenders for the third weekend spot, but Aiden Robertson, a JUCO transfer from Walters State Community College, appears to be the favorite. The 6-foot-1 righty committed to Tech in November 2024 before posting a 13-1 record in his final JUCO campaign — which saw the Senators lose in the national championship.
His season led to MLB Draft consideration, where he was selected in the 13th round by the Texas Rangers — higher than any Hokies selection — but decided to try and bolster his résumé at the ACC level with Tech. Robertson was a fourth-team All-America selection by the NCBWA, largely in part to the five-pitch, strikeout-heavy mix he brings to the table.
“He was drafted during the 13th round by the Rangers and chose to come to school. That immediately makes us better,” Szefc said. “I think Aiden is far better now than when he came in for a lot of different reasons. He’s put on some good weight and he’s a lot stronger. He should be able to carry his velo and increase his value here.”
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Szefc said that sophomore Logan Eisenreich — who flashed across 10 starts last season — and freshman Ethan Grim could also draw into the rotation, but if they don’t, they’ll join what Szefc called “unprecedented” pitching depth for the Hokies.
A Mohnton, Pa., native out of Governor Mifflin High School, Grim was named the No. 59 freshman in the nation by D1Baseball in August. He joins returners Madden Clement, Preston Crowl, Brendan Yagesh, Chase Swift, Jacob Exum, Josh Berzonski and Luke Craytor in a bullpen that — with veteran transfers like Ben Weber (Xavier) and Peyton Smith (Texas A&M) — may be just as exciting as the starters.
Smith sticks out from that group. The right-handed senior from Springfield, Tenn., struggled over one season with Dallas Baptist in Conference USA and two with the Aggies. Last summer in the Texas Collegiate League, however, he switched to a sidearm slot and posted a 2.25 ERA and .75 WHIP over eight innings of relief.
A lefty, Clement was in the mix for a starting job last year before missing the season with a left arm injury, while the right-handed Crowl is entering his third year and may be the bullpen’s ace.
“Everyone on our staff this year is legit and I think everyone can start,” Renfrow said. “I wish everyone could, but there’s really no impact. I think that our whole staff is good. Starter or not, we’re going to go out there and compete. I think that’s our whole motto and our mentality this year.”
To do that, Tech will hope to avoid injuries like those suffered by Clement and Stieg, which have contributed to late-season drop-offs in years past. That’s even more important in 2026, with the NCAA enforcing a 34-player roster limit in accordance with the July 1 House settlement. For comparison, the Hokies rostered 45 players last season, which gave them more young pitchers to work with than they have now.
“If I go back to ’22, we win the ACC, we have one minor injury that year and we had a lot of success.” Szefc said. “In years since then, we’ve had good success, but we’ve also incurred in the range of 15 to 17 injuries to some of our better players.
“I only bring that up because if we can keep our better guys on the field and available, we feel really good about what the outcome would be. I think any coach would probably tell you that in any sport. It’s about keeping guys healthy and on the field and available.”
That goes for Tech’s fielding operation, too, which appears to be a potent backup to an already-exciting pitching staff.
The Hokies brought in Belmont transfer Pete Daniel, whose speed and glove skills may earn him a spot at shortstop over Grady, who’s already one of the ACC’s best defenders. Grady may even slot into the outfield part-time with the wealth of defensive talent in the infield.
Szefc called junior infielder Ethan Gibson Tech’s “most flexible defender,” while sophomore infielder Hudson Lutterman is coming off an encouraging freshman campaign. Saint Joseph’s transfer and fifth-year player Owen Petrich projects to be effective at third.
“I’ve played with some big names — Christian Martin, Carson DeMartini — guys like that, but with this infield, I feel like everybody can play anywhere,” Grady said. “I’ve played everywhere in intrasquads, and I think everyone else can say the same. I don’t think we could say that in previous years.”
As they often do, the Hokies will have options at catcher. Szefc is excited about freshman CJ Oxendine, but sophomore Anderson French and senior Henry Cooke are two of the team’s best on both sides of the field.
“Our catching might be the strongest part of our team as far as depth, experience and talent goes,” Szefc said. “Henry Cooke, he’s way more healthy than he was last year. … Should be one of the top defensive catchers in the league.”
Treyson Hughes — who took a medical redshirt last season — brings the certainty of speed to an outfield that, outside of him, is largely uncertain. Returners Nick Locurto and Mycah Jordan are in the mix, along with transfers Sam Gates (George Washington) and Sam Grube (Mount St. Mary’s).
However it takes shape, the Hokies plan to be a team that wins by taking runs away, even if the days of moonshots en masse are behind them.
“We probably spend more time on defense than anything,” Grady said. “It feels more competitive than in years past — position players, pitching, everything. Every intersquad is a battle. … It’s definitely been the most challenging year offensively facing our own guys.”
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