From Rock Bottom to a Winning Season: The Remarkable Turnaround of UC Davis Baseball
When Tommy Nicholson took over the UC Davis baseball program in 2021, few believed in a comeback. By 2024, the Aggies defied expectations with their first winning season since 2015.
When Tommy Nicholson was hired away from Stanford to take over the UC Davis baseball program in December of 2021, the Aggies were coming off a self-imposed months-long program suspension due to a hazing scandal.
Some players had left the program, while several committed high school seniors had decided to play elsewhere. The cupboard was so bare that Nicholson immediately held tryouts on campus, an unprecedented move for a Division I baseball program in the highly respected Big West Conference.
Two months after Nicholson was hired, the Aggies opened the regular season on a chilly February afternoon with a non-conference game against St. Mary's at Dobbins Stadium, UCD's beautiful home field.
Expectations were deservedly low. Some college baseball experts predicted the Aggies might not post a single win on their 41-game schedule.
St Mary's won that opener of the Tommy Nicholson era, 4-2, but already the new coach knew he had a bunch of fighters on his overmatched squad.
UCD lost its first 15 games before crushing UC Riverside, 12-8, on April 3, six weeks into the season.
Come May, the Aggies would take two of three from UC San Diego for their first conference series win under their new coach. They finished 6-35 overall and 5-25 in conference play, but escaped the Big West basement when Riverside finished 4-26. Thank heaven for small favors.
That steady late-season improvement carried over into the 2023 season, when UCD went 17-37 and 7-23 in the Big West.
While coaches always want to win championships and qualify for post-season play, an optimistic, yet realistic goal for 2024 was simply a winning season.
Mission accomplished.
Going on an 11-4 tear down the stretch, UCD won its final four Big West series, finishing with two dramatic wins over Cal State Bakersfield, before dropping the season finale to the Roadrunners, 3-2.
A team that was once 18-23 and seemingly destined for another losing campaign, turned things around to finish 29-27, their first winning season since 2015, including 13-17 in league play.
"Next year at this time, I hope we can be preparing for the regional after winning the conference," said Nicholson.
"I'm excited about the guys we have coming back and excited about the guys who we have coming in. All of our high school recruits come from strong programs and they know how to win. From where we've been, I think we're in a really good spot. I'm really encouraged about our chances next season."
In the series win over Bakersfield, UCD had two wins for the ages.
Trailing 6-0 in Thursday's opener, with only two hits entering the bottom of the ninth, the Aggies put together a heart-stopping seven-run rally and were down to their last strike when Mark Wolbert ripped a two-run home run over the rightfield fence for a walk-off 7-6 victory.
Friday, UCD led 7-2 early, but after Bakersfield rallied to force extra innings and ultimately took an 8-7 lead in the top of the 13th, the Aggies scored two in the bottom of the 13th for a 9-8 win, a bases loaded hit batter forcing in the winning run.
Earlier in the year, the Aggies rallied from a 9-1 deficit in the ninth inning to defeat playoff-bound UC Irvine, 12-10, in 11 innings.
"Our guys kept playing until the final out all year long," Nicholson added.
"They give their all everyday at practice and showed up at the park ready to play. At the end of the day they can look in the mirror and have no regrets. They do things to a certain standard day in and day out and that will carry them well in their lives beyond baseball. They're doing the things that winners do, and we now really have something to shoot for next year."
In pre-game ceremonies before Saturday's final game of the 2024 campaign, UCD seniors Jack Gallagher, Kaden Hogan, Theo Forshey, Nick Iverson, Damian Stone, Kaden Riccomini, Ian Torpey and Andrew LaCour were honored. They will be missed.
In the great tradition of UC Davis athletics, from incoming freshmen through departing seniors, the 2024 UC Davis baseball team carried the Aggie Pride banner high.
You can reach me directly at bobdunning@thewaryone.com. I'd love to discuss more about this remarkable baseball season.
Bob, how do you think the NCAA athlete pay program is going to work? Particularly at the Aggies level.