The long wait is over, and Texas baseball is set to begin its season tomorrow night against UC Davis. The Aggies (no, not those Aggies) are coached by former Longhorn Tommy Nicholson, who spent several years on Augie Garrido’s staff after his playing days. UC Davis is coming off a 27-28 season that resulted in an 8th-place finish in the Big West. The Aggies return several intriguing pieces on the mound that should test the Texas bats on opening weekend.
Pitching
UC Davis finished the 2025 season with a 4.56 ERA, ranking 34th nationally. RHP Noel Valdez will likely take the ball on Friday night and is coming off a solid season (82.1 innings, 3.72 ERA). Valdez does not walk or strike out many batters in 2025, with opposing batters hitting .275 against the California native.
Lefties Mason Lerma (1.01 ERA in 35.2 innings) and Braydon Wooldridge (2.84 ERA in 12.2 innings) are the wildcards on the UC Davis pitching staff. Lerma could be used as a starter or reliever, while Wooldridge is a two-way player who could also see time in the outfield.
RHP Matthew Barnes (4.62 ERA in 6 starts), RHP Rowen Barnes (3.18 ERA in 22.2 innings) and RHP Carter Speights (7.71 ERA in 21 innings) are other members of the pitching staff to know headed into the series.
Hitting/Fielding
The Aggies struggled at the plate in 2025, hitting .259 as a team and only .245 in conference play. Only a handful of everyday players return, led by OF Tyler Howard (.284 average and 8 steals). As with a lot of West Coast teams, UC Davis is not afraid to utilize the bunt game (24 sacrifices in 2025) and is also coming off an excellent defensive season (.979 fielding percentage).
One area where Texas has a distinct advantage in the series is UC Davis’s inability to slug. The Aggies ranked 294th nationally in slugging percentage last season, hitting only 20 home runs and 67 doubles as a team.
Two newcomers to note for the Aggies on the position player side are Kyle Peterrsen and Elijah McNeal, both freshmen who have a chance to step into starting roles right away.
Conclusion
Texas got a good test a few years ago when it welcomed the University of San Diego for the season-opening series and took 2 out of 3 games. West Coast teams traditionally come in fundamentally sound and rarely beat themselves. UC Davis will likely be a notch or two below that San Diego squad, but it will throw some arms that will challenge a Texas lineup breaking in quite a few new faces.
The Texas pitching staff vs the UC Davis offense is where the Longhorns are likely to make their hay in this series. You could see up to 12+ pitchers in this series for the Longhorns as Jim Schossnagle and Max Weiner work to define roles and test guys out in different spots.
