Yep. Hard to have higher expectations than the AD commitment.
Bolt has done so much with so little.
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Baseball Official 2026 Nebraska Cardiac Beaver Slayers Baseball Thread
- Thread starter Kaladin
- Start date
Bolt has done so much with so little.
Coaching salaries + 11 day west coast trip + increase in travel expenses ate up a large portion of the "increase".
Let's not confuse this with an actual increase in budget.
Kaladin
Professor of Aesthetics / Positive Boogeyman
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This guy has us at 44 in his rankings for 2026 and favored in 44 of our 55 games, 32.6 expected wins
This guy has us at 44 in his rankings for 2026 and favored in 44 of our 55 games, 32.6 expected wins
Kaladin
Professor of Aesthetics / Positive Boogeyman
Elite Member
Happy Ending Society
- 20,964
- 2020
- 57,049
What’s your regular season win total prediction
At this point I really don’t have one, @HuskerBaseball hasn’t give me much hope for this season so it feels like 32 wins would be overachieving. I just googled “kiss of death” gif and the simpsons one was one of the first to come up. I’d love to tell you 40 wins but I don’t see anything like that happening.
Kaladin
Professor of Aesthetics / Positive Boogeyman
Elite Member
Happy Ending Society
- 20,964
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I think 32 wins is the ceiling but it’s gonna be tough to get there
2026 Big Ten Preview from D1Baseball
d1baseball.com
2026 Big Ten Season Preview
by Patrick Ebert and Burke Granger, D1Baseball.com
Four Pac-12 cast-offs joined the mostly Midwest-based Big Ten in 2025, and those four teams -- Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington -- went a combined 61-23 against their legacy opponents during the regular season. At the conference tournament, however, it was Nebraska that emerged with the league's automatic bid, the second year in a row the Huskers had claimed the Big Ten championship. UCLA advanced to the College World Series, led by D1Baseball Player of the Year Roch Cholowsky. The Bruins return almost their entire roster from a year ago, with several significant reinforcements via the portal and their most recent recruiting class, enter 2026 atop the D1Baseball Top 25 rankings.
Preseason Award Predictions
Player of the Year
Roch Cholowsky, UCLA (SS)
Pitcher of the Year
Mason Edwards, USC (LHP)
Freshman of the Year
Angel Cervantes, UCLA (RHP)
Projected Regional Teams (4)
UCLA
Oregon
USC
Nebraska
Predicted Order of Finish
1. UCLA
2. Oregon
3. USC
4. Nebraska
5. Penn State
6. Indiana
7. Michigan
8. Washington
9. Cockeye
10. Rutgers
11. Illinois
12. Northwestern
13. Maryland
14. Minnesota
15. Michigan State
16. Purdue
17. Ohio State
4. Nebraska
Head Coach: Will Bolt
2025 Record: 33-29 (15-15)
Strengths
Nebraska rode a strong pitching and defense formula to a Big Ten championship each of the last two years and that should continue to be a strength for this year's club. Staff ace Ty Horn and transfer Cooper Katskee, last year's MAC Pitcher of the Year, give the Huskers a strong 1-2 punch to open weekends, and Tucker Timmerman gives them length out of the bullpen. The return of seniors Dylan Carey and Joshua Overbeek gives Nebraska one of the stronger left sides of the infield in the conference.
Question Marks
Nebraska's offense lacked firepower a year ago as no player reached double-digit home runs and the team slugging percentage was .427. First baseman Case Sanderson has always had significant raw power and he started to tap into it more frequently this fall. Outfielder Max Buettenback is another candidate to enjoy an uptick in power while transfers Cole Kitchens and Jett Buck each had an OPS over 1.000 at Southern Indiana and Division II Washburn last year.
Star Power
Horn sits in the low- to mid-90s with his fastball as part of his four-pitch mix and quietly enjoyed a strong sophomore campaign. He and Sanderson could be drafted in the early rounds with big junior campaigns. Carson Jasa has first round stuff but has struggled to command the strike zone to this point of his collegiate career. He showed improved command of his upper-80s to low-90s slider in the fall, which could really help the effectiveness of his mid- to upper-90s fastball.
Glue Guys
The coaching staff did not expect to get Carey back at shortstop, as both he and Overbeek are valuable members of the team in a variety of ways. Timmerman could record 100 or more innings as a weekend starter if the team chooses to use him that way, but feel he is more valuable as a long man out of the bullpen where he'll still likely earn 70-80 innings recording outs with a heavy low-90s fastball.
Top Newcomers
Buck and Kitchens are going to bring a lot to the offense, and Jeter Worthley will be the day one starter behind the plate as a freshman with a dynamic rare set of tools for a catcher. Katskee is a huge addition to the weekend rotation with proven results and Kevin Mannell is expected to anchor the back-end of the bullpen thanks to a low-90s fastball and low-80s sweeper that have off-the-charts metrics.
2026 Outlook
Nebraska isn't going to sneak up on anyone after claiming the Big Ten's automatic bid each of the last two seasons, which included a 5-0 win over Omaha-bound UCLA last year in the conference title game. This is one of the most well-balanced teams in the league with a strong weekend rotation, a deep bullpen, an experienced starting lineup and steady team defense. There are a plethora of options when it comes to depth and much of their success will come down to a few key contributors stepping forward on offense. Of the legacy teams in the Big Ten, it's hard to identify one that is better across the board than the Huskers.
Top Prospects - 2026 Draft
1. Roch Cholowsky, UCLA (SS)
.
12. Carson Jasa, Nebraska (RHP)
14. Ty Horn, Nebraska (RHP)
19. Case Sanderson, Nebraska (1B)
59. Tucker Timmerman, Nebraska (RHP)
Top Prospects - 2027 Draft
1. Easton Hawk, UCLA (RHP)
.
10. Gavin Blachowicz, Nebraska (RHP)
19. Devin Nunez, Nebraska (OF)
Impact Freshmen
1. Angel Cervantes, UCLA (RHP)
.
7. Jeter Worthley, Nebraska (C)
2026 Big Ten Season Preview • D1Baseball
Can the West Coast wing of the Big Ten maintain the dominance of its debut season? Patrick Ebert and Burke Granger take a deep dive into the B1G.
d1baseball.com
2026 Big Ten Season Preview
by Patrick Ebert and Burke Granger, D1Baseball.com
Four Pac-12 cast-offs joined the mostly Midwest-based Big Ten in 2025, and those four teams -- Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington -- went a combined 61-23 against their legacy opponents during the regular season. At the conference tournament, however, it was Nebraska that emerged with the league's automatic bid, the second year in a row the Huskers had claimed the Big Ten championship. UCLA advanced to the College World Series, led by D1Baseball Player of the Year Roch Cholowsky. The Bruins return almost their entire roster from a year ago, with several significant reinforcements via the portal and their most recent recruiting class, enter 2026 atop the D1Baseball Top 25 rankings.
Preseason Award Predictions
Player of the Year
Roch Cholowsky, UCLA (SS)
Pitcher of the Year
Mason Edwards, USC (LHP)
Freshman of the Year
Angel Cervantes, UCLA (RHP)
Projected Regional Teams (4)
UCLA
Oregon
USC
Nebraska
Predicted Order of Finish
1. UCLA
2. Oregon
3. USC
4. Nebraska
5. Penn State
6. Indiana
7. Michigan
8. Washington
9. Cockeye
10. Rutgers
11. Illinois
12. Northwestern
13. Maryland
14. Minnesota
15. Michigan State
16. Purdue
17. Ohio State
4. Nebraska
Head Coach: Will Bolt
2025 Record: 33-29 (15-15)
Strengths
Nebraska rode a strong pitching and defense formula to a Big Ten championship each of the last two years and that should continue to be a strength for this year's club. Staff ace Ty Horn and transfer Cooper Katskee, last year's MAC Pitcher of the Year, give the Huskers a strong 1-2 punch to open weekends, and Tucker Timmerman gives them length out of the bullpen. The return of seniors Dylan Carey and Joshua Overbeek gives Nebraska one of the stronger left sides of the infield in the conference.
Question Marks
Nebraska's offense lacked firepower a year ago as no player reached double-digit home runs and the team slugging percentage was .427. First baseman Case Sanderson has always had significant raw power and he started to tap into it more frequently this fall. Outfielder Max Buettenback is another candidate to enjoy an uptick in power while transfers Cole Kitchens and Jett Buck each had an OPS over 1.000 at Southern Indiana and Division II Washburn last year.
Star Power
Horn sits in the low- to mid-90s with his fastball as part of his four-pitch mix and quietly enjoyed a strong sophomore campaign. He and Sanderson could be drafted in the early rounds with big junior campaigns. Carson Jasa has first round stuff but has struggled to command the strike zone to this point of his collegiate career. He showed improved command of his upper-80s to low-90s slider in the fall, which could really help the effectiveness of his mid- to upper-90s fastball.
Glue Guys
The coaching staff did not expect to get Carey back at shortstop, as both he and Overbeek are valuable members of the team in a variety of ways. Timmerman could record 100 or more innings as a weekend starter if the team chooses to use him that way, but feel he is more valuable as a long man out of the bullpen where he'll still likely earn 70-80 innings recording outs with a heavy low-90s fastball.
Top Newcomers
Buck and Kitchens are going to bring a lot to the offense, and Jeter Worthley will be the day one starter behind the plate as a freshman with a dynamic rare set of tools for a catcher. Katskee is a huge addition to the weekend rotation with proven results and Kevin Mannell is expected to anchor the back-end of the bullpen thanks to a low-90s fastball and low-80s sweeper that have off-the-charts metrics.
2026 Outlook
Nebraska isn't going to sneak up on anyone after claiming the Big Ten's automatic bid each of the last two seasons, which included a 5-0 win over Omaha-bound UCLA last year in the conference title game. This is one of the most well-balanced teams in the league with a strong weekend rotation, a deep bullpen, an experienced starting lineup and steady team defense. There are a plethora of options when it comes to depth and much of their success will come down to a few key contributors stepping forward on offense. Of the legacy teams in the Big Ten, it's hard to identify one that is better across the board than the Huskers.
Top Prospects - 2026 Draft
1. Roch Cholowsky, UCLA (SS)
.
12. Carson Jasa, Nebraska (RHP)
14. Ty Horn, Nebraska (RHP)
19. Case Sanderson, Nebraska (1B)
59. Tucker Timmerman, Nebraska (RHP)
Top Prospects - 2027 Draft
1. Easton Hawk, UCLA (RHP)
.
10. Gavin Blachowicz, Nebraska (RHP)
19. Devin Nunez, Nebraska (OF)
Impact Freshmen
1. Angel Cervantes, UCLA (RHP)
.
7. Jeter Worthley, Nebraska (C)
Kaladin
Professor of Aesthetics / Positive Boogeyman
Elite Member
Happy Ending Society
- 20,964
- 2020
- 57,049
Nice
Kaladin
Professor of Aesthetics / Positive Boogeyman
Elite Member
Happy Ending Society
- 20,964
- 2020
- 57,049
Tripling the number of scholarships over two years and bumping coaching salaries. I just don’t see how any unbiased mind can argue that the AD isn’t investing in baseball.
Spare me your bullshit. It's the same thing from you, year after year, from reading an article & thinking you're in-tune with WTF is going on...
Bumping coaches salaries, after winning B1G titles, is an investment?
Triple the scholarships over 2 years is investing? LMFAO. You must not have read all academic scholarships are gone from baseball, beginning in the 2026-2027 academic calendar, so spare me "tripling scholarships over 2 years." The removal of academic money is a push to the athletic scholarship increase in the first year. And zero revenue share, which was Dannen's decision after he asked the staff what they want & they gave him a detailed breakdown - that he shit on and made his own decision without even discussing it with them.
Bigger budget to add staff? Denied.
Bigger budget for travel? Denied. (1 item requested was 2 additional weekends of charter flights)
Bigger budget to recruit? Denied.
Improved facilities?* Nope (Dannen did tell me construction for a new locker-room will begin after the 2026 season).
Analytics work at Haymarket? Nope (denied).
More access to the Hawks Center, including live hitting? Denied.
Unlimited spring access to the Performance Lab? Denied.
NIL opportunities? Denied (yours truly).
* 2019 when Bolt was hired, I heard it directly from Bill Moos' mouth a new indoor facility is in the works. When TA took over, I asked him about it and he said he's close to finalizing it. And that also included a new baseball field/complex (shared on this very website). When Dannen took over, he was a deer in the headlights but now claims it's happening after the 2026 season is complete.
So no, Nebraska isn't invested in baseball. A step in the right direction can happen in June, we'll find out soon enough.
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Jesske broke Jeters hand with his swing follow through and he hasn't practiced all week, so we have that going for us.
Jesske is gonna hit so many bombs with a swing that hard. Thats certainly the only interpretation that can be had of this post.
😭😭😭
I'd be he is in a catching rotation and looks to take over the majority of time as the season goes. If his bat can get going, don't be surprised to see him playing more outfield (CF) too.