Baseball: Looking back at Pitt’s 2026 season

Although they came up short, the Pittsburgh Panthers’ 2026 season wasn’t without its accomplishments. 

Pitt finished overall with a 33-24 record while being 11-19 in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play. They were 16-10 at home and 10-12 on the road. In terms of neutral games, the Panthers were elite with a 7-2 record. 

Per official ACC rankings, Pittsburgh was just above the Clemson Tigers and the Duke Blue Devils for its conference record. Redshirt senior outfielder Lorenzo Carrier was just recently named the District 1 Co-Player of the Year. 

The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association announced this on Friday, June 5, 2026. More information about this achievement by Carrier can be read here. 

Going back to the ACC, Pitt ranked fifth in team batting average at .304 in 59 games. They tallied 501 runs off of 599 hits in 1,972 at-bats. Only Georgia Tech (608) and North Carolina (524) scored more runs than the Panthers. 

Pitt did come second to Georgia Tech for total home runs on the season. The former tallied 110 home runs while the latter recorded 121 home runs. 

Pitching was an aspect of the game Pittsburgh struggled with in certain contests. Teamwise, they had a 6.35 ERA with a 34-25 record for starting pitchers. They had just one shutout and tallied nine saves. 

Sophomore Antonio Doganiero was undoubtedly Pitt’s best player on the mound. He had a 4.63 ERA with a 1.44 WHIP and a 6-5 record. 

On offense, Carrier led in nearly every category. He was the leader in batting average (.387), slugging percentage (.784), RBI’s (69), doubles (15), home runs (20), total bases (156), hits (77), games played (57) and games started (57). 

In the ACC, Carrier was top five in batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage (first) and RBI’s among his peers.

The redshirt senior from Bear, Del. was by far Pitt’s best player this season. He’s only been a Panther for two seasons. Prior to Pitt, he played at the University of Miami where he played 95 games with 75 starts. 

Given his status in college, Carrier is eligible for the upcoming 2026 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft. Historically in the last decade, Pittsburgh has had 22 former players selected in the MLB draft. 

The most recent and notable was T.J. Zeuch—who remains the highest-drafted player in the history of Pitt’s baseball program. He was selected 21st overall by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2016. This year’s draft is scheduled to commence from Saturday, July 11 to Monday, July 13. 

Head Coach Mike Bell and his players won 33 games this year—something the program hasn’t seen ever since the 2013 season. They still have a lot of talent, and they’ll likely acquire more talent before next season. 

This season showed a promising future for Pittsburgh Panthers baseball. With the right moves, this team could produce something special in the years to come. 

Jude Hannahs is a staff writer for DreamBackfield since November 2025.