The Terps on Dirt are Losing Pieces; How Do They Readjust? by Patrick Moran

The Maryland Terrapins’ baseball team has a lot of questions. After a middle of the pack season for head coach Matt Swope’s squad in College Mark, MD, the core is mostly gone. Star infielder Chris Hacopian has transferred to Texas A&M to play SEC ball. Tall southpaw Kyle McCoy has a good chance of getting drafted. Veterans Eddie Hacopian and Alex Calarco have graduated. So how do they recoup? Let’s find out. 

The Bob "Turtle" Smith Stadium in College Park, MD.

The Terps finished 14th in the Big Ten at 12-18 and 27-29 overall. Neither of these marks qualified for the Big Ten tournament to potentially compete for a spot at Omaha in the College World Series.  It was a different year for the conference considering schools like Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington finished at the top of the division. They had not been in the Big Ten previously, but with the PAC-12 dissolving, it shook up the picture for what the conference looked like this past year. 

In terms of hitting, the Terps scored a total of 457 runs, fourth in the Big Ten behind Indiana, UCLA, and Oregon. They also clubbed 94 home runs as a team, which ranked second only behind Oregon. Redshirt sophomore utility man Hollis Porter led with 21 dingers followed up by Calarco's 19 while catching this past spring. Not much to be said in the stolen base department with the Terps swiping 41 bags in 50 attempts, near the bottom of the conference only ahead of Northwestern. Junior outfielder Aden Hill went 11-13 on steals to lead the team in that statistic. A total slash line of .290/.413/.495 looks great on paper, and the percentages are right around the top five overall in the Big Ten. In conclusion, a high-powered offense led to success at the plate. 

On the other hand, the pitching staff is a different story. Just to preface, the numbers college arms put up need to be taken with a grain of salt at times. College baseball is offensively driven by metal bats and MLB scouts normally look more at a pitcher’s stuff on the mound. The average ERA in college is 6.14 according to pitcherslist.com, but the Terps came in above the benchmark at a 6.65 earned run average for the season. It stands at 15th on the conference rankings, with only Northwestern and Ohio State behind them. A .294 BAA doesn’t help either, once again beating out the aforementioned schools. The most shocking number is that they allowed the most home runs at 82, as well as grading out in the bottom four in K/9 at 7.8 and BB/9 at 5.2. McCoy was the true anchor of the staff while right-handed arms like Joey McMannis, Jake Yeager, Logan Hastings, and Brayden Ryan mixed and matched to make starts behind the ace. 

LHP Kyle McCoy served as the ace all year for UMD after Tommy John

                         Surgery. 

To go back to the guys at the top of the article, they were the driving force behind any success the Terps had. Chris Hacopian had a fantastic year posting a .375/.502/.656 slash line with 14 home runs and 61 RBI in 52 games. His brother Eddie capped off a fantastic career at UMD hitting 10 homers and driving in 48 with a .274/.377/.461 slash line. Alex Calarco put it all together delivering on the power front with 19 long balls, 61 RBI, and a strong finishing slash line of .287/.432/.612. And after Tommy John Surgery cost him the 2024 season, Kyle McCoy came back strong throwing to a 3.32 ERA in 84 innings along with 71 strikeouts in 14 starts. He made the Third Team-All Big Ten, Chris made the Second Team All-Big Ten, and Calarco made the First Team All-Big Ten. Sadly, that chapter seems to be all but over with all four not set to return in 2026.

Brothers Chris (left) and Eddie (right) donning the captain's C on their jerseys.

 

Maryland Baseball Network writer Andy Parr had thoughts on the offensive core departing. “Chris (Hacopian) leaving was inevitable. He had a horrible relationship with the coaches and was only waiting until Eddie (Hacopian) graduated to leave UMD.” When asked on who will be missed more between the two seniors, he said both were integral parts of the team. “Eddie’s leadership was off the charts, and Calarco made such big strides as a hitter while maintaining his amazing raw power. Eddie has the better chance of getting drafted because of his track record, and if he hears his name called it’ll be very late. Both have a chance to be UDFAs, and you never know what will happen from there.”

Alex Calarco may have been Maryland's top hitter after transferring in from Northwestern.

For McCoy, Parr said he was a privilege to have. “He is going to get drafted, most likely in the middle rounds. He made all his starts off of TJ, and Swope built him up throughout the year. I wasn’t worried about what he’d look like coming back from injury.” In terms of on field production, it was stellar. “He pitched to contact, and even when his defense didn’t have his back it wouldn’t phase him. He liked to be in the zone and paint the corners, especially with the sweeper. It’s one of the nastiest pitches I’ve seen.” McCoy also did an interview with reporter Mike Howes and said “it would mean the world to me if I got drafted. It took an unbelievable amount of work, time, and effort from me and my parents, and it’s been a lifelong dream ever since I was a kid.” 

Finally, I got the chance to get a quote from rising sophomore Aidan Driscoll. Being a top catching recruit out of Massachusetts, there are plenty of expectations for him moving forward. He said that the coaches want him to become an outfielder and move off of his first position of catcher, which has gone well. Watching him on the collegiate summer ball circuit for the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts of the Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League he has looked great both at the plate and in the field. “I think with losing pieces to a team, a young core with talent coming in through the portal can be a dangerous weapon. Building chemistry throughout the fall and winter will help us understand each other better and find ways to improve the group. Building that special bond with this group is what I’m looking forward to the most and I think our team first mentality is what can separate us in the upcoming year.”

Aidan Driscoll looks to be a key contributor for the future at UMD. 

While it’s a sad end of an era for Terps Baseball, it’s time to write a new chapter for a storied program. It will be exciting to see what they do moving forward, and there are plenty of exciting guys to make it happen.