Sports
Ohio Baseball releases 2026 schedule
By: Marc Goldstein
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — Ohio Baseball is looking to usher in a new era of play under first-time head coach Andrew See. He and his staff will look to build upon a 14-37 season that ended with an exodus in the transfer portal and the coaching staff change. With nearly an entirely new roster in town, See will embark on the campaign of 53 games that includes 20 at Bob Wren Stadium.
The slate gets underway when Ohio will travel to Murray State to open the year on Feb. 13. Murray State made an improbable run to the College World Series last season and retained the majority of their roster from the run, giving a rather difficult test right out of the gate. Murray State ended 2025 ranked as the No. 8 team by D1Baseball and that top-25 ranking should almost certainly carry over into 2026. Should Ohio pick up any wins against a potentially-ranked Murray State team, it would be the first ranked win in over 20 years.
Ohio will stay on the road for another weekend series, this time against Tennessee Tech before heading back to Athens to open its home slate. The first two games of a four-game series against Dayton will be played in Athens while the final two will take the teams to Dayton. Last season, Ohio dropped a heartbreaking 12-inning game at home to Dayton.
The Bobcats will make it over the Pennsylvania border for a midweek date with Pitt for the first time since 2014. The teams will rekindle a series that has actually seen the Bobcats hold a slight advantage historically, leading the all-time series, 5-4. The next midweek series for the Bobcats includes another trip to the Volunteer State with two games against Austin Peay State. That matchup will see the Bobcats face one of the teams with the best offenses in the country from last season.
Other midweek matchups include home-and-home sets with Northern Kentucky, Marshall and Morehead State. Ohio’s final midweek game will be in Ann Arbor against Michigan for the first time since 2005. Between the games against Pitt and Michigan, Ohio will be looking for its first Power 4 victory since 2022 when it defeated Kentucky on the road.
Northern Illinois will meet Ohio to begin MAC play on March 6. Northern Illinois picked up a commitment from former Ohio starter Blake Gaskey, making the series a likely opportunity for Gaskey to return to his former school. Ohio will also see former outfielder Pauly Mancino when it travels to Bowling Green for a weekend series on March 20.
The conference slate of games will dominate the majority of weekends once the calendar flips to March. After facing Western Michigan at home for a series starting on March 13, Ohio will be on the road for eight games, including the series against Bowling Green and Ball State. Those two series are likely to be critical for Ohio if it wants to contend in the MAC as both programs have been championship-caliber teams in recent seasons.
Once the lengthy road swing concludes, Ohio will be able to enjoy more comforts of being at home with nine of the next 15 games coming at Bob Wren. Included in the home stretch are series against Kent State and Akron, teams Ohio went a combined 1-5 against last season. The road stretch nestled between the home games, though, might be a pivotal one. Trips to face Miami and Central Michigan could swing the pendulum between making the MAC Tournament or failing to qualify once again. Miami is the reigning MAC champions and took a series in Athens in 2025.
Ohio will make the long trek to Amherst for a series against UMass as it welcomes in its new conference foe. The teams have only met once since 2013, a win for UMass. Ohio will return home for its final three home games against Toledo, yet another strong team in the MAC, before wrapping up conference play on the road against Eastern Michigan.
See and the Bobcats will be attempting to remove the poor taste left in the mouths of many that followed after the difficult season in 2025. While there is not an expectation of making the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017, some marginal improvements should certainly be expected. The roster is almost entirely turned over, making it reasonable to assume there will be some struggles early in the year. Especially considering the difficult schedule that the Bobcats will face to open the year, simply showing more competitiveness would be considered a positive.