Prospect Review: Virginia, Virginia Tech

Prospect notes on the Cavaliers and Hokies by Aaron Fitt of D1Baseball during his travels around the Mid-Atlantic this fall.

VIRGINIA

No Cavalier hit more than five homers a year ago, but expect sophomore third baseman Zack Gelofand junior left fielder Brendan Rivoli to reach double-digits in 2020. Gelof (.313/.377/.396) is a high-end talent who showed a knack for barreling up hard line drives as a freshman. He’s put on a lot of muscle since the spring (he’s now listed at 6-foot-3, 213 pounds, up from 205) and should be ready to tap into his intriguing righthanded power potential. Rivoli (.320/.386/.466) has the look of a hitting machine with plenty of strength in his compact lefthanded swing. He went 4-for-4 in the first game against ECU, hitting singles to left, right and right-center. His hit tool is his calling card, but he did go deep five times last year, and there’s more power in the tank. Junior right fielder Alex Tappen is another physical veteran who should serve as a power source. He’s a prime bounceback candidate after slumping to a .642 OPS as a sophomore.

One obvious option at first base is junior two-way talent Devin Ortiz, who has the physical tools to play anywhere on the infield, including shortstop. But he’s also one of Virginia’s most valuable pitchers, so the Cavs might choose to deploy him at first base to protect his arm. Ortiz was a blue-chip recruit as a two-way guy, but he struggled mightily at the plate as a freshman and logged just 19 at-bats as a sophomore. But his righthanded bat is coming on very strong; he delivered a sharp two-run single up the middle and a double into the let-field corner in game one against ECU, then chipped in a liner RBI single to the opposite field and another single up the middle in game two. He’s always had bat speed, but his approach has taken a big step forward.

Another returning player who should lead this offense is...