This is all of the highlights, numbers and events from the 2025 Oakland baseball season in one place.
Season recap
Overall record: 19-41
Conference record: 10-20
Horizon League finish: 5th
Horizon League Tournament result: 2-2, 4th place
The numbers do not jump off the page and scream great season. A brutal non-conference road slate saw an accumulation of losses that made it tough to make up ground on the overall record, but the struggles continued into a lot of the conference season. That hole got really deep, and Oakland found themselves in the basement of the league. For a team that was picked to finish third in the league, it seemed really bleak.
The last month of the season began to yield some results however. In their last 20 games, Oakland went 10-10. They climbed out of 6th and passed Purdue Fort Wayne, and only finished one game back of 4th place Youngstown State. They then beat Youngstown State twice in the Horizon League Tournament, marking a step that maybe they had rounded into form. The glimpse of the projected top half team that was expected continued as Oakland came within a few outs of eliminating two seed Northern Kentucky, but they ultimately fell short. The finish to the season was enough for Golden Grizzlies head coach Brian Nelson to have his interim tag removed before the postseason, and he will not get a chance to lead the program full time over multiple seasons. Could the slow start be attributed to a new staff? Maybe a full time title leads better results in recruiting that could get the 2026 season jumpstarted earlier? Only time will tell, but a seemingly bleak program outlook turned a bit more positive over the course of the final month of the season.
Player standouts
Second team All Horizon:
Senior, John Lauinger, OF
Senior, Matthew McGann, C
Senior, Brandon Nigh, INF/P
Freshman, Grant Garman, P
Horizon All Tournament Team:
Senior, John Lauinger, OF
Senior, Hunter Pidek, P
Oakland got some bigtime contributions from some newcomers this year, but none more than Matthew McGann. The Albion transfer led the team in home runs, RBI, and Ops, while leading the pitching staff behind the plate. John Lauinger and Brandon Nigh wrapped up their stellar Oakland careers with all league campaigns. Lauinger hit .357 to lead the squad, while the former first teamer and freshman of the year Nigh solidified his place among the Oakland greats. Both were key pieces on the championship game appearance seasons that included many school records. As was Hunter Pidek, who finished his Oakland career with a complete game victory in postseason play. Perhaps the biggest story of the offseason is what can Oakland add to Grant Garman. The freshman was brilliant, and was the best freshman pitcher in the league. Keeping Garman around will be a huge key to the Golden Grizzly offseason.
Roster breakdown
Some key potential returners could be a nice start to the roster next year. Outfielder Trent Rice led a running attack that was top ten in the country in steals, Rice was 13th in the nation in that category. Jack Lux and Taylor Tomlin are both underclassmen who had better than an .800 ops this season. Every day starter Sam Griffith, and usual suspects Aidan Schuck, Boston Halloran and Ben Clark all have two plus seasons of eligibility. Tanner Ware, Brody Fahnestock (an HL Pitcher of the week winner), Ryan Donley and Daniel Duley are the pitchers outside of Garman returning with 30 innings or more of work. Blake Sehlke and Jaxon Easterlin also appeared in over 20 games on the mound. It will be an interesting offseason on the diamond in Rochester.
Season highlights
John Lauinger made an appearance on SportsCenters top 10 with a diving catch in left field at Michigan State.
A five run ninth inning gave Oakland a 10-9 win over Cleary. Boston Halloran was the hero
Another late game rally at home, this one over Purdue Fort Wayne
In the Horizon League Tournament opener, Oakland took down Youngstown State behind this performance from senior ace Hunter Pidek. It was also Brian Nelson’s first official career win after having the interim tag removed.
In an elimination game, Oakland beat Youngstown State again, this time in an extra inning thriller that ended after midnight. One of the wildest baseball games in program history.
