There is no doubt North Carolina baseball head coach Scott Forbes is confident in his pitchers — and it's easy to see why. With the likes of sophomores Jason DeCaro and Folger Boaz starting on the bump, there won't be any off days for opposing hitters.
“I feel like the pitching depth will be the biggest strength,” Forbes said. “And it's a fierce battle to get into that mix on this pitching staff, to pitch significant innings, which is a good thing.”
What puts this pitching staff in the upper echelon of college baseball is when the call to the bullpen is made. The changing of the guards on the pitching mound is looking like a nightmare for teams in an early deficit.
The first man out of the bullpen is a guy known around the locker room as “The Vulture.” Junior right-hander Matthew Matthijs enters the scene like Batman when Gotham was in danger — his Bat-Signal being a tie game with runners on base. Need to get out of the inning unscathed? 24 is the guy.
It was this reliability that earned the right-handed pitcher wins in tightly-contested early season games against Elon, ECU and Princeton last season. He finished the 2024 season with 12 wins — tying him for third nationally and earning him his nickname for swooping in and finishing off opponents.
Matthijs' cool, calm and collected manner helped him make noticeable improvements in his control last season, walking less batters per inning and doubling his strikeouts from his first-year campaign.
But Matthijs won't be alone on his rescue missions this season. After being selected by the Minnesota Twins in the 16th round of the 2024 MLB Draft, right-hander Aidan Haugh decided to return to Chapel Hill for his senior season. The 6-foot-6 pitcher filled the injury gap in the starting rotation last season. No matter what inning it was, Haugh impressed on the bump.
His slider and curveball caught the eye of Forbes when Haugh was at Fayetteville Tech, leading UNC to take a chance on the righty last season. After six strikeouts and five scoreless innings in his first career start against Notre Dame, Forbes knew he had found a diamond in the rough.
Returning alongside Haugh is junior left-hander Kyle Percival, looking to make strides in his third season as a Tar Heel. Percival entered as a starter during his first year and came out of the bullpen last season. This year, Percival wants to help the Diamond Heels win however he can.
