According to third-year Boston College baseball head coach Todd Interdonato, there’s a new team coming to the Heights this season.
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“This year feels like a true changing of the guard,” Interdonato said.
On Friday, the Eagles will travel to Ponce, Puerto Rico, to begin their season against Seton Hall. The Puerto Rico Challenge will continue through the weekend as the Eagles take on Houston on Saturday and Washington on Sunday.
Following an up-and-down season that saw the Eagles go 28–29 and 11–19 in the ACC, finishing 14th in the conference, the Eagles will hope that some fresh faces, as well as some returning ones, will be able to turn things around.
(Sarah Fleming / Heights Senior Staff)
Strong Endings, Hopeful Beginnings
Despite the Eagles’ struggles during their 2025 campaign, their effort in the ACC Tournament gave them reason for optimism. BC emerged victorious in the first two rounds of the tournament, beating Notre Dame in 10 innings and upsetting then-No. 6 Virginia 12–8.
The Eagles’ season ended with a strong effort against then-No. 3 North Carolina, as the Tar Heels ultimately beat the Eagles 7–2. UNC went on to win the ACC Tournament and make it to the Super Regionals in the NCAA Tournament.
Interdonato said the key was taking the tournament game by game.
“I think that week generated a lot of positivity in and around the program,” Interdonato said. “I know as we traveled around this summer, a lot of people mentioned it and gave us credit for it, which was great.”
Interdonato, however, was less focused on the praise than he was on turning those unexpected victories into positive momentum.
“I think that stuff internally, it’s much more important than what it does for us externally,” Interdonato said. “I think guys took that as a positive step.”
The Eagles will need all the momentum they can get, as they enter the 2026 season ranked last in the ACC Preseason Coaches Poll for the second straight year.
The ACC also saw nine of its teams make it to the NCAA Tournament last season, meaning the road ahead will not be easy for BC.
(Sarah Fleming / Heights Senior Staff)
Roster Moves
The Eagles’ 41-man roster will be fielding eight freshmen and seven transfers.
“This team is just very different from the first two years that I’ve been here, just because we had so many upperclassmen and so many established leaders that were in the program when I first got here,” Interdonato said. “It’s not good, [and] it’s not bad. It’s just different.”
Transfer Ty Mainolfi, a sophomore infielder, managed seven home runs and a .304 batting average last year at Dayton.
Interdonato highlighted infielder Sean Martinez as another transfer who could make a big difference. The sophomore saw limited playing time last year at Saint Peter’s University. In his 20 games, he put up one home run, nine RBIs, and a batting average of .306.
The transfer class also features four pitchers: John Mitchell, Aidan Gelbsman, Drew Grumbles, and Ethan Marzo.
Of the eight freshmen, five are pitchers, totalling nine new pitchers on the 2026 roster.
As far as the rest of the freshman class goes, Interdonato pointed to incoming freshman Luke Gallo as someone who’s been playing well in the infield.
The Eagles lost several key players to the draft and graduation.
One of those key new absences is outfielder Josiah Ragsdale. Ragsdale led the Eagles in batting average last year, hitting .319, and was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the seventh round of the 2025 MLB Draft.
Interdonato is hopeful that the returning players will be able to step into the roles left vacant by those who left.
“Anytime you go from one season to the next, I think the first thing and the most natural thing is to look at guys who fill those roles, who are already in the program,” he said.
One of those guys may be sophomore infielder Julio Solier. Solier recorded a .148 batting average in a very limited 27 at-bats in 2025. Interdonato thinks he can take the next step and earn more playing time this season.
Another returner is junior infielder Esteban Garcia. In 87 at-bats, he batted .264, the fourth-best mark on last year’s roster.
Stiff Competition
Succeeding in the ACC is no easy feat. For the Eagles to pull it off, they will need to get off to a good start. Interdonato flagged the Eagles’ spring break trip to Florida as a crucial series for his team this season.
“I think our spring break trip is going to be really important,” he said. “I think that’ll be a really good test for us.”
The eight-game stretch will see the Eagles play Florida Gulf Coast, Florida International, and begin ACC play on March 6 against No. 22 Miami.
“I think FGCU has a great program,” Interdonato said. “FIU is a program that is certainly on the rise. And then Miami, [which] finished as well as any team in our league last year, for us to open conference play, so that’s the one I look at where I feel like we’re really going to be challenged, which we’re looking forward to.”
Other notable series for the Eagles include those against No. 11 UNC in early April and No. 5 Georgia Tech to close the season in mid-May. UNC won the ACC tournament in 2025, and Georgia Tech finds itself atop the 2026 ACC Preseason Coaches Poll. Both teams will be daunting challenges for the Eagles.
Before they reach those challenges, however, the Eagles are looking for a strong start this weekend in Puerto Rico.
“To me, the biggest lesson is if you play good baseball, more often than not, you’re going to get rewarded,” Interdonato said.
It all starts this Friday. And for the Eagles, hopefully, some good baseball will be in the cards.
(Sarah Fleming / Heights Senior Staff)