Upon Jordan Crosland’s visit to Virginia, he crossed paths with a longtime, trusted pal whose spot he’s likely to fill.
“The baseball world is very small,” Crosland, the Maryland transfer outfielder and a native of Suffolk who committed to UVa in mid-June, told The Daily Progress this week.
And for Crosland, it had to feel that way when he bumped into outgoing Cavaliers left fielder Harrison Didawick while touring the Hoos’ baseball facility. Crosland said the pair grew up playing together in the 757.
Didawick, from Chesapeake, had an outstanding four-year career at UVa while smashing 42 career homers. He has a chance to be chosen in next week’s MLB Draft.
Crosland plays left field and hits for power, too.
“[Didawick] was actually leaving UVa to go back home and was like, ‘Yo, what are you doing here, bro?’” Crosland said. “It was like a full-circle moment. It was so fun to see him, and I had some great conversations with Diddy after my visit and really talked to him about a lot of stuff.”
Crosland said he was already familiar with the Hoos’ program since he’s from the Commonwealth and knows so many former and current Cavaliers like Luke Hanson, Antonio Perrotta, Kyle Johnson and Aidan Teel in addition to Didawick.
So, Crosland said, shortly after he made the decision to enter the transfer portal and after UVa assistant coach Derek Simmons reached out quickly, “it was honestly a no-brainer. I was stoked.
“This is the flagship school in my state,” Crosland said, “and ever since I was younger, whatever is in front of you, you see a lot. So, UVa, I saw a lot of due to me being from Virginia and also with them having great academics and a great, great baseball program.”
It helped, too, that he fit a need for the Cavaliers.
Though, they’ve made an effort to recruit more contact-first hitters in this recruiting cycle, they still had to have a power threat in their transfer class and Crosland is proven in that department. UVa is losing at least 53 home runs off of last season’s team with Joe Tiroly (16), AJ Gracia (14), Didawick (9), Johnson (7) and Eric Becker (7) all headed to the MLB Draft.
“Crosland gives you some immediate thump,” Hoos skipper Chris Pollard said.
Maryland infielder Jordan Crosland (4) awaits a pitch.
Mike Buscher / Associated Press
This past spring for the Terrapins, Crosland hit .283 with 12 home runs, eight doubles and 43 RBI.
“Anytime there’s an in-state kid, we’re going to take a look,” UVa director of recruiting Brian Sakowski said about Crosland. “We really fell in love with the makeup and the human being that Jordan Crosland is and on top of that, he hits the ball really hard in the air to the pull field. And at the Dish, as a right-handed hitter, that’s good news. I think he’s going to hit for some power and he can hit in the middle of our lineup.”
Crosland said he had never been to Disharoon Park before his visit. He’d attended UVa football games and basketball games, but wasn’t recruited by the Hoos out of high school or played in a travel ball tournament at UVa, so his first time at the venue was last month.
And Crosland said he agreed with Sakowski in believing that his power will show up at Disharoon Park.
“Absolutely, but there is still a lot of room to grow in my game,” Crolsand said. “There are still a lot of things I can personally do better with and I’m so happy to just be with a staff where I’m going to be in great hands and we can grind and work every single day and have fun with it. But I think it’s awesome and [the home runs are] going to come organically.”
Sakowski said Crosland can run also, making him a multi-dimensional player.
Crosland stole 12 bases during the 2026 campaign.
He said he can’t wait to get on Grounds and start fall ball. He said he’s already begun summer-school classes as well.
Crosland said the other critical factor in his decision to transfer to UVa was the opportunity to compete in the postseason.
The Hoos finished 37-23 and reached a regional in Pollard’s first year in charge, and Crosland knows the Cavaliers have aspirations for a stronger 2027 campaign.
“It’s the reason why you play,” Crosland said, “and why as a team you go through the ups and downs and have a brotherhood and a culture. It’s to be able to experience those things and I honestly have not experienced those things yet. So breaking it down to get to Omaha or the NCAA tournament or ACC tournament, those are big milestones not only for myself, but within any program. It’s not easy to do but that’s the reason why you work and have morals and values or culture, so you can move through the good days, challenging days or indifferent ones together.”