Tom Sox Seek Fifth League Title as 2026 Campaign Kicks Off
By: Matt Becker & Bryan Portney
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Charlottesville Tom Sox look to hoist the Lineweaver Trophy for the fifth time in its 11-year history, as the 2026 campaign kicks off on Friday.
Head coach Randy Tomlin is back for his third season in Charlottesville after leading the squad to back-to-back Valley League Championship Series appearances.
Jack McMullan (Longwood) is back after winning the Valley League title with the ‘Sox in 2024, Trevor Booton (Auburn) is back for his third season, and Lucas Cash (Bridgewater) returns for his fourth year in Charlottesville.
Evan Alwine (Pasco-Hernando State) is also back for season number two.
The ‘Sox will play a 36-game regular season in the Valley League, ending on July 18. The Valley League playoffs will consist of a best-of-three format for each round, with the last possible day being on July 31.
Last Year at a Glance
The miracle run for the Tom Sox did not start bright as the squad went 3-9 in its first 12 games. By June 18, the reigning league champions found itself in fifth place out of six teams in the South Division.
After the worst 12-game start in franchise history, the ‘Sox battled back thanks to an 8-2 stretch that lasted until the end of June.
Charlottesville recorded a four and five-game win streak to earn a 20-18 overall record at the end of the regular season and a No. 3 seed for the South Playoffs.
The defense of the 2024 title started with a win over the 6-seed Waynesboro Generals, followed up by a three-run comeback to zap the hottest team in the division in the 2-seed Staunton Braves.
Hudson Lutterman sent the ‘Sox to extras on an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth, followed up by a Jackson Sirois walk-off single in the bottom of the 12th against the 4-seed Culpeper Cavaliers to advance to the Valley League Championship Series.
Lutterman was again the hero in Game 2 of the championship against the Strasburg Express, thanks to a walk-off sacrifice fly to even up the series.
Though the ‘Sox did not record a hit in Game 3 to drop the championship series, a lot of hope emerged for the offseason.
Power Conference Bandits
Recruiting coordinator Tim Knighton, Head Coach Randy Tomlin and General Manager Chesley Mullins helped execute the vision of a ‘Sox return to Titletown by bringing in players from big-name schools for the opening day roster. Knighton assisted in bringing in players from the SEC and ACC.
The upside of Noah Yoder (Virginia) speaks for itself as he is ranked the top overall player in the state of Virginia and the No. 37 overall player in the country by Perfect Game.
Clayton Armah (Auburn) brings in tons of potential as the No. 123 overall player in the Class of 2025 per the Perfect Game rankings. He is also the No. 28 overall right-handed pitcher in the national class.
Patrick Dudley (South Carolina) continues the SEC pipeline, being ranked as the No. 1 left-handed pitcher in the Virginia 2025 class by Prep Baseball Report. He recorded a 2.45 earned run average in 7.1 innings pitched for the Gamecocks this year.
Staying Close to Home
One of the best perks about the Tom Sox is all the local talent the team develops. Numerous Tom Sox players are from towns that are in Virginia and have made the decision to represent Charlottesville this summer.
17 players on the roster are from Virginia, with two players directly from Charlottesville. Dom Cafferillo (Georgetown) and incoming freshman Will Yow (SS) will look to become local legends as they both grew up in C’ville.
Yow will be the ‘Sox opening day shortstop and was recently named as the 112th top baseball draft prospect by the MLB in its top 150 prospects.
Chesapeake native Brayden Bachman (East Carolina), boasted a slash line of .256/.346/.465 at ECU. Bachman will join ECU teammate and Warrenton native Luke Craddock (East Carolina) at Charlottesville.
Lynchburg native Cooper Campbell (VCU), pitched in 56.1 innings this past season and had an impressive 3.83 ERA. Campbell only let up five home runs and pitched 44 strikeouts.
Bristow native Benjamin Cardone (Virginia Military Institute) played in 21 games and had 10 hits in the 2026 campaign, including 1 homerun.
Virginia Beach native Christian Dewey (George Washington) had 11 hits in 61 at-bats this past season while registering 32 putouts and claiming a .943 fielding percentage.
Tommy Landsnes hails from Richmond. The senior had a .586 OPS this past season and had two triples.
Meet the ‘Sox Staff
Randy Tomlin returns as head coach of the Tom Sox for his third season, making him tied for the longest-tenured coach in franchise history with Corey Hunt, who was at Charlottesville from 2017–19.
With a 54-35 overall record, Tomlin is 33 wins shy of being the winningest coach in team history, a title that is currently being held by Hunt.
Thomas Abell returns as an assistant coach for 2026 after being the first base coach for the ‘Sox last year. Abell also coaches at nearby Monticello High School.
Coy Tomlin returns as the honorary pitching coach and has also been on the staff at Liberty Christian Academy.
Beth Woerner is new to the staff as an assistant coach and will be the first full-time female coach in league history. Woerner previously worked as the Director of Baseball Operations at James Madison in 2025 and is currently an assistant coach at Stevenson.
VBL champion Will Pearson is back in Charlottesville as the pitching coach after playing here in 2024. Pearson pitched at Georgia and Iowa in his college career and was a pitching analyst at Murray State during the spring.
Circle Your Calendar
From special theme nights to playoff rematches, the 2026 Tom Sox season will be a fun one for fans. With that being said, here are some games to mark on the calendar.
5/29 SEASON OPENER (7:00 P.M.): Tom Sox fans can head approximately 45 minutes west of Charlottesville on Interstate-64 to catch the regular season opener between the Waynesboro Generals and the Tom Sox. The ‘Sox had a dominant record against the Generals last season, winning the season series 6-1.
5/31 HOME OPENER (3:00 P.M.): The four-time Valley Baseball League champions start the home season against the Woodstock River Bandits. Fans will get to run the bases postgame, as well as a photo and autograph session with the team.
6/4 GIRLS & WOMEN IN SPORTS (7:00 P.M.): The Tom Sox honor girls and women in sports against the Wayneboro Generals. A special guest will be in attendance to throw out the first pitch at CHO Airport Field.
6/13 ARK AT THE PARK (3:00 P.M.): The ‘Sox are inviting all animals to attend the matchup against the Culpeper Cavaliers.
7/3 MILITARY APPRECIATION NIGHT (7:00 P.M.): On the eve of our nation's 250th birthday, the Tom Sox will honor those who fought for us as it takes on the Staunton Braves.
7/9 CHAMPIONSHIP REMATCH (7:00 P.M.): The ‘Sox travel to Strasburg to take on the Express in the all-anticipated 2025 championship rematch. This will be the only regular-season meeting between the two squads, as the Tom Sox seek revenge after the Express won the winner-take-all Game 3 in the championship.
It should be an exciting and fun summer in C’Ville as the Tom Sox seek its fifth league title. Make sure you don’t miss a beat by staying updated on our socials below:
