UPDATE: This game has been postponed and will be made up on Monday, June 23, at 7 p.m. at Culpeper County High School.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Charlottesville Tom Sox (0-0) will face the Culpeper Cavaliers (0-0) to open the 2025 season at Culpeper County High School. It will be broadcast live on the Cavaliers YouTube channel, and first pitch is set for 7:00 P.M.
Coverage: Viewers can head to the Cavaliers YouTube channel to watch tonight’s game. A link to the live stats is available on Pointstreak. The Tom Sox X account (@CvilleTomSox) will provide live updates.
Ticket Information: Admission to Culpeper games is $5 per adult, $3 for ages 12 and under, as well as 65 and over. Children 12 and under that are wearing their Little League uniform receive free admission. Tickets can be purchased at the gate.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Culpeper: TBA
Charlottesville: RHP Eli DeRossi-Cytron (Mount St. Mary’s)
BACK IN BUSINESS
- The Charlottesville Tom Sox begin their 2025 season with a matchup against the Culpeper Cavaliers
- It’s the first game for the Tom Sox since August 1, 2024, when the ‘Sox beat the Purcellville Cannons, 9-5, in game three of the Valley League Championship Series to claim their fourth VBL title
- Tonight’s game is the seventh time in ten seasons that the ‘Sox open the season on the road
- The Tom Sox are 2-7 all-time in season openers, including a three-game losing streak
- The two wins came in 2017 and 2021. In last season’s opener, the Tom Sox fell to the Staunton Braves, 9-8
10TH SEASON OF TOM SOX BASEBALL
- 2025 marks the tenth season of Charlottesville Tom Sox baseball
- Since 2015, the team’s inaugural season, the ‘Sox have won four Valley League Championships, appeared in the championship series six times, and been a step in over 30 professional players journeys
- Over the last decade, the Tom Sox have won 253 games, and have a winning percentage of .604
RETURNING ‘SOX
- The Tom Sox are excited to welcome back three players from last year’s Valley League title team
- Trevor Booton (Auburn), Kaegan Costa (Paul D Camp), and James Nunnallee (Virginia) were all on last year’s team at some point, and are on this year’s Opening Day roster
COAST TO COAST
- The Opening Day roster for the Tom Sox features 26 players from Division I and three Junior College players across 15 conferences in college baseball
- The highest represented conference is the ACC with six active players
- The ‘Sox are from eight states across the country (Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia), with Virginia being the most represented (14 players)
COACHES CORNER
- Randy Tomlin, the reigning VBL South Division Coach of the Year, returns to Charlottesville for his second season at the helm of the Tom Sox
- Tomlin became the third Tom Sox head coach to earn Coach of the Year honors, joining Corey Hunt (2017) and Kory Koehler (2021)
- Tomlin led the ‘Sox to a 30-15 overall record in his first season, a league-best 26-13 regular season record, and the fourth Valley Baseball League Championship in team history
- Tomlin is also the current head coach at Liberty Christian Academy
- Under Tomlin, the Tom Sox finished top three in the VBL in batting average, runs scored, ERA and WHIP during the regular season
- Randy’s son, Coy Tomlin, also returns for his second season as an assistant coach, where he will continue to bring infectious energy to the ballpark each night
- Assistant coaches Jim Darin, Joey Davis (Hitting), and Chris Glaize (Pitching) round out the 2025 staff. Darin, previously on Corey Hunt’s staff from 2017-2019, rejoins the staff after three trips to the Valley League Championship where he helped mentor players such as Vinnie Pasquantino, Connor Gillespie and Carson Spiers
- Joey Davis joins the staff as this year’s hitting coach
- Davis, a two-time World Series champion, spent 10 years as a major league scout for the Toronto Blue Jays, Philadelphia Phillies, and Atlanta Braves, and has previously coached at Berry College, St. Leo College, Western Kentucky, as well as both the Blue Jays and Phillies organizations
- Chris Glaize will serve as the pitching coach for the 2025 season
- Glaize is currently the head coach at Brookville High School in Lynchburg, VA, and has previously served as an assistant coach for the Purcellville Cannons and Winchester Royals
A JAM-PACKED SCHEDULE
- The Valley Baseball League and Charlottesville Tom Sox have announced exciting changes for the 2025 schedule
- Inter-division play returns this season as part of the 42-game slate, with every team playing each team in their own division six times (three home and three road), and every team in the other division twice (one home and one road)
- New game times are coming to CHO Airport Field at Charlottesville High School this year, with Saturday home games beginning at 4 p.m., and Sunday home games starting at 1 p.m.
- The two 2024 Championship Series rematches will come on June 15, when the Tom Sox travel to Purcellville to take on the Cannons, and on June 29, when the Cannons make
A WINNING MODEL
- The Tom Sox have been the Valley’s most successful team since winning their first title in 2017
- The ‘Sox have appeared in all but one championship series since ‘17 (2021) and have won the league title in four of the last seven seasons
- Charlottesville’s 190-99 record since the start of the 2017 season is the best in the VBL
- Charlottesville’s six championship appearances and four titles since 2017 are both the most in the VBL over that span
- The Tom Sox have won the league title in alternating seasons since their first title in 2017 (‘17, ‘19, ‘22 [2020 season cancelled], ‘24)
‘SOX ON THE ROAD TO OMAHA
- Several former Tom Sox are playing in this year’s NCAA Tournament with their eyes set on reaching the College World Series in Omaha, NE
- The ‘Sox are represented in 10 of the 16 NCAA Regionals across the country, including six players playing in the Conway Regional hosted by Coastal Carolina
- 2024 ‘Sox: Blake Brookins (Florida), Cade Belyeu (Auburn), Cale Stricklin (Auburn), Colby Wallace (East Carolina), Dean Mihos (Coastal Carolina), Ethan Sutton (Georgia), Frank Menendez (Florida), Jake Books (Coastal Carolina), James Hays (Stetson), James Taussig (UTSA), Landon Abrahamson (Dallas Baptist), Nick Parham (East Carolina)
- 2023 ‘Sox: Alex Bouche (East Carolina), David Utagawa (UC Irvine), Derek Williams (Miami), Hayden Smith (Kentucky), Jake Bennett (Dallas Baptist), Justin Thomas (Arkansas), Salvy Alvarez (Stetson), Sergio Rivera (Bethune-Cookman), Zach Root (Arkansas)
- 2022 ‘Sox: Jackson Nove (Kentucky), John Armstrong (Auburn), Tyler McLoughlin (Georgia)
‘SOX IN THE PROS
- Four former ‘Sox are currently playing in the majors (Connor Gillispie – Marlins, Vinnie Pasquantino – Royals, Carson Spiers – Reds, Wyatt Langford – Rangers)
- Gillispie, Pasquantino, and Spiers all played for Charlottesville in 2017 when the ‘Sox won their first VBL title
- Langford played for the Tom Sox in 2021
- The ‘Sox also have 29 former players currently playing Minor League Baseball
- Kyle Nicolas, who pitched for Charlottesville in 2018, made his MLB Debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2023, and has appeared in 62 games
- Nicolas is currently playing for the Pirates AAA affiliate, the Indianapolis Indians
