Carrying 15 more pounds of muscle and wielding a bat that produces considerably more raw power, Virginia sophomore outfielder Harrison Didawick is taking a markedly different approach at the plate than he did as a freshman last year.
“I’m going up there to do damage,” said the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Didawick, who matriculated to UVA after a stellar prep baseball career at Western Branch High in Chesapeake. “I’m swinging as hard as possible, whether it’s going (opposite field) or dead center or pull. I’m not going up there to just put the ball in play.”
The proof is in Didawick’s performance as he has helped power a potent Cavaliers lineup that has been pivotal in the program’s run to the College World Series for the third time in the past four years and seventh time overall.
The Hoos (46-15) lead the nation with 737 hits, have hit a school-record 116 home runs and are seven runs shy of breaking the single-season mark they set just last season (582). They take on fourth-seeded North Carolina (47-14) in the first game of the tournament at 2 p.m. Friday at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska.
Thanks to a protein-rich diet and a fierce offseason workout regimen, Didawick transformed his body between his freshman and sophomore seasons and bumped his home run total from four in 2023 to 23 this year, tying the school’s single-season record set by Jake Gelof last year.
Didawick, a second-team All-ACC selection and one of three UVA players to receive All-Atlantic Region honors from the American Baseball Coaches Association, ranks fifth in the ACC in round-trippers and is tied for 22nd nationally.
He also set a new program record with 78 runs and is tied for the team lead in RBIs (68) and walks (41) while ranking second in stolen bases (14).
Harrison Didawick had 4 home runs all last season.
He had three this weekend, including the walk-off to secure a Commonwealth Clash sweep for UVA.
Didawick with 22 homers this season, one behind the single season record of 23 by Jake Gelof.
pic.twitter.com/ix3ZIcetPs— Preston Willett (@PrestonWillett) May 19, 2024
“What I see out of him individually is a young man who has taken the lessons that he had last year in our uniform, and he played a lot as a true freshman, played in Omaha, and decided last summer and this fall to really work his tail off to get as strong and as physical as he could be, and it’s made a difference in who he is as a player,” said UVA coach Brian O’Connor, who has led the program to seven CWS appearances and the 2015 national championship.
Didawick transformed his body in the offseason by loading up on protein. He said a common breakfast was a half-dozen eggs and bacon, and he often chowed down at Chipotle for lunch. He mixed four or five hearty snacks in between three full meals.
“As soon as I woke up, I’d just eat, eat, eat,” he said. “If I was sitting there watching TV, I was eating. If I was doing anything, I was eating.”
Coupled with five workouts a week with the likes of Gelof and former UVA standouts Kyle Teel and Ethan O’Donnell, all of whom play professionally now, Didawick began building the kind of muscle that can pay dividends at the plate. He started noticing a difference while taking batting practice in the fall.
“Like the first couple of practices, I was putting balls off the scoreboard, and I was like, ‘Wow, I definitely didn’t do that last year,’ and it’s honestly not the ones where I fully connect on it where I know. It’s the ones where I hit it off the end of the bat and it goes over the fence,” said Didawick, who logged a 110 mph max exit velocity this year after topping out at 103 mph last year.
Didawick started the season with three home runs in the first four games and had an early March stretch of five long balls in four contests. He reached the 15-homer plateau on April 14 at Louisville.
“I expected to hit probably like 12 to 15 home runs this season, and so when I got to 15, I was like, ‘Wow, this is pretty cool. Let’s keep doing it,’ ” Didawick said.
Now he is one homer away from breaking Gelof’s record.
“It would be a great feeling, of course,” Didawick said. “I’ve talked to Jake about it and stuff, and he’s fully supportive, but he’s also told me that you can’t think about it. You have to worry about doing all the little things and focus on winning as a team, and I really appreciate that from him, and that’s what I’m going to do. If the record comes, it comes, but our goal and my goal is to win the national championship, so that’s what we focus on.”
In Didawick’s first experience in Omaha last season, the Cavaliers dropped two one-run games and were out of the tournament after the first weekend. He had a huge hit in the opener against Florida, delivering a run-scoring triple into the right-field corner to give the Cavaliers a two-run cushion in the top of the ninth before the Gators rallied with three runs in the bottom half of the frame.
Coming up short was a significant motivator for Didawick and his teammates.
“Yeah, 100%, there’s definitely unfinished business,” Didawick said. “We’re not going there just to be there. We’re going to win it.”
Didawick has caught the eye of professional scouts with his performance this season. The Athletic pegs him as a potential third-round pick for the upcoming Major League Baseball draft in July, and Baseball America rates him as a sixth-rounder.
A decision on his future will come after the season, Didawick said.
“That’s something we’ll talk about after the College World Series, but either way, it’s gonna be a great opportunity wherever life takes me,” he said. “I have not thought about that at all, though. Been focused on UVA.”
CWS schedule
Charles Schwab Field, Omaha, Nebraska
(All on ESPN)
Friday’s games
- Virginia (46-15) vs. North Carolina (47-14), 2 p.m.
- Florida State (47-15) vs. Tennessee (55-12), 7 p.m.
Saturday’s games
- NC State (38-21) vs. Kentucky (45-14), 2 p.m.
- Texas A&M (49-13) vs. Florida (34-28), 7 p.m.
