Ben Greenspan has a bit more work to do.
The college baseball transfer portal has been relatively quiet in 2025 — except for Northwestern. For the ‘Cats it’s been nothing but chaos thus far.
Wildcat baseball has been resurrected this past season by Ben Greenspan, who led the team to their best regular season record since 2005 — a season that included their first Top-15 victory in 10 years.
So logic would suggest that NU would return it’s key contributors for another postseason push, especially after missing the Big Ten Tournament by a single game.
Boy were we ever wrong.
As of now, nine different players have entered the transfer portal to take their talents elsewhere, leaving ‘Cats faithful in a world of panic. However, there are five incoming names that seem to mesh well with the remaining squad from 2025.
Below is all the summer action from the transfer portal, simplified for ‘Cats fans.
Departures
Trent Liolios and Preston Knott were the biggest names to announce their leave from the program. Liolios in particular had a great first half of the 2025 season, being a huge source of RBI production in the heart of the order. However, the junior slowed down in April, eventually finding himself in a rut where he batted .161 that month.
Side note — Liolios was so dominant this season that despite batting below the Mendoza line for part of the spring, he still broke the original single-season home run record at the end of April. Insane.
With one last year of eligibility, Liolios will be seeking to find his best swing with Tulane in 2026.
On the other hand, Knott couldn’t really get things going from the leadoff spot this past year, posting career lows in his batting splits. He’ll be heading to his third and likely final school as a graduate student with one last year of eligibility remaining as well, leaving NU without one of its most valuable defenders heading into 2026.
Vince Bianchina was the second senior to take his leave following this past season. Lots of question marks swirled around his name after a hand injury limited him to 12 appearances on the season, forcing Greenspan to rely on Jack Counsell and Jacob Hand to fill the void left at second base. With one of the two almost guaranteed to claim the full-time starting job, the graduate student will seek another school in his last year.
Other outgoing infielders include Sonny Rao, Kelly Crittenberger and Zach Selfon, the former of the three making only three appearances this past year and the ladder two seeing no playing time in 2025. Selfon, an unknown piece of the program to fresh followers of ‘Cats baseball, appeared in 42 games in his first year in Evanston back in 2024, and although his production at the plate was minimal, he saw success getting on base at a .345 clip through 42 at bats. He takes his talents to Bucknell Unviersity, while Rao and Crittenberger remain uncommitted.
In the bullpen, four departures create intrigue as to how Northwestern’s pitching philosophy will be adjusted in 2026.
Headlining the group is Amar Tsengeg, who’s 28 innings of relief ranked fourth amongst Wildcat arms this year. However, his limited pitch arsenal hindered his effectiveness on the mound, leading to numerous mid-game meltdowns that killed NU in the long run. Despite that, it originally seemed that he’d return as a mainstay in the bullpen with time to develop his velocity and spin rate. That thinking went down the drain when he announced his entrance in the transfer portal on June 3.
The three pitchers joining him in the portal are Ethan Borggren, Chad Readey and Cole Mascott.
Borggren made eight appearances on the mound, progressively improving in each one and ending his first-year season with a dominant inning and a third against Butler. He’s headed the JUCO route, taking his talents as a utility player to Parkland University.
For the first time in his college career, Readey got multiple opportunities for the NU pitching staff in his senior year, in which he struggled to say the least. The senior made four appearances, but gave up nine earned runs in only two total innings, with opposing batters hitting. 375 off the right-hander. Still no word on where he’ll end up this fall.
Mascott’s seven appearances all came on short leashes, his longest outing going one and two-thirds innings. Maybe that came with good reason, as he gave up a run in all but two of those appearances, finishing with a 20.25 ERA. The rising junior will seek an opportunity to grow into a weekend starter in his next two seasons.
Ben Greenspan finds himself in a very confusing position. He’s done a tremendous job in changing the trajectory of ‘Cats baseball, but how he addresses the issues left by this large group of departing transfers may determine the legacy he creates for himself in Evanston.
Arrivals
NU has gotten off to a great start with trying to patch these holes left in their roster. This 2025 transfer class could go down as the greatest in program history.
One of the biggest names brought in is Charlie Kutz, a Division III All-American reliever for Middlebury who pitched to a 3.34 ERA this year. The graduate student features a deadly three pitch arsenal: a 91 MPH fastball with 18 inches of horizontal run, a 79 MPH slider with a spin rate that can tick up to 2500 RPMs, and a 85 MPH changeup that he loves to bury in the dirt. He could emerge as a viable Friday starter for Northwestern, slotting into the role that Sam Hibloki occupied throughout this past season.
Joining the group of grad transfers is Ryan Weaver, previously of Illinois State. Weaver threw 35 innings for the Redbirds in 2025, pitching to a 4.35 ERA with 23 strikeouts. Featuring a near identical arsenal to Kutz, Weaver’s premier pitch is his slider, which induces a solid whiff rate and double play balls to the left side of the infield.
Two promising wings for NU to group with a returning Garrett Shearer, making for a strong weekend rotation.
But Northwestern has one more arm en route to Evanston as of now: Chayce Kieck, a sophomore from Clemson. The Jacksonville native struggled greatly with the Tigers, as indicated by a ERA peaking nine in just as many appearances.
Although this seems alarming to ‘‘Cats fans, a change of scenery may be what contributes to Kieck realizing his potential on the bump. Past additions like Ryan Kucherak have reaped the benefits of a new, nourishing environment in the form of Evanston, Illinois. The same performance spike can be in the cards for the righty.