Arizona Baseball Players Miss Final Cut for USA Baseball Roster

The 2025 baseball season for Arizona had highs and lows as the team struggled near the end of the regular season in series against Utah and Houston. A lot of that was the starting pitching, which had been inconsistent throughout various parts of the year.

But, as the Wildcats headed into the postseason, head coach Chip Hale’s team started to play their best baseball of the season. UA was able to run through the Big 12 Tournament and Regional play before taking back-to-back games against UNC to advance to the CWS.

Although the WIldcats went 0-2 and had a quick exit, the one thing that surprised everyone was the play of the Wildcats’ starting pitchers.

Leading the charge were Smith Bailey and Owen Kramkowski, who played their best baseball of the season. But, in the end, bullpen issues cost UA in the eighth inning.

The starting rotation set the tone with Bailey and Kramkowski, combining for 11 innings of work in the CWS and struckout 11 batters while giving up just five runs.

During the 2025 season, Bailey started in 18 games where he delivered 89 innings of work. In those games, he recorded 80 strikeouts to32 walks allowed with an opponent batting average of .267 as a freshman.

In those 18 starts, Bailey was able to post a 3.94 ERA giving up a total of 39 runs and allowing eight home runs. With the ability to keep the ball in the ballpark he was able to finish with a 3-3 record.

Meanwhile, Kramkowski entered his second season with the program and after only pitching in three games during the 2024 season with a 13.50 ERA, he was able to develop and earned a larger role on the staff.

Kramkowski went from his 13.50 ERA to 5.48 and made 18 starts on the season. In those starts, he managed to rack up 90 strikeouts in 92 innings of work while giving up 56 earned runs and only eight home runs.

The two pitchers were invited to the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team Training Camp. Both Baleily and Kramkowski were able to toss a handful of scoreless outings and showed their development on the field.

However, neither Bailey or Kramkowski made the final cut and missed the roster as the team prepares to go on a tour.

But, the work they were able to do during that time in camp will only help them develop as players and get ready for the 2026 season with Arizona. Both will be taking on bigger roles in the starting rotation as they get another year under their belts.

Please let us know what you think of the development of Smith Bailey and Owen Kramkowski as they will take on larger roles. You can do this by following us on our X account by clicking on the link.