The University of Miami baseball team held an open press conference where head coach J.D. Arteaga, pitching coach Laz Gutierrez, hitting coach Chris Dominguez, third-baseman Daniel Cuvet, catcher Alex Sosa, and pitcher AJ Ciscar spoke to journalists and fans.
Miami walked off the field in Louisville last June one run short of Omaha, and the message at media day was simple.
The Hurricanes will not fall short again.
The 2026 season opens Friday night against Lehigh at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field, and Arteaga enters his third season as head coach with a lineup he believes can carry the program back to the College World Series.
The Canes return the core of an offense that helped them reach their first super regional since 2016, but they also lost a pile of innings on the mound.
J.D. Arteaga did not sugarcoat what the standard is in Coral Gables.
“We could win 45 games, but if we’re not in Omaha, it’s not a great season,” Arteaga said.
He called the offense the clear strength, then pointed to the biggest unknown heading into opening weekend.
“Offense is definitely the strength,” Arteaga said. “The big question mark is the pitching, more because of the amount of innings that we lost. We lost the entire bullpen and we lost two out of our four starters.”
That pitching reset falls heavily on Laz Gutierrez, the program’s associate head coach and pitching coach. Gutierrez kept coming back to one thing with his Friday starter: strike-throwing. He said AJ Ciscar has lived in the zone through fall work, bullpens and live reps.
“He throws the highest numbers of strikes,” Gutierrez said. “He’s at 74%, which is unheard of. Our aim is 64%, and he’s at 74%. It’s going to be even more refined and even more consistent.”
Gutierrez also described the bullpen build as the hardest part of the job, because practice never fully recreates the moment.
“It’s very difficult to replicate game situations,” Gutierrez said. “The seventh inning is different from the ninth inning, and you see how guys respond differently. It’s always a challenge, but you try to learn who can handle those high-leverage innings.”
At the plate, Chris Dominguez is working with a group that brings back proven bats and adds transfers who fit the same profile. Dominguez is in his second season as Miami’s hitting coach. He said the staff has avoided making sweeping changes to Daniel Cuvet, because the production has been there since he arrived. Cuvet blasted 18 home runs and drove in 84 runs last season, then carried that momentum into the postseason run.
“We’re not making any major changes with him,” Dominguez said. “Every year you just try to get a little smarter, a little better in what you’re doing, and how you work. That’s how he goes about his business.”
Dominguez said the same patience applies to portal additions, even when fans want instant tweaks.
“They’ve had success where they’ve been,” Dominguez said. “It’s not fair for me from day one to try and change you. Let me get some games in and see how you do, and if we need to change something, then we will.”
Cuvet, a junior third baseman, is the star of the team. He hit an audacious .372 with an OPS of 1.158. He led the Canes in virtually every major stat category including homers, RBIs and batting average.
“I feel super comfortable and confident, especially in the team and everyone around me,” Cuvet said. “Having those guys around me allows me to be comfortable where I am, and showing the way for the rest of the guys is super cool.”
He also leaned into the depth Miami believes it has, and what that does for an opposing pitching plan.
“This is the most balanced offense we’ve had since I’ve been here,” Cuvet said. “There’s going to be a lot of guys besides me producing a lot for us, and guys can’t just pitch around you anymore.”
One of the new pieces in that lineup is Alex Sosa, a catcher who transferred in from NC State and brings experience handling a staff that is still sorting out roles. He hit 10 long bombs and recorded 40 RBIs on top of a .291 batting average.
“This team has a different motive,” Sosa said. “Super regional is cool, but they did it last year. They want more this year, and it’s cool to be a part of that.”
Sosa also kept circling back to the value of learning from Miami’s new catching coach, former major leaguer Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and how that can raise the floor for the entire staff.
“He knows what the guys at the top level want,” Sosa said. “He wants to see your chest like this, your body in this position, and the confidence that if the pitch is in the dirt, you’re going to block it. He’s mentored us through all that.”
AJ Ciscar, a sophomore right-hander from Weston, Florida, is the Friday night starter after a freshman season that earned national attention, and he talked like a guy who is comfortable wearing it.
“Opening weekend, we’re going in there making a statement,” Ciscar said. “We’ve got a new identity, new guys, new lineups, new weekend rotation, and we’re going to set the tone for our brand of baseball and keep playing that way.”
Later, Ciscar explained why his sinker has always been his calling card, tracing it back to a middle school injury that changed his arm slot.
“When I was in seventh grade, I broke my hand playing basketball,” Ciscar said. “I used to be way over the top, but throwing with the cast made my arm slot drop. I started throwing a two-seam, and kids would tell me it looked like a changeup, but it was hard. I didn’t know what was happening. It just became who I am.”
Miami has spent months talking about Omaha, but the first chance to show it comes in the opener. Arteaga said the goal is not to look good in February, it is to be standing in June fighting for national championship number five.