The Rutgers Baseball program's 2025 season is less than a month away from Opening Day versus Kennesaw State and the Scarlet Knights will have a brand new roster filled with tons of new names and faces.
This year's team has added 28 newcomers to their 38-man roster and one position that was a major focus was the pitching staff. With that being said, here's a look at three newcomers that could be in the lineup this season.
JOIN TODAY AND GET 30 DAYS FREE! | THE ROUND TABLE FORUM | RUTGERS FOOTBALL 2025 RECRUITING CLASS | RUTGERS HOOPS RECRUITING
OUTFIELDER PEYTON BONDS
One of the biggest additions Steve Owens made last offseason was outfielder Peyton Bonds, a transfer from Campbell University who is coming off a strong true freshman season.
In that freshman season, Bonds played in 41 games and started in 36 of them. Bonds slashed .267/341/.427 with 40 hits, seven doubles, one triple, five home runs, 21 RBIs, 14 stolen bases, and a .768 OPS. Bonds was also named to the CAA All-Rookie Team.
The 6-goot-5, 225-pound outfielder was already named the starting centerfielder by Rutgers Head Coach Steve Owens and you can expect Bonds to hit near the top of the lineup as an impact player. Oh yeah, by the way he's also the nephew of 7x MVP and the MLB home run king, Barry Bonds.
OUTFIELDER BRENNAN HYDE
Another outfield transfer who should make an immediate impact for the Scarlet Knights is Brennan Hyde, who is a graduate transfer from Nichols and makes the big jump from Division III to Big Ten baseball.
In his four seasons at Nichols, Hyde posted excellent stats and is known for his excellent defense. Hyde has a .350/.430/.569 career slash line with 25 career home runs and a .998 OPS. In his last season with Nichols, he slashed .395/.512/.661 with 64 hits, 14 doubles, nine home runs, 55 RBIs, 19 stolen bases, and a 1.173 OPS. He was also a Third-Team D3 All-American.
With Trevor Cohen and Peyton Bonds in the outfield, Hyde will likely share time with RJ Johnson out there. I expect both players to start, but they’ll also rotate from outfield to the DH role throughout the season.
CATCHER MATT CHATELLE
Rutgers hit the Transfer Portal hard looking for a catcher due to a lack of depth at the position, as the only one returning from last season is senior JD Jones. Now the former Miami transfer is competing for the starting catcher job with newcomer Matt Chatelle from Merrimack.
In his two seasons with Merrimack, Chatelle was a two-year starter for the Warriors. Last season as a sophomore, he slashed .319/.380/.563 with 51 hits, six doubles, 11 home runs, 46 RBIs, and a .943 OPS. He was also named First Team All-NEC.
With the starting catcher role down to two players, I believe Chatelle is the favorite to be the everyday catcher for the Scarlet Knights currently. JD Jones will still be the primary backup, and you can expect Virginia transfer Mark Gialluisi to be the third catcher on the depth chart. They also have a true freshman in Caden Christman, who will likely redshirt this season as the fourth catcher for the team.
--------------------------------------------------------------
• Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
