Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!
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SUMMER 2024 19 BY SCOTT FITZGERALD F or a UVA baseball fan, the 2024 sea- son truly had it all. The thrilling come- from-behind victories, a bevy of base- balls flying out of the yard, the sold-out crowds at Disharoon Park and ultimately a trip the college baseball mecca, Omaha, Neb., for the Men's College World Series. For Henry Ford it was twice as sweet. He not only grew up in Charlottesville as a die- hard UVA baseball fan, but he was fortunate enough to be on the field for the plethora of memorable moments this past season. "It's definitely a dream come true," Ford said. "To have a chance to compete for a [national] title is a blessing, and I don't take it for granted. I'm truly grateful for it." UVA's seventh stint in Omaha was cut short, but it certainly doesn't take away from what was accomplished by the 2024 team and what it means for the future of the program. Ford is an integral part of that future moving forward after putting together the most domi- nant performance ever by a UVA first-year. Ford, listed at 6-foot-5, 220 pounds, was in the thick of it for the Cavaliers since opening day. He found himself batting cleanup in a loaded UVA lineup in his first collegiate game and seemingly never left. He spent 54 of his 61 games penciled in at No. 4 on head coach Brian O'Connor's lineup card. The other seven games he was hitting either third or fifth. An impressive feat alone on a team that was statistically one of the best in the country the year prior. "For a 19-year-old, he just has an ad- vanced approach," O'Connor said. "He's physical at his size and certainly has a bright future in this game." His grandfather, John Ford, was one of his earliest influences in baseball and his UVA fandom. As a season-ticket holder, John would take young Henry to UVA games and quiz him on who all the players on the field were. At a young age, Henry knew all the Cava- liers from Ryan Zimmerman to Sean Doolit- tle. It also helped to have some family ties. His uncle, Kevin, played for the Cavaliers in the mid-1990s and was a member of the 1996 ACC championship team. Growing up in Charlottesville and playing in nearby McIntire Little League, he was well known in the region for his baseball prowess at a young age. Despite all the local hoopla, Ford decided to take his baseball game to the next level. After verbally committing to UVA, he took off for Chattanooga, Tenn., to play high school baseball at the Baylor School, joining up with future UVA teammate Henry Godbout. His homecoming back to Charlottesville in February started off with a bang. Ford smashed homers in two of his first three colle- giate games and totaled 13 hits in his first six games as a Cavalier. It was highlighted by his heroics against Wichita State in the opening game of the Jax Collegiate Classic, when Ford doubled home the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning to secure a 5-4 victory. "I knew that he'd make an immediate impact in our lineup," O'Connor said. "He just played at a really high level in high school and was prepared to step in right away and be successful." With 3 college homers under his belt, he blasted a pair of long balls in a record-setting day for the Cav- aliers at George Washington where UVA hit 8 home runs and scored a season-high 26 runs. Ford went 4 for 6 with 4 RBI in the contest. He introduced himself to the country in front of a national tele- vision audience on ACC Network in the opening game of a three- game series against then-No. 10 and future College World Series opponent North Carolina. Ford put on a show, hitting 3 home runs including a grand slam, a game-tying home run and the go-ahead home run in a 14-11 comeback victory for the Hoos. It was the first 3-homer game by a Cavalier since 2002 and only the fifth time in program history that a player hit 3 in a single game. Ford quickly became a critical component on one of the top of- fensive teams in the country, and records be- gan to fall. He broke the UVA first-year single- season record for home runs and RBI with one swing against North Carolina State May 11. Ford surpassed former big leaguer Mark Reynolds' home run mark of 15 in 2002 and Steven Proscia's RBI record of 57 in 2009. When it was all said and done, Ford gar- nered Freshman All-America honors from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers and Perfect Game. He became only the third UVA first-year since 1984 to lead the team out- right in RBI (Bill Narleski in 1984 and Chris Newell in 2020). He broke the UVA first-year records for home runs (17), RBI (69) and to- tal bases (151). His 69 RBI were tied for the fifth-most ever by a Cavalier player in a single season and were second amongst all NCAA Division I first-years in 2024. ROOKIE OF THE YEAR 2023-24 IN REVIEW DREAM SEASON Henry Ford Made An Immediate Impact In The Cavaliers' Lineup Ford broke the UVA first-year records for home runs (17), RBI (69) and total bases (151). (Photo courtesy UVA)