Baseball is almost back in Happy Valley, folks.

Coming off of an improbable run in the 2024 Big Ten Tournament in Mike Gambino’s first season at the helm, the Nittany Lions return to the diamond determined to build off of their success. Here’s what we learned from Gambino and several players heading into the season.

On The Class Of Incoming Transfers

Only 12 players remain from last year’s roster, and the Nittany Lions welcomed in 15 transfers from around college baseball ahead of the 2025 season. Naturally, an adjustment period for the incoming group is needed.

For Gambino, it’s all about ensuring each transfer reaches their potential, both on the diamond and as a person.

“On the baseball field, we call it identity and as a person, I want them to figure out who they are as their authentic self,” Gambino said. “That’s hard. It’s about spending time and getting all of the kids to care about them.”

“Cohl Mercado and Paxton Kling are both outfielders, but they’re completely different body types, and they’re completely different players from completely different places,” he said. “I want Cohl Mercado to be the best version of Cohl Mercado, and I want Paxton Kling to be the best version of Paxton Kling.”

After spending two years in Baton Rouge playing at one of the premier programs in college baseball, Kling spoke about his decision to leave LSU for Penn State.

“It’s starting to become a winning culture here,” Kling said. “It’s going to be cool to build something up. It hasn’t been a great program, but thank God coach Gambino came here, and hopefully we can turn it around.”

On Culture Within The Program

Dating back to his hiring, Gambino has consistently preached his desire to build a baseball powerhouse in Happy Valley. Arguably the most important factor remains: establishing and maintaining a winning culture.

“I want guys that look around and see 40 guys in a clubhouse that care about each other, that look at each other as brothers and put the program first,” Gambino said. “I want guys that are attracted to being a part of something bigger than themselves.”

According to the team, part of a winning culture is accountability within the program and having a team-first mentality.

“Our big motto is ‘I am, because we are,'” Bryce Molinaro said. “It means a lot to us and essentially says if one guy is not doing their job, the whole team falls apart.”

On Molinaro’s Development

Perhaps the most important returning piece for Penn State, Molinaro enters the 2025 season fresh off a campaign where he slashed .329/.409/.560 and was named to the All-Big Ten third team. During the Nittany Lions’ run in the Big Ten Tournament, the infielder smacked a clutch grand slam against Michigan and was named to the All-Big Ten Tournament team.

Back for his third season, Molinaro hopes to build off his success and continue developing as a player.

“After that season, I kind of got into the lab,” Molinaro said. “I hit every day and worked on my B and C swings, trying to drive the ball to all fields and working on off-speed pitches. I put a ton of work in, and I’m just ready to let it fly.”

With the departures of Adam Cecere and J.T. Marr, Molinaro is poised to be one of the focal points in the Nittany Lions’ lineup.

“I talked with Bryce today, and I don’t think he had a clue about how good he could be when he got here,” Gambino said. “The confidence started to grow, and you watched it throughout the year. Last year, you could see it in the way he carried himself at the plate, and I’m really proud of him.”

On Returning Leadership

In today’s era of college sports, yearly roster turnover is expected. Few teams have experienced the level of turnover Penn State has, as the team welcomed 27 new players to its roster. It’s on the returning players to ease this transition and show any newcomers the ropes.

“When they came in, they learned how we go about things, and it’s a little different than where they came from,” pitcher Mason Horwat said. “A lot of people, some of the transfers and even some of the freshmen had to learn. But now that we’re in the spring, we’re all on the same page.”

Ryan DeSanto, a transfer from Saint Joseph’s, talked about the relationship between the returners and the newcomers, as well as how existing players helped establish Penn State’s culture.

“In the first week, I got a good feel for how it is run,” DeSanto said. “I saw how everybody feels about each other, and just the work ethic everybody has and the standard that they set here to be great and just be there for your teammates no matter what.”

On Beginning The Season In Puerto Rico

Next week, Penn State begins its season in Puerto Rico, 1,696 miles from Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions are participating in the first-ever Puerto Rico Challenge, where the team will play games against Missouri, Stetson, and UConn.

“I think it’s awesome to bring attention to an island that is a beautiful place,” Gambino said. “It got hit by a hurricane, and they’re still recovering down there, and getting tourism back there and helping the island is critical.”

Gambino also mentioned the visibility participating in this tournament can bring to his program.

“This program, this logo, hasn’t been mentioned with the elite in college baseball, which is where we’re trying to get,” he said. “Just being on the poster doesn’t help you, but going down and playing an SEC team, playing UConn, who was in the super regional last year, Stetson was in the regional, that’s the neighborhood we’re trying to move into.”