Ole Miss gets two veteran pitchers back from injury to start the season as Riley Maddox and Josh Mallitz return
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss baseball will return to the field this weekend as the Rebels begin the 2024 season in Hawaii against the Rainbow Warriors. While head coach Mike Bianco’s bunch is down two starting pitchers to Tommy John injury in Hunter Elliott and Xavier Rivas, fortunately they also have two veteran pitchers who will be back from injury, juniors Riley Maddox and Josh Mallitz.
Maddox underwent Tommy John surgery in May of 2022 and missed almost the entire ‘23 season, with the exception of five relief appearances late in the season.
Similarly for Mallitz, the Tampa native also went through a successful Tommy John surgery in November of 2022, but unfortunately, he was not able to return for any time in the ‘23 season.
Riley Maddox
Riley Maddox was a key part of Ole Miss’ 2022 national title team in 2022 until injury cut short his season in May of that year. He returned late last season to shake off the rust, and the junior out of Jackson Prep is back in full to start 2024. He posted a 3.00 ERA in the fall with a team-best 5.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio and has continued to look strong this spring.
In 2022, when Maddox was a true freshman, he threw 22.1 innings and finished the year with a 2-1 record, 16 strikeouts, and a 5.24 earned run average.
A couple of Riley’s most impressive performances came against Tennessee and South Carolina, where he threw a combined 4.2 innings while only allowing one run to the Vols.
Last month, Maddox talked about his health.
“I feel better than ever. After the (2023) season, I worked on some mechanical things and cleaned up my arm action, so I’ve been moving more efficiently now.”
Riley Maddox
Coach Bianco discussed Maddox’s return at last week’s Ole Miss media day:
“Probably not until about mid or late fall did we start to think maybe [Maddox] could be a weekend starter. Riley came back from an injury last year and pitched at the very end of the season, but it was a lot to ask. He kind of got thrown to the wolves, but we were hopeful. Pitched terrific this past fall and early spring. He’s a guy who can run out, pitch to left-handers as well, and run through some lineups. He can really keep his pitch count low, run through some innings, and make it look easy.”
Mike Bianco on Riley Maddox
Josh Mallitz
As mentioned above, Mallitz was not able to return at any point last season, but the the right-handed pitcher’s previous success from Ole Miss’ national championship run speaks for itself.
As a sophomore in 2022, the Tampa, Florida native was one of the key arms on the Rebels’ road to Omaha. In the NCAA Tournament, he gave up just a single earned run while tallying 13 strikeouts and giving up just three walks.
In the College World Series, Josh closed out the Sooners by pitching the last two innings of game one, striking out four, and allowing one run. Mallitz finished the year with a 1.45 earned run average and is eager to get back to work on the field while being a leader on this 2024 squad.
“Not that it has any bearing, but some of the younger guys will come up and ask questions, and it’s good to be able to talk to them and make them comfortable in tough situations.“
Josh Mallitz
Undergoing Tommy John surgery and the lengthy recovery and rehabilitation process is not easy. But Mallitz used his mental strength to work through it all.
“The process was long and grueling…but mentally I had to calm myself down and realize ‘hey, it is what it is.’ I’m going to put my best in it. It was a grind and I’m happy to get back.“
Josh Mallitz
Be sure to watch the Rebs on ESPN+ at 10:35 p.m. CT this Friday as they open the season against Hawaii. Hotty Toddy!
