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UVA Baseball: Pollard gets commitments from three Duke guys, including AJ Gracia

Chris Graham
chris pollard uva baseball
UVA Baseball coach Chris Pollard. Photo: UVA Athletics

New UVA Baseball coach Chris Pollard has picked up his first three transfers, two former Duke players, and one former Duke recruit.

Outfielder AJ Gracia is the highlight here – Gracia, a rising junior from Monroe, N.J., hit .293 with a 1.007 OPS, 15 homers, 54 RBIs and eight stolen bases in 2025.

Gracia is the #8 prospect in Baseball America’s 2026 MLB Draft rankings.

The other former Duke player on the commit list is Kyle Johnson, a rising junior from Leesburg who is an outfielder and left-handed pitcher.

Johnson hit .220 BA with an .851 OPS and four homers, and had a 7.19 ERA, 1.67 WHIP and 9.4Ks/9 on the mound.

The recruit who is coming on board is Jayden Stroman, a shortstop and right-handed pitcher who ranks #167 in Baseball America’s 2025 MLB Draft rankings.

The scouting report on Stroman, the younger brother of MLB veteran Marcus Stroman: hits 97 mph with his heater, raw power at the plate, but MLB talent evaluators are concerned with his swing-and-miss rate, projects as a pitcher going forward.

Chris Graham

Chris Graham

Chris Graham, the king of "fringe media," a zero-time Virginia Sportswriter of the Year, and a member of zero Halls of Fame, is the founder and editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1994 alum of the University of Virginia, Chris is the author and co-author of seven books, including Poverty of Imagination, a memoir published in 2019. For his commentaries on news, sports and politics, go to his YouTube page, or subscribe to his Street Knowledge podcast. Email Chris at [email protected].