RENO, Nev. - Defending regular-season champion Nevada dominated the Mountain West's preseason awards, being tabbed the favorite to repeat in 2026 and landing a conference-best five players to the preseason all-conference team.

Voting for both the Preseason All-Mountain West Team and the predicted order of finish was done by the nine conference head coaches. The head coaches could not vote for their own team nor players in the balloting.

Returning Mountain West Freshman of the Year and Freshman All-American Sean Yamaguchi, 2025 All-Mountain West selections Alessandro Castro, Jayce Dobie and Jake Harvey, and senior Junhyuk Kwon were all named to the Preseason All-Mountain West Team. The Wolf Pack was just one of two teams, along with San José State, to land more than one player on the preseason all-conference team.

Nevada earned five of the nine first-place votes and topped the predicted order of finish with 60 points. Fresno State (three first-place votes, 55 points) and new Mountain West member GCU (one first-place vote, 47 points) rounded out the top three.

The Pack, which went 34-23 overall and won the Mountain West regular season title outright with a 19-11 mark, returns all five of its 2025 All-Mountain West selections this spring. Along with Castro, Dobie, Harvey, and Yamaguchi, second-team selection Billy Ham also bolsters the Nevada lineup.

Yamaguchi last season became the third Nevada rookie to take home the Mountain West Freshman of the Year award, joining Cal Stevenson (2015) and Joshua Zamora (2018). He not only captured Mountain West Freshman of the Week honors a conference-best four times in 2025, his numbers ranked among the conference's best regardless of class. Over the Mountain West season, Yamaguchi hit 10 homers, tying for third overall along with matching the conference's 20-year-old freshman record set by New Mexico's Jordan Pacheco in 2005. Overall, he batted .324, tied for the team lead in hits (72) with 13 doubles, 13 home runs, and 50 RBIs, which shared the team lead.

On the hill, Castro became one of the Pack's most reliable weekend arms during Mountain West play in his debut campaign in Reno. Castro went 4-1 with a 4.39 ERA and 32 strikeouts over 10 conference starts. The Tucson, Arizona, native started conference play well, picking up wins in three-straight starts at Fresno State (March 15), against New Mexico (March 22) and Washington State (March 29), then saved his best for last, tossing seven scoreless innings in the 12-0 win at San José State which clinched for Nevada the Mountain West title.

Dobie, in his debut season at Nevada in 2025, led the Wolf Pack in conference play in batting (.364) and hits (43) while adding nine doubles, five homers, and 25 RBIs. Dobie was huge for the Pack over an 11-game hitting streak from April 11-May 2, hitting three homers while driving in 12 runs and batting .426 (20-for-47). For the season, he batted .339 with 65 hits, 15 doubles, seven homers, and 36 RBIs, while also serving as the Pack's midweek starter, going 2-2 with 37 strikeouts over 43 innings.

One of the Mountain West's top catchers and named to the Buster Posey Award Watch List in 2025, Harvey provided the Wolf Pack's stability both behind the plate with the pitching staff and with his patient approach at the plate. Defensively, Harvey backstopped a Wolf Pack pitching corps which ranked in the conference top three in fewest walks issued (85, second), shutouts (three, second), ERA (5.63, third) and fewest runs allowed (176, third). He also tied for third among MW catchers by catching eight would-be base-stealers. At the plate, Harvey led the conference in walks (25) and was second in on-base percentage (.486) while batting .355 (third on the team) with 38 hits (second) and eight doubles in Mountain West play. Harvey's respect on the national level was also demonstrated in late January, when he was ranked No. 36 among the country's top-50 catchers by D1Baseball.

Kwon, another first-year Wolf Pack player in 2025, was putting together one of the team's top seasons before being sidelined by injury in early May. Up to that point, Kwon had batted .355 with 27 hits, three doubles, seven homers, and 25 RBIs over 19 Mountain West contests, and for the season finished with a .346 average with 11 doubles, eight homers, and 33 RBIs. He posted eight multi-hit games during the Mountain West season, and enters 2026 still on a 17-game hitting streak.

Nevada, under first-year head coach Jordan Getzelman, opens the 2026 campaign next Friday through Sunday, February 13-15, at Ole Miss.

The Pack begins its home slate at Don Weir Field at Peccole Park Thursday, February 19, at 3:05 p.m., beginning a four-game series with Utah Valley. Nevada's Mountain West home opener is set for Friday, March 20, with a three-game set against Air Force.

Season tickets for the 2026 Nevada Baseball season are available HERE. Prices for season tickets are $225 for Home Plate Reserved and $180 for First Base Reserved. Third Base and Outfield General Admission go for $165 for adult and $90 for youth.

New for 2026 is a Family 4-Pack option for the Third Base and Outfield General Admission sections. The 4-Pack requires a minimum four tickets for just $100.

2026 MOUNTAIN WEST BASEBALL PRESEASON PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

Rank     Team (first-place votes)             Points
1.            Nevada (5)                                        60
2.            Fresno State (3)                                55
3.            Grand Canyon (1)                             47
4.            New Mexico                                      36
5.            San José State                                 33
6.            UNLV                                                 32
7.            San Diego State                                30
8.            Washington State                              17
9.            Air Force                                            14

2026 MOUNTAIN WEST BASEBALL PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM

Name               Class    Position              Institution
Walker Zapp                  Sr.          C                     Air Force
Griffen Sotomayor         Sr.          INF                  Fresno State
Alessandro Castro       Jr.           P                    Nevada
Jayce Dobie                 Sr.          UTL                 Nevada
Jake Harvey                 Sr.          C                     Nevada
Junhyuk Kwon             Sr.          INF                 Nevada
Sean Yamaguchi          So.         INF                 Nevada
Khalil Walker                  Sr.          OF                  New Mexico
Tyler Albanese               Jr.           P                    San Josè State
Kyle Calzadiaz              Sr.           P                    San Josè State
Alex Fernandes             Sr.          OF                  San Josè State
Carson Lane                  Jr.           P                    UNLV
Max Hartman                 Sr.          OF                  Washington State