USC baseball ace Caden Aoki granted extra year of eligibility, enters transfer portal
USC baseball ace Caden Aoki granted extra year of eligibility, enters transfer portal
On Monday, USC baseball's season came to an end in the NCAA Tournament. After making their first postseason appearance in 10 years, the Trojans fell to Oregon State in the final of the Corvallis Regional.
On Wednesday, the Trojans got more tough news when it was reported that their top pitcher, Caden Aoki, will be entering the transfer portal. Aoki was a senior this past season, but was granted an additional season of eligibility by the NCAA. However, it now appears as though he will spend that season elsewhere.
After spending his freshman year at Notre Dame in 2022, Aoki transferred to USC prior to the 2023 season. He emerged as the Trojans' top starting pitcher over the better part of the past three seasons. In 2025, he went 6-4 with a 3.99 ERA.
However, it was the NCAA Tournament where Aoki forever etched himself into Trojans lore. In USC's tournament opener against TCU, Aoki allowed just one run over eight innings, throwing 114 pitches. For his performance, he was named to the all-Corvallis Regional team.
While the Trojans were likely expecting to lose Aoki anyway, seeing him hit the transfer portal would be a tough loss. Given that USC lacked pitching depth behind Aoki in 2025, it will be critical that head coach Andy Stankiewicz address the position this offseason.
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