Former University of Cincinnati Bearcats baseball standout Mike Kinnett (1984-87) has been selected for induction into the university’s James P. Kelly Athletics Hall of Fame, the athletics department announced on Tuesday, June 23.
The Hall of Fame Class of 2026 will be inducted on Friday, Oct. 23, the night before Cincinnati’s Homecoming football game vs. Texas Tech.
More details and the rest of the 50th anniversary class will be announced in the coming weeks. Others already announced to the Class of 2026 include legendary men’s basketball coach Bob Huggins, track and field All-American Loretta Blaut and women’s soccer record-setting goalkeeper Christy Hoffman.
Mike Kinnett has career-best batting average for Cincinnati Bearcats
A two-time all-conference performer and four-year starter at first base, Kinnett holds the program record for highest career batting average (.372) and ranks in the Top 10 in several other categories. He hit .407 as a sophomore in 1985, one of five Bearcats to ever hit at least .400 in a season.
Kinnett played in 193 career games and still ranks among the all-time UC leaders in hits (236, 8th), doubles (52, T-6th), total bases (362, 8th), slugging percentage (.570, 9th), and on-base percentage (.438, T-9th).
His 1985 season was perhaps his best, during which he hit .407 and was named to the All-Metro Conference squad for the first time in his career. He was an all-conference performer in 1986 as well, hitting .388 with seven home runs and 40 RBIs, both career-high totals.
As a senior in 1987, Kinnett was part of a Cincinnati team that advanced to the Metro Conference Tournament finals, eventually falling to College World Series participant Florida State.
A tough out, Kinnett struck out just 51 times in 635 career at-bats.
Following his playing career, he stayed on as an assistant coach for the 1988 season.
More honors for Cincinnati Bearcats catcher Jack Natili
Cincinnati Bearcats catcher Jack Natili was named an Academic All-American by College Sports Communicators (CSC) on Tuesday, June 23.
Natili is the fifth Academic All-American in program history and the first since 2022. A second-teamer this year, Natili now joins Craig Tewes (2001, Second Team), Jack Nelson (2006, Third Team), Ian Happ (2015, First Team), and Griffin Merritt (2022, First Team) as Cincinnati Baseball Academic All-Americans.
Natili boasts a 3.60 cumulative GPA as an Industrial Management major.
On the field, Natili was one of the best catchers in the country in 2026. In 60 games, he hit .339 with a 1.098 OPS, adding 19 home runs, 65 RBIs, 15 doubles and 50 runs scored. He tied the single-game school record for home runs on three separate occasions this season, blasting three home runs in games against Utah (March 21), UCF (April 19) and in the NCAA Tournament win vs. Louisiana (May 29). He is the only player this decade to hit at least three home runs in a game at least three times in one season.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Top Cincinnati Bearcats hitter makes UC Athletics Hall of Fame
Reporting by Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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By Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer | USA TODAY Network
