Gaithersburg Giants

The Giants look to keep the momentum going after winning their first North Division title in 2024. Photo by Brandon Lauchnor. 

By Jack Stashower

Head Coach: TJ Brockway

2023: 23-13 (1st in North Division, lost in Semifinal Round)

First game: Wednesday, June 4 at Senators

Last season, the Gaithersburg Giants made history as they went 23-13 to win the North Division for the first time in team history. While their season ended at the hands of the Bethesda Big Train in the semifinals, head coach TJ Brockway and his team showed they can make noise this coming season. 

Multiple players from last year's division winning team will make their return to Criswell Automotive Field this summer. Among them is sophomore outfielder Jayden Brown (Ranger College) who had a .314 average in 105 plate appearances this spring. 

Sophomore catcher Ethan McNally (Gaston College) also makes his return to Gaithersburg this summer. In 11 games, McNally had an on-base percentage of .471 and only struck out four times at the plate.

Junior Brady Powell (Radford) returns to the Giants after a successful season with the Highlanders. In 29 at bats, Powell recorded a .379 average with six RBIs and a home run. 

Four pitchers from last year are coming back to Gaithersburg this summer: sophomore Ayden Gonzalez (UMBC), junior Nicholas Karls (Towson), sophomore Cody Sharman (Frostburg State), and junior Cole Williams (Salisbury). 

“I’m just really glad to have some of the guys that were part of the program last year that know exactly what our mentality is,” Brockway said. “They can show the new players the style of baseball we like to play and things like that.”

The Giants will be joined by a heap of new talent this summer. Coming down to Gaithersburg from Seton Hall is outfielder Magnus Krieger, who as a freshman started 29 games and recorded 105 plate appearances. Before committing to Seton Hall, Krieger was ranked as the 14th best outfielder in Pennsylvania. 

Along with Brown and Krieger, the outfield is rounded up by sophomore Aaron Babaev (College of San Mateo), freshman Nate Hawton-Henley (Maryland), sophomore Joey Nicholson (Gaston College), and sophomore Brady Ruiz-Weiss (Yale). 

Six brand new players make up the Giants infield this summer. Among them is CJ Chatterton (Randolph Macon). Chatterton recorded an average of .354 with 127 plate appearances this spring. His best game came against Averett when he went 4-for-4 at the plate. 

Danny Orr (UMBC) also joins the infield after a successful freshman season for the Retrievers. In 150 plate appearances, Orr had a batting average of .307, hitting seven home runs this spring. 

Rounding up the infield are sophomore Freddy Diaz (Davidson), junior Cade Hentz (Jacksonville), freshman Will Rhine (Alabama), and sophomore Bryce Rudisill (Mount St Mary’s). 

Two new catchers join McNally behind the backstop this summer. Senior Sam D’Amelio (John Carroll) and sophomore Zach White (Louisiana Monroe) will look to help the Giants repeat as division champions this season. 

A pitcher to look out for is sophomore Britton Wildasin (Goldey-Beacom), who threw 22 innings this spring with an ERA of 3.68 in 10 appearances. His best appearance was against Lincoln (PA), when he threw five innings, striking out five and allowing just two hits and one run. 

Williams is another name to look out for on the mound this year. At Salisbury, Williams threw 68.1 innings, notching 48 strikeouts with an ERA of 3.69 in his sophomore season. 

The Giants 2025 season begins on the road at Regency Furniture Stadium against the Southern Maryland Senators on June 4th. Their first home game is the following night against the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts at Criswell Automotive Field.