Matt Swope strives to create a player-led culture for Maryland baseball.

But after his first season as head coach, he found it difficult to have one captain lead a roster with more than 30 players. So he formed a leadership council entering his second season.

The group — Eddie Hacopian, Chris Hacopian, Kyle McCoy and Elijah Lambros — aims to foster open communication among players and staff. Swope and the players hope an increased leadership presence will translate to success on the diamond.

With most of their offensive talent back and a rebuilt pitching staff, the Terps hope to return to title contention in 2025 after missing the Big Ten tournament last year.

“We all need to work together … it’s not just one person taking the brunt of everything, and I think I did a poor job of that last year,” Swope said. “[I’ve tried] to take a step back, invest more in those guys… and continue to try to build the relationships with my players.”

Swope meets with his leadership council every week, which consists of a sophomore, a redshirt sophomore and two seniors.

The council read Jon Gordon and Amy P. Kelly’s “Difficult Conversations Don’t Have to be Difficult” in the fall and Gary Mack’s “Mind Gym” during winter break to instill leadership skills within the team and help them evaluate their own leadership styles moving forward.

[Maryland baseball opens new indoor training facility before 2025 season]

Eddie Hacopian and Lambros return for their senior seasons after going undrafted. The older Hacopian brother, now team captain, turned down free agent offers to stay in College Park. He posted the Big Ten’s fourth-best batting average in 2024 while hitting a career-high nine home runs.

Lambros had a slight decline in performance after being selected to the All-Big Ten third team in 2023, but still finished last year with the team’s fourth-most RBIs.

Chris Hacopian transitions to shortstop after playing at third base as a freshman, replacing Kevin Keister. He hit 15 home runs last season with the team’s second-best batting average.

The youngest player on the council readjusted himself to his new position during the summer while playing for the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks, a position he played consistently before moving to third baseman last year. He said while he’s always felt comfortable at short, he had to refresh the footwork patterns needed for the position.

Maryland returns seven players who started more than 30 games last season. While its big departure was second baseman Sam Hojnar, who led the team with 16 home runs, the addition of Hollis Porter from Pearl River Community College could help compensate for the loss of Hojnar’s power. Porter’s 20 home runs last year set the school’s single-season home run record.

“We got a ton of guys back, and we’re just always going to use that [transfer] portal never to build but to fill in spots for the team,” Swope said. “We always want to be that development program.”

The Terps’ pitching staff, which had the fourth-worst ERA in conference play last season, was retooled with better depth. Seven pitchers have started at least 10 collegiate games, while four others have made at least three starts.

[Maryland baseball announces 2025 schedule]

McCoy returns after missing last year for recovery from Tommy John surgery. He posted a 5.91 ERA in 12 starts as a freshman in 2023. Sophomore Joey McMannis, who started 10 games last season, is also expected to be a key rotation piece.

McCoy said he grew close to the right-hander last year.

“I was able to relate to [Joey] a lot, and I was able to help him out, voice my thoughts and my experiences throughout my freshman year,” McCoy said. “We live together now, so we spend a lot of time [talking about pitching].”

Freshman right-hander Jake Yeager, the 2024 Maryland Gatorade Player of the Year, headlines the Terps’ newcomers. Fellow freshman Cristofer Cespedes, the No. 2 ranked player in New York in the class, also joins the Terps after pitching coach Jimmy Jackson felt there was a chance he’d be selected in the MLB Draft.

The Terps landed pitching depth through four transfers and five freshmen. Merrimack transfer Brayden Ryan, who started 14 games last season with a team-leading 70 strikeouts, would’ve led Maryland in strikeouts last year.

“We’re going to be looking at some guys that maybe have one or two less outings than some others, but knowing that they’re just as good of pitchers,” Jackson said. “I highly doubt it that they’ve been on as deep of a pitching staff as I think we have.”

Swope, a Washington Commanders fan, found parallels between head coach Dan Quinn’s player-led culture and his own. He adopted Quinn’s mantra of

“Anybody. Anywhere. Anytime.” to instill the same beliefs into the Terps for this season.

“We got some dogs in here, guys that are really self-intrinsically motivated, really care about the program,” Swope said. “That’s what Maryland baseball is. That’s what Maryland baseball always has been. That’s who we are.”