Bennett Sousa makes MLB debut with White Sox

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Former Virginia pitcher Bennett Sousa made his MLB debut with the Chicago White Sox on Friday, pitching a perfect fifth inning on Opening Day against the Detroit Tigers. He is the 53rd Cavalier to play in Major League Baseball game and the 29th to player to reach the big leagues in Brian O’Connor’s tenure.

Sousa took over for opening day starter Lucas Giolito in the fifth and sat down all three batters he faced on nine pitches. Sousa left the game as the pitcher of record in an eventual 5-4 come-from-behind for the Tigers.

Sousa is the 10th Cavalier from the 2015 National Championship team to play in an MLB game. A total of eight former Cavaliers were listed on MLB Opening Day rosters in 2022.

Over the course of his five seasons in Charlottesville, Sousa appeared in 70 games and posted a 12-4 record on the mound. The North Palm Beach, Fla. native, totaled 108 innings and accumulated 130 strikeouts. He served as the team’s closer as a senior in 2018 and recorded six saves. Sousa was the winning pitcher in the program’s sixth no-hitter, a combined effort against William & Mary on Feb. 28, 2018.

After his junior season in 2017, Sousa was selected in the 34th round by the Washington Nationals and elected to comeback to school. As a third-year, he led the team with 23 appearances out of the bullpen in which opponents hit .210 against him.