UNC's Owen Hull Exemplifying Default Aggressive, Surging into Postseason

Owen Hull has a dictionary that he uses to describe his brand of baseball. It starts with “Trust the Process,” “A-swing” is on it, and so is the perfect encapsulation of how Owen Hull plays baseball: “default aggressive.” 

It’s no wonder, given that style of play, that he was one of the four North Carolina players named to the All-ACC First Team, the first time UNC has had a quartet of honorees since 2017. 

There is nothing timid about how Owen Hull plays baseball. It’s loud, it’s smiley, it’s trying to mask his emotions when he strikes out or hammers a ball right into the glove of the first baseman.

Default aggressive, every time he hits a double—a career-high three in one game on Friday in Raleigh—he’s there with the climb-the-ladder celebration. He’ll try to go for the extra bag. He’ll christen wins by hitting the Spiderman pose with his fellow outfielders. He’ll sign every ball handed to him by the kids running the bases after UNC’s historic 22-run win over Duke. He’ll take pictures while fireworks deafen the night sky after a Thursday victory at NC State. He loves everything about the game.

“There’s no limit to the knowledge you can gain from baseball,” Hull told Inside Carolina. “So, getting new looks and new insight from coaches and what they have to say, it’s really helping me so far.”

Recently, the game has loved him back. In conference play, he slashed .432/.504/.658 with a 1.162 OPS, ranking second in average, doubles, and RBIs. 

Recently, he’s unlocked a different level, a beyond-the-fences level. 

Last week in a three-day span, he hit a homer in consecutive games for the first time in his career against UNC-Wilmington and NC State. They weren’t just big flies; they were massive, recording at 466 feet and 428 feet. The exit velocities were up there, too, all above 109 miles per hour. 

It’s another layer of the loud game that Hull plays. But his season didn’t begin that way. He didn’t reach the .300 mark until March 10^th. He was moved from the three to the five hole after hitting .091 in the first eight games of the season. 

“This game has its ups and downs, but if you have that steady—I like riding the wave, it’s one of my mantras—just keep it steady and go to work,” Hull said. “You have to work to be the best at this game.”

Just because he had success at George Mason, breaking the single season steals record with the Patriots, as well as hitting .367 with 63 RBIs in his sophomore year campaign, didn’t stop Hull from being a sponge with his Carolina blue coaches. He spent time in the cage with hitting coach Jesse Weirzbicki to refine his swing. 

Coming into the season, the Alexandria, Va. native had big cleats to fill, following UNC legend Vance Honeycutt and the ultimate grit junkie second-round pick Kane Kepley in center field. Even with his 6-foot-4 frame – taller than his predecessors – this fall, some of his routes were scenic, having spent the past year in right field beside George Mason’s fifth-round pick James Quinn-Irons. 

There have been rocky moments, an attempted steal of home against Campbell, but in true Hull fashion, he soaked up any knowledge he could glean from the UNC coaching staff and looked toward the next game.

“He’s really improved defensively, he’s improved on the bases, he’s just become a more complete player,” head coach Scott Forbes told Inside Carolina. “Which is good, because he’s going to need to continue to do that in professional baseball, and he’s made himself a legit prospect, and he’s been a game changer for us, and hasn’t given away any at bats. He’s so competitive, he’s learned to control that better in the right way, but man, he’s been a pleasure to coach.”

The defense he provides in centerfield and his prowess at the plate has propelled Hull to be the fourth-best centerfielder in the country in wins above replacement (3.59) and 41.91 in offensive runs above replacement. 

Hull returned to the three-hole in game two of the Georgia Tech series in mid-April. And once he did, he hasn’t looked back. 

The junior is a self-proclaimed assassin at the plate, looking for any pitch in the zone to hammer—or occasionally foul off with one of his short slappy swings—to get himself on base. 

“Take my singles, take my hits, hunt for the pitcher’s mistakes,” Hull said after going 2-for-3 with a grand slam and six RBIs against then No. 2 Georgia Tech. 

He loves the long balls, but his bread and butter is line drives sprayed across the diamond, leading the team in doubles (20) and RBIs (67), as well as recording the only five-hit game by a Tar Heel this season. 

As the conference and NCAA tournament loom, the Tar Heels are going to count on Hull to bring his exuberant style of play for every pitch and every out. 

“Give 100% of your effort,” Hull said. “And when you have off days, you get 100% off that day. If you’re playing, you’re 100% playing.”

Hull and the No. 2-seeded Tar Heels open ACC Tournament play on Friday.