Virginia Tech baseball added another arm to its pitching staff on Monday, landing Elon left-hander Mike Staiano out of the transfer portal. Staiano announced the move on his X account, confirming he has one year of remaining eligibility.
A 6-foot-3, 195-pound lefty, Staiano began his college career at Manhattan, where he made 14 appearances, including three starts, during his freshman season with the Jaspers.
He transferred to Elon ahead of the 2025 season and worked exclusively out of the bullpen in his first year with the Phoenix, making 17 relief appearances.
Staiano's role expanded significantly in 2026. He settled in as Elon's closer, earning a save in four of his last six relief appearances down the stretch and finishing tied for first in the CAA in saves with six. Earlier in the year, he was part of a bullpen trio with Sam Nomura and RJ Latkowski that combined for more than 20 innings of relief through eight games without allowing a run, with Staiano ranking second on the team in strikeouts at that point in the season.
Over 33.1 innings this past season, Staiano posted a 3.78 ERA with 35 strikeouts, 13 walks and six saves.
For his career, he has totaled 96 innings with 108 strikeouts against 45 walks. According to a post on his X account, Staiano’s pitch mix includes a fastball that sits 88-91 mph and tops out at 92, a cutter at 83-85, a changeup at 80-82 and a curveball at 74-76.
The addition gives Virginia Tech a proven late-inning option as it works to rebuild its bullpen following the departures of Chase Swift, Ben Weber, Madden Clement and Preston Crowl this offseason.
Staiano joins pitchers Chris Terres and Nate Bennet, along with first baseman Evan Hankins, as the program's latest portal commitments under head coach John Szefc.
