VALORANT: G2 Esports announces that babybay will start for the team in Red Bull Home Ground

As G2 Esports announced the departure of Jonah "JonahP" Pulice ahead of next season, the organization confirmed on Thursday that Andrej "babybay" Francisty would join the roster for the 2025 Red Bull Home Ground. His place for the upcoming VCT Americas season, however, has not yet been officially confirmed.

While G2 enters the main event of the tournament this Friday against ZETA Division, the competition will begin without one of the team’s emblematic players, who joined the roster at the end of 2023 as the organization made its debut in the VCT.

In an announcement posted on its X account yesterday, G2 initially stated that babybay would serve as a starting player for the 2026 season, before amending the post to clarify that he would start only for the Red Bull Home Ground for now. At 30 years old, the player is making his return to professional play. After competing during his early career with FaZe Clan, babybay transitioned into broadcasting as a commentator and analyst for the VCT Americas region.

He had, however, already returned to competition with G2 during part of Stage 2 this year. He stepped in for Nathan "leaf" Orf, who was dealing with health issues. During this period, he delivered strong performances, and G2 maintained a high level of play until leaf returned for the final two best-of series starting from the upper bracket final, where the team defeated Sentinels and NRG.

Following G2’s announcement, babybay responded on his X account, first sharing a message addressed to his former teammate JonahP. “I just want to be clear that nobody can replace the professor. He’s an amazing player, teammate, and someone I can call a friend. I hope everyone can support both of us instead of trying to pit us against each other.” He then affirmed that he would give everything to the team in the year ahead. He received immediate support from his teammates, notably from team captain Jacob "valyn" Batio, who wrote on X: “He is by far one of the best teammates I’ve ever had a chance to play with, and with time he’s going to show why he shouldn’t have been a caster in the first place.”

For his part, JonahP responded to G2’s farewell message on his own account, thanking fans for their support in recent years. He remains open to offers for next season, as he does not require a buyout to depart from G2.