Michigan Baseball will take its four-game winning streak on the road for a weekend series against rival Ohio State. Here’s a look at where things stand with the Wolverines and what to expect this weekend:
It’s been something of a hot and cold campaign for Michigan Baseball this year, but the Wolverines are currently on the upswing. After getting swept in a weekend series against Iowa two weeks ago, Michigan responded with a midweek win over Bowling Green and a weekend sweep of Michigan State .
Thanks to that sweep, the Wolverines put themselves in a better spot in the Big Ten. They now stand at 11-10 in the conference, good for seventh place. Winning the conference outright seems like a long shot — Iowa is well ahead at 20-4 — but Michigan could still rise in the standings due to being within three game of Oregon, USC, Washington and Illinois.
With an overall record of 27-17, it might seem like a stretch for Michigan to earn an NCAA Tournament bid without winning the conference tournament. The Wolverines could make things interesting if they finish on a hot streak — after all, the Big Ten traditionally doesn’t fare well on selection day, but the makeup of the Big Ten is different this year with four new teams that currently sit near the top of the conference standings.
Fortunately for Michigan, it has a chance to pad its record this weekend in Columbus against Ohio State . The Buckeyes have been the worst team in the Big Ten this year with a 3-18 conference record and an 11-30 overall record.
For all the issues the Buckeyes have had, their offense hasn’t been one of them. Entering the series, Ohio State has four regulars that have an OPS above .900. Tyler Pettorini has been Ohio State’s best bat this season, sporting a .954 OPS while also leading the team with 56 hits and 10 home runs.
Beyond Pettorini, the Buckeyes have a few other hitters to watch. Trey Lipsey has the best OPS on the team (.983), as well as an on-base percentage of .490 and 14 stolen bases. Mason Eckleman, Lee Ellis and Matthew Graveline are also names to watch.
Pitching, however, is where Ohio State has really struggled. The staff as a whole has accumulated a dismal ERA of 8.94 on the year, contributing to the Buckeyes surrendering an average of 9.5 runs per game. Unsurprisingly, Buckeye pitchers are allowing plenty of traffic on the bases with a 2.01 team WHIP.
The most effective pitcher for OSU this year is Gavin Kuzniewski. He’s appeared in 15 games, making four starts and registering 42 innings pitched. He has still been knocked around quite a bit, as he has a team-best 5.27 ERA entering the weekend. Nik Copenhaver has appeared in 18 games — the most on the team — and has pitched to a 5.55 ERA. Expect the Buckeyes to use lots of pitchers this weekend.
All three games this weekend will be played at Bill Davis Stadium in Columbus. Games 1 and 3 of the series will be streamed on BTN+, while the second game will be on BTN. Here’s the full schedule.