The Michigan Wolverines baseball team wrapped up a very difficult Big Ten stretch last weekend with a monumental series victory over No. 15 Oregon. Three of the first four Big Ten series for the Wolverines were against top teams in the conference, so ending with two out of three against the Ducks was as it big as it gets.
Now, that daunting stretch is over, and Michigan has some more favorable conference matchups coming up, with the next being on the road against Michigan State. Before we get into
that series, let’s take a look at what Michigan did during the week against Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan.
Michigan-EMU recap
Michigan played two mid-week games this week, starting things off on the road against the Eastern Michigan Eagles. The two teams were supposed to play last week, but it was postponed and moved to Monday.
The Wolverines sometimes struggle with some of these mid-week MAC matchups, but that was not the case against the Eagles. This one was all Michigan.
Michigan got the scoring going in the second inning, and it was a big frame. Greg Pace Jr. got the party started with a three-run home run to make it 3-0, and then RBI hits from Cooper Mullens, Drew Culberton and Cade Ladehoff made it 6-0.
Eastern Michigan made a little bit of progress in the third, scoring two runs, but a two-RBI single from Ladehoff in the fourth extended the lead back to six.
The Eagles cut it back down to four on a two-run homer in the bottom of the inning, but they couldn’t find a way to score any more runs after that point. A three-run homer by Colby Turner in the fifth to make it 11-4 was the nail in the coffin, and the Wolverines ended up cruising to a 15-4 run rule victory. Wyatt Novara got the win on the mound for Michigan.
Michigan-CMU recap
The Wolverines were back in action on Tuesday against CMU, this time at home in Ann Arbor. This one started off looking like it would be another easy win for Michigan, but that was not the case.
Michigan jumped on the Chippewas early, as Brayden Jeffris and Joe Longo both got walked in the first inning with the bases loaded. Colby Turner then made it 3-0 in the bottom of the second inning on an RBI fielder’s choice groundout, and then an Evan Haeger triple blossomed the lead to four. After a wild pitch and an RBI single from Jeffris, Michigan was up 6-0 in the second inning.
After going up 6-0, it felt like the Wolverines were going to cruise. The Chippewas fought back, however, and didn’t allow another run in the game.
CMU got on the board in the fourth inning, scoring runs on a sac fly and an RBI walk. A two-RBI single in the sixth made it 6-4, and all of a sudden it was a tight ball game.
Michigan couldn’t find a way to get more runs across the plate, but the defense stepped up in the final few innings. The Wolverines eventually earned a 6-4 victory.
Michigan-Michigan State series preview
Following the series win over Oregon and the mid-week wins over EMU and CMU, the Michigan baseball team is now 18-14 overall and 5-7 in Big Ten play. The Wolverines have a chance to improve that record this weekend against the struggling Michigan State Spartans, who are 10-19 (update after Wednesday vs. Notre Dame) overall and 5-10 in Big Ten play.
The Spartans started the season strong with a promising series victory against then No. 8 Louisville, but it’s been all downhill from there. Michigan State did not pick up any other notable non-conference victories.
In Big Ten play, Michigan State has played Nebraska, Rutgers, Iowa, Purdue and Northwestern. The Spartans were swept by the Cornhuskers, they lost two of three against Rutgers, they took two of three from Iowa, they lost two of three against the Boilermakers, and they lost two of three against Northwestern.
While Michigan and Michigan State haven’t played a conference game against each other yet, they did play against each other earlier this season in a single game that does not impact the Big Ten standings. Michigan won that game 2-0 back on March 18.
Players to watch
Michigan State hasn’t been great this season, but there are still some dangerous players to keep an eye out for in this lineup. Infielder Dayton Murphy is one of them. Murphy has been the most consistent bat for the Spartans this season, as he is hitting .348. He is 31-89 this year with one homer and 16 RBIs.
Outfielder Thomas Khamaree is also having a great year at the plate, as he is currently hitting .317. Like Murphy, he doesn’t possess a ton of power, as he has zero home runs this season, but he does have 10 RBIs.
Outfielder/pitcher Isaac Sturgess provides a little bit more pop, as he has two homers so far this year. He is hitting .313 and has 19 RBIs.
The most dangerous bat to watch in terms of home run power is infielder Randy Seymour. He isn’t hitting above .300 like these other guys, but he does have 11 bombs on the year and 32 RBIs. He is the biggest weapon in the Michigan State lineup.
On the mound, Michigan State will more than likely throw Aidan Donovan and Carter Monke as starters against the Wolverines, but the Spartans don’t have a solidified third starter.
Donovan is 2-2 on the year in eight starts. He has given up 15 earned runs in 45 innings this season, good for a 3.00 ERA. He has 29 strikeouts and 12 walks.
Monke hasn’t been quite as strong, but he does post a 3-2 record in eight starts. He has given up 20 earned runs in 41.2 IP this season. His ERA is currently 4.32.
Series Schedule
- Game 1: Friday, April 10, 6 p.m. ET, B1G+
- Game 2: Saturday, April 11, 3:30 p.m. ET, B1G+
- Game 3: Sunday, April 12, 1 p.m. ET, B1G+
