All Things Gopher Baseball

Losing streak stretches to four as Gophers lose yesterday to Sacramento State in a schedule adjustment due to weather.

Looks like today's game has been moved to a 2pm Central start.

Props to you guys who follow the baseball team. Hell just watching the softball team is enough to make me hit the bottle if I also did that I'd probably have to be institutionalized.

Gophers snap the losing streak with a 7-4 win. Wietgrefe with an outstanding start, and 2 more dingers with runners on (Bork two-run HR, Hokenson three-run HR). It got interesting late as Hornets had tying run at plate, but Gophers hang on.

It looks like Gophers will play Pacific tomorrow at 3pm Central in another schedule change.

Gross gets the start tonight for the Gophers in Stockton as they look to make it three wins in a row.

Gophers rally from a rough 5-0 1st inning deficit to win 12-5. Gross only lasted one out and charged with 5 runs, but Gopher bullpen (Clausen, Capomaccio, Thorsteinson, Whelan, Remington) combine for 8 2/3 scoreless innings of relief.

Huge 6th inning for Gophers, as Hokenson and Mezzenga hit solo shots to begin the inning, then later in inning with 2 outs and bases loaded, Mezzenga slices one down left field line and hits the foul pole just above the fence for a grand slam.

On to Spokane...

Gopher's modest winning streak comes to an end as they drop the opener 7-3 to Gonzaga. Good to see some balls being hit over the fence as of late, but not much solid contact otherwise in this one (just 4 hits). Novotny not sharp and the defense wasn't either. Still a winnable series.

Also, Gophers add a home game with St. Olaf next Wednesday. Forecast shows 60 degrees as of now...so expect snow.

Solid response and took advantage of opportunities but would sure be nice to get off to a better start tomorrow and get back over .500.

Really looked like the right fielder thought he had a play on Mezzenga's ball in 9th, and it just kept carrying.

That was a rough start. It looked like Crawford wasn't holding back on that first inning mound visit.

A real chance for back-to-back winning weekends away from home - something we haven't had many of in recent years.

Have to start playing better and winning series. Way too many mistakes on this disappointing trip. Hopefully the Siebert opener ignites this squad to go on a little 5-2, 6-1 type run.

We need to reduce the errors and get a couple guys going at the plate.

A month into the season, the Gophers sit at 6-7 against a pretty soft schedule (230 SOS), and have an RPI of 193 (the lowest in the conference by a fair amount). Definitely an improvement over last year's dreadful start, but not good either. I still think this team can finish in the top 8 and get back to the Big 10 tournament, but they have to clean it up defensively and too many of the returning players just haven't gotten it going yet at the plate. The pitching has been good overall and I think can hold up over the season and be a real strength, but we will see. 7 more non-conference games to try to build some momentum before the conference opener in Iowa City.

Around the Big 10
Indiana (9-6, 54 RPI) has some very nice wins at Coastal Carolina and over Dallas Baptist, but has had losing weekends in the past 2 with being 10-runned twice in Frisco two weeks ago and then losing 2 of 3 to Troy in Bloomington this past weekend. The Hoosiers have a conference-high 22 home runs and lead in slugging percentage to offset shaky pitching. A big road test at Vanderbilt Tuesday for them.

Nebraska (9-4, 3 RPI) has put together a fantastic NCAA resume so far, with 8 of their 9 wins coming against teams with winning records. They have another week ahead of playing winning teams, with a 2 game mid-week series at Wichita State, then return home for a weekend series against a 16-3 Nicholls squad.

Maryland (12-4, 35 RPI) has been led by the best pitching so far (tops in ERA, OppBA). They play at RPI-anchor Mount Saint Mary's Tuesday, then a long trip west for a weekend series at Portland.

Purdue (12-4, 64 RPI) has a nice record against a so-so schedule, coming up empty against their two toughest opponents (at East Carolina, at Noter Dame). Their .303 BA is best in the conference. They host Samford this weekend for 4 games, so don't be surprised if they are in a similar spot this time next week.

Rutgers (10-4, 62 RPI) won 8 of 10 true road games to open the season but had a disappointing series loss versus High Point in Greensboro this past weekend. They play a 2 game series at North Carolina Tue/Wed, then remain on the road at Delaware for the weekend.

Iowa (7-8, 101 RPI) was the pre-season conference but scuffling so far against a fairly tough schedule, having won just 2 of 9 the past three weekends. They really choked one away this past weekend in giving up a 3-run HR in the bottom of the 9th to lose the opener to Jacksonville State, then looked feeble at the plate in dropping the finale. Bullpen has been an issue. They have another resume-building opportunity with a game at 16-1 Georgia Tuesday, then host Western Illinois this weekend.

Penn State (9-5, 132 RPI) won a series at Stanford, but the rest of the schedule has been week. That trend continues this weekend when they host UMass-Lowell.

Ohio State (7-6, 73 RPI) is off to a sneaky good start as they haven't played any cupcakes. They beat both California and Oklahoma in Las Vegas two weeks ago, but need a W tonight to split a 4 game series at Cal-Poly. A Wednesday game in Fullerton and then flying east for a series at West Virginia could make for a long week.

Northwestern (6-7, 48 RPI) did salvage the finale at Louisville yesterday, but 3 of their wins were a sweep at Bethune-Cookman. Given the off-season turmoil, not a bad start. They are leading the conference in fielding. A Texas trip upcoming, starting with a series at Texas-San Antonio.

Illinois (5-9, 119) was overwhelmed in a sweep at Tennessee this past weekend, and their wins have been largely forgettable aside from a win over Sparty. They are at Indiana State Tuesday, then host Division 1 newbie Southern Indiana this weekend.

Michigan State (5-9, 146 RPI) 10-runned Georgia in Athens, handing them their first (and only) loss, but not much else to speak of in terms of wins. They are hitting a robust .302 at the plate. They host Evansville this weekend.

Michigan (5-11, 115 RPI) has played a tough schedule (42 SOS), and has looked good in some games (1 run loss to Arkansas, a heartbreaker in extra innings at Coastal Carolina, a win at UCLA), but they are last in both batting average and ERA. Toledo mid-week and then they host San Diego on the weekend.

Wisconsin (0-5000, last RPI...because they don't have baseball and suck)

Staying perfect
There are two remaining unbeatens.

Florida State (14-0) has been pretty dominant as they look to rebound from an uncharacteristically bad 2023 season and start a new NCAA tournament streak.

Texas A&M (15-0) is also unbeaten, but not without a scare. Yesterday they needed 2 runs in the bottom of the 9th to tie Rhode Island, then won it in the 10th.

Gophers took care of business yesterday in the home opener, 5-1 over Saint Olaf. Very underwhelming day at plate with 6 singles - just 3 of those to outfield - and not an abundance of well hit balls, but pitching and defense didn't have any hiccups.

Gophers have added a game with Augsburg for next Wednesday (Mar 20), and will be on BTN+. Forecast shows 47 degrees. Let's hope the bathrooms and concessions are open for this one.

A tough mid-week for the Big 10. Rutgers lost a pair at North Carolina. Illinois blew a 5 run lead in the 7th in losing at Indiana State. Iowa lost at Georgia. Indiana lost at Vanderbilt Tuesday, then returned home and was blown out by Illinois State Wednesday. Nebraska split a pair at Wichita State, hanging on Tuesday and then losing decisively Wednesday night. Ohio State did win a wild one at Fullerton State.

Gophers lose 2-1 in 10. They had runners on nearly all game but just a 1-0 lead into 9th. A leadoff HR to tie it for Elon in 9th and then three hits to win in 10th. Tough loss. Novotny was great. Gotta score insurance runs.

The fact the announcer is basically openly questioning why the Gophers haven't gone to Clausen based on the hitters success against lefties right before the tying home run is a really really bad look for the staff.
The situational execution offensively has been absolutely pathetic. That has to be at least 4-5 games already with 13+ left on.

Another one-run loss. Unfortunately, the two runs walked in turned out to be the tying and winning runs.

Gophers win a wild one, 9-7 in 10 innings. It looked bleak as Elon scored 6 in the 7th to take a 7-3 lead. Gophers got one in the 8th, then Perry solo HR and Mezzenga 2-run HR to tie in in 9th, and Counsel with a 2-run HR (his second HR on day) to provide the winning margin in 10th.

A few head scratching decisions such as letting Weitgrefe go as long as they did, and pitch hitting Ellis for Larson with bases loaded as tying run. I feel like I had much longer rant ready to go, but they spoiled it with the comeback

Good to see Gross with a bounce back outing.

SomeGopherFan said:

Gophers win a wild one, 9-7 in 10 innings. It looked bleak as Elon scored 6 in the 7th to take a 7-3 lead. Gophers got one in the 8th, then Perry solo HR and Mezzenga 2-run HR to tie in in 9th, and Counsel with a 2-run HR (his second HR on day) to provide the winning margin in 10th.

A few head scratching decisions such as letting Weitgrefe go as long as they did, and pitch hitting Ellis for Larson with bases loaded as tying run. I feel like I had much longer rant ready to go, but they spoiled it with the comeback

Good to see Gross with a bounce back outing.

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Hopefully the type of win that can spark something. Feels like this team is much better than their record about 85% of the time but there is just one blip that pops up at a critical time and they can't overcome it. Other than lack of situational hitting which has been an issue all year they have been mostly solid.

The self inflicted mistakes just all seem to always come at once and today it results in a big 3 run inning where San Francisco didn't even have a hit and that is killer in a 6-4 loss.

Gophers win a wild one 12-10. Way too many free things for USF but the bats had the late game answers today.

Good to see the offense pick up the pitching staff today, and for the second time in three games rally for a win. A series win is definitely there for the taking.

Gophers take the series, with another big offensive performance, to win 12-6. Hokenson with a 3 run HR and followed it up RBI single to break it open. Hunt also with a pair of doubles...a lot of offense overall again today. Weitgrefe was a bit better than his line, and 18 total Ks for Minnesota pitchers. .500 once more.

Would love to see the Gophers win a series at Iowa and bury their NCAA at-large outlook.

Go Gophers!

The Gophers sit at 10-10 overall as they start conference play today at Iowa. I know just a couple games can skew results, but the Gophers are batting 30 points higher than the opposition, 100 points higher slugging, and a full run better in earned run average. The weather looks good for today and Saturday - 70% chance of rain Sunday. This might be the toughest series on the schedule - try to get at least one win and then start playing home games. Let's go Gophers!

Around the conference
4 conference series last weekend, with no sweeps.

Iowa (13-10, 70 RPI) dropped the opener at Purdue with Brecht on the mound but came back to win the last two games. The Hawkeyes have won 6 of 7 overall to get above water, but will need to be pretty good in the Big 10 to get into at-large territory. Purdue (16-10, 99) has lost 5 of 6. The Boilermakers couldn't hold a lead at Indiana State on Tuesday and lost what would have been a really good non-conference win. They now go on the road for consecutive conference weekends.

Michigan (9-16, 132) won the final 2 games in State College over Penn State (13-9, 203), then got drubbed at home against Sparty Tuesday. The Nittany Lions did get a win over Pittsburgh on Tuesday. Both of these teams might be ones the Gophers need to finish ahead of to make the conference tourney.

Maryland (19-6, 26) is playing really well, with no losing weekends so far. It took a win in 10 innings on Sunday to win the Michigan State (10-13, 140) series, sandwiched by nice non-conference wins over James Madison and Georgetown. Sparty followed up their win over rival Michigan by losing at home to Oakland the next day.

Illinois (11-12, 102) had a good week, with a series win at Indiana (13-13, 111), and then a win in Sauget over rival Missouri on Tuesday. 2 of their next 3 conference series are at home against Penn State and Northwestern, so they could move out to a nice conference record early. Meanwhile, the Hoosiers are slumping, as evidenced by dropping the first game of their split-series at Butler last night. With Indiana State and Maryland next, their slide could continue.

Rutgers (18-7, 35) won 2 of 3 at home against a Connecticut team much better than its record, and took care of business against NJIT. They could also be in good shape with series against Iowa and Nebraska a couple weeks out.

Nebraska (17-5, 11) has won 7 in a row. Their game against Kansas State was lost to weather on Tuesday. They play at Northwestern (10-12, 66) this weekend, which is coming off a series loss at McNeese State and a home drubbing to Northern Illinois.

Ohio State (10-11, 78) was swept at home by Georgetown.


Streaking
Kansas State has the longest winning streak in the nation (10 games), and has entered the national rankings. Louisanna follows with a 9 game winning streak.


You pitch to him
Charlie Condon (Georgia) should be arrested for what he is doing to pitchers. A .517 batting average, 1.839 slugging, 17 home runs...and he still has been walked 25 times and hit 8 times. He is projected to be a top-3 pick.

First game ive been able to watch this year. Gotta admit I just about tubed out after being down 0-7 after 2. Up 16-7 after 6 and pouring it on.

Great response after the rough start, this group has shown that ability a bunch but not always been able to close on it so good to see it finished today.

1-2 start at Iowa. Win the first game 16-9 then lose 14-6 and 10-4.
Can't give up 33 runs in 3 games and be competitive. Looks like JA may end his coaching career with another bad season

Lop-sided loss that was over early today. Their hitting and pitching were much better than ours. Starting pitching needs to step up...hope it starts tomorrow.

The Gophers sit at 2-4 in the league after splitting the Saturday doubleheader. Gophers got the big hit to tie it in the first game, then immediately fall behind again thanks to shaky defense and a bullpen that has been leaky in last 5. Weitgrefe was outstanding in second game and Counsel bounced back as they cruised.

Michigan is playing better now, sitting at 6-3 in league play and winners at Iowa this past weekend. If we want to play in Big 10 tourney, we have to start winning weekends. Spanier got the starts at SS against Illini; we will see if they make a change to weekend rotation.

2-0, 2.12 through 3 starts. This makes no sense, but then again, it's the Marlins.

George Klassen with a dominant start to his pro career: 15 ip, 5 h, 4bb and 24k. Yet to allow an earned run. Looks like the Phils have helped him to throw strikes and they might have a steal on their hands. Shame we couldn’t get more out of him.

The Gophers sit at 15-16 overall, and 3-6 in the Big Ten (alone in 11th place). With series left against Penn State, Michigan State and Northwestern, there is still a path to a top-8 finish, but a series win against Indiana would make that more likely. This team just doesn't look like one that is going to sweep anybody, and if you lose this series, the margin of error becomes small.

It looks like Semb will get another start this weekend - the Gophers really need him to pitch better. The coaching staff has went with Spanier at SS, who has helped shore up the infield defense.

Around the league
Illinois is hot (21-13, 8-2, RPI 73), having won 16 of their last 19, and sits on top of the league. Michigan (19-20, 9-4, 93) and Purdue (24-14, 8-4, 71) are close behind.

Nebraska (24-11, 7-3, 18) is in 4th place and could definitely earn a regional host with a strong finish and regular season championship. As it stands now, the Cornhuskers are the only team solidly in at-large territory. Maryland (24-15, 5-8, 49) and Rutgers (23-14, 3-7, 51) have the unsightly conference records, and Ohio State (18-16, 5-5, 48) with a lackluster overall record.

Reaching the summit
With Oral Roberts falling off after their Omaha-run last year, the Summit League regular season championship is up for grabs. St. Thomas currently currently holds a game and a half lead over North Dakota State and Nebraska-Omaha. The Tommies are the only team with an RPI above 200 and no team has a winning record in the league.

Going for the record
Jac Caglianone (Florida) has homered in 9 straight games, tying the division 1 record. He can get the record today in their series finale against Vanderbilt.

Southern strength
The SEC and ACC look particularly strong this year. The top 4 teams in this week's D1 Baseball top 25 poll are from the SEC (Texas A&M, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee), and 8 total are ranked. The ACC has 7 teams ranked, and those two conferences combined to account for 11 of the top 13 ranked teams. Those two leagues are projected for 19 at-large tournament selections.

So close
Maryland-Eastern Shore is the only winless team in D1 baseball, with a record of 0-31. They came very close to their first win yesterday, surrendring 2 runs in the bottom of the 9th at Coppin State to lose 8-7.