Ohio State Hosts Pittsburgh in Final Non-Conference Game – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 16, 2006
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OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
32-17, 16-11 Big Ten
vs.
PITTSBURGH PANTHERS
20-28, 8-16 Big East
May 17, 2006 o 6:35 p.m.
Bill Davis Stadium (Capacity: 4,450)
Columbus, Ohio
SERIES HISTORY
Ohio State leads 15-0
PROBABLE OHIO STATE STARTER
TBA
RADIO
AM 920 WMNI
OHIOSTATEBUCKEYES.COM
GameTracker and Streaming Audio
It is hard to believe it, but it already is the final week of the regular season for Ohio State, which welcomes Pittsburgh to Bill Davis Stadium for the final non-conference game on the 2006 schedule. The Buckeyes and Panthers, which have not met since 1999, will throw out the first pitch Wednesday at 6:35 p.m. The final Buck-A-Burger promotion also is Wednesday. Fireworks will follow the game.
The season concludes this weekend with a four-game Big Ten home series against Penn State. With a 16-11 ledger in conference play, Ohio State has an outside shot at a Big Ten championship, but sits two and a half games behind league leaders Northwestern and Michigan, which control their own destiny with 19-9 records. Michigan is home against Iowa, while Northwestern travels to Purdue. The Buckeyes already have clinched a spot in the Big Ten tournament.
The Pittsburgh game will be broadcast in Columbus on AM 920 WMNI. Randy Rhinehart and Frank Fraas will have the call. In addition to GameTracker and streaming audio for the game also will available at ohiostatebuckeyes.com. 1966 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM TO BE HONORED SATURDAY
Ohio State will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1966 national championship team this weekend at Bill Davis Stadium. The team will be honored on the field between games of the Saturday doubleheader vs. Penn State that gets underway at 1:35 p.m. The team is the last Big Ten team to win the College World Series.
ABOUT THE BUCKEYES
Ohio State is 32-17 overall and 16-11 in the Big Ten after dropping two of three games last weekend to Minnesota. The Buckeyes rode the arm of Dan DeLucia to his ninth win of the year and backed him up with 18 hits in a 10-2 victory in the opening game of the series. The Buckeyes had just six hits in each of the final two games of the series as Minnesota won 2-1 and 12-3.
Ronnie Bourquin was 4-for-9 with four RBI to lead Ohio State against Minnesota. Justin Miller, Matt Angle, Jason Zoeller and Jacob Howell also had four hits. Bourquin continues to lead the Big Ten with a .426 batting average and with 80 hits, is within 12 of the school record of 92 set by Steve Caravati in 2004. He has driven in 58 RBI, the most since Jason Turner had 64 in 2000. The school record is 80 set by Dan Seimetz in 1997. Eric Fryer is batting .391 while Angle owns a .380 batting average. Ohio State, which was second in the nation last week with a .341 team batting average, is batting .340 after the Minnesota series. National rankings will be released late Tuesday afternoon.
DeLucia allowed one run on six hits in eight innings against Minnesota. He is 9-2 this year with a 3.49 ERA ad a team-high 57 strikeouts in 90.1 innings. DeLucia is 18-10 in his career, a win total that ranks in the school’s Top 20 and his 3.94 ERA ranks in the Top 15. J.B. Shuck maintains the conference’s best ERA this season at 2.10. He did not pitch against the Golden Gophers when the series finale was cancelled because of a combination of rain and travel considerations. Ohio State’s team ERA is 3.73. Cory Luebke and Jake Hale took losses against Minnesota.
The Buckeyes have not named a starting pitcher for the Pittsburgh game.
STEPHEN, HOWELL EARN ACADEMIC HONORS
Ohio State shortstop Jedidiah Stephen and leftfielder Jacob Howell have been named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District IV Baseball Team. Each player earned second-team honors as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, the organization announced May 11.
Stephen, a senior human development and family science major from Caldwell, Ohio (Shenandoah), has started all 49 games for the Buckeyes this season and is batting .342 with a team-high 18 doubles, seven home runs and a .587 slugging percentage. He has driven in 42 runs and has scored 31 runs. Howell, a red-shirt junior majoring in communication, has started all 30 games he has played this year, which has been hampered by a hamstring injury. Howell is batting .415 with 49 hits, 21 RBI and 33 runs scored. He has played in only eight of the team’s last 27 games. He returned to the lineup as the DH in the Minnesota series.
The Academic All-District IV Team is made up of student-athletes from Division I schools in Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. To be nominated, student-athletes must be a starter or important reserve and carry a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 or higher. Team members are selected by a vote of CoSIDA members within the district. The academic all-district team is part of the Academic All-America program, which is sponsored by ESPN The Magazine.
ABOUT PITTSBURGH
The Panthers are 20-28 overall and 8-16 in the Big East heading into a Tuesday game vs. Marshall. Pittsburgh won the finale vs. Connecticut after losing the first two games of the series. The win snapped a six-game losing streak.
Pittsburgh is led by second baseman Jim Negrych, who is second in the Big East with a .419 batting average. He and Jimmy Mayer led the Panthers with 70 hits. Negrych has 12 doubles and 11 home runs and has knocked in 59 RBI, while Mayer has 16 doubles, one triple and two home runs with 28 RBI. Pittsburgh is batting .279 as a team. On the mound, the pitching staff has a 4.98 ERA and is limiting opponents to a .284 batting average. Bill Muldonney is 4-4 with a team-high 86 strikeouts in 74.2 innings. Paul Nardozzi is 4-5 with 64 strikeouts, while Kyle Landis and Rob Brant each have three wins. Pittsburgh has not named a starter for Wednesday’s game.
Joe Jordano (Westminster, 1985) is 251-209-2 in his ninth season at Pittsburgh and is 534-327-2 in his 19th season as a college coach.
AGAINST THE PANTHERS
Ohio State leads the all-time series with Pittsburgh 15-0. The series began in 1942 with Ohio State winning a pair of games in Columbus 12-0 and 17-0. The teams have mete just twice since 1968 with the Buckeyes winning 5-3 in 1998 and 7-1 in 1999. Those are the only two times OSU head coach Bob Todd has faced Pittsburgh while at Ohio State. He was 2-1 against the Panthers when he was the head coach at Kent State from 1984-87.
Series History (OSU leads 15-0)
| Date | W/L | Score | Site |
| 1942 | W | 12-0 | H |
| 1942 | W | 17-0 | H |
| 4/3/1952 | W | 7-5 | H |
| 4/1/1955 | W | 16-7 | H |
| 4/2/1955 | W | 11-3 | H |
| 4/2/1955 | W | 8-1 | H |
| 4/20/1957 | W | 5-1 | H |
| 4/20/1957 | W | 7-6 | H |
| 4/15/1960 | W | 5-3 | A |
| 4/16/1960 | W | 1-0 | A |
| 4/16/1960 | W | 3-2 | A |
| 4/13/1968 | W | 7-1 | A |
| 4/13/1968 | W | 5-0 | A |
| 5/7/1998 | W | 5-3 | H |
| 5/5/1999 | W | 7-1 | H |
LAST TIME VS. PITTSBURGH
The Ohio State baseball team hit four solo home runs and cruised to a 7-1 victory over Pittsburgh in Bill Davis Stadium May 5, 1999. It marked the second win of the day for Ohio State, which topped Oakland 11-9 earlier in the day. The Buckeyes improved to 40-7 with the win and remained in first place in the Big Ten with a 19-1 record. The Buckeyes finished the season with a 50-14 record and went on to win the conference with a 25-3 mark. They swept through the NCAA Columbus Regional before coming within one win of reaching the College World Series in a Super Regional series with Cal State Fullerton. Nate Smith got the win against Pittsburgh, working six innings and striking out five. Mike Lockwood hit two home runs in the game to lead the Ohio State offense.
MOTHER NATURE MAKES UNWANTED VISIT MOTHER’S DAY WEEKEND
It was odd that it had not happened until the seventh week of the season, but Mother Nature finally reached out and interrupted the Big Ten schedule last weekend, Mother’s Day weekend. Ohio State and Minnesota had rain affect each of the three games they played last weekend in Columbus and it forced the teams to cancel the final game of their series. Last Thursday, the Michigan State/Northwestern series and the Illinois/Indiana series were pushed back a day, but even weather did not cooperate in Bloomington and the Fighting Illini and Hoosiers were forced to play a pair of doubleheaders Sunday and Monday.
THE BIG TEN RACE
The rain did not do too much to affect the standings, only Ohio State and Minnesota did not get all their games in. Northwestern and Michigan each won three of their four games. Northwestern took three of four from Michigan State and Michigan took three of four at Penn State to keep pace with each other with 19-9 records. The Buckeyes are two and a half games behind the Wildcats and Wolverines with an outside shot at the championship though they would need help. Northwestern, Michigan and Ohio State already have clinched tournament bids. Northwestern holds the tie-breaker vs. Michigan by virtue of taking three of four games in Ann Arbor the opening weekend of the season. Minnesota is fourth with a 13-14 record and Illinois and Purdue are tied for fifth with 13-15 records. Only two and a half games separate fourth place from 10th place. This weekend, Illinois is at Michigan State, Iowa is at Michigan, Northwestern is at Purdue, Penn State is at Ohio State and Indiana is at Minnesota.
LAST WEDNESDAY GAME: OSU 5, EMU 2
After Eastern Michigan pulled within one run in the top of the seventh inning, Jedidiah Stephen launched a two-run home run to left field in the bottom of the inning to give the Buckeyes a 5-2 victory over the Eagles May 3 in front of 1,416 at Bill Davis Stadium.
Eastern Michigan reliever Dan Puls walked Eric Fryer to start the Ohio State seventh and then came back with a strikeout. Matt Shoemaker came in to face Stephen and with a 1-0 count, Stephen sent the ball over the left-field fence to score two insurance runs. It was his team-best seventh home run of the season and was the 25th of his career, which ranks 18th in school history.
It was one of the strangest games in terms of pitching. Making his 68th career appearance, Trey Fausnaugh started his first game as a Buckeye. He went four innings in a pre-determined abbreviated start to get his first win of the season (1-0). He allowed one run on three hits with a pair of strikeouts. Ohio State used a total of five pitchers, including Dan DeLucia, who made his first relief appearance since April 2004, a span of 32 starts. Dan Barker pitched the ninth and did not allow a hit to earn his first career save.
OHIO STATE 5-1 AT HOME ON WEDNESDAY
With the 5-2 victory vs. Eastern Michigan May 3, the Buckeyes improved to 5-1 in non-conference action at Bill Davis Stadium this year. Ohio State did not play a midweek game last week. On Wednesdays at home this season, Ohio State also has wins vs. Toledo (8-5), Miami (9-2), Central Michigan (8-5) and Oakland (8-2), but the lone blemish is a 7-5 defeat by Cleveland State on April 26.
The Buckeyes have hit .316 in the six games and are led by Eric Fryer, who is a monstrous 15-for-24 (.625) with 10 runs scored. He was 4-for-4 vs. Toledo, 3-for-4 vs. Miami, 1-for-4 vs. Central Michigan, 3-for-4 vs. Oakland and was 2-for-4 with two RBI in the loss to Cleveland State. He also had two hits against Eastern Michigan. Jason Zoeller is batting .412 (7-for-17) while Ronnie Bourquin is batting .409 (9-for-22). Jedidiah Stephen leads the team with nine RBI. Of his seven hits, he has two doubles and three home runs. Dan Barker is 3-1 as a pitcher and has a 1.12 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 16 innings. He has appeared in all six games with three starts. Josh Barrera and Trey Fausnaugh have the other two wins. Barker also has a save.
BIG TEN STATS
Ohio State continues to lead the Big Ten with a .340 batting average and a 3.73 ERA. Michigan State is second with a .318 batting average, followed by Illinois at .314. Michigan is fourth at .304. Ohio State and Purdue (3.94) have the only ERAs less than 4.00. The Buckeyes have a .960 fielding percentage, which is tied for fifth in the league.
Ronnie Bourquin continues to set the standard among all Big Ten batters. He is batting .426 while Eric Fryer’s .391 average is second in the league. Purdue’s Mitch Hilligoss is third with a .385 batting average. Matt Angle is fourth with a .380 batting average. Bourrquin’s 80 hits also lead the conference by six. Angle has 7 to rank third, while Fryer has 70 to tie for fourth. Angle has scored a league best 59 runs. Bourquin has scored 46 runs, the fourth most in the Big Ten. Bourquin and Fryer rank 1-3 in RBI. Bourquin has driven in 58, while Fryer has driven in 48. Three Buckeyes also rank in the Top 5 of total bases. Bourquin is second with 109, five off of Hilligoss’ 114. Jedidiah Stephen has 108 to rank third and Fryer has 101 to rank fifth. Angle’s 22 stolen bases are the sixth most in the Big Ten.
J.B. Shuck continues to own the conference’s best ERA at 2.10, though Michigan’s Chris Fetter has seen his ERA drop to 2.21. Dan DeLucia’s 3.49 ERA ranks 10th in the league. He is the league leader with nine victories after beating Minnesota 10-2 on Friday. Sixth pitchers are tied for second with six wins, including Shuck and Cory Luebke. DeLucia has pitched 90.1 innings, 2.1 better than any other pitcher in the league. Shuck’s .238 opposing batting average is tied for fourth, while DeLucia’s .254 is ninth. DeLucia’s 57 strikeouts rank seventh. Rory Meister leads with 23 games finished and his 24 relief appearances is two off the lead. His five saves this season are tied with Minnesota’s Andy Peters, but trail Iowa’s Tim Gudex (eight) and Illinois’ Matt Whitmore (six), though Whitmore has moved into a starting role with the Illini.
TWO FRESHMEN PART OF STARTING STAFF
Ohio State has two freshmen who have become part of the four-man starting rotation the team uses in Big Ten play. Rookies Jake Hale and J.B. Shuck are the game three and four respective starters. Hale is 3-4 overall and 2-3 in Big Ten action, while Shuck is 6-3 overall and 3-3 in conference play. Shuck leads the Big Ten with his 2.10 ERA, which ranks 36th nationally. Never in head coach Bob Todd’s 23 years as a college head coach, has he had two freshmen as part of the starting rotation.
HOWELL HAD MISSED SIGNIFICANT ACTION
Junior left fielder Jacob Howell returned to the starting lineup in the Minnesota series, but did not return to left field. Instead he was the designated hitter. Howell has played in just eight of the team’s last 27 games after pulling his hamstring in the first inning of the Miami (Ohio) game April 5. He returned the opening game at Indiana (April 21) after a 10-game absence. He rested the hamstring April 26 vs. Cleveland State and then returned to the lineup in the series opener vs. Purdue. He reinjured his hamstring in that game and had missed eight more games before returning vs. Minnesota. Howell is not just any other player. The 2004 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American owns a .415 batting average in the 30 games he has played this season. He has 49 hits with five doubles, four triples and one home run. In his absence, J.B. Shuck, Michael Arp and Jonathan Zizzo have made starts in left field.
SELHORST ALSO OUT
Ohio State redshirt freshman pitcher Matthew Selhorst had Tommy John surgery April 27 to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his left arm. Selhorst was called into the Central Michigan game April 12, but did not throw a pitch after an injury in the bullpen. Dr. James Andrews preformed the surgery in Alabama. Selhorst is hoping for a full recovery and to come back stronger than before. He had made just one official appearance this season, allowing four runs (one earned) on seven hits in two innings at then-No. 1 Florida Feb. 25. He also made an unofficial relief appearance in the exhibition game vs. Aoyama Gakuin (Japan) on March 3.
ANGLE HAS 22 STOLEN BASES
Buckeye center fielder Matt Angle stole a base in the opening game of the Michigan State series which was his 22nd stolen base of this season, That moved him into a seventh place tie on the school’s season list with Mike Durant (1991) and Don Polaski (1970). He needs two more to tie Ken Peters’ 1964 total of 24. The school record is 35 set by Mike Harris in 2001. Angle is 22-for-26 this season and is 35-for-42 in his career. His season total is tied for sixth in the Big Ten. Indiana’s Reggie Watson is the conference leader with 31. This year, Ohio State is 54-for-69. Jacob Howell is a perfect 8-for-8, while Wes Schirtzinger is 7-for-9.
BUCKEYES HAVE 24 TRIPLES
Ohio State moved within one triple of tying the school record when Jason Zoeller tripled in the opening game of the Minnesota series. The Buckeyes now have 24 triples this season, moving in front of the 1966 national championship team. The 1991 team holds the record with 25 three-baggers. Eric Fryer and Jacob Howell lead this year’s team with four triples each, while Jedidiah Stephen, Adam Schneider and Zoeller each have three. J.B. Shuck and Ronnie Bourquin each have two. The other players also have triples.
HOWELL HAS 10 CAREER TRIPLES
With four triples this season, left-fielder Jacob Howell has 10 career triples and is tied for sixth in school history. Steve Caravati tied Drew Anderson for the all-time record last year with 13. Howell also had four triples as a freshman and had two triples last year.
STEPHEN PACES OSU WITH SEVEN HOMERS
Jedidiah Stephen homered for the seventh time this season May 3 vs. Eastern Michigan. Stephen’s seven home runs this season are the most by a Buckeye and account for more than 1/3 of the team’s home run production (20). After Jason Zoeller homered in game two at Michigan State, he joined Ronnie Bourquin and Eric Fryer with four home runs this season. With seven homers this season, Stephen now has 25 for his career, which gives him the 18th most by a Buckeye. He trails Steve Caravati (2001-05), Doug Deeds (2001-02) and Matt Middleton (1996-99) by one for 15th on the all-time list.
STEPHEN CLIMBING OTHER CAREER LISTS
Shortstop Jedidiah Stephen has started to climb other career lists this season, his last as a Buckeye. He is 14th with 656 career at bats and is tied for 21st with 198 career hits. He has 43 doubles to tie for 11th in addition to being tied for 11th with eight career triples and 18th with 25 home runs. He also has 137 RBI to rank 20th.
BUCKEYES AND SEASON RECORDS
The Buckeyes are making a climb on the school’s season record list. Ronnie Bourquin has 80 hits to tie Mike Estep (1995) and Scott Meadows (1988) for 14th. He is only 12 hits away from the school record set by Steve Caravati in 2004. His 58 RBI are tied for 12th with Dan Seimetz (1995). The school record is 80. Jedidiah Stephen’s 18 doubles this season tied Drew Anderson (2004) and Seimetz (1996) for 12th, while Matt Angle is 16th with 59 runs scored. The top two season totals are held by Mike Lockwood. He had 72 in 1998 and 71 in 1999.
BUCKEYES FIND EARLY GAME SUCCESS
Ohio State has found success this season by building early leads against opponents. The Buckeyes have scored more than twice as many runs as their opponents in the first four innings of games this year, 174-91. Ohio State has a 54-27 edge in the first, a 49-20 edge in the third and a 47-16 edge in the fourth. The inning with the biggest run differential, however, is the sixth when Ohio State is outscoring opponents 72-20.
DELUCIA A 10-GAME WINNER?
With the win Friday against Minnesota Dan DeLucia won his ninth game of the season, which is tied for the 15th best season at Ohio State. He has a chance to become the first 10-game winner at Ohio State since the 1999 season when Justin Fry won 11 games and E.J. Laratta won 10. He is 9-2 with a 3.49 ERA and 47 strikeouts in 90.1 innings.
DELUCIA ON CAREER LIST
Dan DeLucia has pitched 231.0 career innings, which ranks 19th all-time. He became eligible for many career stat categories when he reached 175.0 innings earlier this year. DeLucia has walked just 66 batters, which is tied for the fourth fewest by an Ohio State pitcher. He has allowed 117 runs (11th lowest) and 101 earned runs (13th lowest). DeLucia is 18-10 and his win total has him in a four-way tie for 20th on the career list. He is tied with Scott Lewis (2002-04), Kevin Goodrum (1998-01) and Bob Spears (1993-96).
FAUSNAUGH CLIMBING APPEARANCE LIST
Ohio State junior reliever Trey Fausnaugh continues to climb up the school list in career appearances. He made his 69th career appearance in the opening game of the Minnesota series when he pitched the final inning for starter Dan DeLucia in the 10-2 victory. In those 69 career appearances, he has made just one start, when he beat Eastern Michigan 5-2 in an announced short start, He is tied with Dennis Pachner (1992-94) for fourth on the all-time career list. He needs one to equal Brandon Steen (1999-02). Cory Cox holds the school record with 96 career appearances, while Andy Lee (1996-99) is second with 79.
OTHER BUCKEYE BANTER
Ronnie Bourquin is the team’s leading batter through the team’s49 games this season. He has a batting average of .426, the best inthe Big Ten. He also is the team’s leading batter in conferencegames with a .417 average, which also leads the Big Ten. The teamis batting .340 in all games and .338 in conference play. Bothfigures lead the conference. Jacob Howell is the team’s leadingbatter in the 22 non-conference games (16-6) this season. He isbatting .438 with 32 hits, 12 RBI and 21 runs scored. Bourquin issecond with a .435 average, 40 hits, 29 RBI and 24 runs scored.Eric Fryer has a .432 average with 35 hits, 27 RBI and 21 runsscored. The Buckeyes are 12-5 at home this season and are led byBourquin’s .483 batting average (29-for-60) with 20 RBI and 12 runsscored. Fryer also is batting better than .400 at home. He has a.439 batting average and is tied with Bourquin for the team leadwith 29 hits. Fryer has 12 RBI. The team is batting .377 in itslast 10 games and has five players batting better than .400.Bourquin leads the team with a .485 average in the last 10 games,while J.B. Shuck is batting .467, Justin Miller is batting .444while Angle and Jason Zoeller each are batting .421. Bourquin andJedidiah Stephen each have 11 RBI in the last 10 games. Stephen hasthree doubles and two home runs in the team’s last 10 games. In the32 wins this season, the team is batting .369 and is led byBourquin’s .440 batting average. Fryer is batting .437 in the wins,while Matt Angle is batting .397. Ohio State is averaging 9.1 runson 13.0 hits in victories. Conversely, in the 17 losses, Ohio Stateis batting just .283. Bourquin is batting .397, while Angle isbatting .348. Ohio State is averaging 3.3 runs on 9.4 hits inlosses. Ohio State is 23-15 and batting .339 during the day,compared to 9-2 and .344 at night. Bourquin leads the team with 24multiple hit games, including 10 of the last 18 games. Six others,including Angle, Fryer, Stephen, Howell, Zoeller and WesSchirtzinger also have multiple hits in at least 11 games. Bourquinhas 16 multiple-RBI games, while Fryer has 15 and Stephen has 11.The team’s longest hit streak belongs to Angle. He has at least onehit in his last seven games. The longest hit streak of the year wasby Bourquin, who hit in 14 straight games before seeing the streakget snapped in game three at Michigan State. It was the longeststreak of his career. He has a hit in all but nine of the 49 gameshe has played and has reached base in all but four games. Howell isbatting .425 vs. left-handed pitchers and .410 vs. righties.Bourquin is batting .455 with runners on base and .483 with runnersin scoring position. Howell is batting .486 with runners in scoringposition. Fryer is the team’s leading two-out hitter. He is batting.455 (30-for-66) with two out and has driven in 27 runs in thesituation. Stephen has 19 two-out RBI, while Bourquin has 18. Witha runner at third and at least two outs, Bourquin has driven in 16RBI. Bourquin has done that in 23 opportunities. Fryer has drivenin 14 RBI in 20 chances. In 30 of the team’s 49 games, the Buckeyeshave pounded out double-digit totals in hits, including aseason-high 22 in the first game vs. Lehigh on March 10. The teamhad seven consecutive games with 16 hits or more from March 5-20.Ohio State has had at least 10 hits in five of the last sevengames. The Buckeyes have scored at least 10 runs 14 times thisseason.
BOURQUIN AND SHUCK NAMED TO DICK HOWSER TROPHY WATCH LIST
Ohio State players Ronnie Bourquin and J.B. Shuck are among the 64 candidates who appear on the watch list for the Dick Howser Trophy, given to the top player in collegiate baseball, the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, in conjunction with the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, announced May 4.
Bourquin, a junior from Canton, Ohio (Canton South), leads the Big Ten with a .425 batting average, 76 hits and 54 RBI. The Buckeyes’ third baseman has 12 doubles, two triples and four home runs for a slugging percentage of .581. Shuck, a true freshman from Galion, Ohio (Galion), owns the best ERA in the Big Ten at 2.10 and is 6-3 in his rookie campaign. He has 49 strikeouts in 64.1 innings and has started 10 of his 11 appearances with one complete game. Shuck, who is listed on the watch list as a DH/Athlete, also has made 26 starts at first base, in the outfield or as the team’s DH and has a .333 batting average with 35 hits and 17 RBI.
The membership of the NCBWA will choose the Dick Howser Trophy based on three rounds of voting. The 2006 winner will be announced at the College World Series in Omaha on Friday, June 16, at 10:30 a.m. EDT. The Dick Howser Trophy, given in memory of the former Florida State University All-American shortstop and major league player and manager who died of brain cancer in 1987, is regarded by many as college baseball’s most prestigious award.
NCBWA membership includes writers, broadcasters and publicists. Designed to promote and publicize college baseball, it is the sport’s only college media-related organization, founded in 1962.
DUO ALSO ADDED TO WALLACE WATCH
Ronnie Bourquin and J.B. Shuck also have been added to the watch list for the Brooks Wallace Award, which is another player of the year award, presented by the College Baseball Foundation.
OHIO STATE SWEEP DENIED AGAIN AT MSU
For the second straight weekend, the Buckeyes were looking for a sweep Sunday after winning the first three games of the series. Like it had done at home the week before against Purdue, Ohio State beat Michigan State 16-2 in the opener and then swept the doubleheader 12-3 and 6-4 before the Spartans won the finale 5-2 and prevent the Buckeyes from staying in a first-place tie in the conference standings.
J.B. Shuck was the leading Ohio State batter at Michigan State. He had a team-best nine hits and batted .500 for the series. He had two doubles and a triple, drove in two runs and scored seven times. Shuck had two hits in the opening game of the series and followed up with three hits in each game of the doubleheader. He also had a double in the final game. Matt Angle also was .500 against the Spartans. He was 8-for-16 and drove in six runs while scoring seven times. Angle drove in four RBI with two hits a sacrifice fly in the 16-2 win, had five hits between the two games of the doubleheader and added a hit on Sunday.
Dan DeLucia, Cory Luebke and Josh Barrera picked up pitching wins in Lansing. DeLucia won his eighth game of the year, a total that leads the Big Ten. He is 8-2 on the year and has a 3.72 ERA with 54 strikeouts in 82.1 innings pitched. The win was the 17th of his career. Luebke won the second game of the series to improve to 6-4, while Barrera picked up a relief victory in game three to improve to 3-1.
BUCKEYES BEAT BOILERS THREE TIMES
Ohio State won three of four at home against Purdue, April 28-30, winning 10-5 Friday before sweeping the doubleheader Saturday by scores of 4-0 and 4-1. Purdue won game four, 7-6, after stopping a late rally. The Buckeyes scored three in the eighth and another in the ninth and had runners at second and third when the game ended.
Ronnie Bourquin led the Buckeyes in the series, batting .667 at the plate with 10 hits and had five RBI and scored four runs to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors. The junior third baseman had a slugging percentage of .733 and an on-base percentage of .688. Matt Angle also had a great series for the Buckeyes with nine hits, including two doubles, and a .643 batting average. He knocked in three runs and scored five times. Jedidiah Stephen was 7-for-14 with a pair of doubles and one home run that yielded six of the team’s 23 runs in the series.
The pitching staff had a 3.09 ERA in the Purdue series and held the Boilermakers to a .254 batting average while the OSU offense backed it up with a .392 batting average. Cory Luebke and Jake Hale pitched complete games in the doubleheader sweep to follow Dan DeLucia’s 10-5 win in the series opener. J.B. Shuck nearly was bailed out in the finale, but was saddled with the loss.
BOURQUIN RECEIVES CONFERENCE LAURELS
In a five-game homestand that included games against Cleveland State and Purdue, Ronnie Bourquin batted .706 (12-for-17) with seven RBI and five runs scored to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors (May 1) for the second time this season. He touched 16 bases for a .941 slugging percentage and added four walks for an on-base percentage of .762, while posting three of four stolen bases. After a 2-for-2 performance against Cleveland State earlier in the week, the Buckeye junior third baseman batted .667 (10-for-15) in the 3-1 series win over Purdue with five RBI and four runs scored.
BUCKEYES EARN BIG TEN WEEKLY HONORS
Four players have earned Big Ten Player or Pitcher of the Week honors this season, including Cory Luebke (pitcher, March 7), Matt Angle (player, March 14), Ronnie Bourquin (player, March 20 and May 1) and Eric Fryer (player, April 11).
FIVE PLAYERS MAKE NATIONAL HONOR ROLL
Five different Ohio State players have been named to the College Baseball Foundation National Honor Roll, which recognizes the top national performances each week in college baseball. Ronnie Bourquin is the latest to receive national acclaim after batting .706 (12-for-17) with seven RBI and five runs scored in five games, April 26-30. Dan DeLucia and Jake Hale were mentioned March 21 after getting the Buckeyes off to a strong start on the spring trip with solid pitching performances against UMass and Cornell. Eric Fryer gained mention last week (April 11) after leading the team vs. Illinois. Pitcher/first baseman/left fielder J.B. Shuck has appeared on the honor roll three times this season.
BUCKEYES TAKE THREE AT INDIANA
Ohio State won its third conference series of the year by winning three of four games at Indiana April 21-23 in Bloomington, Ind. Ohio State won game one 4-3, game three 11-4 and game four 8-6. The Hoosiers won the second game 5-3.
Eric Fryer and Ronnie Bourquin both batted .500 in the five games last week. Fryer was 9-for-18 with two triples, a home run, four RBI and eight runs scored, while Bourquin was 8-for-16 with a double, a triple, two home runs, eight RBI and five runs scored. Ohio State batted .296 in the Indiana series and Bourquin led the team with a .462 batting average. He was 6-for-13 with a triple, two home runs, seven RBI and five runs scored. Jacob Howell, who returned in game one after missing 10 games with a pulled hamstring, and Fryer both were 6-for-14 (.429). Howell had two RBI and scored twice, while Fryer had a triple, a home run, three RBI and six runs scored. Howell is second in the Big Ten with a .417 average, though Fryer, who has played in all 37 games this season, is batting .397 with 42 RBI. Bourquin leads the everyday players with a .401 average and has 59 hits and 45 RBI.
Both Dan DeLucia and J.B. Shuck won their sixth games of the season at Indiana. DeLucia (6-2) beat the Hoosiers Friday, missing his third complete game of the season by one out. Rory Meister came in and picked up his fourth save of the season. Shuck (6-1) won the series finale and did not allow an earned run on eight hits. Jake Hale was the other winner last weekend. He won the third game and allowed three runs on five hits in his six innings.
MICHIGAN SHOCKS BUCKEYES
For just the third time in Bob Todd’s 19 years at Ohio State, the Buckeyes were swept in a four game series. Minnesota swept Ohio State in Columbus in 1990 and then during the opening weekend of Big Ten play last year, Illinois took all four games. Michigan won 14-3 on Friday and then won by scores of 7-1 and 2-1 Saturday before winning 5-4 Sunday to complete the sweep.
The Buckeyes took a .343 batting average into Ann Arbor, but left with a .334 average after batting .269. Ohio State did not hit the ball all that poorly, but it did not get the timely hitting it had displayed entering the series. Center fielder Matt Angle led the Buckeyes at the plate in going 6-for-14 (.429) at Michigan. He drove in two runs and scored twice and was 1-for-2 in stolen bases. Jedidiah Stephen was 5-for-15 (.333) and Jonathan Zizzo was 4-for-13 (.308) as he continues to get playing time in left field.
The pitching staff also showed vulnerability allowing Michigan to hit .368 for the weekend as it outscored the Buckeyes 28-9. The Buckeyes, which had led the Big Ten with a 3.29 ERA before the series, had an 8.28 ERA in the four games. Dan DeLucia and Cory Luebke the starters in the first two games allowed uncharacteristic nine and seven earned runs, respectively. Even J.B. Shuck, who had allowed only five earned runs all year, allowed three in the series finale. Jake Hale pitched well in his 7.1 innings in the third game of the series despite getting the loss.
BUCKEYES WIN THREE VS. ILLINOIS
Ohio State improved to 19-7 after winning three of four games at home vs. Illinois. After getting rained out Friday night, Ohio State and Illinois were forced to play two doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday, playing the series in order with a nine-inning and a seven-inning game Saturday followed by a seven-inning and a nine-inning game Sunday. Ohio State won 4-1 and 5-1 on Saturday. Down 6-0 in the first game Sunday, the Buckeyes tied the game in the bottom of the sixth before allowing two runs in the top of the ninth in an 8-6 extra-inning defeat. The Scarlet and Gray clinched the series with a 9-1 triumph in the nightcap.
For the series, the team batted .331 and was led by center fielder Matt Angle, who was 7-for-15 (.467) with a pair of doubles and four runs scored. Shortstop Jedidiah Stephen batted .462 and third baseman Ronnie Bourquin batted .429, while J.B. Shuck, who had one start at first and two in left field, batted .400. Shuck, also a freshman pitcher, went the distance to pitch his first career complete game in the series clinching victory on Sunday. He allowed only one run on seven hits and struck out five. Catcher/first baseman Eric Fryer batted .389 with six RBI and seven runs scored.
Six pitchers combined for a 2.12 ERA and struck out 30 Illini batters in 34.0 innings pitched and limited Illinois to a .203 batting average. Dan DeLucia and Cory Luebke joined Shuck in pitching complete games. DeLucia allowed one run on six hits with a career-high tying nine strikeouts, while Luebke allowed one run on three hits with seven strikeouts in his 7.0-inning complete game.
BUCKEYES OPEN LEAGUE PLAY 3-1 AT IOWA
Ohio State won three of four games from Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, March 31-April 2. Ohio State won the first, third and fourth games of the series by respective scores of 12-5, 6-4 and 15-1, with the only blemish of the week coming in game two, a 7-1 loss. The most dominating win was the 15-1 series clincher on Sunday that kept the Buckeyes on top of the Big Ten standings.
While the offense pounded out 17 hits, it was the pitching that grabbed national headlines as freshman pitcher J.B. Shuck took a no-hitter into the eighth inning before giving up a solo home run to the lead-off batter that inning. It was the only hit allowed by Buckeye pitching. Shuck struck out eight batters in the game and turned the game over to Dan Barker, who pitched the ninth without a hit.
The team outscored the Hawkeyes 34-17 while 15 of the team’s 44 hits were for extra bases. The team had nine doubles, two triples and four home runs after entering the weekend with only three round-trippers the first 17 games of the season. Ronnie Bourquin batted .438 in the four games, going 7-for-16 with three doubles, a home run, five RBI and six runs scored. He had an .813 slugging percentage and a .500 on-base percentage. He did not strikeout in the series and drew two walks. Jason Zoeller also had a strong series, batting .417.
OSU AMONG BEST ALL-TIME CWS TEAMS
Ohio State has been named one of the top College World Series teams of all-time in a story that appeared in the Omaha World-Herald last summer. Ohio State was listed No. 22 in the Top 25 rankings. The Buckeyes have made four appearances in the College World Series, winning the national championship in 1966 after a runner-up finish in 1965. Southern California was ranked as the top CWS team of all time.
As for Ohio State, the World-Herald said, “(Steve) Arlin was selected as one of the two pitchers on the CWS’ 50-year anniversary team for his work in the 1965 and 1966 tournaments. Arlin still holds the CWS career record for ERA (0.96), and his four victories and 47 innings pitched are tied for the all-time lead. In leading the Buckeyes to the 1966 title, Arlin finished all five of their wins – two on complete games. His most memorable performance might have come the year before, when he pitched a 15-inning, 1-0 victory over Washington State after lasting just one-third of an inning in his first CWS start against Arizona State.”
The 1966 national championship is the last won by a team in the Big Ten.
STEVE ARLIN APPEARED ON FIRST EVER COLLEGE BASEBALL HALL OF FAME BALLOT
Former Ohio State pitcher Steve Arlin was one of 22 former players who appear on the 2006 ballot for induction into the College Baseball Hall of Fame. A total of 46 all-time collegiate baseball greats, which also included 12 former coaches and 12 veteran candidates, appeared on the ballot earlier this month for the first-ever Hall of Fame induction class this summer. The five former players chosen for the class include Bob Horner of Arizona State, Robin Ventura of Oklahoma State, Dave Winfield of Minnesota, Will Clark of Mississippi State and Brooks Kieschnick of Texas.
Arlin helped lead the Buckeyes to back-to-back appearances at the College World Series in 1965 and 1966. He not only is considered the top pitcher in Ohio State baseball history, but he also is regarded as one of the greatest pitchers in the history of the College World Series. In the 1965, facing elimination against Washington State, Arlin struck out a CWS-record 20 batters in a 15-inning 1-0 victory by Ohio State. The next year, the Buckeyes won the National Championship with Arlin on the mound in five of the team’s six games, twice beating top-seeded Southern California.
With a two-year record of 24-3 with the Buckeyes, Arlin held OSU marks for victories and strikeouts (294) until 1999 and his .889 win percentage is the best in school history. He led the nation in strikeouts as a sophomore with 165 and went 13-2 that year in leading the Buckeyes to a second-place finish at the 1965 College World Series. The next year he went 11-1 and helped Ohio State claim the championship.
10TH SEASON AT BILL DAVIS STADIUM
This year marks the 10th season of Ohio State baseball at Bill Davis Stadium. One of the best college baseball stadiums has been quite an advantage for the Buckeyes, who have a 181-72 (.715) overall record there. The venue has played host to two Big Ten tournament championships (1999 and 2001), two regional championships (1999 and 2001) and two super regional championships (1999 and 2003).
BUCKEYES LED BIG TEN IN 2005 ATTENDANCE
Ohio State baseball led the Big Ten in attendance in 2005 by welcoming an average of 2,570 in 18 home dates at Bill Davis Stadium, NCAA attendance figures released last November revealed.
The Buckeyes welcomed a total of 46,266 fans to Columbus last season which was the 36th best overall figure in the NCAA. The 2,570 average ranked 23rd among NCAA institutions.
No other Big Ten team ranked in the Top 50 either in total or average attendance. Notre Dame averaged 1,991 fans to rank 28th and drew a total of 43,798 fans for the season to rank 38th. No school in the Mid-American Conference or other Ohio school cracked the Top 50. LSU led in both categories, drawing a total of 270,300 fans over 36 dates for an average of 7,508. The Buckeyes’ drew a season-high crowd of 5,128 for the doubleheader against Minnesota the final series of the regular season. That weekend, Ohio State drew 10,876 fans over three dates, outdistancing previous weekends of 7,782 vs. Indiana, 7,370 vs. Purdue and 6,839 vs. Michigan State.
OHIO STATE BASEBALL ON WMNI-AM IN 2006
Ohio State baseball games will be broadcast this season on WMNI Radio (920 AM), Gene Smith, Ohio State athletics director, announced March 9. The station will carry a minimum of 27 regular-season games and any postseason games the team could play in 2006, including the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.
Games one, three and four of six Big Ten series – Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Purdue, Minnesota and Penn State – as well as two games of the series at Indiana and Michigan State will be available on WMNI. The station also will carry five home midweek evening games against Miami (Ohio), Central Michigan, Oakland, Eastern Michigan and Pittsburgh.
The WMNI broadcast schedule begins Friday, March 31 at 7:05 p.m. when the team opens a four-game series at Iowa, and continues through the regular season, which ends Sunday, May 21 against Penn State. Any postseason games the team would qualify for also would be carried by the station.
WMNI has a long-standing history of sports coverage since it went on the air in 1958 and that has included Ohio State basketball, football, men’s hockey and now baseball.
In addition, the complete WMNI broadcast inventory of OSU baseball games also will be available on the Internet at the official web site of the Ohio State athletics, ohiostatebuckeys.com.
ALL-ACCESS PASS THE KEY TO ONLINE AUDIO, VIDEO COVERAGE
The official web site of Ohio State athletics, ohiostatebuckeyes.com, in conjunction with College Sports Television, is offering subscription coverage for streaming audio and video of select Buckeye baseball games this spring.
For $6.95 per month, fans can receive streaming audio for a minimum of 27 regular-season baseball games that will be carried on the radio in the Columbus market at AM 920 WMNI. The station also is committed to all of Ohio State’s postseason games and those, too, would be available to subscribers of the CSTV All-Access pass. All Ohio State programming is included in the monthly subscription price, not just baseball coverage.
Remaining Games in Streaming Video
| May 19 | Fri. | Penn State | 6:35 p.m. |
| May 21 | Sun. | Penn State | 1:05 p.m. |
Bob Todd RADIO SHOW
The Bob Todd weekly radio show, hosted by Skip Mosic on WBNS Radio 1460 The Fan, will run each week for 10 weeks with the final program broadcast on Monday, May 22. The nights of the show vary this year because of station conflicts with either Columbus Blue Jackets or Cleveland Indians broadcasts. Six shows will be broadcast on Monday with two shows each on Tuesday and Thursday. Each of the remaining 30-minute shows will begin at 7 p.m. To participate, dial (614) 821-1460.
Bob Todd Radio Show Remaining Schedule
Thursday, May 18 @ 7 p.m.
Monday, May 22 @ 7 p.m.
UP NEXT FOR THE BUCKEYES
Ohio State closes the regular season this weekend with a four-game Big Ten series vs. Penn State at Bill Davis Stadium. The series begins Friday with a single game at 6:35 p.m. and continues Saturday with a doubleheader at 1:35 p.m. before concluding Sunday with a single game at 1:05 p.m. The 1966 national championship team will be recognized on the field between games of the Saturday doubleheader and Sunday the Buckeyes will honor three seniors prior to its regular season finale.
