Michigan State Visits Ohio State Friday-Sunday In Final Big Ten Home Series – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/3/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 3, 2007
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OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
27-12, 11-7 Big Ten
vs.
MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS
15-22, 6-13 Big Ten
May 4-6, 2007
Bill Davis Stadium (Capacity: 4,450)
Columbus, Ohio
Friday, May 4 – 6:35 p.m.
Saturday, May 5 (DH) – 1:05 p.m.
Sunday, May 6 – 1:05 p.m.
Series History: Ohio State leads 123-78-1
Last Meeting: May 7, 2006; Michigan State 5-2
TELEVISION
Game 4: Columbus Sports Network
RADIO/INTERNET
Games 1, 3 and 4: AM 920 WMNI
All four games: ohiostatebuckeyes.com
GAMETRACKER
All four games: ohiostatebuckeyes.com
Ohio State continued its climb up the Big Ten standings after taking three of four at Purdue last weekend. The Buckeyes moved into a tie for third place with Penn State, 2.5 games out of second. The top six teams in the conference qualify for the league tournament.
In last weekend’s Big Ten series, the Buckeyes downed Purdue 6-2 Friday, lost game one Saturday, 16-0, won game two Saturday, 3-2, and won the series finale, 6-3, Sunday.
This week, OSU began with a 7-2 win vs. Akron Wednesday at Bill Davis Stadium. The Buckeyes welcome Michigan State to Columbus for a four-game Big Ten series Friday-Sunday at Bill Davis Stadium. It is the final home Big Ten series of the season.
Three of four games vs. Michigan State (Games 1, 3 & 4) will be broadcast on radio on AM 920 WMNI. All four games will have audio available on ohiostatebuckeyes.com and be featured on Gametracker at ohiostatebuckeyes.com. MOVING UP THE BIG TEN LADDER
Ohio State’s three wins at Purdue pushed the Buckeyes into a tie for third place in the Big Ten with Penn State. Penn State and Indiana split its four-game series over the weekend. OSU is 2.5 games behind Minnesota for second. Michigan sits in first place, five games ahead of the Buckeyes.
AT BILL DAVIS STADIUM
The Buckeyes are 194-81 (.705) during the first 10-plus seasons in Bill Davis Stadium, which opened in 1997. 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).
Ohio State is 10-7 at Bill Davis Stadium in 2007 and will play at least eight more games this season at home. In addition to the completed Iowa, Michigan and Indiana series, one more conference opponent will visit Bill Davis Stadium this season as well as two non-conference foes. The scarlet and gray will welcome Michigan State (May 4-6) and non-conference opponents Western Carolina (two games) and North Florida (two games) to Columbus.
HONORING THE 1955 BIG TEN TITLE TEAM
The Buckeyes will be honoring the 1955 Big Ten Championship team Saturday at Bill Davis Stadium.
The team will be honored between games of the Saturday doubleheader vs. Michigan State that gets underway at 1:05 p.m. The 1955 team also qualified for the NCAA District tournament, the equivalent of the NCAA regional tournament at the time.
OHIO STATE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION NIGHT – ARCHIE THROWING OUT FIRST PITCH FRIDAY
Ohio State Alumni Association President and two-time Heisman Trophy winner, Archie Griffin, will be throwing out the first pitch Friday night.
BUCKEYES ADD TWO GAMES VS. WESTERN CAROLINA MAY 8-9 AT BILL DAVIS STADIUM
Ohio State has added a pair of games to its schedule vs. Western Carolina May 8-9 at Bill Davis Stadium. The games have been added because four games were lost this season because of inclement weather. The Buckeyes will face the Catamounts at 6:35 p.m. May 8 and at 1:05 p.m. May 9. Both games will be nine-inning contests.
ABOUT OHIO STATE
The Buckeyes are 27-12 on the year and 11-7 in Big Ten play, tied for third place.
In the 7-2 win vs. Akron, J.B. Shuck and Cory Rupert each had three hits, while Matt Angle had two hits and two RBI. Redshirt freshman Eric Best made the first start of his career vs. Akron, pitching a scoreless three innings for the win. The Buckeyes used five pitchers in the game, including the first career appearance by redshirt freshman Taylor Barnes.
Shuck leads Ohio State at the plate with a .404 average, while Eric Fryer leads the team in RBI (36) and is batting .352, fourth on the team. Angle and Fryer are tied for the team lead in hits with 51, with Angle hitting .362, second on the squad. Tony Kennedy is third on the team in batting at .355, while Justin Miller is at .338. Angle leads the squad in runs scored (34) and stolen bases (18) and Jason Zoeller leads the team with six home runs.
On the mound, Luebke is 6-0 with a 1.84 ERA and a team-high 60 strikeouts. Shuck is 3-1 with a 3.61 ERA and is second on the team with 38 strikeouts. Josh Barrera is 4-1 with a 4.59 ERA and Meister is 3-4 with a 4.85 ERA. Jake Hale has a team and Big Ten high 10 saves on the year with 29 strikeouts in 29.1 innings.
For the year, Ohio State has a .322 batting average and 232 RBI. The Buckeyes have 52 stolen bases in 68 attempts. On the mound, OSU has a 4.44 ERA and is holding opponents to a .277 average.
SENIORS PLAY IN FINAL HOME BIG TEN SERIES
Prior to the final game vs. Michigan State on Sunday, the Buckeyes will honor the careers of five Ohio State seniors – Trey Fausnaugh, Jacob Howell, Kris Moorman, Adam Schneider and Jason Zoeller – who will be playing their final regular-season home Big Ten game.
The group includes three fifth-year seniors, Fausnaugh, Howell and Moorman, who have combined to win 181 games heading into the MSU series and were members of the 2003 and 2005 Big Ten tournament championship teams and the 2003 and 2005 NCAA tournament teams. Since 2004, the group combined to lead Ohio State to 140 wins. These two seniors have been a part of a Big Ten tournament title team and an NCAA tournament team
ABOUT MICHIGAN STATE
The Spartans are 15-22 overall and 6-13 in the Big Ten after losing all four games last weekend against in-state rival Michigan. The Wolverines won 11-8, 8-0, 10-4 and 21-9.
Steve Gerstenberger leads the Spartans at the plate with a .336 batting average, 24 runs and 48 hits. Chris Roberts is batting .312 and Dennis Jones .307 with a team-high 24 RBI and 13 stolen bases. Gerstenberger, Eli Boike and Sean Walker each have two home runs. Michigan State is hitting .282 as a team.
The Spartans have a 5.58 team ERA and are allowing opponents to hit .301. Michigan State is expected to toss Craig Brookes (rhp) in game one, followed by Jon Kibler (lhp) and John Dwan (lhp), with the game four starter still up in the air. Brookes is 3-4 with a 2.80 ERA, Kibler 3-5 with a 4.64 ERA and Dawn 3-5 with a 5.40 ERA. Brookes leads the team with 47 strikeouts and Mike Monterey is tops with five saves.
Michigan State is led by second-year head coach David Grewe (Dayton, 1988). Grewe was one of the youngest coaches in the nation, at 29, at the time he was hired. He is 41-52 overall.
AGAINST THE SPARTANS
Ohio State leads the all-time series against Michigan State 123-78-1 and is 18-9 against the Spartans since the 2000 season. The Buckeyes won three of four last season on the road. The series began in 1911, a 6-1 win by MSU. Bob Todd is 54-23 all-time against Michigan State.
OSU vs. MSU Since 2000 (OSU leads 18-9)
| 5/12/2000 | L | 8-3 | H |
| 5/13/2000 | W | 2-1 | H |
| 5/13/2000 | L | 6-5 | H |
| 5/14/2000 | W | 7-3 | H |
| 4/13/2001 | W | 10-9 | A |
| 4/14/2001 | L | 14-3 | A |
| 4/14/2001 | W | 4-0 | A |
| 4/15/2001 | W | 13-3 | A |
| 5/10/2002 | L | 12-5 | 1N |
| 5/11/2002 | W | 6-4 | 1N |
| 5/9/2003 | W | 3-2 | H |
| 5/10/2003 | W | 2-1 | H |
| 5/10/2003 | W | 6-5 | H |
| 5/11/2003 | W | 11-8 | H |
| 4/16/2004 | L | 10-7 | A |
| 4/17/2004 | W | 8-7 | A |
| 4/17/2004 | W | 19-2 | A |
| 4/18/2004 | W | 12-10 | A |
| 5/28/2004 | W | 8-3 | 2N |
| 4/15/2005 | L | 2-0 | H |
| 4/16/2005 | L | 12-3 | H |
| 4/16/2005 | L | 8-1 | H |
| 4/17/2005 | W | 8-7 | H |
| 5/5/2006 | W | 16-2 | A |
| 5/6/2006 | W | 12-3 | A |
| 5/6/2006 | W | 6-4 | A |
| 5/7/2006 | L | 5-2 | A |
1-at Oldsmobile Park, Lansing, Mich.
2-Big Ten Tournament, Minneapolis, Minn.
BIG TEN SERIES HISTORY VS. MSU
Since the Big Ten began playing four-game conference series in 1981, Ohio State has claimed 16 of the 26 series meetings with Michigan State. The Buckeyes have six four-game sweeps and have won three of four games 10 times. The teams have split eight times and the Spartans have won only two series against Ohio State, last doing so in 2005. The other series win by Michigan State was in 1988, Bob Todd’s first season.
Big Ten Series History vs. Michigan State
Ohio State 4-0: 2003, 1996, 1994, 1992, 1990, 1989
Ohio State 3-1: 2006, 2004, 2001, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1993, 1985, 1984, 1982
Split 2-2: 2000, 1995, 1991, 1987, 1986, 1981
Split 1-1: 2002, 1983
Michigan St. 3-1: 2005, 1988
Michigan St. 4-0: None
CSN TO TELEVISE SUNDAY’S MSU GAME
Columbus Sports Network (CSN) will televise two more OSU games this season, including Sunday’s Michigan State game and the May 16 game vs. North Florida. The MSU game will be shown on same-day tape-delay at midnight Sunday/Monday and again at 8 a.m., noon and 7 p.m. Monday. CSN is central Ohio’s first and only local sports television station and can be seen on Time Warner channel 78, WOW channel 96, Insight channels 78 and 524 and over the air on channel 32.
BEST EARNS WIN IN FIRST CAREER START
Redshirt freshman Eric Best notched a win in his first career start, throwing a pre-determined three innings in OSU’s 7-2 win over Akron Wednesday. He allowed one hit and one walk.
BARNES MAKES FIRST CAREER APPEARANCE
Redshirt freshman Taylor Barnes made his first career appearance in the Buckeyes’ 7-2 win Wednesday. He pitched a perfect eighth inning.
SHUCK HITTING .404 ON THE YEAR, SITS 5TH ON CAREER AVERAGE LIST
Sophomore outfielder/pitcher J.B. Shuck leads OSU with a .404 average, good for fifth in the conference. He is hitting .370 in 14 Big Ten games. His .363 career average is good for fifth on the all-time OSU career list.
LUEBKE PACES OSU PITCHING STAFF AT 6-0
Junior pitcher Cory Luebke leads the OSU pitching staff with a 6-0 record, 1.84 ERA and a team-high 60 strikeouts. In Big Ten play, he is 2-0 with a 2.21 ERA in five starts. In his 10 starts, Luebke has not gone fewer than 5.2 innings. The Maria Stein, Ohio native fired his second complete game of the year April 27 in a 6-2 win at Purdue. His other complete game was March 10 in a 10-1 win over Western Michigan. He had a season-high 11 strikeouts in a 7-2 win over Lehigh March 4. Josh Barrera is second on the team in wins at 4-1. He has a 4.59 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 33.1 innings.
HALE LEADS BIG TEN WITH 10 SAVES
Closer Jake Hale leads the Big Ten with 10 saves. The sophomore has a team-high 19 appearances on the year and a 5.83 earned run average. He has 29 strikeouts in 29.1 innings of work.
LUEBKE FIRES HIS SECOND COMPLETE GAME OF THE SEASON, NAMED BIG TEN POW
Junior Cory Luebke continued his dominate season by tossing his second complete game of the year in OSU’s 6-2 win Friday at Purdue. Luebke gave up no earned runs in the win, striking out seven and walking none. He is 6-0 overall with a 1.84 ERA and 60 strikeouts. In Big Ten play, he is 2-0 with a 2.21 ERA. His performance vs. Purdue earned him his second Big Ten Pitcher of the Week award this season and the third of his career. It was the 12th complete game of his career.
HALE PICKS UP SAVE 10, TIED FOR SECOND ON SINGLE SEASON LIST
OSU closer Jake Hale notched his team-leading tenth save of the year in game three of the Purdue series. His 10 saves rank tied for second with Cory Cox (2001) on the Ohio State single season list, four behind Matt Davis’ 14 in 2003.
FAUSNAUGH EARNS WIN AND SAVE AGAINST PURDUE
Senior righty Trey Fausnaugh picked up a save and a win in the Purdue series. With OSU trailing 2-0, Fausnaugh retired one batter in the bottom of the sixth in game three and watched as the Buckeyes scored three runs in the top of the seventh to take the lead and hold on for the win. Jake Hale worked the seventh for the save. In game four Sunday, Fausnaugh worked the final two innings to pick up his first save of the season.
SHUCK THROWS A GREAT SEVEN INNINGS IN WIN
J.B. Shuck pitched a great seven innings in Sunday’s 6-3 win at Purdue. Shuck took a two-hit shutout into the eighth before the Boilermakers scored three runs. The win moved the lefty to 3-1 on the year.
ZOELLER HITS TEAM-BEST SIXTH HOME RUN, TIES HIS CAREER HIGH
Senior Jason Zoeller hammered his sixth home run of the year in game four of the Purdue series. The two-run blast gave OSU a 4-0 advantage. The six home runs tied his career high done as a sophomore in 2005.
FRESHMAN SECOND BASEMAN KOVANDA HAS STELLAR SERIES AT PURDUE
Freshman second baseman Cory Kovanda had a stellar series at Purdue, hitting .462 in four games. He scored two runs and had one RBI.
FIRST BIG TEN SWEEP SINCE 2005
The four-game Big Ten sweep vs. Indiana was OSU’s first since May 7-9, 2005 at Penn State. It was the first four-game Big Ten sweep at home since May 9-11, 2003 vs. Michigan State. The Buckeyes last took four from Indiana April 30-May 2, 2004 in Bloomington, Ind.
IN THE BIG TEN RANKINGS
In all games played, Ohio State ranks fourth in the Big Ten inbatting with a .322 average. Michigan leads the league at .344. Onthe mound, OSU is fourth in the conference with a 4.44 earned runaverage, with Michigan on top at 3.80. The Buckeyes rank eighth inthe league in fielding. In all games, J.B. Shuck ranks fifth in theleague in hitting at .404. Jacob Howell is tied for second with 11sacrifice bunts and Eric Fryer ranks third with 16 caught stealingby.
In Big Ten games, Fryer is sixth in batting at .415 and fifth for on base percentage at .506. Jason Zoeller is tied for second in home runs at four.
On the mound, Cory Luebke ranks third in ERA (1.84), first instrikeouts (60), second in innings pitched (73.1), tied for secondin wins (6) and third in opposing batting average (.211). Jake Haleis first with 10 saves and tied for third in appearances (19).Shuck is 10th in ERA at 3.61.
In Big Ten games, Luebke is third in ERA at 2.21, tied for first in strikeouts (27) and third in innings pitched (36.2). Hale is first with five saves.
FRESHMEN MAKING CONTRIBUTIONS, 11 HAVE SEEN ACTION
In 39 games this season, a total of 11 Buckeye freshmen have played.
Outfielder Ryan Dew has seen the most action, appearing in 36 games with 28 starts. He is hitting .240 on the year. Two infielders, have also seen significant action. Cory Kovanda has played in 32 games, 28 starts, and Cory Rupert has played in 20 games, with 15 starts. The other freshman field players to see action are Brian DeLucia, Ben Toussant, Zach Hurley, Chris Griffin and Nick Steponovich.
Rookie pitchers to appear are Theron Minium, Josh Edgin and Eric Best. Best is 3-1 on the year with a 3.97 ERA and Edgin is 2-1 with a 7.30 ERA. Best has thrown 22.2 innings and Edgin 24.2. Minium is 1-1 with a 6.26 ERA in 23.0 innings.
CAREER RECORD BOOK
Three Buckeyes ranks in the top 17 on the school’s all-timecareer batting average list. Outfielder/pitcher J.B. Shuck ranks5th on the list at .363, Eric Fryer tied for 15th at .349 and MattAngle tied for 17th at .347. Jacob Howell needs just one moretriple to tie Steve Caravati (2001-05) and Drew Anderson (2002-04)for the school record at 13. Howell, who had four triples last yearand has two this year, has 12 for his career. Junior Jason Zoelleris tied for 11th all-time for triples with eight. Angle is fourthall-time for stolen bases with 56, and Howell sits tied for 9th.Angle’s 18 stolen bases rank tied for 17th on the single-season OSUlist. Howell has moved into the top-20 all-time for career hits at203, tied for 19th. Howell has 617 career at bats, tied for 23rdall-time. Senior Dan DeLucia’s 21 wins are tied for 15th, while his265.2 career innings pitched ranks 10th. Junior Cory Luebke ranksin numerous pitching categories. For his career, he has pitched229.2 innings (20th all-time) and has allowed 217 hits, 15thfewest. His 60 issued walks ranks 4th, while his 110 runs rank tiedfor 8th fewest. Of that total, 75 have been earned and that ranksfifth. Luebke’s 2.94 career ERA is fifth and his winning percentageis 29th (.680, 17-8). He is also closing in on the top-22 (195)all-time for strikeouts with 179. Jake Hale’s 10 saves ranks tiedfor second on the single-season OSU saves list. Trey Fausnaughranks 3rd all-time in appearances with 77 and Rory Meister is 4thwith 71.
TODD EARNS CAREER VICTORY 900
With a 5-3 win over Harvard on March 23 in Bradenton, Fla., Ohio State head coach Bob Todd earned his 900th career victory. The Buckeye skipper is 914-475-2 all-time, including 790-393-2 at OSU. His 914 wins rank 17th among active coaches in NCAA Division I and 47th all-time. He needs 10 victories to earn his 800th win at Ohio State.
INCLEMENT WEATHER CLAIMS FOUR BUCKEYE GAMES ON THE YEAR
The Buckeyes have had four games lost to inclement weather so far this year, two in Columbus and two in Champaign, Ill. Two conference games at Illinois were cancelled and two non-conference home games vs. Cleveland State vs. Miami (Ohio) were cancelled.
Dan DeLucia OUT AFTER ELBOW SURGERY
Senior pitching ace Dan DeLucia will miss the remainder of the season after left elbow surgery April 10.
HOWELL NAMED ONE OF 30 FINALISTS FOR LOWE’S SENIOR CLASS AWARD
Fifth-year senior Jacob Howell was named one of 30 finalists for NCAA Division I college baseball players as candidates for the 2007 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in the all-new baseball division for players who excel on and off the field. Beginning this year, the award will be presented annually to college baseball’s outstanding senior student-athlete.
Lowe’s recently announced the addition of baseball and three other NCAA sports to the award program that originally launched in 2001-02 with basketball. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award is designed to honor the attributes of college senior student-athletes who stay in school and pursue the many rewards that a senior season can bring.
Candidates are selected based on personal qualities that define a complete student-athlete. While the on-the-field performance during their collegiate baseball careers is a factor in determining candidates and the eventual winner, their personal character and off-the-field achievements in the classroom and community are major areas of focus. The list of 30 nominees represents 29 different schools and 19 different conferences.
A national media committee will select 10 finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in May. Those 10 players will then be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote beginning May 9 and concluding June 6. Fan balloting will be coupled with votes from coaches, media and sponsors to determine the recipient of the award. The award winner and the college baseball All-Senior All-America Team will be announced this June during the 2007 NCAA College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. The tribute for seniors was conceived by sportscaster Dick Enberg, who continues to serve as Honorary Chairman of the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award.
FRYER ONE OF 27 NAMED TO COLEMAN-COMPANY JOHNNY BENCH AWARD WATCH LIST
OSU catcher Eric Fryer is one of 27 catchers to appear on the official watch list for the 2007 Coleman Company-Johnny Bench Award, the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission announced March 15.
Fryer, a second-team All-Big Ten catcher in 2006, is batting .352 this season and .415 in Big Ten games. He has a team-high 51 hits and 36 RBI. He has scored 24 runs and has nine doubles, a triple and two home runs. He has committed just four errors, with four passed balls. One of his errors was due to a middle infielder not covering second on a steal attempt and the runner advancing. He has thrown out 16 would be base stealers. Last year, Fryer played all 58 games and made 57 starts, including 43 behind the plate. He was a second-team All-Midwest Region Team as selected by the American Baseball Coaches Association and finished third on the team with a .368 batting average and 78 hits. He was second on the team with 52 RBI.
The list will be narrowed down to 10 semi-finalists and be announced May 17. Three finalists will be selected by a national voting panel and be announced May 30, prior to the NCAA regionals. A final vote among the national committee will occur during the College World Series. All three finalists will be brought to Wichita, Kan. and the winner will be announced at the 10th Annual Greater Wichita Sports Banquet on June 27.
