Buckeyes Open 132nd Season at Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/11/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 11, 2015 RELATED INFO • Follow the Buckeyes on Facebook and Twitter • Weekly Release #1 – Feb. 11 • 2015 Ohio State Baseball Media Guide • VIDEO: Beals, Buckeyes Preview Opening Weekend
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State baseball team opens its 132nd season this weekend as the squad travels to Port Charlotte, Fla., for three games beginning Friday as part of the Snowbird Classic. The Buckeyes face George Mason at 6 p.m. Friday, Saint Louis at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Pittsburgh at 11 a.m. Sunday.
The 2015 opener vs. the Patriots will be played at Charlotte Sports Park, while the final two games will be played at North Charlotte Regional Park.
The 2015 Buckeyes return 21 letterwinners from a season ago, including seven starting position players and five pitchers. Big Ten Freshman of the Year Tanner Tully is back on the mound for his second Buckeye campaign, while classmate and sophomore pitcher Travis Lakins and senior pitcher Ryan Riga round out the starting rotation. Second team All-Big Ten outfielder Ronnie Dawson and third team third baseman Troy Kuhn also return for the Scarlet and Gray.
ON THE BUMP GMU: LHP Tanner Tully (6-3, 2.22 ERA in `14) vs. RHP Tyler Zombro (6-2, 1.91) SLU: RHP Travis Lakins (1-3, 2.45 ERA) vs. RHP Clay Smith (1-1, 0.56) PITT: LHP Ryan Riga (4-4, 4.33 ERA) vs. TBA
SCOUTING GEORGE MASON George Mason went 34-22 overall and claimed the Atlantic-10 Tournament title in its first year in the league before advancing to its first NCAA regional since 2009. This season, the Patriots were selected third in the A-10 preseason coaches poll, while junior shortstop Brandon Gum returns after hitting a team-best .307 last spring. Sophomore right-hander Tyler Zombro was named an All A-10 Rookie Team selection after making a team-high 20 appearances with a 1.91 ERA.
Ohio State holds a 1-0 lead in the series, winning the first game between the two schools by an 11-5 score in 2009.
A LOOK AT SAINT LOUIS Saint Louis tallied a 34-21 overall mark and went 18-7-1 in conference play. The Billikens were selected as the preseason favorites for the third-consecutive year, winning the conference regular season title three straight years. The squad returns seven position starters and 10 pitchers from its 2014 squad led by first team all-conference honorees first baseman Mike Vigliarolo and pitcher Matt Eckelman. Last season, Vigliarolo batted .328 at the plate with seven home runs and a .496 slugging percentage. Eckelmlan was the top closer in the league in 2014, going 7-2 with a 1.63 ERA with nine saves.
Ohio State trails in the all-time series vs. Saint Louis, 1-2. This will be the first meeting since the 2010 campaign.
SCOUTING PITTSBURGH Pittsburgh finished 2014 with a 22-30 overall record. The team returns a trio of seniors, including outfielder Boo Vazquez, who batted .246 with six home runs and 39 RBI. First baseman Eric Hess batted .262 with one dinger and 16 RBI, while second baseman Matt Johnson plated 19 runners in 2014. On the mound, the Panthers lost three starting pitchers but return TJ Zeuch who posted a 2.75 ERA with 41 strikeouts in 55.2 innings of work last season.
Ohio State is 18-1 all-time vs. Pittsburgh and has won the last three contests, including a 20-3 win in West Palm Beach, Fla., during the 2009 campaign. Last season, the Buckeyes defeated Pittsburgh, 6-2, in Greenville, N.C.
ON THE ROAD Ohio State plays its first 12 games on the road in 2015, opening the season against 2014 NCAA Tournament participant George Mason Feb. 13 in Port Charlotte, Fla., before facing A-10 defending regular season champion St. Louis Feb. 14 and conclude the Snowbird Classic vs. Pittsburgh Feb. 15. The Snowbird Classic marks the lone tournament on the OSU schedule to begin the year – a change from previous seasons. The Buckeyes will then begin three-game road series at Florida Atlantic Feb. 20-22 in Boca Raton, Fla., followed by a three-game set at UAB Feb. 27-March 1 in Birmingham, Ala. Ohio State will conclude the 12-game stretch at Western Kentucky March 6-8 in Green, Ky.
TULLY, DAWSON AND LAKINS NAMED TO B1G WATCH LIST Ohio State sophomores Tanner Tully, Ronnie Dawson and Travis Lakins were named to the Big Ten Preseason Players to Watch List, the conference announced Feb. 11. In addition, the Buckeyes were selected sixth in the Big Ten preseason coaches’ poll. Maryland enters its first season in the Big Ten as the conference favorite followed by Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan.
BUCKEYE CATCHERS NAMED 2015 CAPTAINS Aaron Gretz and Connor Sabanosh were both named captains of the 2015 Ohio State Baseball team, head coach Greg Beals announced last fall. The co-captains will share the catching duties and the designated hitter role.
“I am excited about the leadership on this baseball team,” Beals said. “The announcement of the 2015 captains Aaron Gretz and Connor Sabanosh comes on the heels of spending six weeks last fall on the field together where it became evident that Aaron and Connor had the pulse of this team.”
Gretz, from Apple Valley, Minn., has appeared in 122 games, starting in 105 contests the past three seasons for the Scarlet and Gray. The OSU catcher has a .263 career batting average to go along with 43 runs scored, 17 doubles, one triple, 44 RBI and 60 walks.
Sabanosh, from Cave Creek, Ariz., is in his second campaign as a catcher for the Scarlet and Gray. He had a successful first year in 2014, batting .291 with 12 runs scored, two doubles, one triple and nine RBI with 12 walks.
THE NEWCOMERS Ohio State welcomes eight new faces in the spring and all but two are freshmen. Left-handed pitcher John Havird, a junior from Mesa, Ariz., transferred from Mesa Community College. He joins freshmen pitchers Jacob Niggemeyer (Powell, Ohio; Olentangy Liberty) and Seth Kinker (Huntington, W. Va.; Cabell-Midland). Sophomore infielder L Grant Davis joins the Scarlet and Gray from Arizona State (Newport Beach, Calif.) as well as freshman infielder Nate Romans (Canton, Ohio; Walsh Jesuit). The group has one freshman catcher – Jordan McDonough (Cincinnati, Ohio, St. Xavier). Rounding out the incoming group is a pair of freshmen outfielders – Tre’ Gantt (Fishers, Ind.; Hamilton Southeastern) and Ridge Winand (Mansfield, Ohio; Clearfork).
COACH BEALS Fifth-year head coach Greg Beals is the 11th head coach in Ohio State history and only the fourth in the last 60 years. He has a 367-307 career record and is in his 13th season as a collegiate head coach.
19TH SEASON AT BILL DAVIS STADIUM Ohio State is 296-152 all-time at Bill Davis Stadium for a fine .661 winning percentage. Ohio State is 162-93 vs. the Big Ten Conference at home.
UP NEXT Ohio State travels to Boca, Raton, Fla., to face FAU in a three-game series Feb. 20-22.
