Ohio State Opens Big Ten Play at Rutgers this Weekend
3/28/2019 5:08:13 PM | Baseball
| Ohio State Baseball Gameday | 2019 NCAA Tournament - Nashville Regional - Opening Round - vs. No. 2 Vanderbilt |
|---|---|
| Site | Hawkins Field - Nashville, Tenn. |
| Date/Time | Friday, May 31, 2019 - 7 p.m. ET |
| Broadcast Info | Live Stats | ESPN2 | Ohio State Radio AM 1460 ESPN |
| Tournament Info | Nashville Regional Tournament Central Page | Tickets |
| Game Notes | Ohio State Game Notes |
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| Team Links | Roster | Schedule | 2019 Media Guide |
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State baseball team opens Big Ten play with a three-game road series at Rutgers Friday-Sunday at Bainton Field in Piscataway, N.J. Game one vs. the Scarlet Knights will begin at 2 p.m. Friday with the middle game at 1 p.m. Saturday. The final game of the series will start at Noon. The Buckeyes (14-11, 0-0 B1G) have won six of their last seven games, while the Scarlet Knights (6-15, 0-0 B1G) are 2-0 at home heading into the first weekend of conference play.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
All three games this weekend will be streamed on BTN Plus ($). The series vs. the Scarlet Knights can also be heard on the radio on AM 1460 ESPN. Matt Andrews and Bob Spears will have the call from Bainton Field. Links to live stats are also available on the Ohio State baseball schedule page on OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
ON THE BUMP
Friday: RHP Garrett Burhenn (4-1, 3.38 ERA) vs. LHP Harry Rutkowski (0-2, 2.50 ERA)
Saturday: LHP Seth Lonsway (3-2, 4.91 ERA) vs. TBA
Sunday: LHP Griffan Smith (3-1, 4.68 ERA) vs. TBA
LEADING OFF
- Ohio State is 14-11 overall in 2019. The team began the year 4-0, including a sweep of Seton Hall at the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla. The Buckeyes also have wins against FGCU, Oral Roberts, Bethune-Cookman, Lipscomb, Northern Kentucky, Hawai’I and Toledo. Ohio State played its first 16 games on the road.
- The 2019 Buckeyes return 15 letterwinners from the 2019 NCAA Tournament team that finished with a 36-24 overall record. Key players returning include 2018 second team All-Big ten honoree Dominic Canzone, third team selection Conner Pohl and 2018 All-Big Ten Freshman standout Dillon Dingler.
- The team welcomed 15 newcomers to the spring roster. Thirteen Buckeyes have made their debuts, including 11 freshmen.
- Ohio State is led by ninth-year head coach Greg Beals. He is 275-214-1 overall at Ohio State and holds a 518-416-1 career coaching record. Beals has guided the team to NCAA Regional appearances in two of the last three years.
- Ohio State is 7-5 all-time vs. Rutgers. Head coach Greg Beals is 4-2 vs. the Scarlet Knights in his coaching career. This is the second trip to Piscataway, N.J., for the Scarlet and Gray. The Buckeyes took two of three games against Rutgers to open Big Ten play during the 2015 campaign.
- The Buckeyes have won six of their last seven games. The team recorded a 7-2 record during its nine-game homestand to open the home schedule.
- Ohio State is hitting .279 with 41 doubles, seven triples and 25 homers.
- The Buckeyes lead the Big Ten in hits (235) and triples (7). Ohio State is second in homers (25), runs scored (150), RBI (139) and third in average (.279) and slugging (.433).
- Brady Cherry is leading the Big Ten in batting average (.385), hits (37) and doubles (10).
- Dominic Canzone is the Big Ten leader in runs scored (29). He’s currently on a career-high 21-game reached base streak.
- The OSU pitching staff has combined for a 4.59 ERA in 217.2 innings pitched. The staff has struck out 201 batters, which is fourth-most in the Big Ten.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
The Scarlet Knights are 6-15 overall in 2019. The team defeated Stony Brook, 6-5, on Tuesday at Bainton Field after playing seven games over 10 days in the state of Florida. Rutgers is hitting .230 as a team with 25 doubles, five homers and 85 walks. Rutgers has stolen 24-of-31 stolen base attempts this season. Tim Dezzi has a .342 average with four doubles and Mike Nyisztoris hitting .307 with five doubles and four RBI. On the mound, the RU pitching staff has a combined 5.51 ERA with 172 strikeouts in 181.1 innings pitched. Harry Rutkowski is 0-2 with a 2.50 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 36.0 innings of work.
OHIO STATE DURING THE HOMESTAND
- The bats hit .321 and slugged .531 during the nine-game homestand March 15-27.
- The team averaged 7.2 runs per game.
- The bats powered 16 doubles, six triples and 12 homers.
- Seven different Buckeyes hit .300 or better.
- Brady Cherry batted .457 (16-for-35) with six doubles, two homers and nine RBI. Conner Pohl hit .394 and Dominic Canzone collected a .382 average with two doubles, a triple and three homers.
- The OSU pitching staff struck out 74 in 81.0 innings of work.
- Andrew Mango claimed three saves, while Joe Gahm and Will Pfennig registered their first saves of the year.
- Bayden Root earned two wins last week in four appearances out of the bullpen. He struck out 10 in 7.2 innings.
LAST TIME OUT
Ohio State wrapped up the homestand with a 9-4 win over Toledo Wednesday night at Bill Davis Stadium. Junior right fielder Dominic Canzone went 3-for-5 with two runs scored, one homer and four RBI. Freshman Zach Dezenzo also homered in the win. Junior right-handed pitcher Jake Vance tossed a career-high six innings pitched on three runs, with six strikeouts.
CHERRY LEADING THE BIG TEN
Senior left fielder Brady Cherry is in the Top 5 in nine different offensive batting statistical categories. He is the conference leader in average (.385), hits (37), doubles (10) and total bases (65), second in slugging (.677), third in RBI (22) and fourth in homers (6), runs scored (23) and on-base percentage (.450). Cherry is hitting .109 points higher than he was at this time 25 games into the 2018 season. He also has hit five more home runs in 25 games in 2019 compared to last season at this time. Cherry is one RBI shy of his 100th in his career and four runs scored from 100 in his career.
CANZONE CAREER NUMBERS
Junior left fielder Dominic Canzone has put up impressive numbers in less than three years in the Scarlet and Gray. In 134 games, Canzone has tallied 102 runs scored, 170 hits, 25 doubles, five triples, 14 homers, 92 RBI and 61 walks. He also has 14 outfield assists (leads all active Buckeyes) and has a .992 career fielding percentage (two errors/225 putouts).
BIG TEN FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Third baseman Zach Dezenzo was named Big Ten Freshman of the week, the conference office announced March 18 Dezenzo claimed his first career weekly award after hitting .467 (7-for-15) with four runs scored, one double, three homers and five RBI in four starts last week. He hit three home runs in the series win over Lipscomb, including two in his first game at Bill Davis Stadium last Friday. Dezenzo became the second Buckeye to earn the league’s top rookie honor. Freshman right-handed pitcher Garrett Burhenn was recognized Feb. 18.
IT SHOULD BE NOTED…
- Ohio State has launched 12 homers in its last 10 games.
- The Buckeyes are outscoring their opponents, 28-9, in the opening inning. Ohio State is 10-4 when scoring in the first inning.
- The Buckeyes are 14-3 when leading after seven innings.
- The bats are hitting .262 with two outs with 51 two-out RBI this season.
- Brady Cherry is hitting .487 (19-for-39) with eight doubles, two homers, 12 runs scored and 11 RBI in his last 10 games. Canzone has homered three times in his last 10, while Dezenzo has homered four times in his last 10.
- Dezenzo leads all Big Ten freshman in homers (5) and slugging percentage (.544).
- Dezenzo has a team-best 11 two-out RBI.
- Garrett Burhenn leads the team with four wins. Ohio State has had five different pitchers claim saves, including Andrew Mango (4), Griffan Smith (1), Joe Gahm (1), Thomas Waning (1) and Will Pfennig (1).
- Opposing hitters have just a .148 average (4-for-27) with runners on base vs. Bayden Root.
- Nate Romans is 3-for-5 with a homer as a pinch-hitter.
COACH BEALS RADIO SHOW & RADIO BROADCASTS
Head coach Greg Beals weekly radio show with play-by-play announcer Matt Andrews returned this past week on AM 1460 ESPN. Tune in weekly to get Buckeye Baseball updates on the team at 6 p.m. each Monday throughout the spring. Radio broadcasts return at the start of Big Ten play at Rutgers March 29-31 on 1460 ESPN Columbus. Matt Andrews and Bob Spears will have the call. The Buckeyes will have 27 games on the air this spring, including Rutgers series (March 29-31), Cincinnati (April 3), Northwestern series (April 5-7), Dayton (April 10), Michigan series (April 12-14), Xavier (April 16), Maryland series (April 19-21), Iowa series (April 26-28), Minnesota series (May 3-5), Wright State (May 8), Penn State series (May 10-12) and the Purdue series (May 16-18).
BUCKEYES TO BE SEEN ON T.V. THREE TIMES
Ohio State will be seen on a national telecast three times this spring. The Buckeyes will be seen on FS1 at 9 p.m. Friday, May 3 as the team opens a three-game road series at Minnesota. The second contest vs. the Gophers will be live on BTN at 3 p.m. ET Saturday, May 4. Ohio State will be on BTN in a home game vs. Wright State at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 8 in Columbus.
UP NEXT
Ohio State returns home to face Cincinnati at 6:35 p.m. Wednesday, April 3 at Nick Swisher Field at Bill Davis Stadium.
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