Maryland baseball at Indiana series preview

Maryland baseball is coming off two dominant midweek wins and now appears ahead to certainly one of its largest collection of the season, because it faces Indiana in a highway weekend set.

The Terps have received eight of their final 10 video games, together with 4 straight. In these 4 video games, they’ve scored 56 runs. Regardless of the current string of wins, the Terps haven’t had a lot motion within the RPI. Maryland is projected as a No. 3 seed within the Charlottesville Regional within the newest discipline of 64 outlook from D1Baseball.

Sadly for Maryland, it’s handled a little bit of an harm bug headed into this enormous collection in opposition to the Hoosiers.

Senior third baseman Nick Lorusso exited Sunday’s sport in opposition to Purdue resulting from a difficulty together with his hamstring, and it’s unclear if he will probably be good to go for this weekend. Senior right-handed pitcher Nick Dean was dominated out this previous weekend resulting from forearm tightness and junior left-handed pitcher Tommy Kane additionally left Wednesday’s blowout of Georgetown with an harm. Their statuses are unclear as of now. Moreover, sophomore outfielder Elijah Lambros was ejected in Wednesday’s sport versus Georgetown, which is an automated one-game suspension, per NCAA coverage.

Regardless of these absences, Maryland’s bullpen will probably be rested after a pair of blowouts, and the offense is as sizzling because it’s been. These are two key items for a Maryland staff that desperately wants this collection for a match berth.

All three video games will probably be obtainable on Massive Ten Plus. Friday’s sport will begin at 6 p.m., with Saturday and Sunday’s video games set for 1 p.m. and midday, respectively,

Indiana Hoosiers (31-14, 9-3 Massive Ten)

2022 document: 27-32, 10-14 Massive Ten

Indiana is having an incredible season. It’s in first place within the Massive Ten, ranked No. 14 within the RPI and is a projected regional host for the NCAA Event. The Hoosiers have been excellent at dwelling, with a 22-1 document.

Head coach Jeff Mercer is looking for to achieve the staff’s first NCAA match berth since his first season in 2019. The winner of this collection will doubtless be atop the Massive Ten standings heading into the house stretch of the season.

Hitters to look at

Devin Taylor, freshman outfielder, No. 5 — Taylor noticed restricted motion to begin his collegiate profession, however he’s been the Hoosiers’ greatest hitter of current. He has 11 dwelling runs, a .754 slugging proportion and a stroll price over 17%. Taylor leads his staff in extra-base hits, dwelling runs and walks regardless of having near 50 fewer plate appearances than most of his teammates. He’s a large hazard to Maryland pitchers, who quit essentially the most dwelling runs within the Massive Ten.

Brock Tibbits, sophomore catcher, No. 9 — Tibbits had an incredible freshman season, through which he was named a Freshman All-American by Collegiate Baseball. He broke this system’s single-season document for RBIs and residential runs by a freshman, and this 12 months, he’s been even higher. He has a 150 wRC+ (100 being common) and leads the staff in RBIs with 50.

Pitchers to look at

Ryan Kraft, sophomore left-handed pitcher, No. 29 — Kraft has pitched the second-most innings on the staff as a reliever. He’s been excellent with an ERA of 1.33. What makes Kraft particularly harmful is the dearth of dwelling runs he offers up, with solely two in 40 innings of labor. He additionally forces half of his batted balls on the bottom and nonetheless strikes out batters a good quantity.

Craig Yoho, redshirt senior right-handed pitcher, No. 12 — Yoho has an astounding 37% strikeout proportion by means of 20 innings of labor. Not like some high-strikeout pitchers, Yoho additionally limits the variety of dwelling runs he offers up, with a 49% floor ball proportion. In keeping with Good Recreation USA, his fastball hits 92-95 miles per hour with 20-23 inches of run. His curveball can attain 3000 revolutions per minute and 22-24 inches of horizontal motion.

Energy

Pitching. Indiana has among the finest bullpens within the Massive Ten. It has a mixed ERA of 4.58, and three gamers have an ERA below two. The Hoosiers strike out near 10 hitters per 9 innings and will not be vulnerable to the home-run ball. Seven Indiana pitchers have a floor ball price over 50%.

Weak spot

Hitting depth. Indiana has some wonderful hitters, however some gamers with a large quantity of plate appearances haven’t fared that nicely. Three gamers have a wRC+ at or beneath 100, with solely three certified batters holding a wRC+ over 110. Maryland’s pitching isn’t the most effective, but when it could actually get previous Indiana’s three greatest batters, there is not a lot depth behind them.

Three issues to look at

1. Which bats will keep sizzling? Loads of Maryland bats have been nice prior to now two weeks. Sophomore first baseman Eddie Hacopian had 4 dwelling runs in 5 video games, netting him Massive Ten Participant of the Week honors, and junior second baseman Kevin Keister hit 4 dwelling runs within the staff’s two midweek video games main as much as this weekend’s collection. The Terps additionally mashed seven dwelling runs of their blowout of Georgetown and are using an offense that rivals any staff’s within the nation. However can this success proceed in a highway collection in opposition to a top-15 RPI opponent in Indiana?

2. What is going to the Terps do despite accidents? Maryland has been hit with a number of accidents these days, with Dean and Lorusso’s statuses being most regarding to the success of the staff. Nonetheless, head coach Rob Vaughn has discovered a method to fill the holes left by his key gamers. Sophomore utility man Jacob Orr has struggled in his appearances on the plate this 12 months, however has stuffed in nicely at third defensively and hit a house run in his final sport. Equally, fifth-year right-handed pitcher Kenny Lippman pitched 5 innings of one-run baseball instead of Dean on Sunday, which may very well be an possibility if Dean isn’t able to go this weekend. With Lambros suspended, freshman outfielder Luke Zeisloft is prone to take his place, and he’s been efficient in his restricted appearances this 12 months.

3. Can the Terps pull forward within the race for the Massive Ten? Maryland was the unanimous Massive Ten favourite coming into the season and was ranked No. 13 within the nation. After a tough begin to the season and a few severe pitching woes, it’s tumbled all the best way to the bubble of the NCAA Event. This collection is an effective likelihood to bolster its at-large resume and place itself for a prime seed within the Massive Ten Event. After their video games in opposition to Indiana, the Terps have just one top-100 RPI opponent left on their schedule.