University of Minnesota Athletics
Wednesday, March 27
Minneapolis, MN
6 p.m.
University of Minnesota
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Augsburg
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Preview: 'U' Hosts Augsburg and Nebraska at Siebert Field
3/26/2019 5:00:00 PM | Baseball
MINNEAPOLIS – The Gopher Baseball team finally returns home this week for four games, opening up Siebert Field this Wednesday.
Minnesota (8-13, 3-0 Big Ten) returns home from 21 games on the road having won 4-of-5 entering the week. The Gophers will host Augsburg (3-7) in a city rivalry game against the longtime NCAA Division 3 opponent on Wednesday before returning to Big Ten play with a three-game series against Nebraska (11-7, 3-0 Big Ten) in Minneapolis this weekend.
Last Time Out
Minnesota opened Big Ten play with a three-game series sweep against Penn State, extending its overall winning streak to 15-consecutive games against the Nittany Lions. The Gophers' offense led the way, scoring 20 runs on 28 hits, including six doubles and three home runs.
Against the Competition
Minnesota took 2-of-3 from Nebraska to open the Big Ten season in Lincoln last year, including a 2-0 victory on BTN on March 25, 2018 to clinch the series win, but the Cornhuskers still maintain a one-game lead in the all-time rivalry ... Patrick, Fredrickson tossed a gem in that final game, allowing just four hits in 7.0 innings, striking out six ... Ben Mezzenga has batted .444 (8-for-18) in six career games against Nebraska, scoring four runs and hitting a pair of doubles ... Jack Wassel hit 2-for-7 with a pair of runs last season against the 'Huskers, and Eli Wilson was 3-for-4 with a double ... the Gophers have just one defeat against Augsburg in 50 match-ups (48-1-1) and have won 11 straight ... Cole McDevitt went 2-for-4 with a double against the Auggies back in 2016.
Heating Up
The Maroon & Gold offense has started heating up just as the calendar turns to conference play. Minnesota is 5-2 in its last seven games, slashing .313/.377/.504 as a team with 25 doubles and eight home runs, resulting in 61 runs scored in that time frame. The team had fewer doubles (22) and homers (5) in its first 14 games, scoring just 53 runs in that stretch while slashing .225/.320/.318 as a squad. Four players - Jordan Kozicky (.517), Max Meyer (.364), Easton Bertrand (.348), and Eli Wilson (.323) - are each hitting over .300 in at least 25 plate appearances over that span. Just one Gopher, Cole McDevitt (.302) reached that mark in the first 14 games.
Going Streaking
Eli Wilson and Jordan Kozicky both lead the Gophers with a 7-game hitting streak entering the week. Wilson and Easton Bertrand matched each other for the team's season-long streak of nine games earlier this season. Jack Wassel has reached base in a team-high 12 consecutive games. Wilson owned a 13-game streak to begin the season.
Line Drives
Minnesota has now swept each of its last two Big Ten road series (3-0 vs. Penn State on March 23-24, 2019 and 2-0 vs. Rutgers on May 17-18 2018) ... Jack Wassel and Drew Hmielewski each hit his first career home run in Minnesota's 8-6 win in game two of Sunday's doubleheader against Penn State ... Brett Schulze earned the save in both ends of the doubleheader with 1.1 perfect innings and two strikeouts.
NCAA Superlatives
Minnesota ranks no. 23 nationally with 47 doubles this season, an average of 2.24 per game ... on the mound, Max Meyer ranks no. 8 with his 0.69 WHIP, no. 24 averaging 4.66 hits allowed per nine innings, no. 35 with a 1.24 ERA, and no. 46 with a 6.80 strikeout-to-walk ratio ... Brett Schulze's 12 appearances tie for the lead in the Big Ten ... averaging 1.00 RBI per game, Jordan Kozicky ranks second in the conference.
A Whole Year in Airports
Along with scheduling stiff competition in the non-conference slate, Minnesota opened its season with 21-straight games on the road in seven cities across four time zones. The Gophers came away at 8-13, winning 4-of-5 to close out the stretch. The team was without its home-away-from-home in U.S. Bank Stadium this season due to the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four in Minneapolis.
Weekly Forecast
Wednesday (6 pm): Cloud and Sun ... High/Low: 66°/37° ... Winds: SW 16 mph ... Precipitation: 5%
Friday (4 pm): Cloud and Sun ... High/Low: 49°/27° ... Winds: NNW 6 mph ... Precipitation: 6%
Saturday (1 pm): Partly sunny ... High/Low: 39°/22° ... Winds: NNW 13 mph ... Precipitation: 47%
Sunday (1 pm): Mostly sunny ... High/Low: 46°/30° ... Winds: WSW 7 mph ... Precipitation: 4%
Road to 1,300 Wins
John Anderson entered the 2019 season needing just 12 victories to reach 1,300 in his career, moving him into a tie with Fresno State's Bob Bennett (1967, 1970-2002) for 26th all-time. Anderson is already the seventh-winningest active coach in NCAA baseball.
Preseason All-Americans
Sophomore pitchers Patrick Fredrickson and Meyer received Preseason All-America recognition from four organizations to begin 2019. Fredrickson landed Second Team selections from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, NCBWA, and Perfect Game, and a Third Team pick from D1Baseball. Meyer landed on D1Baseball's First Team, the Second Team from both NCBWA and Perfect Game, and Third Team from Collegiate Baseball.
USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award
Meyer became just the second Golden Gopher in the 42-year history of the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award to be named to its Preseason Watch List on Feb. 7. Pitcher Tom Windle was the last student athlete to represent Minnesota back in 2013. Meyer competed for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team this summer, leading the way with 15 strikeouts and seven saves in eight appearances spanning 8.0 innings.
B1G Time Favorite
Big Ten coaches selected the defending champion Gophers to repeat in the Big Ten Preseason Coaches Poll. Mezzenga and hurlers Fredrickson and Meyer were each chosen as Players to Watch in league play this season. Fredrickson, the reigning Big Ten Pitcher and Freshman of the Year, and Meyer each received First Team All-Big Ten honors last year, while Mezzenga was a Second Team selection.
A New Look Dugout
Following the retirement of Gophers assistant head coach Rob Fornasiere following the 2018 season, John Anderson has revamped his coaching staff. Pitching coach Ty McDevitt has been elevated to assistant coach in his third season, former Upper Iowa University head coach Brandon Hunt joins the Maroon & Gold as a volunteer assistant, Golden Gopher alum and long-time Atlantic League standout Dan Lyons returns as a student assistant, and former head student manager Ryan Goll officially joins the staff as an undergraduate assistant. Hitting coach and recruiting coordinator Pat Casey expands his duties with the staff.
America's Big Ten Team
Minnesota made its television debut on March 10 against Washington on Pac-12 Network. The Golden Gophers will be featured on national television seven more times this season: five games on Big Ten Network, one on Fox Sports 1, and another on ESPNU. The BTN schedule begins at Michigan on April 5 followed by nationally broadcast action on April 14 hosting Illinois, April 26 & 28 at Indiana, May 3-4 hosting Ohio State, and May 11 hosting Maryland.
Returning All-Big Ten Selections
Minnesota earned seven All-Big Ten selections last season in addition to John Anderson earning the 2018 Big Ten Coach of the Year award. The Gophers return the Big Ten Freshman and Pitcher of the Year in starting pitcher Patrick Fredrickson and fellow All-Big Ten First Team selection relief pitcher Max Meyer as well as Second Team outfielder Ben Mezzenga. Senior infielder/catcher Cole McDevitt also returns having earned an All-Big Ten First Team selection back in 2017.
Gophers in the Pros
Minnesota continues to produce talent at the next level with four players drafted in 2018 (Micah Coffey, Reggie Meyer, Jackson Rose, and Terrin Vavra) and a pair of former Gophers reaching the big leagues for the first time last season. Ben Meyer ('15) made his debut with the Miami Marlins on June 7 last year and received an invite to major league camp this spring. D.J. Snelten ('13) made his big league debut on April 29 with the San Francisco Giants. Now with the Baltimore Orioles, he'll look to earn a return trip to The Show this season. In total, 12 former Gophers are currently serving their time in MLB organizations.
Single-game tickets for all Siebert Field home games are now available. The Maroon & Gold return to campus for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday, March 27 against Nebraska, but first, Minnesota takes on Augsburg in a non-conference outing this Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Minnesota (8-13, 3-0 Big Ten) returns home from 21 games on the road having won 4-of-5 entering the week. The Gophers will host Augsburg (3-7) in a city rivalry game against the longtime NCAA Division 3 opponent on Wednesday before returning to Big Ten play with a three-game series against Nebraska (11-7, 3-0 Big Ten) in Minneapolis this weekend.
Last Time Out
Minnesota opened Big Ten play with a three-game series sweep against Penn State, extending its overall winning streak to 15-consecutive games against the Nittany Lions. The Gophers' offense led the way, scoring 20 runs on 28 hits, including six doubles and three home runs.
Against the Competition
Minnesota took 2-of-3 from Nebraska to open the Big Ten season in Lincoln last year, including a 2-0 victory on BTN on March 25, 2018 to clinch the series win, but the Cornhuskers still maintain a one-game lead in the all-time rivalry ... Patrick, Fredrickson tossed a gem in that final game, allowing just four hits in 7.0 innings, striking out six ... Ben Mezzenga has batted .444 (8-for-18) in six career games against Nebraska, scoring four runs and hitting a pair of doubles ... Jack Wassel hit 2-for-7 with a pair of runs last season against the 'Huskers, and Eli Wilson was 3-for-4 with a double ... the Gophers have just one defeat against Augsburg in 50 match-ups (48-1-1) and have won 11 straight ... Cole McDevitt went 2-for-4 with a double against the Auggies back in 2016.
Heating Up
The Maroon & Gold offense has started heating up just as the calendar turns to conference play. Minnesota is 5-2 in its last seven games, slashing .313/.377/.504 as a team with 25 doubles and eight home runs, resulting in 61 runs scored in that time frame. The team had fewer doubles (22) and homers (5) in its first 14 games, scoring just 53 runs in that stretch while slashing .225/.320/.318 as a squad. Four players - Jordan Kozicky (.517), Max Meyer (.364), Easton Bertrand (.348), and Eli Wilson (.323) - are each hitting over .300 in at least 25 plate appearances over that span. Just one Gopher, Cole McDevitt (.302) reached that mark in the first 14 games.
Going Streaking
Eli Wilson and Jordan Kozicky both lead the Gophers with a 7-game hitting streak entering the week. Wilson and Easton Bertrand matched each other for the team's season-long streak of nine games earlier this season. Jack Wassel has reached base in a team-high 12 consecutive games. Wilson owned a 13-game streak to begin the season.
Line Drives
Minnesota has now swept each of its last two Big Ten road series (3-0 vs. Penn State on March 23-24, 2019 and 2-0 vs. Rutgers on May 17-18 2018) ... Jack Wassel and Drew Hmielewski each hit his first career home run in Minnesota's 8-6 win in game two of Sunday's doubleheader against Penn State ... Brett Schulze earned the save in both ends of the doubleheader with 1.1 perfect innings and two strikeouts.
NCAA Superlatives
Minnesota ranks no. 23 nationally with 47 doubles this season, an average of 2.24 per game ... on the mound, Max Meyer ranks no. 8 with his 0.69 WHIP, no. 24 averaging 4.66 hits allowed per nine innings, no. 35 with a 1.24 ERA, and no. 46 with a 6.80 strikeout-to-walk ratio ... Brett Schulze's 12 appearances tie for the lead in the Big Ten ... averaging 1.00 RBI per game, Jordan Kozicky ranks second in the conference.
A Whole Year in Airports
Along with scheduling stiff competition in the non-conference slate, Minnesota opened its season with 21-straight games on the road in seven cities across four time zones. The Gophers came away at 8-13, winning 4-of-5 to close out the stretch. The team was without its home-away-from-home in U.S. Bank Stadium this season due to the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four in Minneapolis.
Weekly Forecast
Wednesday (6 pm): Cloud and Sun ... High/Low: 66°/37° ... Winds: SW 16 mph ... Precipitation: 5%
Friday (4 pm): Cloud and Sun ... High/Low: 49°/27° ... Winds: NNW 6 mph ... Precipitation: 6%
Saturday (1 pm): Partly sunny ... High/Low: 39°/22° ... Winds: NNW 13 mph ... Precipitation: 47%
Sunday (1 pm): Mostly sunny ... High/Low: 46°/30° ... Winds: WSW 7 mph ... Precipitation: 4%
Road to 1,300 Wins
John Anderson entered the 2019 season needing just 12 victories to reach 1,300 in his career, moving him into a tie with Fresno State's Bob Bennett (1967, 1970-2002) for 26th all-time. Anderson is already the seventh-winningest active coach in NCAA baseball.
Preseason All-Americans
Sophomore pitchers Patrick Fredrickson and Meyer received Preseason All-America recognition from four organizations to begin 2019. Fredrickson landed Second Team selections from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, NCBWA, and Perfect Game, and a Third Team pick from D1Baseball. Meyer landed on D1Baseball's First Team, the Second Team from both NCBWA and Perfect Game, and Third Team from Collegiate Baseball.
USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award
Meyer became just the second Golden Gopher in the 42-year history of the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award to be named to its Preseason Watch List on Feb. 7. Pitcher Tom Windle was the last student athlete to represent Minnesota back in 2013. Meyer competed for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team this summer, leading the way with 15 strikeouts and seven saves in eight appearances spanning 8.0 innings.
B1G Time Favorite
Big Ten coaches selected the defending champion Gophers to repeat in the Big Ten Preseason Coaches Poll. Mezzenga and hurlers Fredrickson and Meyer were each chosen as Players to Watch in league play this season. Fredrickson, the reigning Big Ten Pitcher and Freshman of the Year, and Meyer each received First Team All-Big Ten honors last year, while Mezzenga was a Second Team selection.
A New Look Dugout
Following the retirement of Gophers assistant head coach Rob Fornasiere following the 2018 season, John Anderson has revamped his coaching staff. Pitching coach Ty McDevitt has been elevated to assistant coach in his third season, former Upper Iowa University head coach Brandon Hunt joins the Maroon & Gold as a volunteer assistant, Golden Gopher alum and long-time Atlantic League standout Dan Lyons returns as a student assistant, and former head student manager Ryan Goll officially joins the staff as an undergraduate assistant. Hitting coach and recruiting coordinator Pat Casey expands his duties with the staff.
America's Big Ten Team
Minnesota made its television debut on March 10 against Washington on Pac-12 Network. The Golden Gophers will be featured on national television seven more times this season: five games on Big Ten Network, one on Fox Sports 1, and another on ESPNU. The BTN schedule begins at Michigan on April 5 followed by nationally broadcast action on April 14 hosting Illinois, April 26 & 28 at Indiana, May 3-4 hosting Ohio State, and May 11 hosting Maryland.
Returning All-Big Ten Selections
Minnesota earned seven All-Big Ten selections last season in addition to John Anderson earning the 2018 Big Ten Coach of the Year award. The Gophers return the Big Ten Freshman and Pitcher of the Year in starting pitcher Patrick Fredrickson and fellow All-Big Ten First Team selection relief pitcher Max Meyer as well as Second Team outfielder Ben Mezzenga. Senior infielder/catcher Cole McDevitt also returns having earned an All-Big Ten First Team selection back in 2017.
Gophers in the Pros
Minnesota continues to produce talent at the next level with four players drafted in 2018 (Micah Coffey, Reggie Meyer, Jackson Rose, and Terrin Vavra) and a pair of former Gophers reaching the big leagues for the first time last season. Ben Meyer ('15) made his debut with the Miami Marlins on June 7 last year and received an invite to major league camp this spring. D.J. Snelten ('13) made his big league debut on April 29 with the San Francisco Giants. Now with the Baltimore Orioles, he'll look to earn a return trip to The Show this season. In total, 12 former Gophers are currently serving their time in MLB organizations.
Single-game tickets for all Siebert Field home games are now available. The Maroon & Gold return to campus for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday, March 27 against Nebraska, but first, Minnesota takes on Augsburg in a non-conference outing this Wednesday at 6 p.m.
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