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Indiana Baseball: Butler Bulldogs Preview

By Alec Lasley

OMAHA, NE - JUNE 26: A general view of a baseball on the field during batting practice before game one of the College World Series Championship Series between the Arkansas Razorbacks and the Oregon State Beavers on June 26, 2018 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
OMAHA, NE - JUNE 26: A general view of a baseball on the field during batting practice before game one of the College World Series Championship Series between the Arkansas Razorbacks and the Oregon State Beavers on June 26, 2018 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /
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A day after coming off of a win in their home opener, Indiana baseball gets right back to work welcoming in Butler to Bart Kaufman stadium.

No time to dwell on the past as Indiana baseball is right back to the diamond today as they face Butler, looking for another mid-week single game matchup victory.

Indiana’s bats finally woke up in their 7-1 victory over Cincinnati on Tuesday, and look to do the same against the Bulldogs.

Butler, who finished 34-20 (9-8) a season ago, lost three starters and their 2-5 hitters in their lineup.

Picked to finish sixth in the conference in 2019, they currently sit at 2-3, looking to get a quality non-conference victory against in-state foe, Indiana.

The Big East is filled with talented pitching, two of whom were preseason All-Big East Team with Ryan Pepiot and Jack Pilcher.

Hitting

Ranked 74th in the NCAA in team batting average (.288), Butler has six players over their team average, including two over a .400 batting average.

One of those players is senior outfielder Kyle Smith (.412) who leads the Bulldogs with eight runs, and a .941 slugging percentage. Getting on base however he can, he also has six total walks, including four hit by pitch.

Harrison Freed is another name that gets on base a lot, and does a lot of damage at the plate.

With a .364 average, he leads the team in home runs (3), RBI’s (8), and hits (8), and has the second highest slugging percentage on the team at .773.

Junior infielder Brady McGroth is a consistent face on base, getting a hit in every game so far this season, including a team high three doubles.

Pitching

Headlined by two Preseason All-Big East Team performers, as mentioned above, Ryan Pepiot is the big returning workhorse on the mound.

At 10.1 innings so far this season, he has 18 strikeouts which is 22nd in the NCAA, but also has 10 walks, which is one of the worst ratios in the country for pitchers, at a walk per inning pitched. In addition, he is allowing opponents to hit just .111 off of him, one of the best in the country.

Another name that is off to a hot start is sophomore Connor Schultz. The righty is 1-0 on the year in two starts with a 1.59 era. In 11.1 innings pitched, Schultz has given up 12 hits but just two earned runs.

Next. Armaan Franklin named City Player of the Year. dark

Prediction

Indiana, who is coming off of a blowout win against the Cincinnati Bearcats will continue their roll and win their second in a row at home against Butler.

Despite the strong pitching staff from Butler, righty John MacCauley is expected to take the mound for the Bulldogs today, finishing with a 6.48 era last season, and only pitching one inning thus far this season.

With Matt Gorski back in the lineup, and hitting a home run against Cincinnati, look for him, as well as the rest of the lineup, to keep the bats hot and defend their home turf.

Game Info

Team Records: Butler 2-3 (0-0) vs Indiana 3-4 (0-0)
First Pitch: 3 pm ET
Where: Bart Kaufman Stadium – Bloomington, IN
Projected Starters: BU John MaCCauley (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs IU Gabe Bierman (0-0, 9.00 ERA)

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