Indiana Baseball: Multiple Hoosiers receive Big Ten honors

The Indiana baseball program saw their roster take home multiple Big Ten awards following winning the Big Ten regular season title.

After what was a terrific regular season that saw the Hoosiers take home the Big Ten regular season title, the Indiana baseball program was planted all over the Big Ten honors.

Going 36-19 on the season, there was no surprise that Jeff Mercer, in his first season, was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. Another great honor for that coaching staff was winning staff of the year as well.

While the Hoosiers did have a lot of talent all around the diamond, it was the coaching staff that was able to keep their talent in check and make sure no ego was bigger than the team.

In addition to the coaching staff, Pitcher of the Year was also awarded to the Indiana Hoosiers and Andrew Saalfrank.

On the year, Saalfrank went 8-1, with a conference leading six wins, posting a 2.58 ERA, fifth in the Big Ten. He also struck out 96 batters which was good enough for third in the conference.

The junior lefty had five starts in which he had double-digit strikeouts, averaging 8.0 K’s per outing in Big Ten play.

Named to the All-Big Ten First Team, he was joined by utility player Matt Lloyd. Lloyd hit .291 on the season with 16 HR – tied for 27 in the country – and 54 RBI’s. He also pitched 15.0 innings in relief, giving up just three runs and throwing 17 strikeouts.

Three Hoosiers were also named to the All-Big Ten Second Team in Matt Gorski, Cole Barr, and Scotty Bradley.

Other Hoosiers to receive recognition were Elijah Durham, who was named to the All-Big Ten Third Team, and Grant Richardson named to the All-Big Ten Freshman team.

Turning their attention to the Big Ten Tournament, starting on Wednesday, Indiana looks for a good showing to be awarded a regional location in the NCAA Tournament.