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Gopher Baseball’s 2020 Season: By the Numbers
4/22/2020 11:48:00 AM | Baseball
Although the 2020 Gopher Baseball season ended prematurely due to ongoing COVID-19 public health concerns, the team accomplished more than their fair share of statistical achievements in just 18 games of play. Along the way, Minnesota racked up signature victories against Oregon, Arizona, TCU, North Carolina and Creighton, with the latter three opponents all representing 2019 NCAA Tournament teams.
Minnesota ended the year riding a two-game midweek sweep of Creighton, as the team appeared to be hitting their full stride with the arrival of the season's middle third. Now, as the Gophers look ahead in anticipation of the 2021 slate, we look back on some of the more intriguing numbers posted throughout the 2020 campaign.
1 – On Feb. 28, Max Meyer tossed Minnesota's sole complete game of the season against North Carolina to open the 2020 CambriaCollegeClassic. In fact, Meyer's one-run, 14-strikeout victory represented the Maroon and Gold's first complete game since Reggie Meyer accomplished the feat on May 24, 2018 against Illinois.
2 – In 17 games played (all starts), Zack Raabe was held hitless on just two occasions. Raabe collected multiple hits in eight of those games, including six three-hit showings and a trio of four-hit performances.
2.75 – Working as a midweek starter while also eating some weekend bullpen innings, freshman Trent Schoeberl pitched to a 2.75 ERA across 19 2/3 innings in his rookie campaign. Schoeberl also earned his first two collegiate victories, striking out 17 batters in the process and holding opposing hitters to a miniscule .191 batting average.
3 – After making just three starts (out of fifteen appearances) across a full season in 2019, J.P. Massey made three of his five appearances in 2020 as a starting pitcher. Included in that was a 4 2/3 inning, scoreless outing against offensively charged Arizona on Feb. 17. Massey concluded 2020 with a 4.66 ERA and 24 strikeouts in just 19 1/3 innings pitched.
4 – Easton Bertrand led the Gophers with four home runs in 2020, which finished tied for second-most in the Big Ten Conference. Bertrand accomplished this in just 41 at bats, translating to a home run every 10.75 at bats.
5 – Minnesota scored five runs in the third inning of the season opener against Oregon on Feb. 14. The Gophers prevailed in that contest, 12-10, to open the year with a victory.
6 – At season's end, six Gophers held batting averages above .300: Raabe (.463), Otto Grimm (.400), Jack Wassel (.364), Andrew Wilhite (.320), Sam Ireland (.303) and Bertrand (.302). All six had at least 30 at bats throughout 2020.
7 – Seven Gophers registered their first career base hit in Maroon and Gold this past season: Noah Berghammer, Grimm, Ireland, Jack Kelly, Drew Stahl, Ronald Sweeny and Riley Swenson.
8 2/3 – Bubba Horton opened the 2020 season with a streak of 8 2/3 scoreless frames out of the Minnesota bullpen. During that span, Horton set 16 batters down on strikes and walked just two. The junior southpaw ultimately tied Ireland for the team-high in saves with two.
10 – The Minnesota offense collected 10 bases-loaded hits this past season, finishing 10-for-33 in those situations to boast a .303 batting average. To put that stat in perspective, opponents batted just .205 against Gopher pitching with the bases loaded – a difference of nearly .100 points.
11 – Wassel concluded the 2020 campaign riding an 11-game hitting streak that spanned from Feb. 26 against South Dakota State to March 11 versus Creighton. In addition to this feat, Wassel also heads into 2021 with an active 13-game on-base streak.
11.7 – The Gopher pitching staff whiffed opposing batters at an alarming rate in 2020, as evidenced by an 11.7 K/9. In fact, the staff has increased its K/9 output in each of pitching coach Ty McDevitt's four seasons with the team: 7.2 K/9 in 2017, 7.5 in 2018 and 9.6 in 2019 prior to this year's mark of 11.7.
15 – Pitching against Utah on March 6, Meyer became the first Gopher pitcher to strike out 15 batters in one game since Glen Perkins in 2004. Meyer struck out 15 Utes across eight innings of work, allowing just three unearned runs on four hits.
16 – In what proved to be a true breakout campaign, Wassel led the Gophers with 16 RBI in 2020. That total tied for fifth in the Big Ten by season's end, although the third baseman also finished in the top five in the following categories as well: hits (24), doubles (seven), total bases (39) and walks (14).
18 – Two Gophers started all 18 games for the Gophers in 2020: Kelly and Wassel.
18.3 – After setting the program record with 13.4 strikeouts-per-nine in 2019 (minimum 35 IP), Sam Thoresen followed that up with an 18.3 K/9 over 9 1/3 innings in 2020.
23 – In his long-awaited college debut, Drake Davis struck out the first 23 batters of his career in just 13 2/3 frames in 2020 (15.1 K/9). Davis sat out his first two collegiate seasons due to injury and NCAA transfer restrictions.
24 – Minnesota hitters drove in 24 runs with a runner on third and less than two outs. This was accomplished in 42 such opportunities, equating to a success rate of 57.1%. Typically, an even 50% rate is considered average.
31 – Raabe led the entire nation with 31 hits during the 2020 season. That total translated to a Big Ten-leading .463 batting average (eighth in NCAA), as well as the second-best on-base percentage (.523) in the conference.
33 – Minnesota's 33 doubles in 2020 paced the Big Ten, with Raabe and Wassel leading the way with seven apiece.
41 – Gopher hitters combined to churn out a grand total of 41 multi-hit games throughout the 18-game slate.
46 – Meyer led the Big Ten with 46 strikeouts, which also finished tied for fifth in the country. With 27 2/3 innings pitched in 2020, Meyer's strikeout output equated to a 14.96 K/9. Thanks in part to a 1.95 ERA, Meyer has shot up MLB Draft boards and now projects as a potential top-10 overall selection.
50 – Six first-year Gopher pitchers combined to eat 50 innings throughout the 2020 season for the Maroon and Gold. Will Anderson, Davis, Michael Gurka, Ireland, Schoeberl and Bennett Theisen were the six Minnesota hurlers to debut this past year.
65 – While performing in his debut NCAA campaign after two seasons at Iowa Western Community College, first baseman Sweeny flashed the leather to the tune of a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in 65 defensive chances. Sweeny was the 2019 ICCA Division-I Defensive Player of the Year at Iowa Western.
132 – The 2020 Gopher Baseball season represented the 132nd campaign in the history of the program.
171 – The Gopher offense combined for 171 hits across 18 games this past season. That total paced the Big Ten and ranked No. 25 in the nation.
174 – Catcher Chase Stanke led the Big Ten in putouts with 174. Along with that defensive output, Stanke made just two errors in 200 fielding chances (.990 fld%) while tying the Big Ten lead for runners caught stealing with seven.
191 – Although Raabe has been a valuable component of the Minnesota lineup over his first two seasons in Gold Country, it took the young second baseman 191 at bats to launch his first career home run. Raabe recorded his first homer by launching the first pitch he saw into the left field seats in the seventh inning against North Carolina on Feb. 28. All told, Raabe nearly doubled his slugging percentage from 2019 to 2020, bringing it up from a .316 rookie mark to a .612 sophomore clip.
621 – As the lone senior on this year's team, Jordan Kozicky concluded 2020 with 621 career at bats in a Minnesota uniform. Being a fifth-year senior, Kozicky made a permanent mark on the Gopher Baseball program both on and off the field, but also turned in some pretty notable counting stats en route to a .269/.363/.448 career slash: 167 hits, 21 home runs, 42 doubles, 123 RBI, 111 runs, 76 walks and 21 hit-by-pitches (T9th all-time).
1,325 – Head coach John Anderson now has 1,325 career wins through 39 seasons at Minnesota, making him the 23rd all-time winningest coach at the Division I level and sixth among active coaches. Anderson owns a career record of 1,325-897-3 (.596) at the U.
Minnesota ended the year riding a two-game midweek sweep of Creighton, as the team appeared to be hitting their full stride with the arrival of the season's middle third. Now, as the Gophers look ahead in anticipation of the 2021 slate, we look back on some of the more intriguing numbers posted throughout the 2020 campaign.
1 – On Feb. 28, Max Meyer tossed Minnesota's sole complete game of the season against North Carolina to open the 2020 CambriaCollegeClassic. In fact, Meyer's one-run, 14-strikeout victory represented the Maroon and Gold's first complete game since Reggie Meyer accomplished the feat on May 24, 2018 against Illinois.
2 – In 17 games played (all starts), Zack Raabe was held hitless on just two occasions. Raabe collected multiple hits in eight of those games, including six three-hit showings and a trio of four-hit performances.
2.75 – Working as a midweek starter while also eating some weekend bullpen innings, freshman Trent Schoeberl pitched to a 2.75 ERA across 19 2/3 innings in his rookie campaign. Schoeberl also earned his first two collegiate victories, striking out 17 batters in the process and holding opposing hitters to a miniscule .191 batting average.
3 – After making just three starts (out of fifteen appearances) across a full season in 2019, J.P. Massey made three of his five appearances in 2020 as a starting pitcher. Included in that was a 4 2/3 inning, scoreless outing against offensively charged Arizona on Feb. 17. Massey concluded 2020 with a 4.66 ERA and 24 strikeouts in just 19 1/3 innings pitched.
4 – Easton Bertrand led the Gophers with four home runs in 2020, which finished tied for second-most in the Big Ten Conference. Bertrand accomplished this in just 41 at bats, translating to a home run every 10.75 at bats.
5 – Minnesota scored five runs in the third inning of the season opener against Oregon on Feb. 14. The Gophers prevailed in that contest, 12-10, to open the year with a victory.
6 – At season's end, six Gophers held batting averages above .300: Raabe (.463), Otto Grimm (.400), Jack Wassel (.364), Andrew Wilhite (.320), Sam Ireland (.303) and Bertrand (.302). All six had at least 30 at bats throughout 2020.
7 – Seven Gophers registered their first career base hit in Maroon and Gold this past season: Noah Berghammer, Grimm, Ireland, Jack Kelly, Drew Stahl, Ronald Sweeny and Riley Swenson.
8 2/3 – Bubba Horton opened the 2020 season with a streak of 8 2/3 scoreless frames out of the Minnesota bullpen. During that span, Horton set 16 batters down on strikes and walked just two. The junior southpaw ultimately tied Ireland for the team-high in saves with two.
10 – The Minnesota offense collected 10 bases-loaded hits this past season, finishing 10-for-33 in those situations to boast a .303 batting average. To put that stat in perspective, opponents batted just .205 against Gopher pitching with the bases loaded – a difference of nearly .100 points.
11 – Wassel concluded the 2020 campaign riding an 11-game hitting streak that spanned from Feb. 26 against South Dakota State to March 11 versus Creighton. In addition to this feat, Wassel also heads into 2021 with an active 13-game on-base streak.
11.7 – The Gopher pitching staff whiffed opposing batters at an alarming rate in 2020, as evidenced by an 11.7 K/9. In fact, the staff has increased its K/9 output in each of pitching coach Ty McDevitt's four seasons with the team: 7.2 K/9 in 2017, 7.5 in 2018 and 9.6 in 2019 prior to this year's mark of 11.7.
15 – Pitching against Utah on March 6, Meyer became the first Gopher pitcher to strike out 15 batters in one game since Glen Perkins in 2004. Meyer struck out 15 Utes across eight innings of work, allowing just three unearned runs on four hits.
16 – In what proved to be a true breakout campaign, Wassel led the Gophers with 16 RBI in 2020. That total tied for fifth in the Big Ten by season's end, although the third baseman also finished in the top five in the following categories as well: hits (24), doubles (seven), total bases (39) and walks (14).
18 – Two Gophers started all 18 games for the Gophers in 2020: Kelly and Wassel.
18.3 – After setting the program record with 13.4 strikeouts-per-nine in 2019 (minimum 35 IP), Sam Thoresen followed that up with an 18.3 K/9 over 9 1/3 innings in 2020.
23 – In his long-awaited college debut, Drake Davis struck out the first 23 batters of his career in just 13 2/3 frames in 2020 (15.1 K/9). Davis sat out his first two collegiate seasons due to injury and NCAA transfer restrictions.
24 – Minnesota hitters drove in 24 runs with a runner on third and less than two outs. This was accomplished in 42 such opportunities, equating to a success rate of 57.1%. Typically, an even 50% rate is considered average.
31 – Raabe led the entire nation with 31 hits during the 2020 season. That total translated to a Big Ten-leading .463 batting average (eighth in NCAA), as well as the second-best on-base percentage (.523) in the conference.
33 – Minnesota's 33 doubles in 2020 paced the Big Ten, with Raabe and Wassel leading the way with seven apiece.
41 – Gopher hitters combined to churn out a grand total of 41 multi-hit games throughout the 18-game slate.
46 – Meyer led the Big Ten with 46 strikeouts, which also finished tied for fifth in the country. With 27 2/3 innings pitched in 2020, Meyer's strikeout output equated to a 14.96 K/9. Thanks in part to a 1.95 ERA, Meyer has shot up MLB Draft boards and now projects as a potential top-10 overall selection.
50 – Six first-year Gopher pitchers combined to eat 50 innings throughout the 2020 season for the Maroon and Gold. Will Anderson, Davis, Michael Gurka, Ireland, Schoeberl and Bennett Theisen were the six Minnesota hurlers to debut this past year.
65 – While performing in his debut NCAA campaign after two seasons at Iowa Western Community College, first baseman Sweeny flashed the leather to the tune of a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in 65 defensive chances. Sweeny was the 2019 ICCA Division-I Defensive Player of the Year at Iowa Western.
132 – The 2020 Gopher Baseball season represented the 132nd campaign in the history of the program.
171 – The Gopher offense combined for 171 hits across 18 games this past season. That total paced the Big Ten and ranked No. 25 in the nation.
174 – Catcher Chase Stanke led the Big Ten in putouts with 174. Along with that defensive output, Stanke made just two errors in 200 fielding chances (.990 fld%) while tying the Big Ten lead for runners caught stealing with seven.
191 – Although Raabe has been a valuable component of the Minnesota lineup over his first two seasons in Gold Country, it took the young second baseman 191 at bats to launch his first career home run. Raabe recorded his first homer by launching the first pitch he saw into the left field seats in the seventh inning against North Carolina on Feb. 28. All told, Raabe nearly doubled his slugging percentage from 2019 to 2020, bringing it up from a .316 rookie mark to a .612 sophomore clip.
621 – As the lone senior on this year's team, Jordan Kozicky concluded 2020 with 621 career at bats in a Minnesota uniform. Being a fifth-year senior, Kozicky made a permanent mark on the Gopher Baseball program both on and off the field, but also turned in some pretty notable counting stats en route to a .269/.363/.448 career slash: 167 hits, 21 home runs, 42 doubles, 123 RBI, 111 runs, 76 walks and 21 hit-by-pitches (T9th all-time).
1,325 – Head coach John Anderson now has 1,325 career wins through 39 seasons at Minnesota, making him the 23rd all-time winningest coach at the Division I level and sixth among active coaches. Anderson owns a career record of 1,325-897-3 (.596) at the U.
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