University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, April 1
Piscataway, NJ
1:00 PM
University of Minnesota
at
Rutgers
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Gophers Open Big Ten Play at Rutgers
3/30/2022 4:00:00 PM | Baseball
The Scarlet Knights enter at 18-6 (2-1 Big Ten)
Friday, April 1
Minnesota at Rutgers
First Pitch: 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
Location: Piscataway, N.J. (Bainton Field)
Minnesota Starter: RHP Sam Ireland (2.41 ERA, 3-0, 33.2 IP, 38 SO)
Rutgers Starter: RHP Jared Kollar (2.60 ERA, 4-0, 34.2 IP, 39 SO)
Stream: B1G+
Saturday, April 2
Minnesota at Rutgers
First Pitch: 1 p.m. ET/Noon CT
Location: Piscataway, N.J. (Bainton Field)
Minnesota Starter: RHP J.P Massey (5.33 ERA, 2-2, 27.2 IP, 27 SO)
Rutgers Starter: RHP Nathan Florence (3.60 ERA, 3-1, 25.0 IP, 32 SO)
Stream: B1G+
Sunday, April 3
Minnesota at Rutgers
First Pitch: 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT
Location: Piscataway, N.J. (Bainton Field)
Minnesota Starter: RHP Aidan Maldonado (4.09 ERA, 1-2, 28.0 IP, 32 SO)
Rutgers Starter: LHP Justin Sinbaldi (4.02 ERA, 1-0, 15.2 IP, 18 SO)
Stream: B1G+
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers (8-15, 0-0 Big Ten) open up Big Ten play this weekend with a three-game series at Rutgers (18-6, 2-1 Big Ten). Minnesota is coming off of a series sweep against Western Illinois, its first weekend sweep since the 2019 season against Ohio State (May 4-5). Rutgers opened conference play last weekend by taking two of three games from Penn State. Minnesota head coach John Anderson (598-382) is two Big Ten wins away from becoming the first coach in conference history to win 600 league games.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
-The Rutgers baseball team (18-6, 2-1 Big Ten) opened up Big Ten play last weekend by taking two out of three games at Penn State.
-RU is led by head coach Steve Owens, who is in his third year leading the Scarlet Knights. He led the team to a 6-9 record in 2020 and a 21-23 record in the conference-only 2021 slate. Minnesota and RU split the two meetings at U.S. Bank Stadium last year.
-Through nonconference play, Rutgers ranked first among Big Ten teams in batting average (.318), doubles (52), doubles/Game (2.74), fielding percentage (.978), hits (229), OBP (.414), runs/Game (8.4), shutouts (4) and OPS (.906). Seven different players are hitting over .300, led by catcher Nick Cimillo at .439.
SERIES HISTORY
-Minnesota leads the all-time series, 9-6. The last time the two teams met in Piscataway was during the 2018 season when Minnesota beat Rutgers twice, 4-0 and 5-3. The third game of the series was rained out. RU took two of three from Minnesota at home in 2015.
-Since the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten, Minnesota leads the series between the two teams, 6-3.
LAST TIME OUT
-The Gophers picked up a three-game sweep against the Western Illinois Leathernecks (2-19, 0-3 Summit) to close out their non-conference slate at U.S. Bank Stadium.
-Minnesota won 11-4 on Friday, getting 5.0 strong innings from Sam Ireland (3-0) and three hits from utility player Jack Kelly. The Gophers took Saturday's game, 7-2, after J.P. Massey (2-2) tossed 6.2 innings and allowed just two runs. Otto Grimm went 2-for-3 with 3 RBI.
-The Gophers won 6-1 on Sunday, led by Aidan Maldonado's (1-2) career-high nine strikeouts. Chase Stanke hit his eighth home run of the year and Andrew Wilhite had two hits.
CAMBRIA COLLEGE CLASSIC RECAP
-The Gophers won one of their three games during the Cambria College Classic from March 4-6.
-They fell, 5-4, to No. 25 West Virginia on Friday night. Minnesota led 4-2 heading into the seventh inning, but three late WVU runs sealed the win.
-Jack Kelly went 3-for-4 with a home run and four RBI to lead Minnesota to an 8-1 win over Kansas Saturday. J.P. Massey went 6.2 innings with 8 K's.
-The 'U' fell to No. 12 Notre Dame, 3-1 on Sunday. Chase Stanke hit his team-leading seventh homer.
STANKE POWER SURGING TO START 2022
-Minnesota starting catcher Chase Stanke, a Buster Posey Watch list member, has been crushing the ball to start 2022. He ranks third in the Big Ten in home runs (8) and tenth in doubles (8). 16 of his 20 hits are for extra bases, which is a team-high.
BERTRAND EARNING HIS PRAISE
-Gophers redshirt senior outfielder Easton Bertrand was named as a top-150 (No. 110) outfielder in the country by D1Baseball.com. The Illinois native ranks in the top ten in the Big Ten in slg.% (8th, .702) and batting avg. (10th, .383).
-Bertand was named to the Senior CLASS Award watch list in March. He's one of 30 players nationally to be a candidate for the prestigious honor.
-He's missed the past nine games due to injury, but plans to be back in action in early April.
CLAUSEN, CULLIVER, SKORO THRIVING OUT OF BULLPEN
-Minnesota relievers Seth Clausen (8), Josh Culliver (8) and Tom Skoro (11) have combined to make 27 appearances out of the bullpen in 2022 (team-bests).
-Led by Skoro (2.53), all have posted ERA under 5.00 and have been the steadiest arms in the back end.
-A redshirt senior southpaw, Skoro hasn't let up any runs in nine of his 11 outings this spring. Clausen and Culliver each haven't allowed any runs in three of their past five outings.
GOPHERS AT THE BANK
-Minnesota went 6-6 inside the confines of U.S. Bank Stadium this season. All-time, they are 15-22 at U.S. Bank Stadium.
-The wins are over St. Thomas (12-0), Kansas (8-1, Air Force (7-6) and a sweep over WIU (11-4, 7-2, 6-1).
-Of their six losses there, five of them are by three runs or fewer and four are by two runs or fewer.
-The Gophers will open up play at their on-campus stadium, Siebert Field, on Tuesday, April 5.
GOPHERS HITTING THE LONG BALL
-Minnesota ranks fourth in the Big Ten with 26 home runs in 23 games this season. Chase Stanke ranks third in the conference with eight while Jack Kelly has hit five (T-10th). Easton Bertrand and Ronald Sweeny are up next with four apiece (T-19th).
IRELAND FINDING HIS STUFF
-Junior Friday starter Sam Ireland has been stellar to start the 2022 season. Through six starts, he's 3-0 with a 2.41 ERA and 38 strikeouts. He ranks seventh in the B1G in ERA and innings pitched (33.2) and eighth in strikeouts (38).
-He became the first Gopher since Max Meyer in 2020 to strike out 15-or-more batters in his first two starts of the season.
BATEMAN SETS THE TONE
-Sophomore center fielder Brett Bateman ranks second on the team in hits (29) and first in at bats (96). He's also swiped a team-best 12 bases, which ranks third in the league.
-Bateman is the only Gopher to start in all 23 games.
KELLY CRUSHING OPPOSING PITCHING
-Senior utility player Jack Kelly has been on a tear in his final collegiate season. He was rated as the No. 11 third baseman in the country by D1Baseball.com heading into this week.
-He leads the team in hits (30) and RBI (25) while also totaling 10 multi-hit games.
-B1G Ranks: Batting Avg.: .405 (3rd), SLG%: .784 (1st), RBI: 25 (7th), triples: 3 (1st) and OB%: .477 (7th).
UP NEXT
Minnesota will host NDSU on Tuesday, April 5 to open up its home slate at Siebert Field. After that, Maryland will come to town on the weekend for a three-game series.
Minnesota at Rutgers
First Pitch: 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
Location: Piscataway, N.J. (Bainton Field)
Minnesota Starter: RHP Sam Ireland (2.41 ERA, 3-0, 33.2 IP, 38 SO)
Rutgers Starter: RHP Jared Kollar (2.60 ERA, 4-0, 34.2 IP, 39 SO)
Stream: B1G+
Saturday, April 2
Minnesota at Rutgers
First Pitch: 1 p.m. ET/Noon CT
Location: Piscataway, N.J. (Bainton Field)
Minnesota Starter: RHP J.P Massey (5.33 ERA, 2-2, 27.2 IP, 27 SO)
Rutgers Starter: RHP Nathan Florence (3.60 ERA, 3-1, 25.0 IP, 32 SO)
Stream: B1G+
Sunday, April 3
Minnesota at Rutgers
First Pitch: 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT
Location: Piscataway, N.J. (Bainton Field)
Minnesota Starter: RHP Aidan Maldonado (4.09 ERA, 1-2, 28.0 IP, 32 SO)
Rutgers Starter: LHP Justin Sinbaldi (4.02 ERA, 1-0, 15.2 IP, 18 SO)
Stream: B1G+
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers (8-15, 0-0 Big Ten) open up Big Ten play this weekend with a three-game series at Rutgers (18-6, 2-1 Big Ten). Minnesota is coming off of a series sweep against Western Illinois, its first weekend sweep since the 2019 season against Ohio State (May 4-5). Rutgers opened conference play last weekend by taking two of three games from Penn State. Minnesota head coach John Anderson (598-382) is two Big Ten wins away from becoming the first coach in conference history to win 600 league games.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
-The Rutgers baseball team (18-6, 2-1 Big Ten) opened up Big Ten play last weekend by taking two out of three games at Penn State.
-RU is led by head coach Steve Owens, who is in his third year leading the Scarlet Knights. He led the team to a 6-9 record in 2020 and a 21-23 record in the conference-only 2021 slate. Minnesota and RU split the two meetings at U.S. Bank Stadium last year.
-Through nonconference play, Rutgers ranked first among Big Ten teams in batting average (.318), doubles (52), doubles/Game (2.74), fielding percentage (.978), hits (229), OBP (.414), runs/Game (8.4), shutouts (4) and OPS (.906). Seven different players are hitting over .300, led by catcher Nick Cimillo at .439.
SERIES HISTORY
-Minnesota leads the all-time series, 9-6. The last time the two teams met in Piscataway was during the 2018 season when Minnesota beat Rutgers twice, 4-0 and 5-3. The third game of the series was rained out. RU took two of three from Minnesota at home in 2015.
-Since the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten, Minnesota leads the series between the two teams, 6-3.
LAST TIME OUT
-The Gophers picked up a three-game sweep against the Western Illinois Leathernecks (2-19, 0-3 Summit) to close out their non-conference slate at U.S. Bank Stadium.
-Minnesota won 11-4 on Friday, getting 5.0 strong innings from Sam Ireland (3-0) and three hits from utility player Jack Kelly. The Gophers took Saturday's game, 7-2, after J.P. Massey (2-2) tossed 6.2 innings and allowed just two runs. Otto Grimm went 2-for-3 with 3 RBI.
-The Gophers won 6-1 on Sunday, led by Aidan Maldonado's (1-2) career-high nine strikeouts. Chase Stanke hit his eighth home run of the year and Andrew Wilhite had two hits.
CAMBRIA COLLEGE CLASSIC RECAP
-The Gophers won one of their three games during the Cambria College Classic from March 4-6.
-They fell, 5-4, to No. 25 West Virginia on Friday night. Minnesota led 4-2 heading into the seventh inning, but three late WVU runs sealed the win.
-Jack Kelly went 3-for-4 with a home run and four RBI to lead Minnesota to an 8-1 win over Kansas Saturday. J.P. Massey went 6.2 innings with 8 K's.
-The 'U' fell to No. 12 Notre Dame, 3-1 on Sunday. Chase Stanke hit his team-leading seventh homer.
STANKE POWER SURGING TO START 2022
-Minnesota starting catcher Chase Stanke, a Buster Posey Watch list member, has been crushing the ball to start 2022. He ranks third in the Big Ten in home runs (8) and tenth in doubles (8). 16 of his 20 hits are for extra bases, which is a team-high.
BERTRAND EARNING HIS PRAISE
-Gophers redshirt senior outfielder Easton Bertrand was named as a top-150 (No. 110) outfielder in the country by D1Baseball.com. The Illinois native ranks in the top ten in the Big Ten in slg.% (8th, .702) and batting avg. (10th, .383).
-Bertand was named to the Senior CLASS Award watch list in March. He's one of 30 players nationally to be a candidate for the prestigious honor.
-He's missed the past nine games due to injury, but plans to be back in action in early April.
CLAUSEN, CULLIVER, SKORO THRIVING OUT OF BULLPEN
-Minnesota relievers Seth Clausen (8), Josh Culliver (8) and Tom Skoro (11) have combined to make 27 appearances out of the bullpen in 2022 (team-bests).
-Led by Skoro (2.53), all have posted ERA under 5.00 and have been the steadiest arms in the back end.
-A redshirt senior southpaw, Skoro hasn't let up any runs in nine of his 11 outings this spring. Clausen and Culliver each haven't allowed any runs in three of their past five outings.
GOPHERS AT THE BANK
-Minnesota went 6-6 inside the confines of U.S. Bank Stadium this season. All-time, they are 15-22 at U.S. Bank Stadium.
-The wins are over St. Thomas (12-0), Kansas (8-1, Air Force (7-6) and a sweep over WIU (11-4, 7-2, 6-1).
-Of their six losses there, five of them are by three runs or fewer and four are by two runs or fewer.
-The Gophers will open up play at their on-campus stadium, Siebert Field, on Tuesday, April 5.
GOPHERS HITTING THE LONG BALL
-Minnesota ranks fourth in the Big Ten with 26 home runs in 23 games this season. Chase Stanke ranks third in the conference with eight while Jack Kelly has hit five (T-10th). Easton Bertrand and Ronald Sweeny are up next with four apiece (T-19th).
IRELAND FINDING HIS STUFF
-Junior Friday starter Sam Ireland has been stellar to start the 2022 season. Through six starts, he's 3-0 with a 2.41 ERA and 38 strikeouts. He ranks seventh in the B1G in ERA and innings pitched (33.2) and eighth in strikeouts (38).
-He became the first Gopher since Max Meyer in 2020 to strike out 15-or-more batters in his first two starts of the season.
BATEMAN SETS THE TONE
-Sophomore center fielder Brett Bateman ranks second on the team in hits (29) and first in at bats (96). He's also swiped a team-best 12 bases, which ranks third in the league.
-Bateman is the only Gopher to start in all 23 games.
KELLY CRUSHING OPPOSING PITCHING
-Senior utility player Jack Kelly has been on a tear in his final collegiate season. He was rated as the No. 11 third baseman in the country by D1Baseball.com heading into this week.
-He leads the team in hits (30) and RBI (25) while also totaling 10 multi-hit games.
-B1G Ranks: Batting Avg.: .405 (3rd), SLG%: .784 (1st), RBI: 25 (7th), triples: 3 (1st) and OB%: .477 (7th).
UP NEXT
Minnesota will host NDSU on Tuesday, April 5 to open up its home slate at Siebert Field. After that, Maryland will come to town on the weekend for a three-game series.
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