Three Gophers Named to All-Big Ten Teams

ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Three Minnesota Golden Gophers were named to All-Big Ten teams, the conference announced on Tuesday morning.

Junior center fielder Brett Bateman made the second team, sophomore left-hander Tucker Novotny made the third team and rookie catcher/first baseman Weber Neels made the All-Freshman Team. It's the first postseason honor in the careers of all three players.

Bateman, an Arden Hills, Minn., native, had his best year yet as a Gopher in 2023. He started in 48 of the 50 games he played in, slashing .354/.407/.450 with 67 hits, 29 runs scored and 12 RBI. He stole a team-best 17 bases, which ranked sixth in the Big Ten. His team-high .354 batting average ranked eighth. In the field, his 1.000 fielding percentage and five outfield assists were both team-bests. He's one of five Gophers in program history to have five+ outfield assists in a single season.

Friday starter Tucker Novotny was the epitome of consistency in 2023 for the Gophers. The sophomore southpaw pitched in all 14 Friday starts this season, going 4-5 with a 5.03 ERA. He struck out a team-best 80 hitters in 73.1 innings pitched, allowing just 41 earned runs and walking 39. Novotny lasted five-or-more innings in 10 of his 14 starts, going six-or-more five times. He ranked in the top-10 in the Big Ten in strikeouts (sixth), strikeouts looking (fourth) and innings pitched (ninth). The Gophers won in six of his eight Big Ten starts, and he picked up wins in his final three starts against Michigan, No. 19 Maryland and Rutgers.

As a true freshman, Cottage Grove, Minn., native Weber Neels hit .274 with seven home runs (second on Minnesota) and 24 RBI. He totaled 43 hits, including five doubles and a triple, with 25 runs and 25 walks. Neels led all Minnesota true freshmen in every major hitting category. He ended the season on a seven-game hitting streak, including hitting .412 in the final week of play on the way to being named Big Ten Freshman of the Week.

Redshirt senior Richie Holetz was Minnesota's recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. The Gophers' Sunday starter, Holetz went 2-5 with a 5.14 ERA in 14 appearances (11 starts) in 2023. He struck out 56 in 70.0 innings pitched, walking just 22 with 40 earned runs. The Edina, Minn., native went six-or-more innings in five of his outings and ranked second on the team with two conference wins (at Ohio State, vs. Purdue).

The Gophers finished their 2023 season Saturday with an 18-34 (10-14 Big Ten) record.

2023 BIG TEN BASEBALL AWARDS

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Matt Shaw, Jr., SS, Maryland

PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Connor O'Halloran, Jr., Michigan

FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Devin Taylor, Fr., OF, Indiana

COACH OF THE YEAR
Rob Vaughn, Maryland +

ALL-BIG TEN, FIRST TEAM
C – Luke Shliger, Jr., Maryland
1B – Brock Vrandenburg, Jr., Michigan State +
2B – Max Anderson, Jr., Nebraska +
SS – Matt Shaw, Jr., Maryland
3B – Nick Lorusso, Sr., Maryland
OF – Devin Taylor, Fr., Indiana
OF – Sam Petersen, So., Iowa
OF – Ryan Lasko, Jr., Rutgers
SP – Brody Brecht, So., Iowa
SP – Connor O'Halloran, Jr., Michigan
SP – Christian Coppola, Fr., Rutgers
RP – Ryan Kraft, So., Indiana
DH – Keaton Anthony, So., Iowa
At-Large – Brice Matthews, Jr., SS, Nebraska

ALL-BIG TEN, SECOND TEAM*
C – Bryan Broecker, So., Michigan State
1B – Brock Tibbitts, So., Indiana
2B – Trent Farquhar, Jr., Michigan State
SS – Phillip Glasser, Sr., Indiana
3B – Chris Brito, Sr., Rutgers
OF – Ryan Moerman, So., Illinois
OF – Brett Bateman, Jr., Minnesota
OF – Gabe Swansen, So., Nebraska
SP – Jack Wenninger, Jr., Illinois
SP – Luke Sinnard, So., Indiana
SP – Marcus Morgan, So., Iowa
SP – Jason Savacool, Jr., Maryland
RP – Wyatt Rush, Sr., Michigan State
DH – Ian Petrutz, So., Maryland
At-Large – Brennen Dorighi, Gd., 1B, Iowa

ALL-BIG TEN, THIRD TEAM*
C – Cade Moss, Jr., Iowa
1B – Jake Parr, Sr., Purdue
2B – Ted Burton, Sr., Michigan
2B – Paul Toetz, Jr., Purdue
SS – Mitch Jebb, Jr., MSU
3B – Josh Pyne, So., Indiana
OF – Elijah Lambros, So., Maryland
OF – Stephen Hrustich, Sr., Northwestern
OF – Evan Sleight, Jr., Rutgers
SP – Nick Dean, Sr., Maryland
SP – Tucker Novotny, So., Minnesota
SP – Khal Stephen, So., Purdue
SP – Drew Conover, Jr., Rutgers
RP – Shay Schanaman, Gd, Nebraska
RP – Ben Gorski, Jr., Rutgers
DH – Bobby Marsh, Fr., Penn State
At-Large – Jonathan Kim, Fr., OF, Michigan

ALL-BIG TEN FRESHMAN TEAM
C – Matthew Graveline, Fr., Ohio State
1B – Weber Neels, Fr., Minnesota +
2B – Tyler Cerny, Fr., Indiana +
SS – Henry Kaczmar, Fr., Ohio State
3B – Mitch Voit, Fr., Michigan +
OF – Devin Taylor, Fr., Indiana
OF – Jonathan Kim, Fr., Michigan
OF – Trevor Cohen, Fr., Rutgers
SP – Kyle McCoy, Fr., Maryland
SP – Joseph Dzierwa, Fr., Michigan State
SP – Christian Coppola, Fr., Rutgers
RP – Mitch Voit, Fr., Michigan
DH – Bobby Marsh, Fr., Penn State +
At-Large – Sam Garewal, Fr., SP, Northwestern

*Additional honorees due to ties
+ unanimous selection

SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD
Joe Glassey, Jr., RHP, Illinois
Peter Serruto, Sr., C, Indiana
Ben Wilmes, So., IF, Iowa
Michael Bouma, Sr., 1B, Maryland
Tito Flores, Sr., OF, Michigan
Wyatt Rush, Sr., RHP, Michigan State
Richie Holetz, Sr., RHP, Minnesota
Corbin Hawkins, So., RHP, Nebraska
Michael Farinelli, Gd., RHP, Northwestern
Marcus Ernst, Gd., IF, Ohio State
Steven Miller, Gd., RHP, Penn State
Camden Melvin, So., OF, Purdue
Andy Axelson, Sr., C, Rutgers

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Players Mentioned

Brett Bateman

Richie Holetz

Weber Neels

Tucker Novotny