Biggest questions for Iowa Baseball
The countdown to Iowa Hawkeye Baseball returning to the diamond is under 40 days with the season opener against Indiana State set for February 17th. 1B Keaton Anthony returns and is set to be on the shortlist for Big Ten Player of the Year. The pitching staff will be led by Ty Langenberg, who had a breakout sophomore season, and Long Beach State transfer Zach Voelker. Still, there are several questions that need to be answered before the season begins. We take a look at the four biggest ones that face Iowa ahead of game one.
What will the Iowa pitching rotation look like?
It appears that the Friday and Saturday roles in the pitching rotation are set for the time being. Ty Langenberg had a breakout season last year and was the Sunday starter for the majority of the season. He is primed to take over the Friday role, while Long Beach State transfer Zach Voelker looks set to be the Saturday starter.
The spot that is wide open at the moment is Sunday. Best case scenario, Marcus Morgan shows improvement in his second year and settles into the Sunday role to fill out a really solid weekend rotation. Fifth year senior Jared Simpson had a great summer with the Clinton Lumberkings, while true freshman Cade Obermueller blew up as a senior with IC High and was discussed as an MLB Draft possibility before he decided to stick with Iowa. They could both be in the conversation.
Maybe the most intruiging option for the Sunday spot is Keaton Anthony. Anthony was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year last year after batting .361 with 14 home runs, but he could become a legitimate two-way player this season. He had an outstanding fall on the mound and will almost certainly have a notable role on the pitching staff.
If Coach Rick Heller and new pitching coach Sean McGrath can find a reliable Sunday starter the Hawkeyes could be in business with their weekend rotation.
How does the bullpen shake out?
Ben Beutel (1.47 ERA), Duncan Davitt (3.38) and Dylan Nedved (3.47) combined for 61 appearances out of the bullpen a year ago. Now, all three of them are with MLB organizations and the coaching staff must find a way to retool.
Will Christophersen dealt with an injury last season, but showed signs of being a reliable late innings option. If he is fully healthy there is a chance he could take a similar role to what Dylan Nedved has last season. Jacob Henderson returns and was second on the team in appearances a year ago, while Luke Llewellyn, Chas Wheatley and Brody Brecht return. Don’t forget, whoever losses out on the final starting rotation spot will also be added into the fold.
Transfers Nick Gotilla, Jack Whitlock and Jack Young showed things during the fall and could all vie for roles out of the bullpen. Right now, the pieces and talent are there, but fitting those pieces into a formidable and consistently performing bullpen is the next step.
Who takes control of the starting catcher role?
After Austin Martin started 91 games at catcher over his three seasons, the Hawkeyes saw three players start at the position last season. Ben Tallman started 26 games, but Cade Moss was the one that got the job down the stretch and started the last 13 games. Brett McCleary has departed from the roster after 16 starts, but the catcher spot got even more crowded. RsFr Gehrig Christensen is back after missing last season due to injury and sophomore infielder Ben Wilmes saw time with the group this fall. True freshman Reese Moore also comes into the picture, but missed the fall with an injury.
It will be interesting to see if anyone is able to take over the role full time or if several players split time like last season.
Is the Hawkeyes schedule an issue before the season starts?
It is no secret that the selection committee does not give the Big Ten the benefit of the doubt when it comes NCAA Tournament time. Exhibit A: Rutgers went 44-10 last season and was left out of the field of 64. A truly mind boggling decision by the committee. Unfortunately, when you look at the Hawkeyes schedule this year, there are a lot of similarities.
Last season, the Scarlet Knights played just four games against Quad 1 teams, 12 games against Quad 2 teams and 26 games against Quad 4 teams. Based on the final RPI rankings from the last year, the Hawkeyes are set to have seven Quad 1 games, two Quad 2 games and 28 Quad 4 games this season. The Big Ten did Iowa no favors with the conference schedule, as they have just one team that finished in top six of the conference on the slate. On top of that, they will face the bottom six from last years standings.
Iowa is set to begin play in the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Florida on February 17th. They will face the Indiana State Sycamores on Friday and Sunday, while the Quinnipiac Bobcats will be the opponent on Saturday. Keep an eye on HawkeyeReport for in-depth preseason coverage of the team ahead of the season opener.
