Baseball visits Iowa in Big Ten Play

IOWA CITY, Iowa Rutgers baseball is on the road this week for a three-game series at Iowa. It is the team's first trip to Iowa City since 2019.

Game one is scheduled for a 7:00 PM first pitch on Friday evening, followed by a 3:00 PM start on Saturday and a 2:00 PM final on Sunday.

Rutgers is coming off a series win at home against No. 21 Nebraska. After winning game one 7-6 in 11 innings, RU dropped game two on Saturday and won Sunday's rubber game 6-4. The Scarlet Knights also won their midweek game against Monmouth by a score of 19-4.

The Hawkeyes are 6-6 in the Big Ten and recently dropped two of three on the road to Ohio State.

All three games will be streamed on Big Ten Plus. Fans can also follow along on X (@RutgersBaseball) for live updates. Live stats will be available here.

Series history

Rutgers is 9-13 all-time against Iowa and 7-9 in Big Ten games. The last time the two teams played was in 2022, when the Hawkeyes played two of three games in Piscataway.

Last timeout

Rutgers picked up its first series win in three seasons, taking two-of-three against No. 21 Nebraska at Bainton Field.

The Scarlet Knights won a thriller on Friday night, coming back to tie the game in the ninth after trailing 6-3 and eventually winning 7-6 in the eleventh on a walk-off single by Johnny Volpe.

After dropping Saturday's game, RU won on Sunday thanks to home runs from Jackson stayed And Johnny Volpe and shutout bullpen pitching from Ben Gorsky, Donovan Zsak, Joe Mazza And Joey DeChiaro.

In Tuesday's midweek game, Rutgers posted a 19-4 victory over Monmouth.

Left side, strong side

The Scarlet Knights boast one of the top left infields in the entire country. SS Josh Kuroda Grauer (#5) and 3B Tony Santa Maria (#13) are both among the best at their respective positions D1Baseball.com mid-season.

Kuroda-Grauer was named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List and a Midseason First Team All-American by Perfect game.

The duo has been the engine behind RU's Big-Ten best offense and has the numbers to back it up.

Kuroda-Grauer is hitting .455 to lead the Big Ten and rank third in the nation. His 71 goals lead the country. His totals of 101 bases and 16 doubles also lead the Big Ten, while his 19 stolen bases are second.

After missing 2023 with injury, Santa Maria is among the Big Ten's best with 43 runs (second), 93 total bases (third), 10 home runs (fourth), 40 RBI (fourth), .628 slugging percentage (sixth) and 14 hit-by-throws (third).

Continuity of rotation

After having to replace the entire starting rotation in consecutive seasons, Rutgers has enjoyed continuity on the mound in 2024.

Justin Sinibaldi And Christian Coppola have started every weekend match this season and are ready to make their 10th weekend start in as many weeks.

Sinibaldi has five seven-plus innings outings, was eight-plus in three of his last seven stars and was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week after shutouting UConn.

Coppola was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week in February after a six-inning, nine-strikeout performance at Old Dominion and earned the win against UConn with 5.2 innings, three runs and six strikeouts.

Breakout on the right

The right side of the RU infield has had a few breakout seasons so far. Senior Cameron Love is having a career year in his final season with the Banks. His .355 average is third on the team, while his 17 extra base hits are third and he already has a career-high with three home runs.

True freshmen Ty Doucette was created after missing 10 games with an injury. His six home runs already rank second on the team and his 30 RBI trail only Kuroda-Grauer and Santa Maria.

StaffUpdates

Head coach Steve Owens announced a number of changes to its staff ahead of the 2024 season. Mike Garza was promoted to hitting coach after serving two years as a volunteer assistant.

Now that the NCAA has expanded the number of full-time assistant coaches from two to three, Owens added Danny Bethea to the staff at St. John's. In his role, Bethea will work with the team's catchers, attack them and coach first base.

Jack Eagle also joined the staff as Director of Player Development, where he oversees video and data collection while running camps and clinics.

Depth behind the dish

RU has some quality options at the catcher position for 2024. Hugh Pinkney returns after making 48 starts at catcher and design hitter last season, hitting .267 with 12 extra base hits and a .716 OPS in his true freshman season. J.D. Jones joins the catching corps as a transfer from Miami and provides a veteran presence. True freshmen Jackson stayed is ready for a big career “On the Banks” and also plays a role.

Experience in the field

Rutgers brings at least a full season of starting experience to each infield spot Jordan Sweeney (108), Kuroda Gray (105), Cameron Love (63) and Santa Maria (60) combined for 376 starts for RU.

Outfield options
Trevor Cohen represents the only returning starter in the RU outfield after starting all 56 games last season, hitting .298 with 26 walks to 22 strikeouts en route to being named to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team.

Rutgers has been redesigned with the addition of RJ Johnson Jr. from the JUCO ranks, who are expected to start centrally. Johnson is hitting .343 with six home runs and 36 RBIs while leading his Gulf Coast State team with 61 hits and 55 runs scored in 2023.

Transfers Piet Ciuffreda (Lafayette) and Piet Durocher (Manhattan) brings seven combined seasons of experience to the outfield and can play multiple positions.

Bullpen arms
Ben Gorsky returns for his final season after an All-Big Ten season in 2023, where he recorded eight saves and posted a 3.40 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 39.2 innings. He was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year watchlist ahead of 2024.

Sam Portnoy pitched to a 3.69 ERA over 31.2 innings in 20 appearances and also earned a spot on the NCBWA Stopper of the Year watch list.

Joey DeChiaro joins the bullpen as a graduate transfer from Old Dominion, where he played in 50 games over four seasons for the Monarchs. After a strong summer in the Cape Cod League, DeChiaro was named Preseason All-Conference by Perfect Game.

Jake Marshall finished third on the Scarlet Knights in 2023 with 51.0 innings pitched as both a starter and reliever and will again factor into the team's plans. Marshall struck out 60 batters in 51.0 innings a year ago and has 191 strikeouts in his collegiate career.

Joe Mazza was second to only Gorski with 24 games for RU last season, pitching 32.0 innings with a 4.78 ERA out of the bullpen.

The bullpen also gets a boost from RHP's returns Gavin Stellpflug and LHP Donovan Zsak neither pitched last season.

A few transfers in Jordan Falco (Adelphi) and Sonja Fauci (St. John's) emerged as relievers who can also provide length out of the bullpen.

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