Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Baseball Preseason Primer
1/26/2024 10:00:00 AM | Baseball
Indiana Baseball Preseason Primer
The Hoosiers have the standard 56 games set for the 2024 season.
After an appearance in the NCAA Regional finals a season ago, the Indiana Baseball program gets ready to open the 2024 season in February with a roster full of young and dynamic talent.
Head coach Jeff Mercer, entering his sixth season, and fourth full season, in charge of the Hoosiers has built a roster with a strong foundation in prep recruits with a mix of talented transfers sprinkled in.
Armed with an outstanding coaching staff and array of talented players, IU will be among the top contenders in the Big Ten across preseason publications come February.
Here are some notes and numbers to know ahead of a much-anticipated 2024 campaign.
This page will be updated throughout the preseason.
Dates to Know
A full schedule for IU can be found online.
• Friday, January 26th: First Full Team Practice
• Friday, February 16th: Season Opener
• Tuesday, February 20th: Home Opener
• Friday, March 22nd: Big Ten Opener
• Friday, May 17th: Senior Day
• Wednesday, May 22nd: Big Ten Tournament Begins
The Core Five in the Field
Five starting position players return from last season.
Albeit graduating starting shortstop Phillip Glasser, a 10th round pick of the Washington Nationals, IU returns four of its five best offensive options as well as Glasser's replacement in sophomore Tyler Cerny.
Cerny (.276) along with junior Brock Tibbitts (.357), sophomore Devin Taylor (.315), junior Carter Mathison (.311) and junior Josh Pyne (.295) make up a stellar offensive core for head coach Jeff Mercer in 2024.
The five players, four of which are draft eligible in 2024, combined for 52 home runs last season and contributed 275 runs batted in for the Hoosiers.
Mathison and Taylor will pair with Western Illinois transfer Nick Mitchell to make up one of the most potent offensive outfields in the entire country.
Cerny is expected to take over the shortstop position with Pyne at third base to form a stellar left side of the infield for IU. Tibbitts, a prep catcher, will spend time behind the plate while rotating in at first base as well.
Pyne, Mathison and Tibbitts will all make a run at some of the all-time marks in program history as they approach their third years as full-time starters. Pyne and Tibbitts are both nearing the top-10 list in RBI's, hits and doubles while Mathison chases IU's all-time home run record.
Testing the Team Early
IU will face 11 teams in 2024 that made the NCAA Tournament last year.
No stranger to scheduling tough tests early in the non-conference season, Mercer has once again loaded up the first part of his schedule to test his program early.
IU will face seven NCAA tournament teams from last season across the first four weekends with a three-game set on the road at Baylor sprinkled in the same stretch.
The Hoosiers have faced an SEC team in the non-conference in each of Mercer's seasons at the helm. IU went to Tennessee (2019), LSU (2020) and Auburn (2023) and have had matchups in round robin tournaments in Texas against Arkansas (2022) and Alabama (2024).
IU had the highest RPI (30) in the Big Ten last season in due part to wins over Texas, Auburn, Louisville and Indiana State in the non-conference in 2023. The Hoosiers haven't hosted a regional since being a national seed in 2014 but will look to take advantage of high-profile matchups early in the season to boost its RPI before Big Ten play.
Non-Conference Opponent Breakdown in 2024
2023 NCAA Regional Teams
- Arizona, Dallas Baptist, Vanderbilt, Ball State, Troy, George Mason, Coastal Carolina
2023 NCAA Super Regional Teams
- Alabama, Duke, Indiana State
Young and Deep on the Mound
Led by a talented sophomore core, IU's got strong options on the bump in 2024.
Even without the services of right-handed pitcher Luke Sinnard, who is expected to miss the entire of the 2024 season, IU has a strong collection of arms that have continued to develop under third-year pitching coach Dustin Glant.
IU won't ride a traditional starting rotation, electing to attack each day of the weekend series one at a time. Seven pitchers return in 2024 who made at least 13 appearances on the mound last year including sophomore Brayden Risedorph (25), junior Ryan Kraft (21) and sophomore Connor Foley (20).
Grant Holderfield, who made 25 appearances as a freshman in 2022, makes his return to action after missing last year through injury. Impact transfers Ben Grable (Northwestern), Jack Moffitt (Gonzaga), Drew Buhr (Bellarmine) and Julian Tonghini (Boston College) add depth to IU's collection of options out of the bullpen.
Kraft, perhaps IU's most reliable option on the mound, doubles as a long-term reliever and a spot starter with over 20 appearances in each of his first two seasons. He held a 2.48 earned run average across 61.2 innings in 2023 and is a matchup threat as a lefty out of the bullpen.
Expect young arms Jacob Vogel, Ryan Rushing and Seth Benes, among other freshmen, to see time for the Hoosiers over the course of the season.
The Big Ten Standard
The Hoosiers have been the flag bearer of success for the conference in the past 12 years.
Since IU's magical 2013 season, which took the program to its first College World Series, it has been the standard for the rest of the Big Ten when it comes to success.
Over the past seven years, IU has the joint-most wins in conference play (112). The Hoosiers have won the most Big Ten regular season titles (3) since 2013 while also making the most NCAA Tournament appearances (7) in the same span.
IU holds the longest streak of consecutive Big Ten Tournament appearances (10 straight) and has made four NCAA regional finals since 1999.
Since opening Bart Kaufman Field in 2013, IU has created one of the best home environments. The Hoosiers have 189 home wins in the time frame including a 26-4 record in 2023.
40 is the Magic Number
Mercer's bunch has big expectations in 2024.
The standard of success in a college baseball season is eclipsing 40 wins. The Hoosiers did so last year in the regular season, winning the 40th game of the year on the final day at Michigan State before winning three more in the postseason.
Since college baseball went to a standard 56-game schedule in 1991, IU has had five 40-win seasons, all of which have resulted in NCAA Tournament bids. The Hoosiers will be searching for its first back-to-back 40-win seasons since 2013-14. IU has never won 40 regular season games in back-to-back years.
Over the course of the season, Mercer will be chasing 250 career wins. He is 31 shy of 250 and will be looking for his third season of 37+ wins in his first full four years (2020 and 2021 were shortened).
The Hoosiers have the standard 56 games set for the 2024 season.
After an appearance in the NCAA Regional finals a season ago, the Indiana Baseball program gets ready to open the 2024 season in February with a roster full of young and dynamic talent.
Head coach Jeff Mercer, entering his sixth season, and fourth full season, in charge of the Hoosiers has built a roster with a strong foundation in prep recruits with a mix of talented transfers sprinkled in.
Armed with an outstanding coaching staff and array of talented players, IU will be among the top contenders in the Big Ten across preseason publications come February.
Here are some notes and numbers to know ahead of a much-anticipated 2024 campaign.
This page will be updated throughout the preseason.
Dates to Know
A full schedule for IU can be found online.
• Friday, January 26th: First Full Team Practice
• Friday, February 16th: Season Opener
• Tuesday, February 20th: Home Opener
• Friday, March 22nd: Big Ten Opener
• Friday, May 17th: Senior Day
• Wednesday, May 22nd: Big Ten Tournament Begins
The Core Five in the Field
Five starting position players return from last season.
Albeit graduating starting shortstop Phillip Glasser, a 10th round pick of the Washington Nationals, IU returns four of its five best offensive options as well as Glasser's replacement in sophomore Tyler Cerny.
Cerny (.276) along with junior Brock Tibbitts (.357), sophomore Devin Taylor (.315), junior Carter Mathison (.311) and junior Josh Pyne (.295) make up a stellar offensive core for head coach Jeff Mercer in 2024.
The five players, four of which are draft eligible in 2024, combined for 52 home runs last season and contributed 275 runs batted in for the Hoosiers.
Mathison and Taylor will pair with Western Illinois transfer Nick Mitchell to make up one of the most potent offensive outfields in the entire country.
Cerny is expected to take over the shortstop position with Pyne at third base to form a stellar left side of the infield for IU. Tibbitts, a prep catcher, will spend time behind the plate while rotating in at first base as well.
Pyne, Mathison and Tibbitts will all make a run at some of the all-time marks in program history as they approach their third years as full-time starters. Pyne and Tibbitts are both nearing the top-10 list in RBI's, hits and doubles while Mathison chases IU's all-time home run record.
Testing the Team Early
IU will face 11 teams in 2024 that made the NCAA Tournament last year.
No stranger to scheduling tough tests early in the non-conference season, Mercer has once again loaded up the first part of his schedule to test his program early.
IU will face seven NCAA tournament teams from last season across the first four weekends with a three-game set on the road at Baylor sprinkled in the same stretch.
The Hoosiers have faced an SEC team in the non-conference in each of Mercer's seasons at the helm. IU went to Tennessee (2019), LSU (2020) and Auburn (2023) and have had matchups in round robin tournaments in Texas against Arkansas (2022) and Alabama (2024).
IU had the highest RPI (30) in the Big Ten last season in due part to wins over Texas, Auburn, Louisville and Indiana State in the non-conference in 2023. The Hoosiers haven't hosted a regional since being a national seed in 2014 but will look to take advantage of high-profile matchups early in the season to boost its RPI before Big Ten play.
Non-Conference Opponent Breakdown in 2024
2023 NCAA Regional Teams
- Arizona, Dallas Baptist, Vanderbilt, Ball State, Troy, George Mason, Coastal Carolina
2023 NCAA Super Regional Teams
- Alabama, Duke, Indiana State
Young and Deep on the Mound
Led by a talented sophomore core, IU's got strong options on the bump in 2024.
Even without the services of right-handed pitcher Luke Sinnard, who is expected to miss the entire of the 2024 season, IU has a strong collection of arms that have continued to develop under third-year pitching coach Dustin Glant.
IU won't ride a traditional starting rotation, electing to attack each day of the weekend series one at a time. Seven pitchers return in 2024 who made at least 13 appearances on the mound last year including sophomore Brayden Risedorph (25), junior Ryan Kraft (21) and sophomore Connor Foley (20).
Grant Holderfield, who made 25 appearances as a freshman in 2022, makes his return to action after missing last year through injury. Impact transfers Ben Grable (Northwestern), Jack Moffitt (Gonzaga), Drew Buhr (Bellarmine) and Julian Tonghini (Boston College) add depth to IU's collection of options out of the bullpen.
Kraft, perhaps IU's most reliable option on the mound, doubles as a long-term reliever and a spot starter with over 20 appearances in each of his first two seasons. He held a 2.48 earned run average across 61.2 innings in 2023 and is a matchup threat as a lefty out of the bullpen.
Expect young arms Jacob Vogel, Ryan Rushing and Seth Benes, among other freshmen, to see time for the Hoosiers over the course of the season.
The Big Ten Standard
The Hoosiers have been the flag bearer of success for the conference in the past 12 years.
Since IU's magical 2013 season, which took the program to its first College World Series, it has been the standard for the rest of the Big Ten when it comes to success.
Over the past seven years, IU has the joint-most wins in conference play (112). The Hoosiers have won the most Big Ten regular season titles (3) since 2013 while also making the most NCAA Tournament appearances (7) in the same span.
IU holds the longest streak of consecutive Big Ten Tournament appearances (10 straight) and has made four NCAA regional finals since 1999.
Since opening Bart Kaufman Field in 2013, IU has created one of the best home environments. The Hoosiers have 189 home wins in the time frame including a 26-4 record in 2023.
40 is the Magic Number
Mercer's bunch has big expectations in 2024.
The standard of success in a college baseball season is eclipsing 40 wins. The Hoosiers did so last year in the regular season, winning the 40th game of the year on the final day at Michigan State before winning three more in the postseason.
Since college baseball went to a standard 56-game schedule in 1991, IU has had five 40-win seasons, all of which have resulted in NCAA Tournament bids. The Hoosiers will be searching for its first back-to-back 40-win seasons since 2013-14. IU has never won 40 regular season games in back-to-back years.
Over the course of the season, Mercer will be chasing 250 career wins. He is 31 shy of 250 and will be looking for his third season of 37+ wins in his first full four years (2020 and 2021 were shortened).
Players Mentioned
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