Indiana University Athletics
Baseball Central: Louisville
5/13/2024 4:00:00 PM | Baseball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana Baseball team (28-21-1, 13-8 B1G) will play its final midweek of the season during the last week of the regular season on Tuesday (May 14) evening in Louisville. The Hoosiers and Cardinals will meet in a potential RPI-boosting opportunity on the road ahead of the Big Ten weekend finale.
The Hoosiers took their first series loss since March last weekend in Lincoln. IU won the first game of the series but couldn't muster any offense on Saturday and Sunday, dropping each contest by three-or-fewer runs. The last Big Ten weekend of the year will see Michigan travel to Bloomington.
IU's pitching staff has been strong in recent weeks, not allowing more than seven runs in each of the past 10 contests. The Hoosier offense will need to get going over the final week heading into the Big Ten Tournament to make a run at an at-large bid. Sophomores Tyler Cerny and Devin Taylor have combined for 140 hits this year.
First pitch from Louisville will be at 6:00 PM on Tuesday (May 14) evening. This weekend's series with Michigan will start on Thursday at 5:00 PM on the Big Ten Network. IU just needs one win in conference play to clinch a Big Ten Tournament bid.
Gameday Info
at Louisville (Tuesday, May 14th – 6:00 PM)
Live Video: es.pn/44FueOF
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: bit.ly/4bn4klC
Probable Starters
Indiana at Louisville
• Tuesday – TBD (IU) vs. TBD (UL)
Player and Stat Trends
Tibbitts Chases 200
• Brock Tibbitts made his return to the lineup after missing a month with a lower-leg injury. He had four hits in the weekend series win over Purdue including the hit that kickstarted an amazing ninth-inning rally. He had two more in the series at Nebraska. Tibbitts now has 188 for his career and is 12 away from becoming the 25th member of the 200-hit club at Indiana.
Notable
Final Week of Regular Season
• A three-month long regular season comes to a close this weekend. IU has just four games remaining with a trip to Louisville in the midweek and a three-game visit from Michigan this weekend. The Hoosiers will finish with 54 regular season games after weather forced cancelations of home games against Ball State and Cincinnati.
Pitching Continues to Improve
• Pitching coach Dustin Glant has done an outstanding job getting his staff ready for the stretch run. Despite not having the likes of Luke Sinnard, Ben Grable and Matthew Bohnert, the Hoosiers have found a group of reliable arms for the postseason.
• IU hasn't allowed more than seven runs in a game in its last 10 contests. The Hoosiers are 6-3-1 in that stretch. Over the weekend in a tough environment at Nebraska, IU conceded just 14 runs. The Huskers never scored more than five in a game but managed to win the series.
One Win From Omaha
• Barring getting swept at home against Michigan, Indiana will make its 11th-consecutive Big Ten Tournament appearance. The Hoosiers will continue to have the longest active streak in the conference. IU has played in every contested tournament (2020, 2021 not contested) since 2012. IU needs just one win against Michigan to clinch a spot but will want a good showing this weekend to secure a higher seed.
Sophomores Shining
• Sophomores Devin Taylor and Tyler Cerny have formed a formidable duo offensively for the Hoosiers this season. The pair has started in all but one game (Devin Taylor - personal issue) this year and have combined for 140 hits (70 each) in 2024.
• Both players became starters early in 2024 and have never left the lineup since. They've combined for 23 home runs and 94 RBIs this year while also scoring over 50+ runs each for the team. Cerny is draft-eligible in 2024 but could potentially come back to form a lethal duo with Taylor in 2024.
Get to 30 Wins
• The Indiana program has reached 30-or-more regular seasons in 10 of the past 11 completed campaigns. Only in 2022, while playing lots of freshmen, did the Hoosiers fail to reach to the 30-win mark in the regular season.
• The Hoosiers have 28 wins heading into this week and need just two to reach the 30-win threshold for the third time under head coach Jeff Mercer. If IU sweeps Michigan, it will be the third time under Mercer has led this program to 16+ Big Ten wins in a regular season (excludes the 44-game Big Ten only 2021 slate).
Familiar Faces Return
• Michigan comes to town this weekend led by former IU head coach Tracy Smith. Smith racked up 287 wins in nine years as IU's head coach. He led the Hoosiers to Omaha for the 2013 College World Series and won back-to-back Big Ten regular season titles. On staff for the Wolverines is former big leaguer Josh Phegley, who played for IU from 2007-09.
Scouting the Opponent
Louisville (29-22, 12-13 ACC)
• Much like Indiana, Louisville has struggled on the mound this season but has been prolific in spurts at the plate. Louisville is batting a collective .313 but has an earned run average of well over 6.60. Nearly every single starter in the Cardinals' lineup is hitting over .300.
• Zion Rose has only played in 40 of 51 games this year but is leading the team with a .387 batting average. There are seven Cardinals with an average between .300 and .330. It's a balanced lineup. Louisville has hit 74 home runs but seven players have between seven and nine long balls.
• On the mound it has been a struggle for Louisville. It has 453 strikeouts but has conceded 82 home runs on the season and is allowing opponents to hit .284. Six different pitchers have made 15+ appearances including Kayden Campbell who has pitched 22 times in relief.
Inside the Series
Indiana at Louisville
• Louisville and Indiana have met regularly at the end of the season in the past 10 years and have featured multiple times in the same NCAA regional. Indiana won the team's meeting last year. Ethan Phillips had a productive outing on the mound as the Hoosiers won 7-3 in Bloomington.
• Jeff Mercer's first season saw his team go to the Louisville Regional. The Hoosiers lost a tightly contested 9-7 contest to be eliminated from the tournament. The two programs have played 55 times in their history.
The Hoosiers took their first series loss since March last weekend in Lincoln. IU won the first game of the series but couldn't muster any offense on Saturday and Sunday, dropping each contest by three-or-fewer runs. The last Big Ten weekend of the year will see Michigan travel to Bloomington.
IU's pitching staff has been strong in recent weeks, not allowing more than seven runs in each of the past 10 contests. The Hoosier offense will need to get going over the final week heading into the Big Ten Tournament to make a run at an at-large bid. Sophomores Tyler Cerny and Devin Taylor have combined for 140 hits this year.
First pitch from Louisville will be at 6:00 PM on Tuesday (May 14) evening. This weekend's series with Michigan will start on Thursday at 5:00 PM on the Big Ten Network. IU just needs one win in conference play to clinch a Big Ten Tournament bid.
Gameday Info
at Louisville (Tuesday, May 14th – 6:00 PM)
Live Video: es.pn/44FueOF
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: bit.ly/4bn4klC
Probable Starters
Indiana at Louisville
• Tuesday – TBD (IU) vs. TBD (UL)
Player and Stat Trends
Tibbitts Chases 200
• Brock Tibbitts made his return to the lineup after missing a month with a lower-leg injury. He had four hits in the weekend series win over Purdue including the hit that kickstarted an amazing ninth-inning rally. He had two more in the series at Nebraska. Tibbitts now has 188 for his career and is 12 away from becoming the 25th member of the 200-hit club at Indiana.
Notable
Final Week of Regular Season
• A three-month long regular season comes to a close this weekend. IU has just four games remaining with a trip to Louisville in the midweek and a three-game visit from Michigan this weekend. The Hoosiers will finish with 54 regular season games after weather forced cancelations of home games against Ball State and Cincinnati.
Pitching Continues to Improve
• Pitching coach Dustin Glant has done an outstanding job getting his staff ready for the stretch run. Despite not having the likes of Luke Sinnard, Ben Grable and Matthew Bohnert, the Hoosiers have found a group of reliable arms for the postseason.
• IU hasn't allowed more than seven runs in a game in its last 10 contests. The Hoosiers are 6-3-1 in that stretch. Over the weekend in a tough environment at Nebraska, IU conceded just 14 runs. The Huskers never scored more than five in a game but managed to win the series.
One Win From Omaha
• Barring getting swept at home against Michigan, Indiana will make its 11th-consecutive Big Ten Tournament appearance. The Hoosiers will continue to have the longest active streak in the conference. IU has played in every contested tournament (2020, 2021 not contested) since 2012. IU needs just one win against Michigan to clinch a spot but will want a good showing this weekend to secure a higher seed.
Sophomores Shining
• Sophomores Devin Taylor and Tyler Cerny have formed a formidable duo offensively for the Hoosiers this season. The pair has started in all but one game (Devin Taylor - personal issue) this year and have combined for 140 hits (70 each) in 2024.
• Both players became starters early in 2024 and have never left the lineup since. They've combined for 23 home runs and 94 RBIs this year while also scoring over 50+ runs each for the team. Cerny is draft-eligible in 2024 but could potentially come back to form a lethal duo with Taylor in 2024.
Get to 30 Wins
• The Indiana program has reached 30-or-more regular seasons in 10 of the past 11 completed campaigns. Only in 2022, while playing lots of freshmen, did the Hoosiers fail to reach to the 30-win mark in the regular season.
• The Hoosiers have 28 wins heading into this week and need just two to reach the 30-win threshold for the third time under head coach Jeff Mercer. If IU sweeps Michigan, it will be the third time under Mercer has led this program to 16+ Big Ten wins in a regular season (excludes the 44-game Big Ten only 2021 slate).
Familiar Faces Return
• Michigan comes to town this weekend led by former IU head coach Tracy Smith. Smith racked up 287 wins in nine years as IU's head coach. He led the Hoosiers to Omaha for the 2013 College World Series and won back-to-back Big Ten regular season titles. On staff for the Wolverines is former big leaguer Josh Phegley, who played for IU from 2007-09.
Scouting the Opponent
Louisville (29-22, 12-13 ACC)
• Much like Indiana, Louisville has struggled on the mound this season but has been prolific in spurts at the plate. Louisville is batting a collective .313 but has an earned run average of well over 6.60. Nearly every single starter in the Cardinals' lineup is hitting over .300.
• Zion Rose has only played in 40 of 51 games this year but is leading the team with a .387 batting average. There are seven Cardinals with an average between .300 and .330. It's a balanced lineup. Louisville has hit 74 home runs but seven players have between seven and nine long balls.
• On the mound it has been a struggle for Louisville. It has 453 strikeouts but has conceded 82 home runs on the season and is allowing opponents to hit .284. Six different pitchers have made 15+ appearances including Kayden Campbell who has pitched 22 times in relief.
Inside the Series
Indiana at Louisville
• Louisville and Indiana have met regularly at the end of the season in the past 10 years and have featured multiple times in the same NCAA regional. Indiana won the team's meeting last year. Ethan Phillips had a productive outing on the mound as the Hoosiers won 7-3 in Bloomington.
• Jeff Mercer's first season saw his team go to the Louisville Regional. The Hoosiers lost a tightly contested 9-7 contest to be eliminated from the tournament. The two programs have played 55 times in their history.
Players Mentioned
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INF
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RHP
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OF
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