Wednesday, April 23
Indianapolis, Ind.
6:00 PM
Indiana University
vs
Ball State
Baseball Central: Ball State
4/22/2025 4:00:00 PM | Baseball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – To close out April and to begin May, the Indiana Baseball team (22-18, 12-9 B1G) will embark on a stretch of eight-straight games away from Bart Kaufman Field. The first stop is the second midweek contest of the year against Ball State – this one to be played at Victory Field in Indianapolis.
IU took down Maryland in a three-game, back-and-forth series last weekend in Bloomington. The wild series featured a pair of run-rule victories and an incredible comeback from the Hoosiers on Friday (April 18) evening. Head coach Jeff Mercer is hoping that a dominant Sunday win will spark some late-season magic for his ballclub.
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor broke the program's all-time home run record against the Terrapins and appears to have the invisible monkey off his back. Following his record-breaking swing, Taylor went on to reach base safely six times on Sunday with three hits and three walks. He leads the team with a .377 batting average.
As IU tries to get its pitching lined up for a big weekend series at Iowa, expect the Hoosiers to roll out a plethora of arms at Victory Field. Last year's game at Ball State went 12 innings and saw pitching coach Dustin Glant call on the services of 11 different pitchers. Redshirt junior Pete Haas will open the game on the mound on Wednesday.
Freshman third baseman Will Moore was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for his heroics over the weekend against Maryland. The young Canadian leads the conference in on-base percentage (.527) and moved into the leadoff spot on Sunday. He has been a spark in the IU lineup with his ability to draw walks and take the ball the other way.
IU will be the designated visitors on Wednesday at Victory Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. against Ball State. The game will be streamed on Indiana SRN and can be heard on the radio at whcc105.com/iuhoosiers.com with Austin Render.
Gameday Info
vs. Ball State (Wednesday, April 23rd – 6:00 PM ET)
Live Video: t.ly/cfDVI
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/jV0bN
Probable Starters
Ball State
• Wednesday – RHP Pete Haas, R-Jr. (1-2, 4.56 ERA)
Leading Off
HOME RUN KING: Junior outfielder Devin Taylor made IU history when he hit the 48th home run of his career on Saturday against Maryland. He hit his 49th on Sunday and is now set to stretch out his lead as the program's best home run hitter ever.
AWAY FROM HOME: IU is set to play the next eight games away from home, it's longest such stretch of the season. A trip to Iowa is the only Big Ten series in that run of time but the Hoosiers will need to be near perfect as they look to climb into a potential NCAA Tournament position.
MOORE BASES: Freshman third baseman Will Moore has statistically been the best at getting on base in the entire Big Ten conference. He leads the league with a .527 on-base percentage and has 23 walks, 26 hits and 10 hit-by-pitches to his name this year. The Canadian was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Monday (April 21).
LAUNCHING THE LONG BALL: Redshirt sophomore outfielder Korbyn Dickerson is tied for third nationally with 17 home runs this season. As a team, IU is second in the Big Ten and 13th in the country with 70 long balls. Four players have at least nine home runs on the year.
PRIME KRAFTY: Since the end of the Penn State series (March 10), senior southpaw Ryan Kraft has been dominant for the Hoosiers. He's thrown 10 times in that span with a 2.93 ERA and 24 strikeouts compared to just nine walks. He has become an important part of IU's staff for the stretch run.
NEAR 2,500: As a program, the Hoosiers are just seven wins away from reaching 2,500 all-time victories. The program has risen to national relevance over the last decade plus but has produced high-level players and managers. IU can reach that mark as early as the Abilene Christian series.
Scouting the Opponent
Ball State
• As has been the standard under Rich Maloney, Ball State is having a fantastic season and will be one of the favorites to earn the automatic bid out of the MAC. The Cardinals are 29-12 overall and are 15-3 in conference play. Indiana held on to win the first matchup this season, 7-5.
• The Cardinals have had a strong season on the mound, led by weekend starters Keegan Johnson and Jacob Hartlaub. In the midweek, Ball State has been able to vary its arms. It has 11 pitchers that have made double-digit appearances this season. Owen Quinn and Garrett Harker have combined for 30 appearances without making a start.
• Ball State will be no slouch at the plate either. Shortstop Dylan Grego is hitting .376 with 12 home runs and 46 RBIs. He had a game last week against Bowling Green with three home runs and nine RBIs. Utilityman Blake Bevis has also hit 12 home runs. Third baseman Alex Richter shares the team lead as well.
Inside the Series
Ball State
• This is the 66th all-time meeting between two in-state foes and the second this year. IU has the advantage in the series but Ball State has 26 all-time wins. However, it has been since 2013 that IU last took a defeat to the Cardinals.
• This is the third time in the last eight years (2017, 2019) that the two teams will play at Victory Field. Last year's game was supposed to be played at Victory Field but a weather postponement caused the game to move back to Muncie.
IU took down Maryland in a three-game, back-and-forth series last weekend in Bloomington. The wild series featured a pair of run-rule victories and an incredible comeback from the Hoosiers on Friday (April 18) evening. Head coach Jeff Mercer is hoping that a dominant Sunday win will spark some late-season magic for his ballclub.
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor broke the program's all-time home run record against the Terrapins and appears to have the invisible monkey off his back. Following his record-breaking swing, Taylor went on to reach base safely six times on Sunday with three hits and three walks. He leads the team with a .377 batting average.
As IU tries to get its pitching lined up for a big weekend series at Iowa, expect the Hoosiers to roll out a plethora of arms at Victory Field. Last year's game at Ball State went 12 innings and saw pitching coach Dustin Glant call on the services of 11 different pitchers. Redshirt junior Pete Haas will open the game on the mound on Wednesday.
Freshman third baseman Will Moore was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for his heroics over the weekend against Maryland. The young Canadian leads the conference in on-base percentage (.527) and moved into the leadoff spot on Sunday. He has been a spark in the IU lineup with his ability to draw walks and take the ball the other way.
IU will be the designated visitors on Wednesday at Victory Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. against Ball State. The game will be streamed on Indiana SRN and can be heard on the radio at whcc105.com/iuhoosiers.com with Austin Render.
Gameday Info
vs. Ball State (Wednesday, April 23rd – 6:00 PM ET)
Live Video: t.ly/cfDVI
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/jV0bN
Probable Starters
Ball State
• Wednesday – RHP Pete Haas, R-Jr. (1-2, 4.56 ERA)
Leading Off
HOME RUN KING: Junior outfielder Devin Taylor made IU history when he hit the 48th home run of his career on Saturday against Maryland. He hit his 49th on Sunday and is now set to stretch out his lead as the program's best home run hitter ever.
AWAY FROM HOME: IU is set to play the next eight games away from home, it's longest such stretch of the season. A trip to Iowa is the only Big Ten series in that run of time but the Hoosiers will need to be near perfect as they look to climb into a potential NCAA Tournament position.
MOORE BASES: Freshman third baseman Will Moore has statistically been the best at getting on base in the entire Big Ten conference. He leads the league with a .527 on-base percentage and has 23 walks, 26 hits and 10 hit-by-pitches to his name this year. The Canadian was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Monday (April 21).
LAUNCHING THE LONG BALL: Redshirt sophomore outfielder Korbyn Dickerson is tied for third nationally with 17 home runs this season. As a team, IU is second in the Big Ten and 13th in the country with 70 long balls. Four players have at least nine home runs on the year.
PRIME KRAFTY: Since the end of the Penn State series (March 10), senior southpaw Ryan Kraft has been dominant for the Hoosiers. He's thrown 10 times in that span with a 2.93 ERA and 24 strikeouts compared to just nine walks. He has become an important part of IU's staff for the stretch run.
NEAR 2,500: As a program, the Hoosiers are just seven wins away from reaching 2,500 all-time victories. The program has risen to national relevance over the last decade plus but has produced high-level players and managers. IU can reach that mark as early as the Abilene Christian series.
Scouting the Opponent
Ball State
• As has been the standard under Rich Maloney, Ball State is having a fantastic season and will be one of the favorites to earn the automatic bid out of the MAC. The Cardinals are 29-12 overall and are 15-3 in conference play. Indiana held on to win the first matchup this season, 7-5.
• The Cardinals have had a strong season on the mound, led by weekend starters Keegan Johnson and Jacob Hartlaub. In the midweek, Ball State has been able to vary its arms. It has 11 pitchers that have made double-digit appearances this season. Owen Quinn and Garrett Harker have combined for 30 appearances without making a start.
• Ball State will be no slouch at the plate either. Shortstop Dylan Grego is hitting .376 with 12 home runs and 46 RBIs. He had a game last week against Bowling Green with three home runs and nine RBIs. Utilityman Blake Bevis has also hit 12 home runs. Third baseman Alex Richter shares the team lead as well.
Inside the Series
Ball State
• This is the 66th all-time meeting between two in-state foes and the second this year. IU has the advantage in the series but Ball State has 26 all-time wins. However, it has been since 2013 that IU last took a defeat to the Cardinals.
• This is the third time in the last eight years (2017, 2019) that the two teams will play at Victory Field. Last year's game was supposed to be played at Victory Field but a weather postponement caused the game to move back to Muncie.
Players Mentioned
OF
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LHP
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INF
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OF
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