Three 2016 Hoosier starting pitchers are currently chasing their MLB dreams, which has left a large void in the 2017 squad.
IU Coach Chris Lemonis is set to use a bevvy of young talent to replace pitchers Caleb Baragar, Jake Kelzer and Kyle Hart, all of whom were drafted by the 19th round of the 2016 MLB Draft.
The third-year head coach announced the team’s starting rotation Monday, and it is headlined by three underclassmen. Sophomore Jonathan Stiever will get the first start. He will be followed by sophomore Tim Herrin, freshman Andrew Saalfrank and junior Brian Hobbie.
“We kind of have two different teams in some ways,” Lemonis said. “We have a great, older, mature lineup that a lot of our fans and media will know about, and then we have a very young but talented pitching staff. We’re excited about our young arms.”
Lemonis said he is pleased with the progression of Stiever, who added a better breaking ball during the offseason.
Stiever began developing his third pitch in the summer, and Lemonis said the sophomore perfected it during the fall.
“I think the breaking ball has really made a big difference for him to this point,” Lemonis said. “He’s very steady, and he just shows up and goes about his business. He’s a good command guy that gets after it.”
Lemonis said he believes the challenge of replicating last year’s starting pitching production will be difficult, but not impossible. He said the fight for the starting spots was competitive and added that he considers six Hoosier pitchers to be starters.
“Experience is hard to replace sometimes, but at some point Kyle Hart was young,” Lemonis said. “That’s the biggest side for us. A lot of our youth is in sophomores.”
Lemonis is left with a lot of options to fill the back end of his bullpen and said he expects senior Luke Stephenson, junior B.J. Sabol and sophomore Pauly Milto to be key players in their late game roles.
Senior outfielder Craig Dedelow said he has been impressed with the young pitching staff thus far and sees similar skills between them and last year’s staff.
“After losing a lot of the veteran guys that I have been with for the past three years leading up to this year, you’re seeing a lot of the same qualities that the Kelzers and Harts had,” Dedelow said of IU’s young arms. “Just a lot of composure and confidence in their stuff, and I think that’s only going to grow as the year goes on.”
As is the case with all young teams, Lemonis said he will be looking for improvement from game to game.
Lemonis said he trusts that playing good teams on the road and starting strong will be key as the season continues and the conference schedule gets underway.
“We just have to make sure as a group that we are progressing, that we are developing, that we are getting better,” Lemonis said. “We want our wins but we are getting better as we play. That’s always going to be a challenge when you have to go on the road for the first few weeks.”
In January, the Big Ten said Bloomington will be host to the 2017 Big Ten Tournament. The familiarity with the stadium and field could help IU’s relatively inexperienced pitching staff as it plays in the conference tournament.
Lemonis said he is excited to show off the facility, the city and the IU baseball fan base to the rest of the Big Ten.
“I don’t know if people realize how much it says about our administration, our facility and the city as it’s voted on by coaches around the league,” Lemonis said. “I hear from other coaches that they enjoy coming to Bloomington and playing. The environment is a great college baseball environment.”
