Friday's starter still unknown

After practice today, IU Coach Tracy Smith said he has not decided who will start Friday when the Hoosiers play Youngstown State.

“Right now we're not sure, and here's why,” Smith said. “Because what makes this time of the year different is every decision moving forward is critical. You try to put yourself in the best position to win the weekend.”

Smith did narrow down the list to four possible names. Either Scott Effross, Joey DeNato, Evan Bell or Brian Korte will get the start Friday.

Smith said he will watch the Indiana State–Stanford game at 2 p.m. Friday to see if one matchup is more favorable down the road.

It appears to be a game-time decision, but Smith laughed and assured reporters people will know who the starter is before the first pitch.

Here's a breakdown of the potential starters.

Scott Effross
ERA: 1.65
Record: 4-2
Starts: 0
Innings pitched: 49

Effross has been either the setup man or the reliever this year with Jake Kelzer in the bullpen.

But due to the emergence of Kelzer as the closer in the bullpen, Smith said at the Big Ten Tournament last weekend that Effross didn’t get to pitch as much as he would have liked.

He called Effross “one of the top arms in the country,” and he wants to use him in the best possible way.

Plus, Effross hasn’t just been a one-inning-and-done guy in his career. The sophomore has thrown as many as three innings of relief in his career at one time.

“But sometimes guys are different guys in the starters' roles,” Smith said. “I just don't know yet, but that's why he's in the discussion for sure.”

Joey DeNato
ERA: 1.77
Record: 12-1
Starts: 15
Innings pitched: 101.2

DeNato has been the ace of the staff and the Friday starter this season. He was named a third team All-American Thursday.

He has the records for most wins, strikeouts and innings pitched in his career of any pitcher in IU’s 119-year history.

So, why wouldn’t DeNato start the opening game of the regional?

The opponent Friday is Youngstown State, who is 16-36 on the year. IU may not want to throw his best pitcher against statically the weakest team in the regional.

IU will face the winner of the Indiana State–Stanford game at 6 p.m.Saturday, if the Hoosiers can get past the Penguins in the opening round.

Since DeNato has a reputation of eating up innings, Smith may keep DeNato until Saturday or even Sunday, when he anticipates a needed break for the bullpen.

When asked if he knew if he was starting Friday, DeNato responded, “I do not know yet.”

Evan Bell
ERA: 3.50
Record: 2-1
Starts: 1
Innings pitched: 18

After primarily being a middle reliever for most of the season, Bell started his first game of the season in the Big Ten Tournament semifinal against Michigan State and responded well.

His line was: 4.1 IP, 3 hits, 2 runs, 2 earned runs, 2 walks and one strikeout on 62 pitches against a Spartan team fighting to keep its season alive.

The 6-foot-9 sophomore has the least experience out of any of the other three starters, but given his most recent outing against Michigan State, he is a legitimate contender to get the start Friday.

Brian Korte
ERA: 2.11
Record: 3-0
Starts: 7
Innings pitched: 38.1

When Kyle Hart underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery earlier this year and Will Coursen-Carr struggled his way out of the rotation, Korte was thrust in a situation where he responded well.

As the No. 3 starter, Korte hasn’t lost a game. Though he hasn’t exhibited the endurance of DeNato or No. 2 starter Christian Morris, he’s been effective.

He didn’t pitch in the Big Ten Tournament, however. Smith said Korte was day-to-day because of arm soreness heading into regional play, but he has been throwing.

“We'll know more tomorrow based on the medical stuff,” Smith said. “He cranked it up on a bullpen the other day full speed, and it looked pretty good.  We just want to see how he's responding to that.”