Twenty new players on the team, two key injuries, a 16-inning epic in Florida, and an eight-game spring break road trip. Plenty of storylines for a full season, but the IU baseball team is only a quarter of the way through the season with Big Ten season just a week away.
With The Inside Pitch kicking off this week, here is a brief look at the Hoosiers so far this season in case you missed it.
After losing its first two games of the season in Alabama, IU claimed its first win of the year as they found themselves playing an unexpected doubleheader. Sophomore starter Tyler Tufts pitched a complete game against Georgia Southern as the Hoosiers finished their first tourney with a 1-2 record.
"What I threw seemed to work," Tufts said following the game. "My teammates had to make some plays behind me so it wasn't just me who had to have a good game."
The Hoosiers continued their hot streak in their second weekend of action, going 2-1 in the AutoZone Classic in Memphis.
In its next game, IU fell 5-3 at Indiana State, and received some more bad news when starting left fielder Kipp Schutz broke his left collarbone trying to make a play in the outfield. The freshman is expected to be out six to eight weeks. "It's just an unfortunate, freak accident," IU head coach Tracy Smith said. "He'll bounce back from it, but whether or not we get him back this year, we're not sure yet."
The Hoosiers would return to Bloomington for their first home game of the year, a 6-0 victory over Butler, before embarking on the team's eight-game Florida spring break trip.
Smith and his squad would break even on the trip, going 4-4 including a sweep at the hands of nationally ranked Florida State and a sweep of their own over Florida A & M.
So after 16 games and an overall record of 8-8, the Hoosiers ready themselves for this weekend's three-game set with IPFW at Sembower Field. Are you all caught up? Good. Let's play some ball!
