Hoosiers Hand Ball to McCade Brown for Second Game With Michigan State on Saturday
EAST LANSING, Mich. – Indiana has passed the quarter pole in this abbreviated Big Ten baseball season, and so far, so good.
The Hoosiers are 10-2 after Friday's impressive 8-2 victory over Michigan State and lead 9-4 Michigan by 1.5 games now. Their series with the Spartans continues on Saturday at 1:05 p.m. ET, with hard-throwing right-hander McCade Brown taking the mound for the Hoosiers.
Brown was dominant in his first two starts, striking out 28 batters over 14 innings. But he struggled to find his groove last weekend, and he took the loss on Saturday against Purdue, giving up five runs, four earned, in the 9-5 loss.
For the season, Brown is now 2-1 with a 2.37 earned run average. He has 36 strikeouts in 19 innings. Indiana coach Jeff Mercer is confident that Brown will bounce back nicely on Saturday.
"Im sure we'll see more of the same old McCade on Saturday. His stuff is still very good,'' Mercer said. "There were a lot of circumstances that played into what happened last weekend. It was a bit of a fluke, I think. Justin (Parker, Indiana's pitching coach) wasn't there (after testing positive for COVID-19) and McCade struggled to get comfortable.
"We've made plans to help him this week and I'm fully expecting to see another quality start from him.''
Michigan State (6-7) will give Brown a good test. The Spartans are fourth in the Big Ten in hitting (.273) this season. Indiana is first at .285. The series concludes on Sunday with another 1:05 p.m. ET game.
You can listen to Saturday's game on Indiana's live radio feed. CLICK HERE
Related stories on Indiana baseball
- HOOSIERS WIN OPENER VS. MICHIGAN STATE: Indiana exploded for four runs in back-to-back innings to blow open the series opener with the Spartans on Friday, winning 8-2. Starter Tommy Sommer is now 3-0. CLICK HERE
- FRESHMEN ADD PUNCH TO LINEUP: Paul Toetz has had a great start to the season and now fellow freshman Kip Fougerousse has had some big hits, too, adding depth to an already strong lineup. CLICK HERE
Big Ten baseball standings
| Team | Wins | Losses | Win Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Indiana | 10 | 2 | .833 | --- |
Michigan | 9 | 4 | .692 | 1.5 |
Nebraska | 8 | 4 | .667 | 2 |
Northwestern | 7 | 5 | .583 | 3 |
Rutgers | 7 | 5 | .583 | 3 |
Ohio State | 6 | 5 | .545 | 3.5 |
Illinois | 7 | 6 | .538 | 3.5 |
Michigan State | 6 | 7 | .462 | 4.5 |
Maryland | 5 | 6 | .455 | 4.5 |
Iowa | 4 | 7 | .364 | 5.5 |
Penn State | 4 | 8 | .333 | 6 |
Minnesota | 3 | 9 | .250 | 7 |
Purdue | 2 | 10 | .167 | 8 |