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There is no real way to begin this Big Ten preview other than diving in and giving a few remarks. This season the Big Ten conference has 17 school participating in baseball. College Baseball Now will give this to you before the season begins and then each week we will adjust it as needed. For all the Big Ten Conference news, check them out HERE.
BIG TEN Conference Countdown
17- Northwestern Wildcats were 4-20 in the Big Ten conference in 2024 and don’t appear to have gotten much better. Head Coach Ben Greenspan may find it possible to squeeze out a few more victories but he has to rely on his 2024 Freshman of the Year in the conference and that is Jackson Freeman to produce more than his 11 home runs from last season. Catcher Bennett Greenspan hammered out a .337 batting average along with 6 home runs.
16- Michigan State– The Spartans finished with a 24-27 overall record and a dismal 22-23 in conference play last season. Head coach Jake Boss, Jr. won’t have many horses o run this season. He will look upon Dzierwiak, Williams and Brenich to carry the load.
15- Minnesota Golden Gophers were 24-28 in 2024 overall and 11-13 in the conference. Several newcomers will get plenty of playing time and that includes Simon Skroch LHP from Yorkville, Illinois, Cole Selvis a transfer from Texas, Catcher Sam Hunt came via Vanderbilt and Parker Knoll from D3.
14- Purdue Boilermakers– finished with a 13-11 Big Ten record and 32-24 overall. Having them at #14 might be generous as they graduated 21 players and lost 2024 Big Ten Freshman of the Year in Luke Gaffney. Head coach Greg Goff did hire a very successful coach as an assistant in Greg Lovelady. However, the success will be a heavy load for Logan Sutter, Camden Gasser, Keenan Spence and the only returning starter will be Cole Van Assen. Rebuilding year in West Lafayette.
13- Ohio State Buckeyes– The roster was decimated by graduation and now new head coach Justin Haire will have to claw his team back into being respectable. Headlining the staff is junior Blaine Wynk, who went 2-1, 3.38 with two saves as a third team All-Big Ten reliever. Last year, the Buckeyes were 29-26 overall and 12-12 in the Big Ten.
12- Michigan Wolverines– In 2024, this team was 32-28 overall and 24-10 in the Big Ten conference. They got several players from Perfect Game to commit but will have to lean on infielder Mitch Voit for offense and Dylan Vigue on the mound. Head coach Tracy Smith has his work cut out for him.
11- Washington Huskies- Head Coach Eddie Smith finds his team in a new environment. Now they play in the Big Ten and not the Pac-12. However, their roster is underclassmen laden. Freshman Bradley Gilbert and Jackson Hotchkiss make this team have a bright future. Add seniors AJ Guerrero, Malachi Knight, Jackson Hotchkiss and Max Banks along with junior Isaac Yeager. This team has a chance to be better and surprise many teams. They were 19-31 last season in the Pac-12. They open the season at Globe Life Stadium against Illinois, Texas and Texas Tech.
10- Penn State Nittany Lions- After going 29-24 last season, head coach Mike Gambino has a ton of work to do tho get this roster ready for the brutal conference play. On the hill, they return Mason Butash with is 7.91 ERA and 2-23 record and Mason Horwat with a 5.34 ERA and 3-4 record. They get a boost, picking up junior outfielder from LSU in Paxton Kling. Bryce Molinaro returns from 11 home runs and 45 RBI’s for his sophomore year.
9– Illinois- It seems strange to have he conference winner from 2024 in the tenth spot. Head coach Dan Hartlieb is in his 19th season at Illinois and has won 56% of his games. The roster is not as loaded this season but still has sophomore outfielder Cameron Chee-Aloy and his .333 batting average and team leading 19 home runs along with infielder Coltin Quagliano, a senior that batted .304 with 55 runs batted in. Junior infielder Drake Westcott, The pitching staff will rely on Plumley Hutchinson to be their weekend ace, The pitching may be the weakest ling for the Illini squad that finished 35-21 in 2024.
8- Rutgers Scarlet Knights – This team can go either way from this spot but with all of the highly touted freshman , I believe up is there best trajectory. Head coach Steve Owens begins his 6th season as the Scarlet Knight coach and is #5 in the country on the number of wins. He will have a pitching staff to build from with freshman Jack Kirchner to build from and junior left-hander Preston Prince. Freshman infielder Yomar Carreras could be a nightly highlight in uniform and freshman Justin Shadek will get mound time as a sophomore.
7- UCLA Bruins- John Savage, Bruins head coach has a plethora of arms he will be able to call upon in 2025., In 2024, the Bruins were 19-33 in conference play. In 2025, he will have Cody Delvecchio as his likely Friday starter and Luke Rodriguez getting the ball on Sunday. There is a fight for the Saturday spot and Michel Burnett has the inside track. Sophomores Roman Martin. infielder , and Payton Brennan, s sophomore outfielder will be relied upon to key the offense along with AJ Salgado a senior infielder, They may be a bit high on my list.
6- Nebraska Cornhuskers- Finished in 2024 with a 40-22 overall record and 16-8 in Big Ten play. Head coach Will bolt will lose many to graduation but also bring back senior right-hander Drew Christo . The senior will likely get a weekend start all season. Junior pitcher Mason McConnaughey will also get another weekend spot. Outfielder Gabe Swanson and senior Cael Frost will be heading the offense. In all fairness, I wouldn’t be surprised if this team leapt over all others to win the conference in 2025.
BIG TEN Top 5 Projections
5- Iowa Hawkeyes- Head coach Rick Heller is excited about his 12 new signees to suit up for his Hawkeys and they include six position players: Brody Irlbeck (OF/LHP, Kansas City, Mo.), Milo Kelley(C, Davenport, Iowa), Cole Moore (C/RHP, Adel, Iowa), Tate Slagle (UTIL/RHP, Algona, Iowa), Ben Toft (OF, Wilmette, Ill.) and Trevor Vande Hey (OF, De Pere, Wis.).
Along with Irlbeck, Moore and Slagle, Iowa signed five other pitchers: Brady Ferguson (RHP, Omaha, Neb.), Maddux Frese (RHP, Southeastern CC, Norway, Iowa), Brolan Frost (LHP, Waterford, Wis.), John Henry Kohorst (LHP, Apple Valley, Minn.) and Nick Terhaar (RHP, Saginaw, Minn.).
In 2024, they finished 14-10 in conference play and 29-23 overall. He has lefty junior pitcher Aaron Savary to look for a weekend slot and Junior Anthony watts along with lefty sophomore Eliot Cadieux-Lanoque to add to his bevy of hurlers. He brought in first baseman Blake Guierin’s brother Tyler as a hurler from the right side
4-USC Trojans – New faciilites and new conference for head coach Andy stankiewicz. Last season on the 2024 campaign they were 31-20 overall. This year in the Big Ten, they will again be near the top of the conference. A couple of hurlers to watch are sophomore LHP Mason Edwards who had 54 strikeouts and allowed only 19 walks. Also, from Siena we have transfer Kaden Hunter a LHP, will get plenty of time to get acclimated to the rotation after a 2.33 ERA and a 4/4 K/BB rate. Caden Aoki is a righty junior that was 2-3 with 10 walks and 50 strikeouts.. The offense will lean on junior Ethan Hedges after a .370 average in 2024 an look for freshman catcher Augie Lopez to continue his hitting at the Collegiate level.
3. Maryland Terrapins– This is a team to watch. They have a recently successful history in the baseball program and are a hotbed on the East Coast for prospects. Head coach Matt Swope will look to his pitching staff top stymy other team on the schedule with Left-hander Kyle McCoy a 6’6″ ace and sophomore Joey McMannis to take over the Saturday matchups. Then he has Jake Yaeger with a 95 mph fastball to get the nod on Sunday. On the offensese and defensive side he finds Parker Corbin coming in as the #1 high school shortstop in Ohio who can also spot start at catcher. The Macopian brothers will man two spots on the infield with Eddie at first base after hitting .377 last year and his sophomore brother Chris Macopian manning shortstop or third base. This team is young and lack veteran presence. They can make a lot of noise in the conference,
2-Indiana Hoosiers – Coach Jeff Mercer can rest easier this year as Sam Benes has a full season under his belt after Tommy John surgery. Sam’s dad and two uncles pitched professional baseball. to add to the riches, he brings bask sophomore Ryan Kraft, a lefty and at the plate he has a pair of outfielders in Devin Taylor who hit ,357 with 20 homers and drove 54 runs. Leading the team in RBI’s is returnee Tyler Cerny and his 6o runs knocked in. For more on underclass signings by head coach Jeff Mercer, click HERE:
- Oregon Ducks– A new comer to the Big Ten but a threat to win the conference. Ducks head coach, Mark Wasikowski has some quality players returning in 2025. The offense will be mediocre or better with junior infielder Drew Smith projected to lead the offense with sophomore infielder Madddox Molonoy also sharing in the charge.Chase Meggers, catcher returns from his .315 average and senior first baseman brings back his team leading home runs from 2024. On the mound, junior lefty Grayson Grinnseul returning from s stellar 7-2 record. Another lefty, Ian Umlaudt at 4-0 in 2024 presents a formidable weekend rotation.
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