Tag: Iowa baseball

Jack Whitlock revisits Michigan heroics, details path to Iowa Hawkeyes

Redshirt sophomore Jack Whitlock was one of Iowa’s heroes against Michigan. He recapped striking out the side and detailed joining Iowa.

There was another Hawkeye hero before Iowa went crazy on Michigan with a six-run fifth inning that featured a Brayden Frazier grand slam.

Jack Whitlock entered into a high-stress situation in Iowa’s Big Ten Baseball Tournament opener in the fifth inning with the score all even at one apiece, nobody out and two Wolverines aboard.

After Hawkeye starter Marcus Morgan issued back-to-back walks to Mitch Voit and Gabe Sotres, Whitlock stepped in to relieve Morgan and issued a free pass of his own to Cody Jefferis.

Fear not, Whitlock calmly and promptly struck out Ted Burton, Jonathan Kim and Jimmy Obertop swinging in succession to keep the score deadlocked at 1-1. Then, of course, Iowa erupted for six in the fifth and the Hawkeyes were off and running into the winner’s bracket.

It did feel like Whitlock’s ability to wiggle Iowa out of the top of the fifth jam set the stage for the Hawkeye landslide that ensued. It led to a 13-3 run-rule victory over Michigan that had Iowa fans jumping for joy.

Whitlock joined the HawkFanatic Podcast on KCJJ Radio with hosts Pat Harty and Tom Suter.

Whitlock said he had a strong inkling that he would get the middle relief call if the situation presented itself.

“Well, coach Heller talked to me before the game and he told me that whatever situation it was, they were likely going to go to me. And they told Jared that, they were 90 percent going to go to me and that Jared there was a slight chance that maybe there was a matchup or something Jared would go in. So, I kind of knew and so I was prepared. Going into the fourth I threw a little bit and Marcus got out of the jam. And then, the fifth came around, I was prepared mentally like, be ready to go if something went down. So, yeah, they had me prepared and ready to go in there,” Whitlock said.

Sure enough, the situation presented itself and it was go time for Whitlock. A dicey situation immediately got just a little more complicated when he walked the first batter that he faced. What was Whitlock saying to himself after issuing said walk?

“Well, I was trying to tell myself to slow it down a little bit. Slow the heart rate down. I mean, when you go in there in a situation like that, you know, big crowd, it’s just a lot of tense (energy). In a big game, you know, it’s like your heart rate gets up. And I went in there and I thought the first batter, I didn’t pitch bad. He worked the count, went late in count 3-2. Walked him and I was okay with that. Like, I felt more comfortable out of the windup than the stretch in that moment, so it worked out and I just had to tell myself to just take slow breaths and just go one pitch at a time and not worry about what just happened,” Whitlock said.

Of course, the rest is history. Whitlock delivered and the Hawkeye bats came alive. Now, Iowa gears up for its winner’s bracket contest against second-seeded Indiana on Thursday at 2 p.m. CT from Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb.

The full interview with Whitlock is terrific and is cued up below. Here’s some other highlights from his conversation with the HawkFanatic crew below on Whitlock’s path to Iowa and more.

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Brayden Frazier details grand slam vs. Michigan Wolverines in Big Ten Baseball Tournament

Brayden Frazier provided the big fly against Michigan. He caught up with Big Ten Network to talk about his grand slam.

Iowa is off and running in the 2023 Big Ten Baseball Tournament. The Hawkeyes rolled away from the Michigan Wolverines, 13-3, in their opening contest. In the process, Iowa exacted a bit of revenge for last year.

The Hawkeyes broke open a 1-1 deadlock against the Wolverines with a six-run fifth inning. It wasn’t long after Sam Hojnar’s two-out, two-RBI single when Brayden Frazier delivered the game’s big blast.

Following Hojnar’s two-RBI knock, Michael Seegers delivered a single to right field and Kyle Huckstorf was hit by pitch. That set the stage for Frazier with the bases juiced.

The 6-foot, 195 pound redshirt junior absolutely laced one to left. It was Frazier’s first career grand slam. The big bop also represented the first grand slam in the Big Ten Tournament since 2017 and the first in tournament history at Charles Schwab Field.

Frazier caught up with Big Ten Network’s Mike Hall to discuss his homer in the Hawks’ Big Ten tourney opener.

“Oh man, it’s a pretty good feeling. Honestly, that was my first one, too, so I’m kind of going through all the emotions through that. But, it was probably up there in my baseball moments in my career for sure,” Frazier said.

Dating back to little league and through high school baseball, Frazier said this was the first grand slam in his playing career. How then did he handle the moment? Was he focused on just touching every bag or the pandemonium he’d created with his teammates?

“I was looking directly at my teammates, man. There’s no better feeling than looking in the dugout and knowing I just did something big for them, because they’ve been having my back all year. We’ve had a great year this far and we’re just trying to keep it going,” Frazier said.

While it was Frazier’s first career grand slam, Iowa has hit nine grand slams this season.

“Yeah, when they told me that yesterday, I honestly didn’t know that we’d hit that many. It doesn’t seem like it, but we’ve been generous enough and fortunate enough that we’ve been hitting pretty well and we’ve gotten guys in that situation and the right guys have stepped up at the right time,” Frazier said.

Frazier has appeared in 42 games, started 24 of them and is hitting .326 on the season. The Cedar Rapids native has 13 extra base hits and 27 RBI in 2023.

Now, Iowa moves on and will face second-seeded Indiana at 2 p.m. CT on Thursday from Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb. Indiana topped Illinois in its opener, 4-3.

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Social media reacts to Iowa Hawkeyes’ Big Ten Baseball Tournament rout of Michigan

Iowa thumped Michigan in the Big Ten Baseball Tournament, winning in run-rule fashion, 13-3. Hawkeye Twitter reacted accordingly.

This time a year ago, the Iowa Hawkeyes‘ stay in the Big Ten Baseball Tournament and Charles Schwab Field came to a close on the wrong end of a 13-1 beatdown from Michigan.

That was the final game of a charge through the loser’s bracket for the Hawkeyes. After dropping its opening game in a stunner to Penn State, Iowa rallied to win three consecutive games over Purdue, Penn State and Michigan to force the if necessary game against the Wolverines.

Ultimately, Iowa’s second-place Big Ten finish, its 36-19 record and the aforementioned run through the Big Ten Baseball Tournament wasn’t enough to convince the committee that it deserved one of the NCAA Tournament’s at-large bids.

One game in, the Hawkeyes are taking the better path in the 2023 Big Ten Baseball Tournament. Oh yeah, Iowa managed to exact a degree of revenge, too.

Iowa broke a 1-1 deadlock with Michigan in the opening game of the Big Ten Tournament with a six-run fifth inning. It featured a 2-RBI single from redshirt junior Sam Hojnar. Then, the big blast of the day came from Brayden Frazier as he launched a grand slam 373 feet to left field.

It was Frazier’s first career grand slam, the first grand slam in the Big Ten Tournament since 2017 and the first grand slam in Big Ten Tournament history at Charles Schwab Field. It was also the Hawkeyes’ ninth grand slam of the season.

Amazingly, all of that fifth-inning damage came with two outs.

Iowa owes a tip of the cap to sophomore righty Jack Whitlock. He entered in the fifth after Hawkeye starter Marcus Morgan walked the first two batters. Whitlock issued one more walk before striking out the side swinging. That kept the contest level at 1-1 before the Hawkeyes had that initial six-run, fifth inning explosion.

The Hawkeyes weren’t finished. Redshirt junior Kyle Huckstorf singled to plate junior Michael Seegers in the seventh. Iowa had some more two-out magic in the seventh as well. Sophomore Sam Petersen launched a three-run blast that made the score 11-2.

Finally, Iowa added a pair of runs in the bottom of the eighth on a passed ball and a Cade Moss single that brought home Seegers for a 13-3 run-rule victory.

The Hawkeyes advance and will meet No. 2 seed Indiana in the winner’s bracket after the Hoosiers held on to take care of Illinois, 4-3. Iowa and Indiana will battle at 2 p.m. on Thursday.

Iowa fans were thrilled with the Big Ten Tournament-opening win over Michigan. Here’s the best social media responses.

Pre-Big Ten Tournament college baseball Bracketology projections

Where might the Iowa Hawkeyes be headed? Here’s the most recent college baseball bracket projections ahead of the Big Ten Tournament.

The Iowa Hawkeyes just completed their regular season with a series win over Northwestern. Iowa topped the Wildcats on Thursday and Saturday to finish the regular season with a 39-13 (15-8 Big Ten) record.

That was good for the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. Iowa opens conference tournament play against sixth-seeded Michigan on Tuesday, May 23 at 10 a.m. from Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb. The other half of the Hawkeyes’ portion of the bracket features No. 2 seed Indiana versus No. 7 seed Illinois.

If Iowa wins its opening game against the Wolverines, the Hawkeyes would face the winner of Indiana-Illinois on Thursday at 2 p.m. If the Hawkeyes were to lose, they would turn around and play the loser of Indiana-Illinois at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night.

On the other half of the bracket, Maryland earned the No. 1 seed and will face No. 8 seed Michigan State. Fourth-seeded Nebraska opens against No. 5 seed Rutgers.

Heading into the Big Ten Tournament, the Hawkeyes currently possess the nation’s No. 32 RPI. Looking at projections across the country, Iowa probably needs several wins in the Big Ten Tournament to feel completely comfortable in their at-large NCAA Tournament chances.

Or, better yet, just win the Big Ten Tournament and take all the guesswork out of the equation. Still, just to give you an idea of where the Hawkeyes’ perceived current standing is, let’s take a look at several recent NCAA Tournament projections.

Best photos of Iowa baseball’s back-to-back Big Ten series wins

Iowa baseball is on a roll, winning back-to-back Big Ten series and 12 of their past 14. Here’s the best photos from the last two weeks.

Right when they need to be, Iowa baseball is playing some of its best ball right here in the home stretch of the season.

The Hawkeyes swept Michigan State this weekend, winning 9-0 on Friday, 8-6 on Saturday and 5-1 on Mother’s Day. Iowa has now won back-to-back Big Ten series and 12 of its past 14 contests.

Marcus Morgan was fabulous on Friday, tossing six no-hit, shutout innings to help set the stage. Meanwhile, Sam Petersen was 4-for-4 with a solo home run and two runs scored and Brayden Frazier was 2-for-4 with a double and a home run tallying two RBIs. Cade Moss and Raider Tello each added two RBIs for Iowa as well.

On Saturday, Iowa coughed up its two-run lead in the seventh as the Spartans tied things up 5-5 following a rain delay. The Hawkeyes responded with a three-run eighth to capture the series win. Brennen Dorighi led the Hawkeyes with a 2-for-4 day hitting two home runs and bringing home three RBIs. Ben Wilmes was 2-for-4 with a home run and a pair of RBIs.

Then, on Mother’s Day, Brody Brecht struck out eight and surrendered just one to guide the Hawkeyes’ sweep. Raider Tello was 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Michael Seegers was 2-for-4 with a solo home run and Brennen Dorighi was 2-for-4 with one RBI.

All of this comes on the heels of a series win over Ohio State. In its most recent Field of 64 projection, D1Baseball.com projects Iowa as a No. 3 seed in top-seeded South Carolina’s Columbia Regional. The Hawkeyes would square off against No. 2 seed North Carolina.

Elsewhere, College Sports Madness had Iowa as one of its last four teams in with its May 9 college baseball Bracketology. The Hawkeyes would join Indiana and Maryland under College Sports Madness’ prediction.

Here’s a look at the best photos from a pair of pivotal weeks for the Hawkeyes’ postseason chances.

Iowa Gambling Authorities reportedly investigating Hawkeye baseball program

Per the Action Network, Iowa baseball is reportedly under investigation by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission.

Per Darren Rovell, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission told Action Network that it has launched an investigation into the University of Iowa’s baseball team.

“The commission takes the integrity of gaming in the state seriously and is continuing to monitor the situation and will provide any additional information when able,” said Brian Ohorilko, the director of gaming for the state’s commission.

This comes after several players were withheld from action during the Hawkeyes’ series against Ohio State.

On Friday night, the University of Iowa released the following statement.

“Due to a potential NCAA violation, we withheld some student-athletes from competition. We will have no additional comments as this is an ongoing investigation,” the University’s release read on Friday.

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The Hawkeyes’ leading hitter, redshirt sophomore Keaton Anthony, was among the notable players absent per Kyle Huesmann of Hawkeye Report with On3.

Anthony leads Iowa with a batting average of .389 in 43 games played and started. The Hoschton, Ga., native has tallied 38 RBI, nine homers and 22 doubles thus far this season.

Other notable absences for Iowa during the Ohio State series included right-handed pitcher Jacob Henderson, catcher Ben Tallman, and catcher Gehrig Christensen.

Of course, all of this comes on the heels of a sports betting scandal at the University of Alabama. Former Crimson Tide head coach Brad Bohannon was fired last Thursday after an investigation into suspicious betting activity following Alabama’s 8-6 loss against LSU on April 28.

Per ESPN, sportsbook surveillance video from the sportsbook at the Great American Ball Park indicated that the person who placed the bets was communicating with Bohannon at the time.

The Hawkeyes won their weekend series against Ohio State, improving to 34-12 (10-7 Big Ten) after a 16-9 Friday win and a 15-3 Saturday win over the Buckeyes.

Iowa returns to action on Friday, May 12 at 6:05 p.m. CT for a three-game series versus Michigan State in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes are still very much in the mix for and looking to track down an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.

In D1Baseball’s most recent college baseball bracket projections, the Hawkeyes checked in as a No. 3 seed in the Terre Haute Regional alongside top seed Indiana State, No. 2 seed Tennessee and No. 4 seed Central Michigan.

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Iowa flamethrower Brody Brecht tabbed midseason All-American

Thanks to a terrific start to his sophomore campaign, Brody Brecht is garnering first-team All-American love.

If there were any questions as to why Iowa sophomore Brody Brecht decided to cease football to devote his full attention to baseball, this should provide a clear answer.

Hawkeyes pitcher Brody Brecht was named a midseason first-team All-American by Perfect Game on Tuesday afternoon. He is one of five starting pitchers selected by Perfect Game for this first-team list.

The Ankeny, Iowa, native leads the Hawkeyes with a 2.60 ERA in seven starts. Brecht ranks 11th in the nation in strikeouts with 59 and is third in strikeouts-per-nine innings (15.77). He is also 14th in the country with 5.08 hits allowed per nine innings.

Brecht has dazzled fans and scouts alike with his fantastic arm on the mound. According to the official press release that Iowa Athletics put out today, Brecht has topped 100 mph 26 times on the radar gun where TrackMan data is available. He has surpassed 95 mph 189 times. Brecht recently turned heads throughout the baseball world with his casual 104 mph fastball against Maryland. He struck out 13 batters in that outing.

LSU coach Jay Johnson praised Brecht recently, giving him credit as one of few pitchers to slow down the Tigers’ offense so far this year.

Midway through the season, there is a ton of buzz around the sophomore right-handed pitcher. Much has been made about his fastball, casually topping 100 mph, but he’s shown off a wicked slurve as well. Even his breaking pitches are the speed of an average college pitcher’s fastball.

Still only 20 years old, look for Brecht to be one of the top collegiate prospects in the MLB draft.

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Brody Brecht stepping away from football to follow ‘true passion’ of college baseball

Brody Brecht announced his intention to fully focus on his “true passion” of baseball. Here’s a look back at his Hawkeye football career.

When you throw a baseball like Brody Brecht throws a baseball, it felt like this announcement was just a matter of time.

If you’ll allow me to turn this into a brief editorial for a moment, it’s the right decision for Brody, too. Why jeopardize an opportunity at a multi-million dollar contract in professional baseball to play college football? I certainly wouldn’t have knocked Brecht if his love for football meant he was willing to take that risk, but this just makes so much more sense.

You’ve probably guessed or know by now that Brecht announced his intentions to step away from college football, sharing the following statement on social media last night.

“I want to say thank you. Thank you to the great Hawkeye fans for your unwavering support. Thank you to the coaches and staff of the Hawkeye football program for giving me a chance to fulfill my childhood dream as part of this incredible program.

“Thank you to my football teammates for a lifetime’s worth of great memories. Thank you to my friends and my family for their unwavering support and love. Thank you to God—for the blessings of my life, and for the clarity to make the choice I’ve made.

“Football is my first love. But in the past few years, baseball has become my true passion. With that said, I have decided to step away from football to focus full-time on my college baseball career. I want to be great at baseball and hope to play Major League Baseball in the future. I believe putting my focus fully on baseball is the best way for me to achieve that goal. Go Hawkeyes,” Brecht wrote in his social media statement.

Brecht finishes his football career with 11 games played, five starts and nine receptions for 87 yards. The 6-foot-4 wide receiver arrived as a three-star signee per 247Sports. He was regarded as the country’s No. 111 wide receiver and as the No. 11 player from Iowa per 247Sports.

The Gazette’s John Steppe shared the following statement from Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz on the Brecht news.

“We wish Brody the very best as he focuses solely on his baseball career. He is a talented and dedicated athlete and we are appreciative of his contributions while a member of the football team,” Ferentz said.

Brecht had a standout high school football career ahead of his time with the Hawkeyes. Here’s a look at his football career in photos from Ankeny to Iowa City.

Iowa Hawkeyes travel to Texas Tech Red Raiders for three-game series

Off to its best start since 1942, No. 23 Iowa travels to battle Texas Tech. Here’s a preview and a look at what’s happened recently.

The Iowa Hawkeyes baseball team has started this season quite impressively. It is actually the best start for the University since 1942, which was a pretty pretty long time ago.

Unfortunately, the success of the baseball team has sort of become lost in a sea of other Hawkeye happenings leading into March. Of course, there is the NFL Scouting Combine, where the Hawkeyes on display undoubtedly boosted their draft stocks with extremely strong performances.

Then, there is basketball. This is the pinnacle of basketball season: March! Women’s basketball has won their second straight Big Ten Championship, and, well, the men were looking up before these last two.

Wrestling also just competed in their Big Ten Championships, finishing second as a collective while sending all 10 wrestlers to the national championships.

There is a lot going on in Hawkeyes sports, but that doesn’t mean that baseball should fall by the wayside until the other sports are done doing their thing. In an effort to make up for some lost time, here is a roundup of the current stellar streak that Iowa baseball is on!

Plus, a quick look at the Texas Tech series this weekend.

Iowa Hawkeyes topple No. 1 LSU Tigers

Down goes No. 1! The Hawkeyes toppled the top-ranked Tigers in Round Rock. Here’s more an the massive early-season win.

A day after falling to Sam Houston, 6-0, Iowa (4-1) made up for its first loss of the season quickly by toppling previously unbeaten and No. 1 LSU.

The win over the top-ranked Tigers is believed to be Iowa’s first-ever win over the nation’s No. 1 team in program history. It was also the first matchup against the nation’s No. 1 team since a 2-1 loss against Arizona State in the 1972 College World Series.

“Really proud of our team,” Iowa head baseball coach Rick Heller said. “After a rough night last night, and a quick turnaround. How we bounced back and competed.”

“We have a really good team. A tough team. A team that puts in great effort every single day. Awesome makeup, good culture, good teamwork. Everything that you want to say is good from a culture standpoint these guys have that.”

Iowa jumped on LSU starter Riley Cooper in the top of the first, plating three runs. The Hawkeyes didn’t stop there.

Iowa put up a season high 12 runs on 16 hits. Eight different Hawkeyes tallied hits in the upset victory with six different players notching multi-hit games.

Brennen Dorighi was 3-of-4 with a pair of doubles, a home run and five RBIs. Michael Seegers was 3-of-5, and Keaton Anthony and Sam Petersen were 2-of-5 with 2 RBIs apiece. Raider Tello and Kyle Huckstorf both also tallied two hits for the Hawkeyes.

“I think it was our coming out party,” Dorighi said. “Just to show how dynamic our offense was from hitter one through nine. We had guys producing all the way through. Brayden even in the eight hole hitting home runs and driving in runs. We were able to drive runs in throughout all nine spots and be tough outs.”

Meanwhile, Hawkeye starter Brody Brecht escaped a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the first with three straight strikeouts. He ended his day with six strikeouts against eight walks and a pair of earned runs in 3 1/3 innings.

Jared Simpson went long relief for the Hawkeyes, scattering just three hits in 4 2/3 innings while racking up eight strikeouts. Then, Will Cristophersen recorded the game’s final three outs for Iowa.

It’s a monumental win for an Iowa team that just missed out on the NCAA Tournament a season ago in part because there just wasn’t a ton of beef on the résumé outside of Big Ten play.

The win drew plenty of social media reaction. Here’s some of the best.