Toledo, Ohio— The University of Toledo baseball team kicks off its 2018 season this weekend at the Sunshine State Series in Kissimmee, Fla.
The Rockets will face Iowa, Pittsburgh, and Saint Louis over the course of the weekend, with all games being played at Osceola County Stadium. A
live stream will be available and you can also follow the action using
live stats or on Twitter at
@ToledoBaseball.
Friday: vs. Iowa, 6:30 p.m. (LHP Nick Allgeyer vs.
LHP Michael Jacob)
Saturday: vs. Saint Louis, 3:00 p.m. (RHP Cody Luther vs.
RHP Layne Schnitz-Paxton)
Saturday: vs. Pittsburgh, 6:30 p.m. (RHP Derek West vs.
RHP Kyle Bischoff)
Sunday: vs. Saint Louis, 11:00 a.m. (RHP Connor Lehman vs.
RHP Sam Shutes)
Rocket Notes
- Toledo returns eight starting position players and 19 letterwinners overall from a season ago. Ninety-three percent of its runs from 2017 were driven in by players returning in 2018.
- In many areas, 2017 saw the best offensive season for Toledo since 2010. The Rockets hit 39 home runs, 19 triples, and 101 doubles, all of which were the most since 2010. UT's slugging percentage was .377, and its 748 total bases were also the most since 2010.
- A pair of Rockets will be seeing time at new positions in 2018. Michael Jacob, UT's closer the last two seasons, will move into the weekend rotation with the expectation of being the Friday starter. Riley Campbell, Toledo's primary third baseman in 2017, will make the move across the diamond to be the team's starting second baseman.
- Toledo has 12 newcomers on its roster this season: freshmen Kyle Bischoff, Alec Bukowski, Andrew Compton, Bryce Davis, Trace Hatfield, David Jeffers, Chris Meyers, Zach Schwartzenberger, John Servello, and Jacob Youngpeter are joined by junior college transfers Axel Bueter and Billy Todorowski.
Scouting the Competition
- Iowa returns six starting position players and its designated hitter from last season, a year in which the Hawkeyes won 39 games and their first Big Ten Tournament title in school history. Iowa did lose two of its weekend starters as well as the Division I home run leader Jake Adams. The Hawkeyes averaged 6.2 runs per game in 2017 and had a team ERA of 4.39.
- Pittsburgh played to a record of 23-30 last season and will return six starters in the field and one-third of its weekend rotation from a year ago. Leading the way among returners is sophomore Alex Amos, who led the Panthers with a .304 batting average and a .456 on-base percentage, fourth-best in the ACC last season.
- Saint Louis won 35 games in 2017, third-most in school history. The Billikens started the year hot, winning 13 of their first 14 games, leading the Atlantic 10 in scoring last season at 6.2 runs per game, and they return eight regulars from that potent offensive attack. SLU had a team ERA of 4.05 in 2017 and returns two of its weekend starters. The Billikens were picked as the top team in the A10 in the conference's preseason poll. Toledo has never faced Saint Louis under Cory Mee.
