University of Toledo
Middle Tennessee
Toledo Kicks Off Spring Break Trip with Weekend Series at Middle Tennessee
3/2/2023 2:29:00 PM | Baseball
Rockets and Blue Raiders open series with Saturday doubleheader after Friday weather delay
TOLEDO, Ohio – The Toledo baseball team hits the road for its spring break trip this week, which begins with a three-game series at Middle Tennessee this weekend.
Originally scheduled to begin on Friday, the Rockets and Blue Raiders will now kick off their series with a Saturday doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. Friday's series opener was postponed due to inclement weather in the area. The series finale will be held on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Saturday's doubleheader will be streamed live on CUSA.tv and Sunday's series finale will be streamed on ESPN+.
Toledo is coming off a 1-2 weekend at the OneSpartanburg, Inc. Baseball Classic, with its lone win coming at USC Upstate on Saturday by a score of 11-3.
In that game against the Spartans, the Rockets took the lead with a three-run fourth inning and blew the game open by scoring six runs in the top of the sixth. The four Toledo pitchers that saw time on the mound did their part as well and it all culminated in a convincing victory. Noah Johnson earned the win with five solid innings and seven strikeouts. Kyle Pijaszek, Matt LeLito, and Parker Newby all pitched well out of the bullpen, combining to allow just one run over four innings while striking out three.
Through six games, Johnson leads the staff in strikeouts (10) and Cal McAninch leads the team in innings pitched (9.1) and appearances (four).
At the plate, three different players share the team lead in RBIs with five: Trey Wright, Owen Jackson, and Garret Pike. Jackson, the team leader in home runs, has homered in three straight games.
Following this weekend's games, Toledo heads to UT Martin for a quick two-game series on Tuesday and Wednesday before beginning Mid-American Conference play next weekend. The Rockets visit the Miami RedHawks March 10-12 for a three-game series in Oxford.
About Middle Tennessee
MTSU enters the weekend 6-3, having recently swept St. Bonaventure in a four-game series at home. Preseason C-USA honoree Jaden Hamm leads the pitching staff with a 1.38 ERA across two starts, tallying 15 strikeouts and zero walks in 13.0 innings. Offensively, Middle Tennessee is one of the most aggressive teams in the nation when it comes to running the bases, ranking ninth nationally in stolen bases (23). Three Blue Raider hitters are batting over .400 in the early going: Briggs Rutter (.444), Jeremiah Boyd (.419), and JT Mabry (.406). Boyd is tied with DJ Wright for the team lead in RBIs with 11.
