Maryland baseball vs. Rutgers preview

Maryland baseball (17-11, 2-1 Big Ten) hosts Rutgers (15-13, 1-2 Big Ten) in a three-game series this weekend for its conference home opener.

The Terps are coming off a rough showing against William & Mary, falling 13-3 on Tuesday. 

The Terps’ pitching staff struggled in the loss, allowing 10 earned runs, 12 hits, and walking 14 batters. 

Pitching staff struggles have been a story for the Terps all season long, getting off to a 4-7 start while allowing five or more runs in eight games during that stretch. 

“I’m really not concerned at all,” coach Rob Vaughn said of the pitching staff. “Those guys are too good to not [turn it around] … they’re doing everything they need to do. They’re working their butts off every day.”

Some Terps have turned it around and shown glimpses of success.

Junior ace Jason Savacool headlines the group with the seventh-best ERA in the Big Ten at 3.21. The right-hander also is tied for the sixth-most strikeouts in the conference, punching out 44 hitters entering the series.

Freshman left-hander Kyle McCoy has also shown success for the squad with a 3.94 ERA. After starting the season in a relief role, McCoy has been the Sunday starter for the squad for the past four weeks. McCoy dominated in a March 26 showing against UCF, pitching eight shutout innings while allowing only three hits. 

On the other side of the ball, the Terps are one of the best in the conference offensively, averaging 8.3 runs a game. They have also scored the second-most total runs among Big Ten schools, and a big reason why is their power bats. Maryland has posted the second-highest slugging percentage and smashed the most home runs in the conference.

Senior third baseman Nick Lorusso leads the offense, batting .372 alongside 11 home runs, the most in the conference. Lorusso also has the most RBIs in the conference with 43. 

Star shortstop Matt Shaw is right behind him, mashing the second-most home runs with 10. The junior has a knack for getting on base, leading the team with a .471 on-base percentage. Shaw is coming off Big Ten Player of the Week honors, leading the team to a weekend series win over then-No. 25 Iowa while batting .583 and cracking two home runs.

The Scarlet Knights are not far behind the Terps, boasting a top-five scoring offense, averaging 7.57 runs per game. 

“Offensively, I know it hasn’t been the home run barrage like it was for them last year,” Vaughn said. “But that’s a really dangerous offense.”

Junior outfielder Evan Sleight leads the offense with his .394 batting average. Sleight also leads the Scarlet Knights with seven homers and 27 runs.

Fellow outfielder Trevor Cohen has been a hit machine for Rutgers. The freshman has a .371 batting average, bringing in 25 runs himself while bringing home 22 RBIs. Cohen is fifth in the Big Ten in hits with 43.

Like the Terps, the Scarlet Knights have struggled with pitching, recording a 5.07 collective ERA on the season. The pitching has been a main source of their defeats, allowing five or more runs in 11 of their 13 losses. 

Junior right-hander Drew Conover is the Friday night starter for Rutgers. Conover has pitched 32.1 innings on the season in eight appearances, racking up a 5.57 ERA. But he does have the sixth-lowest opposing batting average in the conference, holding hitters to a .200 clip at the plate. It’s uncertain if Conover will start Friday against the Terps, as he made a one-inning appearance in Rutgers’ 5-0 victory over Hofstra Tuesday. 

“On the mound they’re gonna compete, offensively they’re scary,” Vaughn said. “It’s one of those things when you have a team like them — who hasn’t played their best consistent baseball yet — you know at some point that team’s gonna put it together and start playing at a really, really high level.”

The matchup will be the 31st in the two programs’ history, with Maryland leading the series 19-10-1. In three matchups last year, Maryland went 2-1 against the Scarlet Knights. 

First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., Saturday is 3 p.m. and Sunday is 12 p.m. All three games will take place at Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium.