Michigan State University Athletics
Spartans Head to Minnesota for Final Regular Season Series
5/13/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
| Michigan State (32-19, 13-8 B1G) vs. Minnesota (19-29, 7-14 B1G) | |
| Game 1 | Thursday, May 14 - 7:35 p.m. ET |
| Location | Minneapolis, Minn. | Siebert Field |
| Game Notes | Michigan State | Minnesota | B1G |
| Probable Pitching Matchup | LHP Cam Vieaux (4-6, 3.40 ERA) vs. RHP Ben Meyer (4-5, 4.22 ERA) |
| Coverage | Video Stream | | Listen - Spartan Sports Network |
| Game 2 | Friday, May 15 - 7:05 p.m. ET |
| Probable Pitching Matchup | RHP Mick VanVossen (4-4, 5.35 ERA) vs. RHP Matt Fiedler (1-0, 1.96 ERA) |
| Coverage | Video Stream | | Listen - Spartan Sports Network |
| Game 3 | Saturday, May 12 - 2:05 p.m. ET |
| Probable Pitching Matchup | LHP Jeff Kinley (4-2, 3.02 ERA) vs. LHP Dalton Sawyer (3-3, 5.19 ERA) |
| Coverage | Video Stream | | Listen - Spartan Sports Network |
Entering the Series...
• The Spartans enter the final weekend of the regular season tied for third place as MSU, Ohio State and Maryland all have identical 13-8 conference records. • MSU has reached the 30-win plateau for the sixth straight season with a 32-19 overall record.
• In the most recent NCAA RPI released on Wednesday, the Spartans ranked No. 41 - up six spots after their win at Central Michigan on Tuesday.
• The Spartans rank third in the Big Ten in batting average as they are currently hitting .295 as a team ... MSU also ranks third in slugging percentage (.430), hits (514) and home runs (39).
• Michigan State is 20-6 since the beginning of April and has lost back-to-back games just once over the span ... The Spartans are hitting .325 over the span, averaging 11.5 hits and 7.3 runs per game.
• In Big Ten play, MSU and Illinois are tied for the league lead as both have a .316 batting average ... MSU ranks in the top five in slugging percentage (.469, second), on-base percentage (.383, third), runs scored (132, fourth), hits (236, second), doubles (47, second) and home runs (20, tie-second).
• The Spartans have eclipsed several of their offensive totals from 2014 (57 games), including runs (300, +40), hits (514, +6), doubles (95, +3) and home runs (39, +18).
• Ryan Krill enters Thursday's game with a career high 16-game hitting streak ... The streak is the longest by a Spartan since Ryan Jones' school-record 33-game hitting streak in 2011.
• The Spartans are outscoring opponents by a combined margin of 102-63 over the seventh, eighth and ninth innings, including 41-20 in the seventh inning and 48-18 in the eighth inning.
• MSU ranks third in the Big Ten in fielding percentage at .976 ... The Spartans' 46 errors are the second fewest in the league ... MSU is 30-13 when committing no more than one error in a game this season.
• Spartan pitchers have combined for 369 strikeouts, which ranks fifth in the Big Ten and are the fifth most by an MSU staff in program history ... The strikeout total is the most since the 2012 Spartans combined for 389, which ranks second in school history.
• Michigan State's 39 home runs are the 11th most in program history and the most since the 2005 team hit 44.
• MSU has scored 10 or more runs in four of the last eight games and put up 10 or more hits in five of the last eight games (since April 29).
• Head coach Jake Boss earned his 250th-career win on May 10 in the series finale vs. Penn State ... Boss got his 200th win at MSU on March 8 in a 6-5 victory at Coastal Carolina.
Player Notes
• The Spartans' leading hitter is senior Ryan Krill, who ranks sixth in the Big Ten in batting average (.352), fourth in RBIs (48), third in slugging percentage (.582) and tied for third in home runs (9) ... In Big Ten games, Krill leads the league in nearly every category, including: batting average (.438), slugging percentage (.788), on-base percentage (.536), RBIs (31) and home runs (7).
• Krill brings a season-high and team-long 16-game hitting streak into Thursday's game ... Krill has a .418 batting average with 18 RBIs over the streak.
• Cam Gibson's 50 runs scored are tied for third the Big Ten ... He is the first Spartan to score at least 50 runs in a season since 2012 when Ryan Jones scored 52.
• Mark Weist leads MSU with 21 multi-hit games ... He has been held without a hit in just 10 of the Spartans' 51 games this season.
• For the first time since 2012, the Spartans have five players with at least 30 RBIs: Krill (48), Weist (36), Blaise Salter (36), Cam Gibson (31) and Chad Roskelly (30).
• Catcher Chad Roskelly has reached base in 15 consecutive games - the third-longest streak by a Spartan this season.
• In Big Ten play, Anthony Misiewicz (.217) and Mick VanVossen (.231) rank sixth and seventh, respectively, in opposing batting average.
• Cam Vieaux's team-leading 64 strikeouts are seventh most in the Big Ten.
About Minnesota
Minnesota has a 19-29 record and is 7-14 in conference play this season ... The Gophers are currently on an eight-game losing streak heading into the final series of 2015, most recently dropping three games to conference-rival Iowa ... Senior shortstop Michael Handel is batting .321 on the season, tallying eight doubles, one triple and four home runs for a team-high .455 slugging percentage ... Senior RHP Ben Meyer leads the pitching staff with a 4.22 ERA, posting a 4-5 record over 13 starts this season ... As a team, the Gophers are batting .259 ... The pitching staff has a 5.53 ERA and opponents are hitting .272 off the Gophers.
Spartans Go 20-6 Since April 1
Michigan State has been one of the hottest teams in the conference since April 1, posting a 20-6 record over the span. The Spartans have lost back-to-back games just once during the stretch and won at least four straight on three occasions, including a season-long six-game winning streak from April 26 - May 2. Thirteen of the 20 wins have been by three or more runs as they have outscored opponents by a combined total of 189-114.
Offensively, the Spartans improved their batting average by .031 to .295, which ranks third in the Big Ten. MSU has had 60 of its 95 total doubles and 27 of its 39 total home runs over the 26-game span.
Four starters are hitting .330 or higher since April 1, including Anthony Cheky (.426), Ryan Krill (.422), Cam Gibson (.333) and Mark Weist (.330). Krill leads the team with 33 RBIs over the span.
In B1G Play
• The Spartans are tied for the lead in batting average (.316) and rank second in slugging percentage (.469), hits (236), doubles (47) and total bases (313) ... The Spartans' 20 home runs are tied for second.
• Ryan Krill leads the league in batting average (.438), slugging percentage (.788), on-base percentage (.536) at total bases (63) and is tied for the top spot in RBIs (31) and home runs (7).
• Cam Gibson is second in runs scored (23).
Krill's Career Year
Ryan Krill is having his best season in the Green and White and brings a career-long 16-game hitting streak into Thursday's game. The senior has a .352 batting average and leads the Big Ten in league games in batting average (.352), fourth in RBIs (48), third in slugging percentage (.582) and tied for third in home runs (9).
His team-high 48 RBIs are 20 more than his previous career high (28, 2012). He has at least one hit in 26 of the last 29 games, raising his average by .139.
He was named Big Ten Player of the Week for the first time in his career after a 5-for-6, six-RBI performance in the series finale vs. Northwestern on April 12.
Roskelly Shines at the Plate...And Behind It
Redshirt freshman catcher Chad Roskelly has been a great addition for the Spartans this season. Replacing Joel Fisher, who started 178 games for MSU from 2011-14, Roskelly has stepped up and started 43 games this season. His 30 RBIs are the fifth most on the team and his .283 batting average ranks sixth.
Behind the plate, Roskelly has a .997 fielding percentage and has thrown out 10 would-be base stealers.
Seniors Rising
The eight-man senior class of Anthony Cheky, Jeff Kinley, Ryan Krill, Ryan Richardson, Blaise Salter, Chase Toth, Mick VanVossen and Mark Weist has combined to appear in over 1,000 career games. The class has been a part of 133 wins over four seasons and helped lead the Spartans to the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
Offensively this season, the class has combined for 56% of the team's hits and 59% of the total RBIs. On the mound, Kinley and VanVossen have combined for eight wins and 112 innings pitched.
The National Picture
Michigan State has played 11 games against ranked teams this season and 16 vs. teams currently in the NCAA RPI top 50. The Spartans are 7-9 against the RPI top 50, picking up wins over Illinois (11) Coastal Carolina (19), Ohio State (25) Notre Dame (32), Southeastern Louisiana (46) and two vs. Indiana (49). The Spartans' RPI is currently No. 41.
Here's a look at how the Spartans fared against ranked teams: swept then-No. 23 Oregon (April 3-4), fell to Oregon State in 10 innings, 4-3, (Feb. 14); lost three games to consensus top-10 UCLA (Feb. 27-Mar. 1); defeated Coastal Carolina, 6-5, (March 8) and went 1-2 vs. Illinois (March 28-30).
Big Innings = Wins
The Spartans have produced seven big innings (four or more runs) over their last eight games. MSU scored four or more runs in all three games vs. Purdue (May 1-3) and after failing to do so vs. Penn State, the Spartans had a six-run second inning in the 13-7 win at Central Michigan.
The Spartans are 13-2 this season when scoring four or more runs in an inning.
Spartans Using the Long Ball
The Spartans' 39 home runs are their most since the 2005 squad hit 44. MSU hit hit 19 home runs in the month of April and have at least one in seven of the last 10 games.
In the 15-7 win over Rutgers on April 18, the Spartans slugged five home runs, which is the second most by a Big Ten team in a game this season and MSU's most since May 2007 in a win at Illinois. The Spartans hit nine total homers in the three-game sweep at Rutgers.
Ryan Krill is the first Spartan since Jimmy Pickens in 2013 to hit at least nine home runs in a season. Mark Weist has six homers, while Blaise Salter, Cam Gibson, Chad Roskelly and Brandon Hughes all have five.
Gibson Having His Best Season
Junior Cam Gibson, who has been a mainstay in left field over the past two and a half years, is on his way to his best season with the Green and White. His .311 batting average ranks fourth on the team and he has set career bests in doubles (10), home runs (five), runs scored (50), RBIs (31) and tied his career highs in triples (four) and stolen bases (16).
Gibson has hit from the leadoff spot in all but one game this season.
