By Blake Dowson
The baseball Hawkeyes have their backs against the wall. Sitting at 8-10 in the Big Ten, the team is on the outside looking in to get a spot in the conference tournament.
Iowa failed to capitalize on a golden opportunity this past weekend when it traveled to Ohio State to take on a Buckeye team that sat one game ahead of the Hawkeyes and occupied the final spot for the tournament. Iowa dropped two of three against Ohio State and dug itself a deeper hole to climb out of.
With the Hawkeyes losing the series to the Buckeyes, the Friday-May 15 matchup against Michigan State becomes even more important than it was a week ago.
With that in mind, here is a look at some numbers to keep an eye on this weekend.
Michigan State team batting average: .299
The Spartans boast the third-highest team batting average in the conference. Jordan Zimmerman, who is hitting .395 on the year with 23 extra-base hits, including 8 home runs, leads them. All together, Michigan State has five regulars hitting above .300.
The Hawkeye staff is used to seeing a high-powered offense like that of the Spartans. The two teams hitting better than Michigan State — Michigan and Minnesota — have faced off against Iowa. But the Iowa pitchers will need to do a better job of getting swings and misses against the Spartans, or the Hawkeyes’ tournament dreams might be put to rest at Banks Field this weekend.
Michigan State team ERA: 2.56
If that number seems ridiculously low, that’s because it is. The Spartan staff holds the best ERA in the conference by more than half a run. All three weekend starters for the Spartans have ERAs under 3. Ethan Landon, the Friday night starter, has a 6-2 record and a 2.69 ERA. Saturday hurler Joe Mockbee has a 2.70 ERA in 21 appearances. Sunday starter Cam Vieaux has a 2.20 ERA in 12 appearances.
Mockbee and Vieaux, both left-handers, will be particularly tough on Hawkeye hitters, who have struggled against southpaws all season. The Hawkeyes have also had difficulty at times stringing together runs. They were blanked twice last weekend against the Buckeyes, they and do not get the benefit of a midweek game to turn things around before they face Michigan State.
Michigan State’s Big Ten record last 10 games: 4-6
Although Michigan State is 11-7 in the conference and sits in a tie for fourth place, it has slid a bit recently. A series win against archrival Michigan was sandwiched between series losses to Indiana and Nebraska in the past three weekends. The Spartans once sat on top of the standings after a 7-1 start, but they have come back down to earth with the schedule beefing up toward the end of the year.