Three takeaways from Iowa baseball's series loss to Michigan

The Iowa baseball team dropped its first series in Big Ten conference play to Michigan this weekend, losing two of three games.

After a thrilling 3-2 walk-off victory in extras on Friday, the Hawkeyes dropped the next two games in a double-header on Saturday by margins of 4-3 and 10-6, respectively, to lose the series.

Iowa moves to 5-4 in conference play, dropping to third place in the standings. Here are three takeaways from the series loss.

Obermueller embraces new role

After making his first start in a Saturday slot last weekend, going five innings while allowing two earned runs against Minnesota, Obermueller appeared in the Friday position against Michigan.

Against the Wolverines, Obermueller fanned six batters across almost five innings while giving up a pair of runs.

“Cade Obermueller pitched great for three innings — as good as he’s pitched this year,” Heller said in a press release. “And then he kind of lost it and gave them some free bases, and we ended up giving them a couple of runs.”

Still, Obermueller has been the most consistent of the starting pitchers this season. The lefty leads the starters in ERA, innings pitched, and WHIP while holding opponents to a batting average of .157.

Brecht and Morgan continue to struggle

Beside Obermueller, the rest of the Iowa starting pitching staff has been inconsistent all season.

This past weekend, the third-year tandem of Brody Brecht and Marcus Morgan gave up eight runs in eight innings pitched and walked eight batters in the process.

Brecht, a potential future MLB lottery pick, has yet to adjust to Big Ten opponents this season. After notching an impressive 1.52 ERA in his five non-conference starts, Brecht has posted an 11.44 ERA against all three conference foes this season.

For Iowa’s third starter in Morgan, it has been a struggle to find his footing so far this season.

Morgan started the season with a sharp outing against Ball State, throwing scoreless baseball for almost six innings while fanning nine batters.

Since then, however, Morgan has yet to find his groove on the mound. The Iowa City local this season has posted an 8.42 ERA in 31 innings pitched. While striking out 39 batters, the righty has allowed 42 free bases to opponents.

For the Hawkeyes to make a push for their second-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, they will need both Brecht and Morgan to find their groove in the second half of the season.

Moore keeps impressing in his first season

After not seeing any game action in the 2023 season, designated hitter and catcher Reese Moore is emerging as a consistent threat in the Iowa batting order.

Entering the series, Moore posted an impressive .344 batting average while getting on base at a 0.451 clip, good for third-best on the team.

Against the Wolverines, it was much of the same. While playing both catcher and designated hitter again, Moore went 5-of-9 at the plate with an RBI.