Through the ups and the downs of the 2024 season and a run through the MLB Draft process with the Texas Rangers, Iowa pitcher Cade Obermueller brings much-needed experience to the bullpen this season.
New Iowa pitching coach Sean Kenny has built an impressive resume in his 20-plus years of baseball. After playing for three seasons in the New York Mets organization, Kenny began his illustrious coaching career, taking him all over the collegiate baseball world.
Tenures at Maryland, Michigan, Georgia, and Houston have solidified Kenny as a highly accredited name when it comes to coaching and developing pitching prospects, guiding 45 arms to be selected in the MLB Draft.
It’s no surprise Kenny can recognize arm talent immediately with that much experience under his belt. During his first instance watching third-year Obermueller go to work on an early season bullpen session, Kenny was not only impressed but amazed by the arsenal he saw from the lefty.
“[Obermeuller is] better than what I envisioned, than what I’ve been told,” Kenny said. “There isn’t a team in the country that wouldn’t have him in the rotation — not to mention the make-up is just off the charts.”
What Kenny and the rest of college baseball saw from Obermueller last season was noteworthy too.
Obermueller thrived in his debut season as a Saturday and Sunday starter. Notching a 3.92 earned run average, Obermueller held batters to a .187 batting average while recording 73 strikeouts in nearly 60 innings of work.
This output was strong enough to generate some traction from different professional organizations.
In the 2024 MLB Draft, Obermueller was selected in the 19th round by the Texas Rangers. Instead of forgoing his remaining eligibility, Obermueller turned down the offer and decided to remain a Hawkeye for the following season.
Obermueller proceeded to experience what some would say an atypical offseason following his decision to return. Instead of competing in one of the hundreds of collegiate baseball summer leagues, Obermueller took some time off from throwing the ball completely, something he hadn’t done since his high school days at Iowa City High School.
“I took a while off throwing over the summer, other than the [MLB Draft] combine,” Obermueller said. “Basically, strength was the main goal. I attribute that to helping me get velocity but also throwing a lot of strikes.”
Now, with an offseason full of rest and recovery, Obermueller is ready to be the go-to Friday night starter for the Iowa pitching staff.
“The one break we caught this summer is that Cade Obermueller is back,” Iowa head coach Rick Heller said. “That gives us a bonafide Friday night starter out there.”
Surrounded by veterans Marcus Morgan and Brody Brecht last season, Obermueller was the new kid on the block in the weekend rotation. But with both athletes departing to the major leagues this past summer, Morgan to the Philadelphia Phillies and Brecht even more impressively to the Colorado Rockies 38th overall on a $2 million contract, it’s Obermueller who returns as the most experienced starting pitcher for the Hawkeyes in 2025.
The absence of Morgan and Brecht allows opening starting positions for two new Iowa arms. Third-years Anthony Watts and Aaron Savary along with fifth-year Reece Beuter have been some of the names Heller wants to see in starting spots on weekends.
But no matter who gets the nod, none of the candidates had the week-in, week-out experience that Obermueller went through last season. This adds another role that Obermueller has to take on top of being the go-to guy with the ball in his hands: leadership.
“I am excited for it; I feel like I am a pretty good leader from that point of view,” Obermueller said. “I help the new guys understand what it takes. I think it’s going to be an easy adjustment for them.”
Obermueller and the Hawkeyes make their season debut on Friday, Feb. 14 against the University of South Florida. This game will kick off a three-game series versus the Bulls for what must be a strong start to a 2025 campaign.