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Iowa Baseball run-rules Rutgers 16-0, evens the series going into Sunday

On3 imageby:Kyle Huesmann•about 22 hours•

HuesmannKyle

Iowa first baseman Caleb Wulf stands on second base against Loras College. (Photo by Dennis Scheidt)
Iowa first baseman Caleb Wulf stands on second base against Loras College. (Photo by Dennis Scheidt)

The Iowa Baseball team needed to release some frustrations, and they did just that on Saturday afternoon, putting up 16 runs on 17 hits, en route to an emphatic, 16-0 statement victory of Rutgers to even the series at a game apiece going into Sunday.

Per UI Baseball sports information director Sam Basler, the Hawkeyes six home runs is their most in a game since 2018 when they totaled seven home runs against Missouri. Both Mitch Boe and Tyler Cropley, now Iowa assistants, combined for three home runs in that game.

It’s been a maddening start to the season for the Hawkeye offense. For the most part, they’ve done well at setting the table, but many times have failed to come through with clutch hits or the crooked number they need to grab wins. On Saturday, they did everything, and the offense has now totaled 45 runs over their last four games, which has led to three wins.

“It was a fun day for the offense,” said head coach Rick Heller. “Our guys bounced back with great effort after a tough loss yesterday…Our guys came out ready to play today. It was a great team effort with 10 different Hawkeyes getting hits.”

To steal a Jan Jensen quote and apply it to this situation, it certainly feels like Rick Heller’s squad is closer than they are farther from breaking through.

Player of the Game

  • OF Jackson Beaman: The Missouri transfer had a big day at the plate, leading the way with a team-high four RBI’s and a pair of home runs. He leads the team with six home runs.
  • RHP Aaron Savary: The Hawkeye starter battled through some tough at-bats and gave them 5.0 scoreless innings, including six strikeouts. He lowered his ERA to 1.67 through four starts.
  • SS Gable Mitchell: It was a balanced attack for the Iowa offense, but Mitchell reached base four times, including two hits, two walks and two runs scored. His two-run double in the fifth made it 1-0 Iowa.

Aaron Savary delivers another solid start, battling through some tough at-bats

The Hawkeyes starting pitching has pitched above expectations through four weeks and Aaron Savary delivered another solid start on the mound. He tossed 5.0 scoreless innings, including six strikeouts to just two walks and three hits allowed.

Savary fought through some tough at-bats, with Rutgers hitters totaling 17 foul balls. The Scarlet Knights got three runners on base in the second inning, but a caught stealing and a pair of groundouts kept them off the scoreboard. On the day, Savary threw a season-high 68.2% of his 85 pitches for strikes.

“Aaron Savary gave us the start we needed on the mound,” Heller said. “He worked out of some traffic early and really settled in.”

Through four starts, Savary has posted a 1.67 ERA over 21.2 innings, including 28 strikeouts to 12 walks and just nine hits allowed. After earning All-Cape Cod League honors this past summer, Aaron has emerged as a bonified Saturday starter for the Hawkeyes this season.

Hawkeye offense hits six home runs, finally delivers some crooked number innings

The Iowa offense showed some signs of life in their 14-3 run-rule win over Washington State and then again on Monday against Loras College, but they missed on several opportunities in Friday’s loss to the Scarlet Knights. They did not let any chances go wasted in Saturday’s win.

After letting a scoring chance go by in the first inning of Friday’s loss, Caleb Wulf drove in a run with an RBI single to put Iowa in front 1-0 before Rutgers even came to the plate. A couple of quiet innings followed, but the Hawkeyes busted things open with crooked numbers in three consecutive innings. They scored two runs in the fourth, seven in the fifth and five in the sixth inning to open up a run-rule worthy advantage.

On the day, the Hawkeyes were 6/12 (.500) with runners in scoring position, 9/19 (.474) with runners on base and 9/16 (.563) with two outs. Their five-run rally in the sixth inning included six straight hits with two outs and three home runs. Over the last four games, Iowa has totaled 45 runs and recorded multiple runs in 11 of their last 31 innings at the plate.

Jackson Beaman leads the way with a pair of home runs

Looking at some of his limited sample size stats at Missouri, at the time of his transfer to Iowa, it felt like Jackson Beaman had a chance to be an underrated addition for the Hawkeyes in the portal. Leading just 1-0 through three innings, Beaman helped break the game open.

Leading off the fourth inning, Jackson delivered a 112 mph, 373-foot solo home run to left field to make it 2-0 Hawkeyes. Then in the fifth, with Iowa leading 4-0, Beaman hit his second of the day, a mammoth three-run shot to centerfield, which blew the game open making it a seven-run advantage. His second long ball was a part of a seven-run inning for the Hawkeyes that made it 10-0.

Jackson Beaman has proven himself to be an everyday bat in the Iowa lineup, improving his batting average to .306, with a team-high six home runs in 11 games. Although there is still a long way to go in the season, Beaman is averaging a home run every 7.5 plate appearances, which has him on track for over 25 home runs if he reaches 200 plate appearances for the entire season.

Blake Guerin tacks on the exclamation point in the seventh inning

The Southeastern CC transfer, Caleb Wulf, has rightfully earned the majority of starts and at-bats at first base early in the season. However, Blake Guerin has recently begun to find his rhythm at the plate.

Iowa hardly needed more run support leading 15-0 in the top of the seventh, but Guerin, getting an at-bat after entering as defensive replacement for Wulf, drove a 425-foot solo home run to left-center field, extending the lead by another run. Guerin has now homered in three of his last four games and in three of his last six at-bats. The home run gave the Hawkeyes six on the day, which made it their most in a game since 2018 against Missouri.

On a day where you could pick out a number of exclamation points in Iowa’s 16-0 win, Guerin’s was the cherry on top in the seventh inning.

Sam Hart, Justin Hackett close out the run-rule victory on the mound

It was a pretty low stakes situation for both Sam Hart and Justin Hackett, but they were good in their short stints on the mound. The last thing you want as a coaching staff is to have your bullpen arms come in and struggle to get outs when you have a potentially run-rule sized lead.

Hart came on in the sixth inning and retired the side with a pair of strikeouts, while Hackett set the Scarlet Knights down 1-2-3 in the seventh, including a pair of K’s to end the game. The two combined to throw 20 of their 29 (69.0) pitches for strikes. Both Hart and Hackett have stacked consecutive clean outings after they each tossed scoreless innings in the Hawkeyes midweek win over Loras College.

What’s next for Rick Heller an Co?

The Hawkeyes improved to 6-7 overall and will, not only look to win the series with the Scarlet Knights but return to .500 on Sunday. First pitch is set for 12:40pm CT on BTN+.

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