Iowa Baseball Series Preview: Washington Huskies

WEEKEND SERIES: AT WASHINGTON HUSKIES (25-21, 13-8)

The Iowa Baseball team enters week nine of the conference schedule with a 2.5-game lead over UCLA atop the Big Ten standings with their 20-4 record. This past weekend, the Hawkeyes earned their second consecutive weekend sweep, holding the Big Ten’s top offensive team, Indiana, to just three runs over three games. Iowa and Texas are the only two Power 4 conference teams yet to lose a conference series. The Hawkeyes fell to Illinois State 6-5 at Duane Banks Field on Tuesday evening.

This weekend, the Hawkeyes are set to travel to Seattle for a three-game series against the Washington Huskies at Husky Ballpark. It will be the first time the two programs have ever met, while Iowa has just two all-time meetings (both Oregon) against the four former Pac 12 schools.

Under the direction of first-year head coach Eddie Smith, Washington has performed well above expectations with their 25-21 overall record and fifth place position in the Big Ten standings. After a 3-8 start to the season, the Huskies have rebounded to win 22 of their last 35 games, while they are 7-2 in home Big Ten games. Washington took two of three from Northwestern this past weekend and then defeated UIC 15-8 on Monday afternoon to finish off their Chicago trip.

Weekend Schedule

Friday – 9:02pm CT – BTN+

Saturday – 9:02pm CT – BTN+

Sunday – 1:35pm CT – BTN+

On paper, the Washington offense is not one that is going to scorch the ball around the park and put up massive amounts of runs. They rank 9th in on-base percentage (.390), 10th in runs per game (6.9), 10th in batting average (.279), 11th in extra base hits (140) and 15th in slugging percentage (.436). Casen Taggart and AJ Guerrero both rank top 15 in the Big Ten in batting average.

As for the Washington pitching staff, they rank in the upper half of the Big Ten in most categories. The Huskies rank 5th in home runs allowed (38), 6th in ERA (5.06), 6th in WHIP (1.48), 10th in walks per nine innings (4.6) and 13th in strikeouts per nine innings (8.1).

Washington Last 10 Games (7-3)

April 13 at UCLA: L 13-9 April 15 vs Seattle: W 22-0 April 18-20 vs Illinois: W 3-1, W 4-3, L 3-1 April 22 at Seattle: W 11-1 April 25-27 at Northwestern: W 19-4, W 14-4, L 10-4 April 28 at UIC: W 15-8

IOWA HAWKEYES PROBABLE STARTING ROTATION

LHP Cade Obermueller (Friday) – Through 11 starts this season, Cade Obermueller has taken over the lead in the Big Ten with a 2.42 ERA, totaling 85 strikeouts to 36 free bases over 63.1 innings. He has completed 5.0 innings in ten of his 11 starts, including completing 6.0 innings in five starts. Last time out against Indiana, Obermueller gave up six free bases but allowed just one run on two hits over 5.2 innings, tallying six strikeouts.

RHP Aaron Savary (Saturday) – Through 11 starts this season, Aaron Savary has a 3.56 ERA over 60.2 innings, including 64 strikeouts to 37 free bases given up. Savary has a 7-0 record this season, while Iowa is 10-1 overall with him on the mound. He’s been impressive in his last two starts, allowing just three runs over 13.2 innings, including 13 strikeouts to three walks. Against Indiana, Savary allowed two runs on seven hits over 6.2 innings, including six strikeouts to one walk.

RHP Reece Beuter (Sunday) – Through 11 starts his season, Reece Beuter has a 3.54 ERA over 53.1 innings, including 58 strikeouts to 24 free bases given up. For the most part, Beuter has been everything you could hope for from a Sunday starter and he’s been particularly impressive as of late. Over his last three starts, Reece has allowed four runs on nine hits over 17.0 innings, including 22 strikeouts to just three walks and a 63.8% strike rate.

WASHINGTON HUSKIES PROBABLE STARTING ROTATION

RHP Max Banks (Friday) – A transfer from Chapman University, senior right-hander Max Banks was a First Team All-SCIAC selection in 2023 for the Panthers. This season, Banks has started nine games, posting a 3.33 ERA over 51.1 innings, including 49 strikeouts to 23 free bases given up. He averages just 8.6 strikeouts per nine innings, but his mostly pitch to contact style hasn’t led to more hits allowed. Opponents are batting just .199 against him, averaging 0.70 hits per inning. Last time out against Northwestern, Banks allowed four runs on six hits over 6.0 innings, including six strikeouts to just one walk.

RHP Jackson Thomas (Saturday) – A transfer from Utah Valley, senior right-hander Jackson Thomas was a part-time starter for the Wolverines, posting a 6.34 ERA over 38.1 innings. This season, Thomas has appeared in ten games, with eight starts, owning a 4.27 ERA over 46.1 innings, including 39 strikeouts to 25 free bases given up. Opponents are averaging 1.00 hits per inning, but only 11 of his 46 (23.9%) hits allowed have gone for extra bases. Last time out against Northwestern, Thomas allowed two runs on five hits over 6.0 innings, including two strikeouts to two walks.

To Be Announced (Sunday) – There are a couple of likely options for the Huskies on Sunday, with true freshman right-hander Justin Tims and redshirt junior right-hander Tommy Brandenburg combining for 19 starts this season.

Starting with Justin Tims, he has appeared in 11 games, with nine starts, posting a 5.60 ERA over 35.1 innings. He has tallied 31 strikeouts to 12 free bases given up, but opponents are batting .287 against him, averaging 1.16 hits per inning. Tims is averaging 4.1 innings per start in Big Ten play, although he has gone 5.0+ innings three times, including a season-high 6.0 inning start against Purdue.

As for Tommy Brandenburg, he has appeared in 11 games, with ten starts, owning a 4.66 ERA over 46.1 innings. Control is his major issue, averaging 6.03 strikeouts to 6.80 free bases per nine innings. He has mostly been used as a midweek starter and has appeared in just one Big Ten game. Last time out against UIC, Brandenburg allowed one earned run on four hits over 5.0 innings.

HUSKIES PLAYERS TO WATCH

1. 1B Casen Taggart – A transfer from Washington State, first baseman Casen Taggart has been one of the top on-base threats in the Big Ten after putting up decent numbers with the Cougars last season. Over 39 starts, Taggart is slashing .362/.514/.546, with 47 hits, nine doubles, five home runs, 29 RBI’s and nine stolen bases. He has tallied 14 multi-hit games, but his on-base ability is what sets him apart. Taggart leads the Big Ten with a 23.5% walk rate and is third in the conference in walks (42). He has reached base in 33 of 39 games, including 13 multi-walk games.

2. OF AJ Guerrero – The top extra base threat in the Huskies lineup, outfielder AJ Guerrero is one of the top hitters in the Big Ten, ranking tenth in total hits. In 42 starts, Guerrero is slashing .343/.442/.560, leading the team with 60 hits, 14 doubles, eight home runs and 35 RBI’s. He has 19 multi-hit games this season, but has really taken it up a level as of late, batting .452, with 19 hits and six extra base hits over his last ten games. Guerrero is not going to swing and miss much, owning a 9.7% strikeout rate over 207 plate appearances.

3. DH Braeden Terry – A former Everett Community College transfer, designated hitter Braeden Terry has been a consistent presence in the UW lineup after appearing in 22 games, with 20 starts last season. This season, Terry has appeared in 42 games, with 38 starts, slashing .328/.424/.500, with 44 hits, 11 doubles, four home runs and 33 RBI’s. He has tallied 13 multi-hit games, with six of them coming in the last nine games. Over that nine-game stretch, Terry is batting .500, with 15 hits, including eight extra base hits. Another low strikeout threat, Terry has struck out in just 13.8% of his 160 plate appearances.

4. OF Jackson Hotchkiss – A true freshman from Battle Ground, Washington, outfielder Jackson Hotchkiss opted to play for the Huskies after getting picked by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 18th round of the MLB Draft. He has appeared in 40 games, with 37 starts, slashing .266/.408/.444, with 33 hits, ten doubles, four home runs and 23 RBI’s. Hotchkiss does strike out a decent amount, with 38 in 155 plate appearances (24.5%), but has also drawn 31 walks+hbp, giving him a mid-.400’s on-base percentage. He put together a good month of April, batting .356, with 21 hits over 17 games, including eight extra base hits.

5. SS/3B Sam DeCarlo – In his third year as a starter for the Huskies, infielder Sam DeCarlo is enjoying his best season in the purple and gold. Just a .235 hitter over his first two seasons in Seattle, DeCarlo is slashing .305/.409/.469, with 54 hits, five doubles, eight home runs and 23 RBI’s. He’s the only player to start all 46 games this season. He has reached base 85 times and leads the team with 40 runs, scoring 0.47 runs per hit/walk, which is the highest rate out of seven Husky players that have reached base at least 60 times.

6. RHP Isaac Yeager – One of the most relied upon pitchers out of the Huskies bullpen, right-hander Isaac Yeager was second on the team in appearances (21) last season. This season, Yeager has appeared in a team-high 19 games, posting a 4.72 ERA over 34.1 innings, including 45 strikeouts to 24 free bases given up. His 1.66 WHIP is a little high for a top bullpen arm, but he has struck out 28.13% of the 160 batters he has faced this season.

FINAL THOUGHT

Set the over/under for the weekend at 1.5 wins. This series is going to be quite the test for Iowa on several levels. Not only are the Hawkeyes trying to take another big step towards a Big Ten regular season title, but they have to do it while traveling to the west coast for the first time. The four west coast schools are 26-7 against non-west coast Big Ten teams, including four series sweeps. That being said, Iowa is the only team in the country with 20 conference wins, and they are one of two Power 4 schools (Texas) yet to lose a conference series.

It’s impossible to predict exactly how the Hawkeyes will handle the travel aspect of this series, but non-west coast Big Ten opponents are averaging just 3.8 runs per game, so it’s clear that offense has been a challenge. The good news for Iowa is that they lead the Big Ten in team ERA (3.67), WHIP (1.26), and strikeouts per nine innings (10.8), while all three starting pitchers rank inside the top six in the Big Ten in ERA. Meanwhile, they’ll be facing a Washington offense that ranks 118th in on-base percentage (.390), 144th in batting average (.279) and 145th in slugging percentage (.436). Even if this series is on the lower side scoring wise, the Hawkeyes can still take the series.