The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/480355
a large number of underclassmen, especially among the pitching ranks. Glines led the hitters with a .475 aver- age through March 15, while junior outfielder Cody Bruder hit .338 with 19 RBI. Junior infielder Jacob Cronen- worth also batted .338, and led the team with 21 runs scored. No less than 15 pitchers have thrown for the Wolverines, but that number will get pared down as Mich- igan reaches conference play. U-M's leading pitchers include freshman right-hander Ryan Nutof, who was 1-1 with a 2.67 ERA. Sophomore lefty Brett Adcock was 2-2 with a 4.01 ERA, sophomore righty Keith Lehmann entered Big Ten play 1-2 with a 2.91 ERA and Eaton stood 2-0 with a 4.50 ERA in six innings of work. Freshmen Jayce Vancena and Oliver Jaskie have also stepped forward in the early go- ing. The first three and eventually Hill will be starters on the weekends in the Big Ten, Bakich noted. But he's quick to caution that Michigan's hopes rest on far more than conference play. "Those midweek games are just as important, as we're building our post- season résumé," Bakich said. "We've got 13 more non-conference games, and every single one of those games is critical for our opportunities that are going to arise at the end of the season. "It's not just about the 24 Big Ten games. It's about all 37 that remain on the regular-season schedule." The conference itself, he indicated, will be a handful. "I would put the Big Ten in the top five of our nation's conferences this year," Bakich said. "In years past, it hasn't even been in the top 10. Teams like Illinois, Maryland, Nebraska, In- diana, Iowa, ourselves, Ohio State, Michigan State … there is way more parity in our conference, there's way more talent and depth. It's not top heavy. "I wouldn't go as far as to say the Big Ten is on par with the SEC, the ACC or the Pac-12, but those three conferences, plus the Big 12 plus the Big Ten, you could certainly make a case that those are the top five confer- ences in the country right now." Michigan gets thrown right into the fire the first three weekends, Bakich pointed out. "The three teams that we open up with — Nebraska, Maryland and In- diana — are three of the better teams in our conference," he said. "We're really excited about the challenge." Part of the challenge, he noted, in- volves having all the parts come to- gether as a whole. "Individually, the players are per- forming very well," Bakich explained. "We've just had some untimely things happen, where it's cost us some games, early on, especially. Our re- cord certainly isn't representative of our expectations or goals, or what our program is going to be moving forward." The immediate goal centers on winding up on top of the Big Ten and a strong contender for NCAA Tourna- ment play. That's not just a hope, but an expectation, he stressed. "There's no question we have enough," Bakich said. "It's just about getting everybody healthy and click-