Iowa Baseball #3 starter and Back end reliever

[Hershey01]

I am not that frequent of a poster but I follow Iowa baseball very closely. I pretty much watch every game through BTN plus. To say I’m excited about the 2024 team would be an understatement. I truly believe this team can do something special and even end up in the college World Series. Yes I think we will be that good.

My question about the team. After Marcus and Brody who does everyone anticipate will be our number 3 weekend starter. The easy answer to this is Cade obermueller makes a huge jump like Marcus and Brody did last year and is our number 3 starter….but one thing concerns me. As we saw in terre haute against Indiana state (I was there) you still need the shut down guy at the end of the game to close it out. This is what cost Iowa against the sycamores and nearly cost us in the first game against UNC. I liked the progression of Jack Whitlock and Aaron savery last year towards the end and I think they’ll be good relievers for us this year too but neither are guys with elite stuff that you can almost count on late in the game to slam the door.

Would Rick consider maybe using Cade the way he used Zach Daniels in 2018 to slam the door in the late innings? Maybe bring in Cade on Friday nights for multiple innings and then bring him back for a couple innings on Sunday? Obviously that would mean Iowa would have to find a solid number 3 starter. whether it’s Voelker? Maybe even savery or Whitlock or one of the newcomers?

In my opinion that’s the only thing about this years team that worries me come postseason play and that’s what cost us last year. Losing dorighi and Keaton Anthony will hurt our offense but with essentially the whole rest of the lineup returning along with the transfer from Utah and Guerin providing a potential power source as a true sophomore I think overall our offense will be fine. Besides the above two mentioned the only other bat we lose is hojnar and while it would be nice to have him back I expect gable Mitchell to be an upgrade defensively and also have great bat to ball skills. He won’t hit for the power hojnar did but I think he’ll be a serviceable potential number 9 hitter to roll the lineup over. With guys like seegers back, raider tello getting comfortable in year 2 as a starter, Sam Petersen potentially breaking out big time into a star, wilmes as a good on base guy and huckstorf doing well as a senior I think we will score enough runs most games. Also if those closer to the program could let us know what newcomers to the program you expect to be big contributors besides Davis Cop from Utah it would be appreciated. I know we had a few pitchers transfer in and hopefully they can help us and one or more of them can help with my concerns about the bullpen in the late innings and allow us to use Cade as the number 3 starter.

On Iowa and go hawks! 2024 is our year!!!!

 

[GolfHacker1]

I played some thoughts about pitchers in the fall baseball thread.

As @Alum-Ni posted D1 has Iowa 20th. I have read their article yet .

Some news coming on baseball NIL.

 

[AuroraHawk]

I played some thoughts about pitchers in the fall baseball thread.

As @Alum-Ni posted D1 has Iowa 20th. I have read their article yet .

Some news coming on baseball NIL.

The loss of Keaton Anthony drew the most attention but, damn, Jacob Henderson's unusual delivery, consistent ability to throw strikes and ability to change speeds made him a formidable late-inning pitcher when Iowa needed to protect a lead or get out of a jam. Really contributed to the situation in Terre Haute. Burned through a lot of arms to get past UNC twice. Can't help but wonder what happens if Henderson is available out of the 'pen.

That and having Keaton's bat . . .

 

[GolfHacker1]

The loss of Keaton Anthony drew the most attention but, damn, Jacob Henderson's unusual delivery, consistent ability to throw strikes and ability to change speeds made him a formidable late-inning pitcher when Iowa needed to protect a lead or get out of a jam. Really contributed to the situation in Terre Haute. Burned through a lot of arms to get past UNC twice. Can't help but wonder what happens if Henderson is available out of the 'pen.

That and having Keaton's bat . . .

I'd personally be more concerned about losing Keaton's bat than losing Jacob based on the pitchers we have coming back and added. But none of us really know, and we're all going to find out pretty quickly.

 

[AuroraHawk]

I am not that frequent of a poster but I follow Iowa baseball very closely. I pretty much watch every game through BTN plus. To say I’m excited about the 2024 team would be an understatement. I truly believe this team can do something special and even end up in the college World Series. Yes I think we will be that good.

My question about the team. After Marcus and Brody who does everyone anticipate will be our number 3 weekend starter. The easy answer to this is Cade obermueller makes a huge jump like Marcus and Brody did last year and is our number 3 starter….but one thing concerns me. As we saw in terre haute against Indiana state (I was there) you still need the shut down guy at the end of the game to close it out. This is what cost Iowa against the sycamores and nearly cost us in the first game against UNC. I liked the progression of Jack Whitlock and Aaron savery last year towards the end and I think they’ll be good relievers for us this year too but neither are guys with elite stuff that you can almost count on late in the game to slam the door.

Would Rick consider maybe using Cade the way he used Zach Daniels in 2018 to slam the door in the late innings? Maybe bring in Cade on Friday nights for multiple innings and then bring him back for a couple innings on Sunday? Obviously that would mean Iowa would have to find a solid number 3 starter. whether it’s Voelker? Maybe even savery or Whitlock or one of the newcomers?

In my opinion that’s the only thing about this years team that worries me come postseason play and that’s what cost us last year. Losing dorighi and Keaton Anthony will hurt our offense but with essentially the whole rest of the lineup returning along with the transfer from Utah and Guerin providing a potential power source as a true sophomore I think overall our offense will be fine. Besides the above two mentioned the only other bat we lose is hojnar and while it would be nice to have him back I expect gable Mitchell to be an upgrade defensively and also have great bat to ball skills. He won’t hit for the power hojnar did but I think he’ll be a serviceable potential number 9 hitter to roll the lineup over. With guys like seegers back, raider tello getting comfortable in year 2 as a starter, Sam Petersen potentially breaking out big time into a star, wilmes as a good on base guy and huckstorf doing well as a senior I think we will score enough runs most games. Also if those closer to the program could let us know what newcomers to the program you expect to be big contributors besides Davis Cop from Utah it would be appreciated. I know we had a few pitchers transfer in and hopefully they can help us and one or more of them can help with my concerns about the bullpen in the late innings and allow us to use Cade as the number 3 starter.

On Iowa and go hawks! 2024 is our year!!!!

I seem to recall reading some stories that Voelker was hitting 95+ on some guns.

Obermueller's stuff is phenomenal but, like Brecht and Morgan, his lack of control (particularly plunking hitters) has forced up his pitch count and increased the number of high leverage pitches. You want a closer to be the type of pitcher who can some in and pound the strike zone. If he can do that, having him close games seems very realistic. If his control wanes, he might be better off in the starter's role.

Personally, I salivate at the thought of Brecht, Morgan and Obermueller being the weekend starters. If they can harness their stuff and throw strikes, they would from a Top 5 starting rotation.

 

[AuroraHawk]

I'd personally be more concerned about losing Keaton's bat than losing Jacob based on the pitchers we have coming back and added. But none of us really know, and we're all going to find out pretty quickly.

For this upcoming year? Absolutely. Losing Anthony and Dorighi leave a giant hole in the everyday batting order.

Certainly not minimizing the loss of Anthony to last year's lineup. Never want to lose your best hitter.

Simply commenting that Iowa's bullpen's struggles at the end of the year would have been mitigated if Jacob Henderson was available to do what he did best . . . throw strikes, changes speeds and get opponents out. A glaring problem in Terre Haute.

 

[GolfHacker1]

For this upcoming year? Absolutely. Losing Anthony and Dorighi leave a giant hole in the everyday batting order.

Certainly not minimizing the loss of Anthony to last year's lineup. Never want to lose your best hitter.

Simply commenting that Iowa's bullpen's struggles at the end of the year would have been mitigated if Jacob Henderson was available to do what he did best . . . throw strikes, changes speeds and get opponents out. A glaring problem in Terre Haute.

I get it now. My take is Iowa has a wealth of pitchers, and from what I saw this fall, I'm optimistic. On offense there is speed. Power remains to be seen, but I'm told I worry too much about this. So we'll see I guess.

 

[HawkeyeGenius]

Keep an eye on Watts for a high leverage role.

 

[Hershey01]

The loss of Keaton Anthony drew the most attention but, damn, Jacob Henderson's unusual delivery, consistent ability to throw strikes and ability to change speeds made him a formidable late-inning pitcher when Iowa needed to protect a lead or get out of a jam. Really contributed to the situation in Terre Haute. Burned through a lot of arms to get past UNC twice. Can't help but wonder what happens if Henderson is available out of the 'pen.

That and having Keaton's bat . . .

Jacob Henderson wasn’t good. Rick had a hard on bringing him in during the middle of an inning before he went to the next reliever and his stats may have been okay but he almost always allowed every inherited runner to score. This cost us like 3 games in 2022 and a game or two last year. Meaning, if Rick would have just went to the next reliever right away we could have minimized the damage and stayed in the game and won. I don’t know if you actually watch every game or just saw one game where Henderson did well but for the most part he was a meatball pitcher that scared no one. He had a few outings where he did well but overall losing him won’t hurt us at all. Honestly the fact that you could even compare that loss to the loss of our best hitter is kind of laughable

 

[GolfHacker1]

Pitchers take a lot of grief and criticism. Hendo was fine. Luke was fine. They won a lot of games last season. No doubt they had some rough spots. But some days you push the ball, slice the ball, pull the ball or hook the ball. Everyone knows it, yet most of us are extremely hard on pitchers who have off days.

I tend not to be hard on athletes or coaches. I was an athlete. And I run a business. Neither is easy and to some extent, a lot of times employees think they could do it better than you can. Maybe they could. But why aren’t they? I apply the same philosophy to college athletes and college coaches. Criticism comes with the territory. It’s just a given. But I understand I couldn’t pitch or coach better, so I just try to enjoy the competition and event.

That’s me.

Back to topic, I think if you haven’t followed closely you’re going to be surprised how deep we are pitching. There are probably 5 starters on this staff. Somewhat also true in fielding. A very close team. To the point that several guys have willingly accepted being role players, and the roles aren’t what they might have originally envisioned. That matters to me, and in my opinion will result in wins. A hidden variable that a lot of teams do t have. Hitting I’m a bit of wait and see. Speed I’m fine with. I’m also told that I’m too concerned about hitting by people that watch these guys every day. And I don’t know more than those guys do, so I’ll wait and see.

 

[Hershey01]

Pitchers take a lot of grief and criticism. Hendo was fine. Luke was fine. They won a lot of games last season. No doubt they had some rough spots. But some days you push the ball, slice the ball, pull the ball or hook the ball. Everyone knows it, yet most of us are extremely hard on pitchers who have off days.

I tend not to be hard on athletes or coaches. I was an athlete. And I run a business. Neither is easy and to some extent, a lot of times employees think they could do it better than you can. Maybe they could. But why aren’t they? I apply the same philosophy to college athletes and college coaches. Criticism comes with the territory. It’s just a given. But I understand I couldn’t pitch or coach better, so I just try to enjoy the competition and event.

That’s me.

Back to topic, I think if you haven’t followed closely you’re going to be surprised how deep we are pitching. There are probably 5 starters on this staff. Somewhat also true in fielding. A very close team. To the point that several guys have willingly accepted being role players, and the roles aren’t what they might have originally envisioned. That matters to me, and in my opinion will result in wins. A hidden variable that a lot of teams do t have. Hitting I’m a bit of wait and see. Speed I’m fine with. I’m also told that I’m too concerned about hitting by people that watch these guys every day. And I don’t know more than those guys do, so I’ll wait and see.

I shouldn’t have taken a shot at Rick. In my opinion he is the best coach in the country for what he has done with the Iowa program being a northern school and where are program was at before he took over. With that being said I call a spade a spade and personally I’m glad Henderson is no longer on the team. He is probably a great kid but in my opinion from watching nearly every single Iowa game through an app his decision to consistently bring in Henderson with the idea that he will got us out of the current inning because our starter is in trouble and then I’ll bring in the better reliever the next inning backfired in numerous games. You may not see it in Henderson’s stats because often times he would only need to get an out or two and the runs he allowed weren’t charged to him. With that being said I previously mentioned heller is pretty much my hero for what he has done but that specifically would be about my only complaint with his in game coaching. I agree luke lleweyaln was huge for us and I have no problem with his performance.

Now to switch the topic to the hitting. Personally I am not worried about our offense at all. Sure losing Keaton and dorighi will hurt but with 6 of the 9 bats returning and Davis cop coming in from Utah I think we will be fine. I look for guys that have started in previous years to improve and have better seasons. Also even if our offense isn’t elite I still believe we will be fine as long as Marcus and Brody stay healthy because the pitching will be that good. Look at how many games the 2015 team won with very little thump in the lineup. Pitching is more important and that team was successful because they played great defense and had 3 elite starting pitchers.

At the end of the day most weekend series are 3 game series and if you have 3 good starters you’ll be in nearly every game and win plenty of them. I’ll take elite pitching over elite hitting any day of the week when it comes to baseball at any level and that has proven to be true time and time again at all levels of baseball.

I’m encouraged about what a previous poster said on this thread said in regards to Voelker. He started off super hot last year but then he got hit pretty hard and struggled to consistently get innings. I think Voelker really knows how to pitch and his struggles last year were due to pitch execution. If his velocity is up that’s a great sign as he may be able to get away with making more mistakes and not getting hit quite as hard.

I believe a big reason in previous seasons Iowa was not able to have elite seasons was due to pitching. We have still had REALLY good seasons but many of our teams fell just short of an at large bid and were 1 or 2 good starting pitchers away from being an elite team. We’ve always had 1 or 2 really good starting pitchers but most times our number 2 and 3 starters or at least the number 3 was inconsistent. I believe this could be the first team since 2015 that Iowa has 3 really good starters. We just need to figure out who will be the third one and I know the overall talent and depth on this team is far superior to what we had in 2015 which is why I believe this could be a very special season and we could even host a regional.

Go hawks!

 

[GolfHacker1]

Pay attention to these pitchers no one is talking about:

Reece Beuter

Elliot Cadieux-Lanoue

Ben DeTaeye

Anthony Watts

There are some other pitchers that most haven't heard of that are going to get meaningful pitches.

Pay attention to these payers that no one is talking about:

Jaixen Frost

Ben Swails

Andy Nelson

Brant Hogue

Connor Hennings

These are partial lists There are a bunch of contributors this season that are going to surprise.

Blake Guerin is not a captain. He's emerged into a leader in my view.

This team is deep, this team is very tight, and this team should win a lot of games based entirely on superior talent. In addition, there are some intangibles around this team also.

 

[chonk]

Let's say Cade is in the rotation. Then, bullpen arms that right now it seems we can trust - Beuter, Voelker, C-Lanoue, Savary, Watts, Whitlock, DeTaeye, Hart. That's 8 plus Hogue and Hackett certainly could come on and others may improve.

Cade taking the Sunday spot would be awesome, he has immense talent and stuff. But, I'd caution everyone to be patient, it could be up and down early in the season maybe similar to Marcus and Brody last year.

Lineup

What we think we know (not in a specific batting order)

Seegers SS
Huck CF
Petey LF
Tello 3B
Cop DH/some C
Guerin 1B
Moss C

That leaves 2B and RF with this group left in the order I currently like them - Nelson, Hennings, Wilmes, Mitchell. That is a real good group for 4 spots and others may emerge. The first two are going to be real hard to keep out of the line but they (especially Hennings) have to show they can do it consistently.

This group will put up plenty of runs, it won't be a problem.

It is going to be a fun ride and will be interesting to watch roles evolve the first month of the season.

 

[AuroraHawk]

Let's say Cade is in the rotation. Then, bullpen arms that right now it seems we can trust - Beuter, Voelker, C-Lanoue, Savary, Watts, Whitlock, DeTaeye, Hart. That's 8 plus Hogue and Hackett certainly could come on and others may improve.

Cade taking the Sunday spot would be awesome, he has immense talent and stuff. But, I'd caution everyone to be patient, it could be up and down early in the season maybe similar to Marcus and Brody last year.

Lineup

What we think we know (not in a specific batting order)

Seegers SS
Huck CF
Petey LF
Tello 3B
Cop DH/some C
Guerin 1B
Moss C

That leaves 2B and RF with this group left in the order I currently like them - Nelson, Hennings, Wilmes, Mitchell. That is a real good group for 4 spots and others may emerge. The first two are going to be real hard to keep out of the line but they (especially Hennings) have to show they can do it consistently.

This group will put up plenty of runs, it won't be a problem.

It is going to be a fun ride and will be interesting to watch roles evolve the first month of the season.

Coaching staff loves what Wilmes brings to the table. Might he be play the role of uber-utility player a la Tony Phillips?

 

[GolfHacker1]

Coaching staff loves what Wilmes brings to the table. Might he be play the role of uber-utility player a la Tony Phillips?

I think Mitchell also. Gable needs to hit more consistently. I think he’ll make a jump this season. But I think Gable is a role player. I think Ben is also. I think the guys I listed above play.

My thoughts as a fan and based on what I saw this fall.

I could be wildly off.

I’m more concerned about the offense than @chonk is. I believe we’ve had the discussion elsewhere. I’m also told I’m overly concerned.

 

[AuroraHawk]

I’m more concerned about the offense than @chonk is.

Same boat. Really hopeful that we see big pop out of Peterson's bat this year. Going to be needed. Nelson's bat intrigues me as well.

 

[GolfHacker1]

Same boat. Really hopeful that we see big pop out of Peterson's bat this year. Going to be needed. Nelson's bat intrigues me as well.

We have speed. We have some bats that can play. You could call the bats unproven, but I think they’re proven and I think the playing time they get will surprise some people.

Andy Nelson will most definitely play, if not start.

eta, Connor plays also, if not starts.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

I am not that frequent of a poster but I follow Iowa baseball very closely. I pretty much watch every game through BTN plus. To say I’m excited about the 2024 team would be an understatement. I truly believe this team can do something special and even end up in the college World Series. Yes I think we will be that good.

My question about the team. After Marcus and Brody who does everyone anticipate will be our number 3 weekend starter. The easy answer to this is Cade obermueller makes a huge jump like Marcus and Brody did last year and is our number 3 starter….but one thing concerns me. As we saw in terre haute against Indiana state (I was there) you still need the shut down guy at the end of the game to close it out. This is what cost Iowa against the sycamores and nearly cost us in the first game against UNC. I liked the progression of Jack Whitlock and Aaron savery last year towards the end and I think they’ll be good relievers for us this year too but neither are guys with elite stuff that you can almost count on late in the game to slam the door.

Would Rick consider maybe using Cade the way he used Zach Daniels in 2018 to slam the door in the late innings? Maybe bring in Cade on Friday nights for multiple innings and then bring him back for a couple innings on Sunday? Obviously that would mean Iowa would have to find a solid number 3 starter. whether it’s Voelker? Maybe even savery or Whitlock or one of the newcomers?

In my opinion that’s the only thing about this years team that worries me come postseason play and that’s what cost us last year. Losing dorighi and Keaton Anthony will hurt our offense but with essentially the whole rest of the lineup returning along with the transfer from Utah and Guerin providing a potential power source as a true sophomore I think overall our offense will be fine. Besides the above two mentioned the only other bat we lose is hojnar and while it would be nice to have him back I expect gable Mitchell to be an upgrade defensively and also have great bat to ball skills. He won’t hit for the power hojnar did but I think he’ll be a serviceable potential number 9 hitter to roll the lineup over. With guys like seegers back, raider tello getting comfortable in year 2 as a starter, Sam Petersen potentially breaking out big time into a star, wilmes as a good on base guy and huckstorf doing well as a senior I think we will score enough runs most games. Also if those closer to the program could let us know what newcomers to the program you expect to be big contributors besides Davis Cop from Utah it would be appreciated. I know we had a few pitchers transfer in and hopefully they can help us and one or more of them can help with my concerns about the bullpen in the late innings and allow us to use Cade as the number 3 starter.

On Iowa and go hawks! 2024 is our year!!!!

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!

 

[GolfHacker1]

It’s possible. I’ll allow it.

 

[funnyfletcher]

Looks like the roster has been updated, noticed Budorick, Wulf, Risley, Sarsfield, Taylor and Canady are no longer listed.

 

[GolfHacker1]

Canady transferred. Just bad timing for a new pitcher. Coy was a bit of a surprise, but maybe not that much of a surprise. I don’t recall off the top of my head about the others. But you’re correct, the roster is down to 40, with 11.7 scholarships distributed, some NIL funds covering some tuition, and some business to player NIL deals.

 

[2bagger22]

Canady transferred. Just bad timing for a new pitcher. Coy was a bit of a surprise, but maybe not that much of a surprise. I don’t recall off the top of my head about the others. But you’re correct, the roster is down to 40, with 11.7 scholarships distributed, some NIL funds covering some tuition, and some business to player NIL deals.

I think Coy has a big thing to care for over the next few months, so hopefully his departure reflects the forthcoming responsibility.

 

[GolfHacker1]

Coach Heller released that the staring rotation is Brody, Marcus, Cade in that order.

Things I learned at practice today. First outdoor practice of the season. This doesn't happen a lot in January. The team will probably get several scrimmages over the weekend. They worked today from about 1:30 which is when I got done with a short meeting with them, to about 4PM. After this they work indoors, then off to eat and study.

I did my business and visited with the coaches. Got done with that and watched practice.

They took hitting practice with the 10 second timer. What I didn't know was last year that was optional, so it wasn't used at every game, and my understanding is it wasn't used at any home games. I'm pretty sure that was what I was told. Someone can clarify and correct if I'm wrong.

Cedar Rapids Kennedy Coach Bret Hoyer was there for part of practice. He obviously took some time to speak to Rowan Donels.

I did seek out @@Anon1701030529 's son, and let him know his father was on an Iowa message board.

There might not be a gray shirt this season. An exception, or exemption, or whatever it's called, has been requested from the NCAA for a returning injured player who is not quite ready to return yet. Hopefully that works out.

I went to the bull pen and watched pitchers. I mostly spoke to and visited with pitchers today.

For the one gentleman who is a high school baseball coach, I made a detour and got you a fitted Script I cap. It's a team ball cap, and was taken right out of the team's supply. I'll have my office ail that to you tomorrow. To be clear, this is not a condition of any NIL donation, it's just a token of my appreciation for your support, and also my personal appreciation for school teachers and especially high school coaches.

Visited with Brody, Marcus, Chas, Drew Deremer, Cade O, Cade M, Rowan, Ty Plummer & Blake. I wanted to see Ben DeTaeye, but didn't get a chance. I have high hopes for Ben this season, and I think and am hoping he surprises some people on a good way.

The coaches and staff are incredibly generous with their time, and I know they're busy, so try to stay out of their way. They get a lot of work in. It was an enjoyable afternoon. I like being on the field with them, and they trust me enough that they know I'm not going to take a foul ball in my face.

Next time I see them they'll be playing, and that schedule gets tight. I'll be in the stands, except at colder games where I think I'm going to be in the press box. In the shade by the home dugout when the wind was blowing it was chilly today.

Funny story to me anyway, when Coach Heller turned the team over to me for my talk I started out with "Sun's Out, Gun's Out" They actually thought that was funny. I really don't know all the meaning's associated with that phrase, and intended it in its original context. Long story short, another poster on anther site that sometimes follows Hawkeye uses this for his screen name.

 

[GolfHacker1]

Forgot to mention, Marcus looked like he bulked up, even since last fall. He looks fit, and really looks the part.

Another thing I thought was funny, and so did some of the pitchers. I called Cade “Wild Thing”, and asked him if he could throw some high cheese.

All those guys know I’m nuts.

 

[GolfHacker1]

Yesterday they did the batting practice drill where pitchers were on the 1st base line, and had to sprint to the correct defensive position after a hit. I forget what they call that, and I'm not describing it completely correctly. Anyway, the pitchers were along the 1st baseline and CH had the 10 second timer. The guys had a wristband on, and I'm guessing the wrist bands pulsed, or beeped, when they were in danger of going over 10 seconds.

I'm going back to this becuase I had thought the rule last year was 20 seconds. I'm thinking I saw pitch clock infractions called last year. But I don't recall one being called at DB. Batter clock? Batter needs to be squared up at X seconds?

Can someone help me out? I was told the rule was optional last season. I'm wondering if maybe I'm misunderstanding batter clock, pitch clock, etc.?

Whatever the case, and whichever rule was optional, I can see this being an issue in early games until Iowa gets used to it, especially if I'm correct and the rule (rules) was / were optional last season.

So the drill is going on, and I'm casually speaking to some of the pitchers on the 1st baseline, I walk over to CH and ask him, "Coach, you expect your pitchers to play defense here?" That got a pretty good laugh also. Marcus told me he was going to "try" to play a little bit of defense this season.

@Alum-Ni @AuroraHawk and any other rules wizards, can you help clarify the rule, or my misunderstanding if that's what it is please?

 

[AuroraHawk]

Yesterday they did the batting practice drill where pitchers were on the 1st base line, and had to sprint to the correct defensive position after a hit. I forget what they call that, and I'm not describing it completely correctly. Anyway, the pitchers were along the 1st baseline and CH had the 10 second timer. The guys had a wristband on, and I'm guessing the wrist bands pulsed, or beeped, when they were in danger of going over 10 seconds.

I'm going back to this becuase I had thought the rule last year was 20 seconds. I'm thinking I saw pitch clock infractions called last year. But I don't recall one being called at DB. Batter clock? Batter needs to be squared up at X seconds?

Can someone help me out? I was told the rule was optional last season. I'm wondering if maybe I'm misunderstanding batter clock, pitch clock, etc.?

Whatever the case, and whichever rule was optional, I can see this being an issue in early games until Iowa gets used to it, especially if I'm correct and the rule (rules) was / were optional last season.

So the drill is going on, and I'm casually speaking to some of the pitchers on the 1st baseline, I walk over to CH and ask him, "Coach, you expect your pitchers to play defense here?" That got a pretty good laugh also. Marcus told me he was going to "try" to play a little bit of defense this season.

@Alum-Ni @AuroraHawk and any other rules wizards, can you help clarify the rule, or my misunderstanding if that's what it is please?

My understanding:
A batter must be alert to and ready to face a pitch with no fewer than 10 seconds remaining on the pitch clock.
When there are no runners on base, a pitcher must begin his "first" move within 15 seconds of receiving the ball on the mound.
When there are runners on base, a pitcher must begin his "first" move to pitch within 20 seconds of receiving the ball on the mound. Throwing to first base or stepping off the rubber to look a runner back to the bag re-set the pitch clock.
I don't believe the rule was optional last year. Pretty sure that the NCAA implemented it for all D1 games.

 

[AuroraHawk]

Forgot to mention, Marcus looked like he bulked up, even since last fall. He looks fit, and really looks the part.

Another thing I thought was funny, and so did some of the pitchers. I called Cade “Wild Thing”, and asked him if he could throw some high cheese.

All those guys know I’m nuts.

Given your post yesterday, Marcus would draw the assignment to start against Virginia on the Saturday game in Jacksonville.

Brecht would face Auburn on Friday night.

My baseball blood is starting to flow!

 

[GolfHacker1]

Given your post yesterday, Marcus would draw the assignment to start against Virginia on the Saturday game in Jacksonville.

Brecht would face Auburn on Friday night.

My baseball blood is starting to flow!

I had though I was told the rule was optional last season. Really, this is why I was asking, becuase I'm confused. Whatever the case is, and you're could very well be correct, they were concentrating on this. 10 second timer makes me think this is for batters.

It will be nice to just sit and watch baseball and not have to run around. Also, very much forward to catching up with you.