Iowa Baseball grinds out a series opening win over Michigan
It was far from your typical Friday night series opener and certainly not similar to recent Iowa games with Cade Obermueller on the mound. The junior left-hander left the game after a season-low 4.0 innings, but the Hawkeyes were able to scrap, claw and grind their way to a 6-5 win over Michigan at Ray Fisher Stadium in Ann Arbor.
After tying the game in the fifth inning, Reese Moore lined an RBI infield single off the glove of Michigan reliever Dylan Vigue to give Iowa a 6-5 lead in the sixth. The lead held up, with the Iowa bullpen recording the final 15 outs of the game.
“You never apologize for finding a way to win,” said associate head coach Marty Sutherland on the postgame radio broadcast. “Certainly not easy, and they never are. Not the prettiest in a lot of ways but give credit to our guys for continuing to fight.”
With the win, the Hawkeyes move to 25-11 on the season, including a 15-4 mark in Big Ten play. They have now won 13 of their last 15 Big Ten games since starting 2-2.
Players of the Game
OF Ben Wilmes: Wilmes led the way offensively, tallying three hits, three runs and two RBI’s. He hit his fourth home run of the season in the 2nd inning.
Iowa Bullpen: Relievers Dan Wright, Anthony Watts and Brant Hogue tossed 5.0 scoreless innings after Obermueller left the game. They struck out five and walked just two.
Ben Wilmes leads the charge, Hawkeyes jump out to an early lead
A crucial series for both teams, the Hawkeyes wanted to come out and throw the first punch in Ann Arbor. Ben Wilmes was locked in from the start, spearheading the early Iowa attack.
The senior from Johnston led off the game with a double to put some immediate pressure on the Wolverines. He’d later score, evading a tag at the plate, after Reese Moore grounded one hard on the infield to 2B Mitch Voit.
In the second inning, Kellen Strohmeyer doubled down the right field line and Ben Wilmes came to the plate with two outs looking to drive him in. Facing Michigan starter David Lally Jr, Wilmes delivered a clutch hit. With two strikes, he pulled a line drive down the left field line and over the tall brick wall for a two-run home run to give Iowa a 3-0 lead.
Wilmes finished the game a triple short of the cycle, tallying three hits, three runs scored and two RBI’s. He would also score the winning run in the sixth inning.
Cade Obermueller battles control issues, Wolverines put up a crooked number in the fourth inning
Entering Friday’s contest, Cade Obermueller had not allowed a single earned run over his last 26.0 innings, spanning his last four starts. Iowa won all four of those games, including a 1-0 win over Nebraska last weekend in Iowa City. Ranking second in the Big Ten in ERA, it was clear early in his start that Cade didn’t have his A-level stuff and was going to have to grind for every out.
“Cade wasn’t sharp, but he had been on a crazy heater and had been picking us up,” said Sutherland. “He won a one run game, we scored one run for him last week and this is what great teams do. You just pick each other up.”
Through three innings, Cade threw first pitch strike to just three of the 11 hitters he faced, but kept it together, allowing just one run on one hit. He allowed a walk to come around to score on a Noah Miller RBI single in the second inning.
After a Daniel Rogers RBI double made it 4-1 in the top of the fourth, things came unraveled for Cade in the bottom of the inning. For the first time all season, Obermueller was at risk of going out of the game early. A hit by pitch and Cole Caruso double put two in scoring position with no outs, but Cade managed to strike out Will Rogers, keeping Michigan off the board for a second longer.
After a Joe Longo walk, Noah Miller cashed in with a clutch hit, driving a two-run double over the head of Ben Wilmes in left field, cutting the Iowa lead to 4-3. In the ensuing at-bat, AJ Rausch hit a ball on the ground to shortstop, but Gable Mitchell sent an errant throw to the plate, allowing Longo to score with ease. Greg Pace Jr followed with a sacrifice fly to cap off a four-run inning for Michigan that gave them a 5-4 lead.
Over 4.0 innings, Cade allowed five runs, three earned on four hits. He struck out three, while he walked four and hit a batter. Obermueller threw a season-low 54.3% of his 92 pitches for strikes, averaging 23.0 pitches per inning.
Hawkeyes answer back in the fifth inning, take the lead in the sixth
With all the momentum swinging in favor of the Wolverines after a four-run inning gave them the lead, the Hawkeyes needed an answer in the top of the fifth.
After a Gable Mitchell leadoff single, David Lally Jr was able to get Reese Moore to fly out. Michigan head coach Tracy Smith turned to Dylan Vigue out of the bullpen, and he induced a Miles Risley groundout. With the tying run on second, Daniel Rogers drove an RBI double into the right-center gap, driving in Mitchell for a quick answer after the Wolverines went in front.
In the sixth, a two-out infield single from Ben Wilmes was a seemingly harmless result to his at-bat, but it got the wheels turning on a rally. Gable Mitchell singled to keep the inning alive, while Reese Moore ripped a line drive off the glove of Dylan Vigue for an infield single that scored Wilmes.
The Hawkeyes were 7 for 16 (.438) with two outs and 7 of 19 (.368) with runners on base. They totaled four two-out RBI’s, including the Moore single that gave Iowa a 6-5 lead in the sixth inning.
Iowa bullpen steps up, escapes some tough spots, records the final 15 outs
With Cade Obermueller out of the game with two runners on and no outs in the bottom of the fifth, it was up to the Iowa bullpen to find a way to record the final 15 outs of the game.
Rick Heller went with Daniel Wright out of the bullpen, and he was impressive. Wright left two stranded in scoring position in the fifth, retiring Will Rogers on a pop out and pinch-hitter Jeter Ybarra on a groundout. The former Houston transfer has been a trusted arm in the bullpen, and he delivered 2.1 scoreless innings. Wright threw 22 of his 32 pitches for strikes (68.8%).
With one on and one out in the seventh, Anthony Watts came on in relief of Wright. He walked Cole Caruso, but got Will Rogers to fly out for the second out, which advanced Mitch Voit to third. Facing runners on the corners and two outs, Watts struck out Jeter Ybarra to leave the tying run and go-ahead run stranded.
The Hawkeye bullpen had to evade one more bullpen from the Michigan offense in the bottom of the ninth. Mitch Voit, who finished with three hits, reached on a one out single, sending Rick Heller to the bullpen once more, calling on Brant Hogue to close things out. Hogue struck out Colby Turner, but walked Cole Caruso, putting the game-winning run on base. The Wolverines were unable to get the big hit, as Hogue froze Will Rogers with an 0-2 fastball, finishing the game with a strikeout looking.
The Iowa bullpen combined to toss 5.0 scoreless innings, tallying five strikeouts to two walks and two hits allowed. They threw 54 of their 82 (65.9%) pitches for strikes.
What’s next for Rick Heller and Co?
The Hawkeyes will look to clinch a seventh consecutive Big Ten series on Saturday afternoon. It will be Aaron Savary on the mound for Iowa, while Kurt Barr is expected to get the start for Michigan. First pitch is set for 1:00pm CT on BTN+.
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