2017 Baseball Season Review
Jun 20 | Baseball
Head coach Joe Litterio on the 2017 campaign
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers baseball completed its third season in the Big Ten in 2017, having now played each conference opponent at home and on the road. The Scarlet Knights won league series over Purdue, Illinois and Iowa, the winner of the Big Ten Tournament. Overall, RU played the 31st-toughest schedule in the nation with eight weekend series against teams that appeared in the national rankings.
Offensively, Rutgers hit 37 home runs for its highest total since 2010, finishing with a .271/.357/.400 slash line. The pitching staff collected 344 strikeouts, seventh-most in a season in program history. Individually, three players earned All-Big Ten honors: senior Mike Carter, junior Chris Folinusz and sophomore Nick Matera.
Head coach Joe Litterio discussed the season…
Main takeaways: "I think inconsistency was the main story of this season. We had some big wins and were able to show that we can compete with anybody, but what hurt us was the defense. We got into a position where we were making too many errors per game to give teams extra outs in innings. I think that was our downfall this year. I did think we swung the bats well and our bullpen was very good towards the end."
On hitting: "We took the weekend we didn't play as a staff to put our hitters into different categories based on what they are. Instead of having the same approach for everybody, we put them in a situation that works best for each type of hitter. For example, with two-strike hitting, we want some guys to cut down and put it in play, while some of the bigger hitters that might not work best. I feel like that freed up some guys at the plate and took their minds off strikeouts. That divide worked well and gave guys a chance to be themselves more."
On improvement: "I thought our approach improved. And it helped our confidence in that if we fell behind early, we knew we could put up a big number and come back. I think that was the best thing about it."
On the pitching: "I think we struggled as starters. A couple guys didn't have the type of years we were hoping for. Losing Howie Brey was a big deal. He chewed up the innings on Fridays and we needed guys to step up. I think starting pitching wasn't what we wanted, but I thought our bullpen did a nice job. Some of the younger pitchers developed in big situations and hopefully they can learn from those experiences. We also had some veterans do a nice job in relief."
On highlights: "The Illinois weekend stands out. We went in having to win the series to put us in a position (for the playoffs) heading into the last week of the season with five road games. To pull out the Sunday game in the ninth inning made that our biggest win of the season, especially in the position that we were in. We were able to score four there. I think the Miami win also stands out, even though they didn't have their traditional Miami year. They made it far in the ACC and that win was great. We had a chance to play in four new Big Ten stadiums, which was good. Playing in front of the large crowds at Nebraska was good for our team to experience. Also, the Iowa weekend is something to grow on, taking two from the team that won the Big Ten Tournament and advanced the farthest in the regionals."
On competing in the Big Ten: "I think it is a matter of getting our team right. We know who we are going to see and where to go. Now we have to get our team to where we want to be."
On recruits: "I think our pitching is going to improve with the guys we have coming in. Pitching and defense lacked this year and we are looking forward to seeing what the freshmen can do. The potential is there and I'm excited to see what we have. We do have a good class coming in and we look forward to seeing how they react to college baseball this fall."
On the seniors: "This group really grew up and matured throughout their time here. It was great to see them graduate and we wish them nothing but the best."
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