PISCATAWAY, N.J. – After playing the first six games on the road, Rutgers baseball is set to host Wagner Tuesday at Bainton Field. It would be the earliest home game on the calendar in program history.
Â
Admission and parking are free, but all vehicles are required to be
registered to comply with Rutgers University policy. Only one registration per vehicle is needed for the season.
Â
Watch: BTN Plus (Lou Brogno & Dom Savino)
Listen: WRSU 88.7-FM (Justin Sontupe & Robert Baxter)
Live Stats: Sidearm Sports
Â
Most Recently: The Scarlet Knights picked up their first February weekend sweep since 2012 and first road sweep since March 2017 with three wins at North Florida, 14-3, 16-4 and 7-6. The 37 runs scored in the set were the most in a three-game series by RU since May 2013. Rutgers hit .377/.470/.500 as a team on 46 hits. Nationally, RU ranks 35
th at 7.7 runs per game in the early going after averaging 4.0 in 2019.
Â
Hitting: Sophomore
Chris Brito is the only Big Ten player with three homers so far this season, as he is hitting .500/.593/.955 through six games. He reached based 12-of-16 plate appearances at UNF, driving home six runs. Classmate
Peter Serruto also had a productive series in Jacksonville by reaching 8-of-11 times with his second long ball of the season. In addition, redshirt junior
Danny DiGeorgio moved into the leadoff spot and joined Brito with eight hits versus the Ospreys.
Â
Pitching: Senior
Jack Parkinson is set to make the start on the mound. The right-hander made two appearances in the series at No. 3 Miami. His best outing last season was allowing only one run over five innings to beat Iona. In the bullpen, senior
Eric Reardon leads the way with three games worked so far, while sophomore
Parker Scott picked up a save at North Florida with three innings to close out the second game. Redshirt junior
Kyle Muller has not been charged with a run against in 4.1 innings this year.
Â
- The dimensions at Bainton Field have changed to 329-370-392-370-324 (left to right) after being 330-385-410-370-320 in the past. The turf is all new, as well as the fences and padding.
- The Scarlet Knights have won their past 11 home openers and 17 of the last 18.
Â
The Seahawks took one from Penn State in a three-game series last weekend in Cary, N.C., falling in the rubber game in extra innings. The team previously went 1-2 in a set at Norfolk State. Henry Martinez leads the offense at .400/.471/.400 so far, while Freddy Sabido has knocked in five runs. Nick DiCarlo is set to make his first start of the season, allowing five runs in 1.1 innings of relief in his only game pitched.
Â
Head coach Jim Carone is in his ninth season.
Â
All-Time: Rutgers leads, 25-4-2
Last Game: Rutgers 11, Wagner 10 (April 3, 2019 at Bainton Field)
Â
Rutgers topped Wagner last season, 11-10, behind
Carmen Sclafani's seven RBIs on four hits.
Serafino Brito earned the save by stranding the tying run in scoring position in the eighth and working a scoreless ninth. The Scarlet Knights have won the last six in a series that dates back to 1960.
Â
The Scarlet Knights head to Peoria, Ariz., to play Washington State in three games at a neutral site. RU has not faced a PAC-12 opponent since playing Oregon State twice in the 2007 Charlottesville Regional.
Â
Follow Rutgers Athletics on
Facebook and Twitter
(@RUAthletics) for all of the latest news and updates. For specific updates regarding baseball, follow the program on Twitter (
@RutgersBaseball), Instagram
(@rutgersbaseball) and Facebook (
/BaseballRU). For additional updates, please download the Scarlet Knights App via the
app store or
play store.