MINNEAPOLIS – Rutgers baseball wraps up the regular season this weekend with a trip to Minneapolis for three games against Minnesota. It will mark the first time RU will play a three-game series at UM’s Siebert Field.
The Golden Gophers are 16-33 overall and 8-13 in the Big Ten. They most recently dropped two-of-three at first-place Maryland.
The Scarlet Knights are 32-19 overall and 13-8 in the Big Ten. RU has won back-to-back series after taking two-of-three from Illinois this past weekend.
Rutgers has clinched a spot in this season’s Big Ten Tournament and will know its seed after the weekend.
RU can potentially finish anywhere from first through eighth place in the conference.
The Scarlet Knights will start RHP Christian Coppola on Friday and RHP Drew Conover on Saturday, with Sunday’s starter to be determined.
All three games of the series will be streamed on B1G+.
Fans can also follow along on Twitter for live updates. Live stats will be available for all three games.
Series History
The all-time series between Rutgers and Minnesota is tied 9-9 overall and 6-6 in Big Ten games. The last meeting between the teams was in 2022, with RU sweeping UM at Bainton Field.
In the Rankings
The Scarlet Knights lead the Big Ten in a number of key situational stats.
Their 50 doubles plays turned on defense are the best in the conference and the fifth-most in the country. The team’s 39 sacrifice bunts are also best in the Big Ten and rank 15th nationally, while their 36 sacrifice flies are the most in the Big Ten and the fifth-most sac flies in the country.
Additionally, RU’s five shutouts on the mound are the most in the conference and the 12th-most in the country.
Outfield: The Catalysts
The starting outfield for RU also makes up three of the top hitters in the lineup.
Ryan Lasko (.349), Evan Sleight (.305) and Trevor Cohen (.289) have been the starting outfield for all 51 games and combine to hit .315 as a unit.
Lasko leads the team with his 73 hits, 55 runs, 18 doubles, 15 stolen bases and is tied for the team lead with 50 RBIs.
In conference games, Lasko is tied for the Big Ten lead with 38 hits. Additionally, his .432 average is the highest among players with more than 14 games played.
Sleight’s 25 extra-base hits are second to only Lasko and his 11 home runs are tied for the second-most on the Scarlet Knights.
A true freshman, Cohen is the second-toughest batter to strike out in the conference, striking out once every 10.0 at bats.
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