Thursday, March 28, 2024

Baseball to open season this weekend in Arizona

February 12, 2015
<p>Sophomore third baseman Justin Hovis throws the ball to first during the game against Nebraska on May 11, 2014, at McLane Baseball Stadium at Old College Field. The Cornhuskers defeated the Spartans, 4-1. Danyelle Morrow/The State News</p>

Sophomore third baseman Justin Hovis throws the ball to first during the game against Nebraska on May 11, 2014, at McLane Baseball Stadium at Old College Field. The Cornhuskers defeated the Spartans, 4-1. Danyelle Morrow/The State News

Photo by Danyelle Morrow | The State News

“We’re excited to get going, led by a strong core of seniors (consisting of) Mick VanVossen, Jeff Kinley, Blaise Salter, Ryan Krill, (Anthony) Cheky they’ve played a lot of games here for us and we’re going to look to them to lead us,” head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. “The expectation is always to compete for a championship and that’s nothing new this year.”

The team will have to replace outfielder Jimmy Pickens and catcher and infielder Joel Fisher, both produced a lot of results for the Spartans while each starting 56 games last season. Fisher was second on the team with 39 RBIs and Pickens was third with 35.

Junior outfielder Cam Gibson, son of former Tigers great Kirk Gibson, tied for first on the team with 70 hits last season and was second on the team with 32 walks. Gibson wants to prove the team’s doubters wrong and establish an identity without Pickens and Fisher.

“We’re just looking to make a name for ourselves this year, we lost two big guys that we had last year but we (have) two guys that are going to fill those holes and succeed just like the other guys did,” Gibson said. “I know that we may have some people who are thinking ‘they not going to do nearly as good as they did last year’ but that’s the type of we like to hear...because we know what we can do and we know we’re going to succeed.”

The Spartans will play 17 games in East Lansing and 23 total games in Michigan, with the other six consisting of one in Ypsilanti against Eastern Michigan, one in Lansing against the Lansing Lugnuts in the Crosstown Showdown, two in Detroit at Comerica Park against Michigan and Central Michigan, one in Kalamazoo against Western Michigan and one in Mt. Pleasant against Central Michigan. Senior catcher and first baseman Blaise Salter, who led the team with 50 RBIs last season, is excited and expects a lot out of the season.

“Everyone has just been working hard and we’re all trying to get that Big Ten Championship ring this year,” Salter said. “Team goal is to try and win 40 games this year, if you win 40 games in the north it gives you a good opportunity to get to the NCAA tournament...we want to do well against Michigan this year, we only play them once down at Comerica.”

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