The baseball team (10-11 overall, 1-2 Big Ten) has struggled to find offensive consistency in their young season, but if the game against Central Michigan on Tuesday was any indication of what is to come, the team may have found a home remedy.
In the Spartans’ first home game of the year, the offense got off to a hot start, scoring three runs in the first. They never looked back en route to an 8-3 win over the Chippewas.
Senior first baseman Blaise Salter had two RBI in the game and said the team needed this performance after struggling to get the offense going as of late.
“We came out to a hot start with the first inning hitting. We needed that. We kind of struggled a bit,” Salter said. “It was good to get back to winning, especially getting some key hits in the first.”
The team spent their first 20 games on the road, going 9-11 in that stretch. The Spartans are happy to be getting things going at McLane Baseball Stadium, even though it may still be cold in the Great Lake State.
“You come home, and you get used to your field, and you get used to the weather. And it’s actually starting to warm up now,” junior outfielder Cam Gibson said. “But we’re used to the cold. Nothing like playing in a 40 degree-weather game. That’s what we like.”
Salter believes that the offensive performance against CMU will give the team some momentum heading into their second Big Ten series of the year—a three game set against No. 26 Illinois (17-5-1 overall).
“It’s always good to gain some momentum (on offense),” Salter said. “Hitting is really contagious, and when a couple of guys string a few hits together it’s contagious to the team.”
Gibson added that the team has gained some confidence heading into a big series with a tough Illinois team.
“It’s good to get 13 hits and eight runs. Our pitching staff has been doing their job, we just need to figure out the offense,” Gibson said. “You’re coming into more Big Ten play, and you get a team in Illinois, and you’re going to want the confidence that we had today to just transfer throughout the rest of the season, because that’s what we’re going to need to do on offense is be confident.”
Salter, much like the rest of the team, is looking forward to spending more time at home after spending the first weeks of the season in the south.
“It’s great to be home,” Salter said. “Sleeping in your own bed and just doing stuff on your own time is great, so it’s good to be back playing in front of the home crowd.”
