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Thursday, June 7, 2018
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com SPORTS
KATELYN MULCHAY / DAILY
The Michigan baseball team faced almost everything possible on a baseball field from walk-off wins to brutal losses this season
Michigan baseball season in reivew
Coming off the back of a second
NCAA Tournament appearance in
three years and their first 40-win season
since 2008, head coach Erik Bakich
and the Michigan baseball team were
looking to build on their successful 2017
season with an even better campaign
in 2018. The Wolverines lost 11 players
from that 2017 team to the majors — 15
in all — but welcomed a recruiting class
— ranked tenth nationally — of 13.
However,
the
optimism
that
accompanied Team #152 into the season
quickly turned sour. A combination of
returning starters not performing well
enough and freshmen struggling to
make an impact saw Michigan lose 11 of
its first 15 games. This run was capped
off by a humiliating 3-8 loss to NAIA
program Lawrence Tech.
A switch was flipped following the
loss, though. The Wolverines rattled off
20 consecutive wins and became one
of the hottest teams in college baseball.
There was a newfound positivity in the
dugout, and both upperclassmen and
freshmen were benefiting from it on the
field.
A loss to Iowa ended their streak and
seemed to phase the youthful Michigan
team. Like earlier in the season, it was
knocked off its pedestal and ended the
regular season with a dissapointing 8-7
record in which all seven losses came to
Big Ten opponents.
The Wolverines entered the Big Ten
tournament in a bit of a rut and weren’t
able to shake it. Although they won their
first game 2-1 against Iowa in extra
innings, they came up just short in the
next two games to Purdue and Ohio
State, respectively. Their inability to
move on in Omaha ultimately cost them
a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
The 2018 season was a rollercoaster
for the Michigan baseball team. The
Wolverines finished 33-21, 6.5 games
behind last year’s mark. They flashed
boundless potential at times and
exhibited inconsistency at other times.
The Daily reflects on the 2018 season
and looks ahead to the 2019 team.
Most Valuable Player: Jonathan
Engelmann
On a team full of freshmen and
sophomores,
junior
centerfielder
Jonathan Engelmann was a much-
needed leader. The All-Big Ten First
Team Selection isn’t necessarily the
most boisterous guy on the field, but
the uber-mature Engelmann led by
example and was a major reason why
this Michigan team was as successful
as it was.
Offensively, he did it all this season.
He was second on the team with a .351
batting average, led the team in hits,
total bases and doubles and was second
only to freshmen slugger Jesse Franklin
in home runs and RBIs. Additionally, he
was a defensive pillar out in centerfield,
registering a .974 fielding percentage
and only two errors.
His likely return to Ann Arbor for
his senior season is one of the many
reasons to be optimistic about the 2019
Wolverines.
Breakout Player: Jesse Franklin
Like most freshmen on the team,
Franklin struggled to adapt to the
college game early on. After playing
in his first nine games, five of which
he started, Franklin had a .095 batting
average and two hits. Having been
named Washington’s Gatorade Player
of the Year as a senior in high school,
Franklin wasn’t necessarily used to a
slump.
Eventually, though, his talent shone
through. He blasted his first of a team-
high 10 homers on March 20th and
went on a hitting tear over the next few
weeks. Franklin finished the season
with the most RBI on the team and a
respectable batting average of .327.
A prolific first season at Michigan
made
Franklin
an
All-Big
Ten
Freshman Team Selection.
Freshman of the Year: Ben Dragani
If it wasn’t for freshman left-
hander Ben Dragani’s consistency
this year, him and Franklin might
have swapped categories. Another
extremely talented freshman, Dragani
was named the Gatorade Player of the
Year in Wisconsin and a Rawlings-
Perfect Game Honorable Mention All-
American in 2017.
Dragani saw time in the first game
of the season coming in to relieve senior
starter Alec Rennard. His solid relief
performances quickly endeared him to
the coaching staff and in the last game of
the Bowling Green series in mid-March,
Dragani made his first career start. He
went seven innings without giving up
an earned run, allowing only five hits
and striking out six Falcons.
From there Dragani took over
the Saturday starter position for the
Wolverines. His team-leading 2.76 ERA
and consistency on the mound made
him an All-Big Ten Freshman Team
Selection joining Franklin in the glory.
Best Individual Performance:
Jordan Nwogu against Bowling Green
on March 16th
Freshman
outfielder
Jordan
Nwogu’s performance against Bowling
Green not only proved he was ready for
more playing time, but also catalyzed
the first victory of the Wolverines’
20 game win streak. Yet another
freshman who made waves this season,
Nwogu first announced himself to the
Michigan faithful with a multi-hit, two-
RBI effort. His most impressive feat
of the day, though, was scoring from
second on a double suicide squeeze
laid down by freshman shortstop Jack
Blomgren. The Wolverines made a habit
of using such a maneuver throughout
the season, but its first installment saw
the hulking freshman outfielder beat
the throw home and put Michigan up
by two.
There
may
have
been
better
statistical performances in the 2018
season, but none seemed as important.
In his first career start, Nwogu was the
main reason the Wolverines secured the
victory over Bowling Green in the game
following the Lawrence Tech loss.
High Point: 20 game win streak
From March 16th to April 27th,
Michigan didn’t lose a game. The streak
lasted 20 games, and was the program’s
longest since 1987. The win streak
featured some thrilling and memorable
individual moments: the ninth inning
execution of another double suicide
squeeze to give the Wolveirnes the 3-1
win over Michigan State in East Lansing
and Blomgren’s walkoff sacrifice bunt
in extra innings against Penn State. A
number of solid pitching performances
also factored into Michigan’s success
during this period.
Overall, though, the streak itself and
the positivity surrounding the team
during this time was the high point. The
Wolverines transitioned from a team
who had lost to a NAIA team to one
that was climbing the national rankings
and capturing the attention of collegiate
baseball fans everywhere.
Low Point: Losing to Lawrence
Tech
Sure, Michigan had a disappointing
end to the regular season and were
hoping to go farther in the Big Ten
Tournament than it did— but that
all paled in comparison to losing to
Lawrence Tech. The midweek game
encapsulated all of the team’s struggles
up to that point and left both the players
and fans wondering what the hell
had happened. The Wolverines were
dominated on their home field by a
program which was only started in 2012.
Bakich called it “the most embarrassing
loss in program history.” The baseball
program at Michigan started in 1866—
what more needs to be said?
The Future:
The optimism surrounding this
team prior to the 2018 season was not
unwarranted, it was maybe just a little
premature. The 2017 Wolverines had
just won 42 games and reached the
NCAA Tournament, and the incoming
recruiting class was the highest-ranked
in program history. Yet the veteran
losses from that 2017 squad and the time
it took for the freshmen to acclimate
hindered the 2018 Michigan team.
This program is still trending
upwards, though. Bakich and the
coaching staff want to make the
Wolverines
perennial
Big
Ten
champions and NCAA Tournament
participants. They didn’t accomplish
either of those this year, but with the
returning players and another talented
freshman class coming in, there is
definitely room for optimism.
Michigan loses only five seniors
this year: pitchers Alec Rennard, Jayce
Vancena and Austin Batka, and catchers
Hector Gutierrez and Brock Keener. Of
this group, only Rennard and Keener
saw substantial time this season.
Vancena was set to be a starting pitcher
this season, but his struggles early on
saw him pitch sparingly in relief. At both
catcher and pitcher, the Wolverines
have the talent to absorb these losses.
Assuming all eligible players return
next year, the three weekend starters
should stay the same: sophomore
Tommy
Henry,
Dragani,
and
sophomore Karl Kauffmann. Barring
injury or regression, that threesome is as
formidable of a rotation as any in the Big
Ten. The bullpen should also be strong
as junior Troy Miller will return to
Ann Arbor as a senior, and the youthful
contingent of freshmen Jeff Criswell,
Angelo Smith and sophomore Jack
Weisenberger will also play prominent
roles.
Highly-touted freshman catcher
Joe Donovan saw some time in his
first collegiate season, but he will enter
next season as the leading candidate to
replace Keener behind the plate. Jesse
Franklin will surely be the starter at first
base next season and will hit in the four-
spot of the lineup. At second base, junior
Ako Thomas, one of the team’s best
all-around players, will hope to bounce
back from a disappointing individual
season. Blomgren and either junior
Blake Nelson or Jimmy Kerr will round
out the infield.
Nwogu and Lewis will share time
out in left field most likely, with the other
claiming the designated hitter role.
Engelmann and sophomore Christian
Bullock should both be offensive and
defensive leaders next year for the
Wolverines as well.
A 22nd-ranked recruiting doesn’t
match the previous year’s esteem,
but should nevertheless add depth.
If Michigan can learn from this
year’s shortcomings, they have all the
ingredients to win the Big Ten and
secure an NCAA tournament spot next
season.
CONNOR BRENNAN
Daily Sports Writer