Big Ten regular season co-champion Oregon opens play in the conference tournament with a 4 p.m. PT game Thursday against Michigan State at Charles Schwab Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska.
They won the league with a series sweep over then first-place Iowa, overtaking the Hawkeyes to finish 22-8. UCLA had the same record, but the Ducks took two of three in their head-to-head series at PK Park in April.
Tuesday morning league postseason honors rolled in from Indianapolis. Duck skipper Mark Wasikowski was named Big Ten Coach of the Year and five of his players made the All-Conferrence squad:
SP โ Grayson Grinsell, Jr., Oregon
RP โ Seth Mattox, Sr., Oregon
1B โ Jacob Walsh, Sr., Oregon
OF โ Mason Neville, Jr., Oregon
At-Large โ Ryan Cooney, So., Oregon (2B)
Shortstop Maddox Molony, starting pitcher Jason Reitz, Outfielder Anson Aroz and designated hitter Dominic Hellman made the third team.
With a 41-13 record the Ducks are ranked No. 4 in the D-1 baseball rankings, ahead of the selection show for the NCAA Baseball Tournament next Monday. They should be one of the top eight seeds and host a regional, but a good showing at the Big Ten tourney would lock it in.
Grinsell posted a 9-2 record this year, second in the league in ERA at 2.33. The junior lefthander from Reno, Nevada also made the Dean's List for winter term.
He was stellar in Big Ten play with a 7-1 record and a 1.36 ERA as the Ducks' Friday starter and ace, striking out 70 with three complete games.
That he didn't win Pitcher of the Year was, frankly, absurd. That went to Michigan State's Joshua Dzierwa.
Odd too that Mason Neville was passed over for Big Ten Player of the Year after leading the nation in home runs with 26. Neville drove in 56 runs for the Ducks and also walked 52 times out of the leadoff spot, good for an on-base percentage of .446.
Reitz developed into a reliable Sunday starter for the Ducks, 5-0 with a 3.09 ERA. He fanned 59 batters in 58.1 innings with a fastball that hits 96 mph.
First sacker Jacob Walsh clubbed 19 homers and drove in 59 out of the No. 3 spot, hitting .344 in his senior season.
Seth Mattox gave the Ducks 17 innings out of the bullpen, won two games and earned seven saves.
Cooney batted .341 in his second season with five home runs and 47 RBI, a clutch hitter out of the eight-spot and a reliable glove at second base.