It’s not frequent to see a pitcher removed from the ballgame after facing just one batter. Indiana baseball pulled off this move twice in Tuesday’s non-conference game against No. 18 Louisville.
Ryan Kraft started on the hill for Indiana, departing the game after just two innings of work. The bullpen behind Kraft consisted of six different pitchers stretching for seven innings.
Within the bullpen, freshman pitcher Henry Brummel and sophomore pitcher Ryan Rushing were tasked with facing just one batter, both being removed from the game following the lone batter faced.
Following the team’s 6-4 loss to Louisville, Indiana head coach Jeff Mercer gave insight on the situation, explaining how he used the relief outings as an opportunity for the young pitchers to log experience while not taking away from the team’s competitiveness in a game.
“You got a guy, maybe two, but the next guy is going to get up with you and come in right after that,” Mercer said. “No matter what you do in that situation, the next guy is coming in.”
This distinctive method of bullpen management is something that Mercer and pitching coach Dustin Glant intend on using going forward, if the teams schedule permits it.
“In an ideal world,” Mercer said, “if we have a typical schedule with some coverage in length, then that’s a way that we can get a guy in the game and still cover the innings we have to cover.”
Typical spring weather in the Midwest hasn’t allowed for Mercer and Glant to play inexperienced arms in a handful of situations, which is why it has been extremely important for the coaching staff to take advantage of the few opportunities. With Indiana entering the Louisville game on two full days of rest, with an additional two-day break following the game, the matchup made perfect sense to serve as a test of Indiana’s future arms.
The plan is for Indiana to continue to allow Brummel and Rushing to ease into innings. Mercer also predicted that Indiana could also see freshman pitcher Brayton Thomas in this pitching method.
“Get the rest of those guys in the game and keep trying to grow up those young guys and give them opportunities to advance,” Mercer said. “You got to get them in the game to help them figure out how to be a more useful and competitive member of the staff.”
With injuries recently impacting several of Indiana’s pitchers, the team’s bullpen has continuously been stretched tightly. Mercer and Glant’s plan on easing young arms into the bullpen could serve as tremendous help down the stretch.
