Season Review: 2018 Michigan Baseball
7/3/2018 1:50:00 PM | Baseball
Record: 33-21, 15-8 Big Ten Conference (3rd place)
Big Ten Tournament: T-5th
The University of Michigan baseball program ended the 2018 campaign with its fifth straight 30-win season under head coach Erik Bakich and its sixth consecutive postseason appearance in the Big Ten Conference Tournament. The season was highlighted by a 20-game win streak that stretched from March to April and marked the program's third-longest win streak in history.
The Wolverines captured plenty of individual awards, including nine Big Ten honors, six freshman All-America awards, two all-region honors, and 10 Big Ten Conference weekly awards. At the close of the season, Michigan had three players selected in the Major League Baseball Draft, which marked the sixth consecutive season with a Wolverine draft pick.
Team Highlights
• Michigan finished the season with a 33-21 record, which marked the program's fifth straight 30-win season under Coach Bakich. Additionally, the Wolverines earned a 15-8 record in Big Ten play for a third-place conference finish and a No. 3 seed for the Big Ten Conference Tournament.
• The 2018 season featured a 20-game win streak for the Wolverines, which goes down in the record books as the third-longest in program history. The streak, which occurred between March 16 and April 22, included six series sweeps and an 11-0 start in Big Ten action.
• Michigan posted an 18-3 record when playing at the Wilpon Complex during the 2018 campaign, including a string of 16 consecutive wins at home during the team's 20-game win streak. The Maize and Blue earned a .306 team batting average with a .452 slugging percentage and 17 homers when playing at Ray Fisher Stadium, while the pitching staff registered a 3.05 earned-run average with 180 strikeouts.
• In addition to the program's on-field success, the Maize and Blue had three players selected in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, including juniors William Tribucher and Jonathan Engelmann as well as senior Jayce Vancena. Michigan has had at least one player drafted each summer since 2013, and has had over 178 draft selections since the MLB Draft began in 1965.
Individual Highlights
• Michigan saw seven players earn nine All-Big Ten Conference awards at the close of the regular season, including two first-team selections in sophomore Dominic Clementi and junior Jonathan Engelmann.
• Clementi led the Wolverines with a .368 batting average and a .485 on-base percentage, while Engelmann posted a .351 average with a team-leading 14 doubles. Both later earned ABCA/Rawlings All-Mideast Region honors.
• Freshmen Jordan Nwogu, Jesse Franklin and Ben Dragani made a splash in their debut seasons with the Maize and Blue as the trio combined for 17 awards throughout the 2018 campaign. All three were named to the All-Big Ten freshman team and went on to earn freshman All-America honors for their efforts. Both Franklin and Nwogu were also named the conference's Freshman of the Week.
• Michigan's starting rotation was strong throughout the 2018 season, as sophomores Tommy Henry and Karl Kauffmann and freshman Ben Dragani combined for a 2.98 earned-run average through over 235 innings pitched. The trio struck out a combined 209 batters and accounted for roughly 49 percent of the team's strikeouts.
Honors and Awards
Dominic
Clementi
Ben
Dragani
Jonathan
Engelmann
Jesse
Franklin
Tommy
Henry
Jordan
Nwogu
Perfect Game Freshman All-America
Second Team: Ben Dragani, Jesse Franklin
NCBWA Freshman All-America
Second Team: Jesse Franklin
Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-America
Starting Pitcher: Ben Dragani
First Base: Jesse Franklin
Outfield: Jordan Nwogu
ABCA/Rawlings All-Mideast Region
First Team: Dominic Clementi
Second Team: Jonathan Engelmann
Big Ten Conference
All-Big Ten (First Team): Dominic Clementi, Jonathan Engelmann
All-Big Ten (Second Team): Jordan Nwogu, Tommy Henry
All-Big Ten (Third Team): Ben Dragani, Karl Kauffmann
All-Big Ten (Freshman Team): Ben Dragani, Jesse Franklin, Jordan Nwogu
Sportsmanship Award: Harrison Salter
Big Ten Player of the Week
Player: Jonathan Engelmann (March 26, April 23), Jesse Franklin (April 16)
Pitcher: Karl Kauffmann (March 6), Jayce Vancena (May 14)
Freshman: Jesse Franklin (April 2, April 16, April 23), Jordan Nwogu (March 19, May 14)
Academic All-Big Ten
Jonathan Engelmann, Jr., Political Science
Tommy Henry, So., Undeclared
Benjamin Keizer, Jr., Sport Management
Jimmy Kerr, Jr., Industrial & Operational Engineering
Miles Lewis, Sr., Biology
Troy Miller, Jr., Environment
Harrison Salter, So., Undeclared
Ako Thomas, Jr., Health and Fitness
William Tribucher, Jr., Psychology
