Michigan
Purdue
U-M to Head to West Lafayette for Conference Series with Purdue
3/19/2025 1:44:00 PM | Baseball
• Schedule Note: Michigan's Sunday Game vs. Purdue Rescheduled (03/21/25)
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan baseball team (11-9, 3-3 Big Ten) hits the road for its first true conference road series, traveling to Purdue (18-2, 2-1 Big Ten) for a three-game set at Alexander Field. The series begins on Friday (March 21) at 4 p.m., followed by a game on Saturday (March 22) at 2 p.m. and the finale on Sunday (March 23) at 1 p.m. All three games will be streamed on B1G+.
Notes
• Michigan sits in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten with a 3-3 conference record. The Wolverines opened Big Ten play with a series win over Illinois, taking the first two games. Last weekend, U-M dropped two close games to USC before rebounding with an 11-0, seven-inning run-rule victory in the finale. The Wolverines lost their most recent contest to Western Michigan on Tuesday (March 18) in a midweek matchup.
• Mitch Voit is the reigning Big Ten Player of the Week after compiling a slash line of .667/.739/1.222 across five games against USC, Michigan State, and Toledo. He posted a 1.961 OPS with a home run, 22 total bases, 12 RBIs, and six runs scored. Voit recorded multiple hits in four of the five games and had at least one hit in each contest. This marks his first Big Ten Player of the Week award; he was previously named Pitcher of the Week and Freshman of the Week. The last Wolverine to earn the honor was Ted Burton on May 18, 2021.
• In the series finale against USC (March 16), Colby Turner went 3-for-4 with a career-high six RBIs in Michigan's 11-0 win. He homered in three straight games, starting with his first as a Wolverine against Michigan State before hitting two more against USC. Over his last nine games, Turner has recorded five runs and 13 RBIs. On the season, he is hitting .256 with a .946 OPS.
• Graduate transfer Benny Casillas ranks second on the team with a .381 batting average and a .963 OPS. He has hit leadoff in eight of the last nine games, tallying 17 runs and 24 hits in 17 starts while recording at least one hit in 15 of those games. Casillas has reached base safely in all 18 starts, drawing 11 walks and getting hit twice. Across his 165-game Division I career, he is batting .285 with 94 runs, 180 hits, and 88 RBIs.
• Cole Caruso is hitting .263 with four home runs and five doubles this season. His .487 slugging percentage ranks fourth on the team behind Voit, Casillas, and Turner. Caruso has scored 10 runs, driven in 15 RBIs, and is second on the team in total bases (36). Defensively, he has played 79 games at third base and has recorded eight putouts and 39 assists this season.
• Dylan Vigue has been strong over his last two starts and has gone more than five innings in four of his five starts this season after doing so just three times as a freshman. This year, he has pitched 28 innings with 21 strikeouts while holding a 3.86 ERA and a .218 opponent batting average. In his last start, he threw six scoreless innings, allowing seven baserunners and striking out five.
• Kurt Barr has had an up-and-down season but turned in a stellar start against USC, pitching six scoreless innings in a combined shutout while striking out four. He began the year with eight scoreless innings across his first two starts, recording 12 total strikeouts.
• David Lally Jr. has been Michigan's most consistent starter, holding a 2.96 ERA with 20 strikeouts over 24.1 innings. He allowed just two earned runs over his first 13.1 innings but struggled against USC, allowing four runs on 11 hits over six innings (March 14). Lally ranks 12th in the Big Ten in ERA and 163rd nationally.
• Michigan has used 17 total pitchers this season, with six earning starts and four making weekend starts. Outside of the starting rotation, Max Debiec, Cade Connolly, and Will Rogers have been the go-to arms in relief. Debiec has thrown 11.2 innings without allowing an earned run while striking out 13. Connolly has 10 strikeouts in 9.2 innings with a 2.79 ERA, and Rogers has a 3.78 ERA with 16.2 innings pitched and 11 strikeouts.
• Purdue is off to a strong start at 18-2 overall and 2-1 in Big Ten play. The Boilermakers have won their last four games, including two midweek contests and two games against UIC last weekend. Purdue opened Big Ten play by taking two of three from Minnesota. All-time, Michigan leads the series 153-66 and won last year's series in Ann Arbor.
