Leading Off
The Omaha baseball (1-6) team has a busy week ahead of them as they begin with their home opener this Tuesday at 5 p.m. vs. Kansas State (4-4), before immediately hitting the road again for a three-games series at BYU (2-6) starting on Thursday.

This Week's Schedule
Tuesday: 5 p.m. vs. Kansas State at Tal Anderson Field
Thursday: 8 p.m. at BYU at Miller Park
Friday: 8 p.m. at BYU at Miller Park
Saturday: 5 p.m. at BYU at Miller Park

Around the Horn

• After dropping the first three games of the series and their first six games overall, the Mavericks finally picked up their first win of the season on Sunday as they became the first team this year to shutout Fresno State in a 1-0 win.
• Charlie Bell (3.0 IP), Wyatt Sellers (4.0 IP), and Luke Gainer (2.0 IP) combined to throw the three-hit shutout, with Gainer earning his first career save in the process. Bell likewise made a massive improvement over his first start this season in which he was limited to only one inning and allowed three earned runs. Sellers ended up earning the win in what proved to be the longest and most dominant outing of his career, striking out a career-high four batters.
• Zach Lechnir provided Omaha with all the offense it needed on Sunday with a solo home run in the fifth inning. He now leads the team with two home runs and three RBIs.
• Earlier in the series, Eduardo Rosario and Eddie Satisky both launched their first home runs of the season.
• Mike Boeve enters the day batting .407 with a .985 OPS as he moved into eighth place on Omaha's all-time doubles leader board with 43 after clubbing two at Fresno State on Thursday. He now has a team-best four doubles on the season. Boeve is also currently on a seven-game hitting streak to open the season, good for the third longest hitting streak of his career.
• Cooper Prososki turned in a career performance on Saturday, throwing five shutout innings in relief, allowing only two hits and striking out five, all on just 47 pitches.
• In the series opener on Thursday, Caleb Riedel held the Bulldogs hitless through the first five innings. With only four hits allowed through his first 9.2 innings of work this season, he owns a miniscule 0.72 WHIP and is holding opposing batters to a .114 BAA.
• Riedel (3.72), Sellers (3.60), and Gainer (3.12) are currently the only three members of the Mavericks pitching staff with sub-4.00 ERAs. Each one is also holding opposing batters to a sub-.200 BAA as well.

Scouting Kansas State
After starting the season 4-0 at Stephen F. Austin, Kansas State has lost four in a row, most recently falling 6-5 vs. Iowa. 

Three Wildcats enter this week with an OPS above .900: Brendan Jones (1.016), Nick Goodwin (.991), and Kaelen Culpepper (.979). Each one is also batting above .300 and combine for nine XBHs and 22 RBIs.

Starters German Fajardo (6.10 ERA), Owen Boerema (7.36 ERA), Jackson Wentworth (11.12 ERA), and Dalton Beck (9.00 ERA) have struggled for the Wildcats, combining for only 25.1 innings pitched in eight starts. That said, six of their relievers have sub-4.0 ERAs, with Cole Wisenbaker (0.00 ERA) also owning a 0.64 WHIP in 4.2 innings pitched.

Head coach Pete Hughes is in his fifth season leading K-State and owns 754 career victories (102 with KSU) coaching for five different schools, giving him the most wins of any active Big 12 head coach.

Scouting BYU
As for BYU, they are currently 2-6 and will play a game at Utah Valley on Tuesday before hosting Omaha. They are also on a five-game losing streak, most recently getting swept by Louisiana Lafayette.

Three Cougars are currently producing an OPS above 1.000: Ryan Sepede (1.026), Ozzie Pratt (1.055), and Austin Deming (1.190). Sepede also leads the team with a .370 AVG, while Deming paces them with eight RBIs and Pratt with seven doubles.

Ben Hansen (1.12 ERA) and Bryce Robinson (1.86 ERA) lead BYU's starting rotation as the only two pitchers on the staff with sub-2.00 ERAs. They currently combine for 17.2 innings pitched and 21 strikeouts.

Trent Pratt has officially taken over as head coach of the Cougars after serving as interim head coach for part of 2022. During his time as an assistant coach, he helped BYU to three WCC regular season titles in 2016, 2017 and 2019, and an NCAA Tournament berth in 2017.