Game Notes

The Franklin & Marshall baseball team (4-10, 0-0 CC) prepares for five non-conference games, including its home opener this week as it returns from its Spring Break trip in Florida. The Diplomats travel to play Cairn (7-5, 3-0 United East) on Wednesday, before taking on Albright (3-7, 0-3 MAC) on Thursday. Both of those games are scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. On Friday, F&M hosts its home opener against Rutgers-Newark (10-4, 0-0 NJAC)  in a doubleheader, starting at 12:30 p.m. The Diplomats wrap up the week at No. 25 York (9-1, 3-0 MAC) on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. F&M was originally scheduled to face the Spartans on March 5, but inclement weather postponed the game to this upcoming Sunday. 

Last Week

The Diplomats competed in the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic during the team's Spring Trip to Fort Myers, Florida. In Fort Myers, F&M went 4-5 and earned its first win of the season, 15-4, over Muskingum. The Diplomats blasted four home runs against the Muskies, including Drew Butera hitting two over the wall to put F&M on top. The Diplomats then earned wins over Scranton, Skidmore, and the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford to complete the week. Jakob Hoffman batted .545 with 11 RBI and 11 runs scored during the week. Michael von Zuben also had a great week at the plate, hitting .438 with 10 hits in the last four games. 

On the mound, Kiernan Keller recorded a 1.64 ERA in two starts where he struck out a total of 13 batters last week. Peter Mullen earned a win against Pitt. Bradford, striking out a career-high nine batters and allowed just two earned runs in five innings on the mound. Dan Galef claimed the win against Muskingum, striking out eight hitters and allowing three earned runs in 6.1 innings pitched. 

Last Time vs. Cairn

Franklin & Marshall and Cairn - out of the United East Conference - meet for the first time in program history.  

Last Time vs. Albright

The Diplomats plated four runs in the sixth inning to beat Albright, 7-1, during their last matchup in 2022. Evan Varga had a big game with a double and a two-RBI single to pace the F&M offense in the win. AJ Desautels also brought in two RBI, while swiping two stolen bases in the contest. Greg Nieskens '23 earned the win on the mound with nine strikeouts in six innings of work. Galef entered the game in relief with five strikeouts in two innings. Read the full recap here. 

Last Time vs. Rutgers-Newark

F&M tallied 11 hits to score 11 runs in their 2013 victory over Rutgers-Newark, 11-9. The Diplomats jumped out in front with eight runs through five innings. However, the Scarlet Raiders cut the deficit to two with four runs in the bottom of the sixth - making it an 8-6 ballgame. F&M responded with two runs in the seventh and one run in the ninth to put the game away. Read the full recap here. 

Last Time vs. York

The Diplomats earned an 8-5 win over York (Pa.) in last season's home opener at Caplan Field. Tied at 5-5, F&M took the lead in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI-single from Bobby Falese. The Diplomats added insurance in the bottom of the eighth as RBI-singles from Pat Elliott '23 and Tommy Denlinger '23 put F&M up by three. Shane Rebane earned the win, striking out two without allowing an earned run in 1.1 innings of relief. Thomas McLaughlin secured the victory for F&M with a strikeout in the ninth to pick up the save. The win over the Spartans began an 11-game winning streak for the Diplomats. Read the full recap here. 

Cairn Team Preview

Cairn enters Wednesday's matchup coming off a three-game sweep over Valley Forge over the weekend to begin conference play. Tyler Warr is off to a hot start at the plate with a .457 batting average and 1.158 OPS. While slugging .600, Warr also has seven RBI and 10 runs scored this season. Mikey Gutierrez (2-2) is the ace for the Highlanders, holding a 2.38 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 22.2 innings pitched.

Albright Team Preview

Before the Lions host F&M on Thursday, Albright hits the road to play Lancaster Bible on Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. in hopes of breaking a five-game losing streak. Brendan Stuhltrager leads Albright on offense with a .432 batting average and 1.144 OPS. Dominic Yeager (1-2) has pitched a team-high 14 innings on the mound - tossing eight strikeouts and allowing 13 earned runs. 

Rutgers-Newark Team Preview

After sweeping St. Joseph's-Brooklyn, Rutgers Newark plays John Jay on Tuesday and Lehman College on Wednesday. Batting .314 with a 1.082 OPS this season, Eric Recchia has hit a team-leading five home runs while also driving in 12 RBI and accounting for 20 runs scored. Pitcher Chase Ostrowski (2-0) holds a 4.76 ERA with a team-best 20 strikeouts in 22.2 innings on the mound. 

York Team Preview

The Spartans are currently on an eight-game winning streak with their lone loss of the season coming against the defending Division III National Champion Lynchburg during the season's opening weekend. York plays Penn State Harrisburg on Tuesday before starting a three-game series against Eastern over the weekend leading into its matchup with the Diplomats on Sunday. Three Spartans are currently batting over .400, but outfielder Chris Betler is off to a tremendous start to the year at the plate. Hitting .579 and slugging 1.026, Betler has five home runs, 22 RBI, and 16 runs scored so far this season. York's top-two starting pitchers in Evan Hughes (2-0) and Brandon Purdy (2-1) sport ERA's of 1.93 and 3.21, respectively. With both pitching 14 innings total this spring, Hughes has tallied 10 strikeouts, while Purdy has recorded seven. A 2023 first team all-MAC selection, Ethan Kennedy headlines the Spartans' bullpen. Appearing in five games, Kennedy has struck out three and only allowed four hits to earn two saves so far this year.