Beginning on Friday, the West Virginia baseball team plays host to Kansas State in a three-game series over the weekend, which will be coach Randy Mazey’s last home series.
The Mountaineers are 29-18 this season, coming off of an offensive explosion against Penn State in a nationally televised game, where they won 18-7. They are 15-9 in conference play, tied with Oklahoma State and Texas for second place in the Big 12.
Senior third baseman Reed Chumley has been one of WVU’s best hitters this season, leading the team in home runs with 13 and sharing the team lead for RBIs with 38 tied with Kyle West. Although he has played in less than half of the team’s games, star shortstop JJ Wetherholt has the highest batting average on the team as he is batting .368, but does not meet the requirement of at least two plate appearances and 75% of games played. So, Sam White is technically leading the team with a .324 average, playing in all of the Mountaineers’ 47 games this season.
On the bump, Derek Clark has been West Virginia’s most consistent starter this season. In nine starts he’s tossed 64.2 innings, with three complete games and one shutout. He holds a 3.48 ERA and has struck out 57. Aidan Major, who’s made the most starts for WVU with 12 has pitched 61 innings, with 74 strikeouts and a 5.75 ERA. Clark is likely to get the start on Saturday, followed by Major on Sunday.
As for Kansas State, they are 28-19 this season, including a 12-12 record in Big 12 play, which has them slated seventh in the conference. They are coming off of a series win against Kansas last weekend, where they took two of three games from the Jayhawks.
They are led offensively by redshirt junior Brady Day who leads the team with a .343 average and has hit seven home runs this season. Junior outfielder Brendan Jones has been a threat on the basepaths for the Wildcats, with 32 stolen bases on 33 attempts, which is fifth in all of DI baseball.
Jackson Wentworth has been one of KSU’s best pitchers this season. In 56.1 innings he has 82 strikeouts (over 13 K/9), with a 3.83 ERA and six saves. He’s pitched in 22 games, making just three starts, but is expected to get another one this weekend.
The Mountaineers took two of three games from the Wildcats last year and are 18-13 against them all-time. On top of that, WVU has played their best baseball in Morgantown, holding a 15-5 record at home.
First pitch on Friday is set for 6:30 p.m. EST at Kendrick Family Ballpark, followed by Saturday at 4 p.m. and Sunday for 1 p.m. All games can be streamed on ESPN+.
