Kent State University
Toledo
Flashes Head to Toledo to Clash with Rockets
4/11/2024 1:45:00 PM | Baseball
KENT- The Golden Flashes start back-to-back road conference weekends with a trip to the Glass City to face the Toledo Rockets in a three-game series.
It is a key series for both clubs as Toledo comes in at 17-16 overall and 10-5 in the MAC while Kent State comes in at 15-15 on the year and 7-5 in MAC play. Both teams are coming in off taking their mid-week game as well as two of three in their last conference series.
The weekend will feature two of the top bats in the conference as Toledo's Garrett Pike and the Flashes' Josh Johnson are both in the top-five in RBI as well as batting average against conference foes.
Both offenses have been red-hot coming into the weekend. The Flashes average over 9.5 runs per game in the MAC, including 41 runs in three games against Eastern Michigan last weekend. Toledo averages 7.5 runs per game and slugged a conference best 37 homers against MAC pitching.
On the bump, Toledo's Grant Umberger has been excellent in MAC play, going 3-0 with a 2.45 ERA in five starts. He tossed six innings of one-run ball against Central Michigan last week. Calvin Bickerstaff has matched Umberger's 3-0 mark in his four MAC starts and got the win over Eastern Michigan last weekend. All told, Toledo has pitched to a 5.35 team ERA in MAC play while Kent State has been a tick better at 4.57.
All three games will stream on ESPN+ over the weekend and Toledo will have live stats as well. Link are available on the baseball schedule page. The Flashes remain on the road on Tuesday, heading to Penn State for a 5:30 p.m. first pitch. The Flashes will be back at home on Wednesday at 6 p.m. against Ohio State.
