May 4, 2015
PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Returning to Bainton Field after playing the last five games off-campus, Rutgers baseball will welcome back Saint Peter's Tuesday. The teams will wrap up a suspended game from the sixth inning at noon and then play the regularly scheduled contest after. WRSU 88.7 FM will call the action, as it is the final non-conference game on the slate for the Scarlet Knights.
| Rutgers (15-31-1) vs. Saint Peter's (9-30-1) - Bainton Field |
| Game 41 Resumption | May 5 - Noon ET |
| Current Pitchers | Rutgers - RHP Kevin Baxter vs.
Saint Peter's - Tommy Toole |
| Coverage | |
| Game 49 | May 5 - After first game |
| Probable Pitching Matchup | Rutgers - TBA
Saint Peter's - TBA |
| Coverage | WRSU 88.7 FM | |
The Scarlet Knights and Peacocks will pick up a game from April 22 from the top of the sixth inning. Rutgers was leading 6-0 before a thunderstorm arrived with rain to force the contest to be halted.
Sophomore Kevin Baxter (Waterford, N.J.) has pitched five-plus scoreless innings so far on the mound for Rutgers. The right-hander has scattered four hits and struck out two over 61 pitches. Two double plays were turned up the middle defensively.
Offensively, RU came out with two quick runs in the first inning. Senior Vinny Zarrillo (Forked River, N.J.) and junior Chris Suseck (Flemington, N.J.) both doubled to register the initial score. Following a single by sophomore Tom Marcinczyk (Middlesex, N.J.) to put runners at the corners, freshman Kyle Walker (Piscataway, N.J.) connected for an RBI groundout with the infield back.
Then in the fourth, sophomore Mike Carter (Bloomfield, N.J.) hit a leadoff infield single and moved to third on a passed ball and wild pitch. Classmate Christian Campbell (Sayreville, N.J.) produced an RBI with a sacrifice fly.
The Peacocks will have a runner at first with no outs when play resumes.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
The Scarlet Knights (15-31-1, 5-13) will look to return to the win column after dropping three over the weekend at Penn State in Big Ten play. Marcinczyk hit 7-for-12 in the series with a .643 on-base percentage. He has reached base in 39 of the last 40 games he has played and has had at least two hits the last six times out (13-for 26 over that stretch). For the season, the outfielder leads RU at .333/.422/.489 with five homers and 26 RBIs.
The stolen base has been a big part of the Rutgers attack, as the team has the second-highest total in the Big Ten at 69. Four players are in double-digits with senior Joe D'Annunzio (Scotch Plains, N.J.) and junior R.J. Devish (Beachwood, N.J.) leading the way at 13 apiece. In addition, junior Chris Suseck (Flemington, N.J.) has 12 and Zarrillo has 11. The team total is most since swiping 86 in 2010.
NOTABLE
Rutgers is 14-2 in games when leading after six innings ... Zarrillo is 10th in school history with 219 career hits, needing one to tie Jeff Frazier (2002-04) for ninth in the record books ... D'Annunzio tripled Sunday to raise his season total to eight, which is second-most in a year in the program record books - his 15 career three-baggers are three behind all-time leader Adam Neubart (1996-98) ... the offense has collected double-digit hits 18 times, including five of the last six games ... the team is 15-3 in the last four seasons when hitting multiple homers in a game ... Marcinczyk leads with 18 multiple-hit games ... Devish has thrown out 13 runners attempting to steal ... Rutgers has played 10 games against teams that have appeared in the national rankings this season ... thirty-two of the 35 players on the roster hail from the state of New Jersey.
SCOUTING SAINT PETER'S
The Peacocks (9-30-1, 6-12) of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference took a sweep defeat at Fairfield over the weekend, but beat Seton Hall, 6-4, in their latest non-conference matchup. Jon Kristoffersen leads the team with five triples, while the pitchers hold a 7.42 ERA.
T.J. Baxter is in his first full season as head coach after serving as acting head coach last year. RU beat Saint Peter's, 7-5, in the last completed meeting at Bainton Field May 6, 2014.
UP NEXT
Rutgers will head back on the road to face No. 3 Illinois for the three-game series starting Friday. The Fighting Illini have won their last 21 games, the longest current streak in the nation.
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