Miami Opens Red and White Series Friday
10/10/2014 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
OXFORD, Ohio – The 2015 Miami baseball team will be on display for the annual intrasquad Red and White series starting this weekend at McKie Field at Hayden Park. The three-game slate will begin on Saturday at 1 p.m. The team will make up for Friday's rainout with a game on Monday at 6 p.m. The series will conclude on Friday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m.
This will be the only chance to see the defending MAC East champions until their first home game of the regular season on March 18 against Xavier. Miami will begin its defense of its title the following weekend with a trip to Western Michigan before opening its conference home slate with Central Michigan on March 27.
The RedHawks return seven starters including All-MAC Second teamer and Freshman All-American Steve Sada and two-time All-MAC selection Matt Honchel. Ryan Elble and Max Andresen join Sada and Honchel as the team’s four returners that hit over .300 last season. The trio of Gary Russo, Chad Sedio and Scott Slappey are the team’s other returning starters and combined for 15 of the team’s 27 home runs last season.
Seniors Ryan Powers and Nathan Williams return to Miami’s pitching rotation as the staff has to replace 2014 MAC Pitcher of the Year Seth Varner. Key relievers Jacobs Banks, Wynston McMartin and Ryan Haynes return to the bullpen, which is joined by graduate transfer Will Schierholz, who won five games and posted a 3.03 ERA for Butler in 2014.
The team will unveil its new uniforms in game three of the series on Oct. 17 during baseball’s alumni weekend.
The regular season beings in Starkville, Miss. on February 13-15 in a tournament hosted by Mississippi State. The RedHawks will be in the Carolinas the next three weekends before wrapping up non-conference weekends with a trip to East Tennessee State on March 13-15.
