ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The Penn State baseball team visits Michigan this weekend for a three-game Big Ten series at Ray Fisher Stadium. The Nittany Lions battle the Wolverines on Friday at 4 p.m. The series continues on Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. All games will be broadcast on B1G+.
Penn State, led by head coach Mike Gambino, is 16-8 overall (5-4 Big Ten) this season after dropping Tuesday’s matchup against Pitt.
Michigan, coached by Tracy Smith, is 13-11 overall (5-4 Big Ten) after a 9-8 setback against Eastern Michigan.
For updates on the Penn State baseball team, please check @pennstatebase on X and Instagram.
The 2025 Penn State baseball season is presented by The Family Clothesline.
FOLLOW ALONG
LEADING OFF
- Penn State visits Michigan for a three-game Big Ten series.
- The Nittany Lions look to get back on track after taking one of three games against Michigan State over the weekend and falling against Pitt on Tuesday.
- PSU hosted their third Dollar Dog Night of the 2025 season on Tuesday as 2,822 fans consumed 6,733 hot dogs.
- Penn State has tallied 10+ runs in 14 games this season, tying fourth in the country (behind Arkansas, LSU and VMI), and five times in nine Big Ten games.
- PSU has 14 games of 10+ runs in a season for the seventh time in program history.
- The Nittany Lions are the only team in the country with 40+ HR and 60+ SB this season.
- Penn State is one of six teams (only Big Ten) with seven players with 4+ homers this season and is also one of seven teams (only Big Ten) with six players with 6+ steals this year.
- The Nittany Lions rank 17th in the country with 41 total home runs and 15th averaging 1.71 homers per game.
- Ryan Weingartner leads the Big Ten in steals (19; 9th) and steals per game (0.8; 12th). He is eight steals away from tying the PSU season record.
- Paxton Kling sits 16th in the nation in homers (10), while sitting second in the Big Ten in hits (38) and hits per game (1.58).
- Ryan DeSanto paces the Big Ten in strikeouts per nine (12.97).
PSU’S STRONG START
- With a 15-5 start, Penn State got off to its best 20-game start since going 16-4 to begin the 1979 season.
- Penn State started Big Ten play with series victories in each of its first two series for the first time since 2014.
- The Nittany Lions have tallied 10+ runs in 14 games this season, tied for third in the country (behind only Arkansas, LSU and VMI), and five times in nine Big Ten games. PSU has 14 games of 10+ runs in a season for the seventh time in program history (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2023, 2024).
- With its win in game one against Indiana on March 7, the Nittany Lions had a nine-game win streak for the first time since 2000.
NITTANY LIONS AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS IN HOMERS, STEALS
- Through 24 games, Penn State has slugged 41 home runs.
- The Nittany Lions rank 15th in the country, and leads the Big Ten, averaging 1.71 homers per game.
- Penn State also ranks 17th in the nation in total home runs and 24th in runs per game (8.9).
- Paxton Kling leads the Nittany Lions with 10 homers, while sitting 16th in the country in total homers (4th in Big Ten) and 26th in home runs per game (0.42; 5th).
- Kling is among nine Nittany Lions with at least one home run this season and is one of eight with multiple homers.
- Jesse Jaconski owns seven homers and Jack Porter has five, while Joe Jaconski, Bryce Molinaro, Nate Voss and Ryan Weingartner each have four homers. Cole Wagner has two.
- Penn State is the only team in the country with 40+ home runs and 60+ steals this season.
- PSU is the one of six teams (only Big Ten) with seven players with 4+ homers this season and is also one of seven teams (only Big Ten) with six players with 6+ steals this year.
- Penn State has launched five grand slams, including two by Kling, one by Jesse Jaconski, one by Molinaro and one by Voss.
- PSU is fifth in the country with five grand slams this year.
- The Nittany Lions are also 11th in the country in stolen bases per game (2.7), pacing the Big Ten and 10th in total steals (65).
- Weingartner leads the Big Ten in total steals (19), sitting 11th in the country, and steals per game (0.79), holding 16th.
- Wagner has nine steals and Cohl Mercado has eight.
PSU TAKES ONE AGAINST MSU
- The Nittany Lions won the middle game of the series against Michigan State, earning an 11-5 win on Saturday.
- Jesse Jaconski drove in six runs, while launching a solo homer and a grand slam.
- Cohl Mercado and Nate Voss both tripled and scored a run.
- Anthony Steele closed out the game with three scoreless innings and two strikeouts.
- In the series, Paxton Kling went 5-of-12. Joe Jaconski had two doubles.
- Matthew VanOstenbridge threw three innings over two appearances and did not allow an earned run.