Michigan State baseball, once again, suffers loss to Michigan

The Michigan State baseball squad suffered a loss — again — to the in-state rival Michigan Wolverines.

An 11-8 defeat means that Michigan State was swept in all four games against Michigan this season. MSU lost the Capital Clash in an embarrassing 18-6 final, and then two home games at McLane Stadium, by a final score of 8-2 and 6-3, respectively.

Tuesday’s 11-8 loss was held at Fisher Stadium in Ann Arbor.

Pitching continued to be a pressing issue for Michigan State, as it ranks No. 194 in team ERA (earned run average) at 6.16. The Spartans also still rank No. 208 in fielding percentage, committing a grand total of 68 errors this season.

Michigan opened with nine runs in the first inning. That was enough to seal the deal, as MSU was never able to score that much in the remaining eight innings.

Things looked optimistic for Michigan State as it opened with a four-run first inning. MSU would go on to show some life with a home run from Jack Frank and some RBIs from Peter Ahn and Brock Vradenburg.

Aidan Arbaugh only pitched one out in the first frame, surrendering five earned runs, striking out none and walking two batters. His replacement, Dominic Pianto, pitched into the fifth inning, allowing four earned runs and throwing 95 pitches.

Prior to the Michigan game, Michigan State defeated Iowa during the Spartans’ Senior Day this past weekend,. With a final score of 11-8, Harrison Cook took the win.

Cook has struggled this season. His ERA has rocketed up to 7.11 and his WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched) is 1.92. He was able to work out of trouble in nearly every inning, but only ended up allowing a single run. He pitched six innings, allowed six hits and just the one run, and walked three batters.

Michigan State will finish its season by traveling to Nebraska for a three-games series beginning Thursday night (6:35 p.m. EDT). The Cornhuskers are 8-13 in the Big Ten this season, and 21-29 overall.

Nebraska is coming off of a much-needed victory against Oral Roberts this week. Both schools are currently trying to rebound and end the season on a good note before the Big Ten Tournament begins on May 25.