Baseball to Host Columbia for Midweek Game
Miami (15-5, 0-0 ACC) vs. Columbia (2-10, 0-0 Ivy League)
Roster | Coaches | Schedule | Game Notes
March 11-12, 2019 | 6 p.m. | 6 p.m.
Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field | Coral Gables, Fla. | Buy Tickets | Directions
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami baseball program returns home for a week, beginning a four-game homestand with a midweek game against Columbia.
The Hurricanes welcome the Lions for a Wednesday game at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on Wednesday. Originally a two-game series, Miami and Columbia’s game on Tuesday was cancelled due to inclement weather.
All home games this season will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra and all baseball games, home and away, can be heard on WVUM 90.5 FM and WVUM.org.
Miami will start freshman RHP Slade Cecconi (3-0, 2.25 ERA), while Columbia will throw freshman RHP Saajan May (0-0, 0.00 ERA).
The Hurricanes enter the week looking to bounce back from a series loss at No. 8 North Carolina. Miami took the series opener, 6-4, before falling 9-3 and 8-5 to close out the weekend.
Alex Toral is second in the ACC with a team-best 10 home runs, while Raymond Gil and Freddy Zamora are tied for second on the team and 10thin the conference with five homers. Freshman standout Adrian Del Castillo has hit safely in all 19 of 20 games this season, including 15 straight to begin his career.
The Hurricanes enter the weekend with an ACC-best .297 team batting average, while Miami’s 169 hits
are the most in the ACC. Miami is second in the ACC in slugging (.482), fourth in hits (203), runs (147) and doubles (40), and fifth in on-base percentage (.394).
Miami added a recruiting class ranked eighth by D1Baseball and No. 10 nationwide by Baseball America to a group of 18 returning letterwinners from a 2018 team that finished 28-26 overall and 16-13 in ACC play.
Three members of Miami’s recruiting class were selected in the 2018 MLB First-Year Player Draft; Del Castillo (36th round, White Sox), Vilar (37th round, Cubs) and Cecconi (38th round, Orioles) all spurned professional overtures for a career at Miami after being selected in the 2018 MLB Draft.
Cecconi (#2), Del Castillo (#8) and Vilar (#48) were among the Top 50 Impact Freshmen in the ACC according to D1Baseball. Freshman LHP/UT JP Gates was ranked 10th among ACC freshmen. Baseball America rated Cecconi (No. 12), Gates (No. 16) and Del Castillo (No. 31) among the top 50 freshmen nationally.
The Hurricanes’ home schedule also includes series with NC State (March 22-24), Florida State (April 5-7), Virginia Tech (April 26-28) and Duke (May 16-18), among others.
Miami’s road schedule includes trips to Pittsburgh (March 29-31), Virginia (April 12-14), Louisville (April 18-20) and Wake Forest (May 10-12).
