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Moravian vs Scranton
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Lenoir-Rhyne vs Mars Hill - DH
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Lycoming vs Catholic
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Wilkes vs Susquehanna
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Elizabethtown vs Drew
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Tusculum vs Limestone - DH
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Coker vs Carson-Newman - DH
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Emory & Henry vs Newberry - DH
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Stony Brook vs Monmouth
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Wayne State (MI) vs Davenport - DH
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Grand Valley vs Saginaw Valley - DH
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Georgetown vs Creighton - DH
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North Carolina A&T vs Hofstra
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Elon vs Northeastern
2024 Snowbird Baseball

Michigan State Baseball Schedule 2024: What To Know

Michigan State Baseball Schedule 2024: What To Know

After several seasons in the lower half of the Big Ten Conference standings, things really started to click for Michigan State on the diamond in 2023.

Feb 22, 2024 by Briar Napier
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After several seasons in which Michigan State baseball was middling around in the lower half of the standings in the Big Ten Conference, things really started to click for the Spartans on the diamond in 2023.

Did it also mark a turning point for an MSU program that has only made one NCAA Tournament appearance in the past 44 years, or was it merely a flash in the pan?

Many names from the 2023 squad aren’t back for 2024, however, leaving MSU needing to find new top names to rely on against a Big Ten that’s only going to get better very soon.

It has been 12 long years since the Spartans last were regional-bound. For Michigan State to break the cycle, some major leaps need to happen, and there is some potential in the program that could help the Spartans shine, if things go right. 

Here’s all you need to know about Michigan State baseball heading into the 2024 season.

How Did Michigan State Baseball Do In 2023?

The 2023 season was a step forward for Michigan State baseball, with the Spartans winning 33 games for the program’s highest win total since 2016, while also making the Big Ten Tournament for the first time in five years. 

Notable victories included a doubleheader sweep on the road against Indiana State, the NCAA Tournament’s eventual No. 14 national seed and a regional winner, and a series win over Big Ten runner-up Indiana at the end of the season. 

The Spartans’ postseason dreams ended when they went 1-2 in the Big Ten Tournament, but many of MSU’s players could hold their heads up high after strong seasons—both for themselves, and for the team. 

For instance, All-Big Ten first-team first baseman Brock Vradenburg became the first Spartan since 2002 to bat for a .400 or better average for a season— finishing at exactly .400, with a team-leading 13 home runs and 69 RBIs—as he was one of six MSU standouts to make an All-Big Ten team. 

Who Coaches Michigan State Baseball?

Jake Boss Jr. has been the man in charge at Michigan State since being hired away from Eastern Michigan in 2008, and the former Michigan assistant has done quite well in East Lansing. 

A winner of over 400 games, Boss has led Spartan baseball to its best achievements of the 21st century—a Big Ten regular-season title in 2011 and an NCAA Tournament trip in 2012.

Michigan State won at least 30 games every season from 2010-2016, but then seasons of struggle started, as MSU failed to have a winning record in any (completed) season from 2018-2022. 

The winning 2023 campaign may have been exactly what the Spartans needed to get back on track and back to being a consistent top-half team in the Big Ten, but with some major pieces from last season’s surge now out of the picture, it’s going to be a tricky task for Boss to find similar success in 2024.

Has Michigan State Baseball Ever Won The College World Series?

No, Michigan State baseball has never won the College World Series, and hasn’t appeared in college baseball’s season-ending event since 1954. 

The Spartans’ last appearance in the NCAA Tournament—and only appearance since the 1979 season—came in 2012, when MSU was bounced out of the regional round with losses to Pepperdine and Fresno State.

Notable Returning Players

Joseph Dzierwa, LHP

Out of Michigan State’s six All-Big Ten nominees from last season, Joseph Dzierwa is the only one back, having made the All-Freshman team after a team-high 60 strikeouts to just 22 walks across 74 1/3 innings pitched. 

It was a very promising rookie season for the Ohio native, but if the Spartans are trying to break out and be one of the Big Ten’s best squads on a yearly basis, players like Dzierwa will need to continue to grow and become bona fide stars. 

Fortunately for the Spartans, Dzierwa already has been able to handle some increased responsibility in the rotation. 

The team’s leader in starts, wins and innings pitched, Dzierwa opted to rest over the offseason, instead of playing in a summer collegiate league, getting himself prepared for another season in which MSU likely will ask for a lot out of him. 

Jack Frank, OF

A two-year starter with the Spartans’ and the team’s top returning hitter, MSU will rely heavily on Jack Frank as one of the few experienced options in the lineup.

The team’s everyday right fielder, Frank just missed out on the first .300 season average of his career last year (.299), but he did lead the team and finished sixth in the Big Ten in stolen bases (19). He proved to be a solid hitter for contact and power (seven home runs, 45 RBIs), and he’s got wheels, too.

Frank earned a Big Ten Player of the Week award last season after a monster .588/.682/1.118 slash line during a five-game winning surge from the Spartans in mid-April, but he never had to be the Spartans’ main driver of offense, as Vradenburg often took over that role. 

Notable Newcomers

Nick Williams, OF

A junior college transfer from powerhouse program Wabash Valley College, Nick Williams raked during his final year in the JUCO ranks, to put it lightly. 

Slashing an incredible .482/.595/.824 with 15 home runs and 102 RBIs in 70 games in 2023, the NJCAA All-American was named the Most Outstanding Hitter of the NJCAA DI World Series, with the Warriors making the title game. It was the second time in a row WVC had made the JUCO World Series. 

Williams flirted with breaking the JUCO World Series’ single-tournament record for batting average—a record shared by four people, including hall-of-fame outfielder Kirby Puckett, at a whopping .688—as the Wisconsinite capped off a spectacular stint at that level with plenty of success.

The Big Ten is a massive step up in competition from JUCO, but you don’t hit with the efficiency Williams did last season without some elite-level plate instincts. Expect him to be a big contributor to the Spartans’ lineup right away.

Tommy Szczepanski, RHP

With clear potential to turn into a high-level prospect, perhaps a move back home will suit Tommy Szczepanski, as he looks to build off the foundation that had him on the radar of pro teams not long ago. 

A national top-125 freshman recruit per Perfect Game and one of Michigan’s best recruits overall coming out of high school, Szczepanski was selected in the 19th round of the 2022 MLB Draft by the Kansas City Royals, following a decorated prep career, but he opted to turn down a pro contract and sign with Virginia Tech instead. 

The towering 6-foot-5 hurler didn’t see much of the mound with the Hokies last season as a freshman, only throwing six innings, but he did strike out 10 batters across all of his appearances. He then entered the transfer portal during the offseason to go back to his home state and play for Michigan State. 

Now playing college ball less than 90 minutes from his hometown, and with summer games in the esteemed Cape Cod League under his belt, Szczepanski is one to watch on the Spartans’ pitching staff for a potential breakout campaign as he gets back to work in a familiar environment.

Michigan State Baseball Schedule 2024

All times Eastern

Date

Time

Opponent

Location

Feb. 16 

Noon

Merrimack

Charleston, S.C.

Feb. 17 

Noon

Seton Hall

Charleston, S.C.

Feb. 17 

4 p.m.

Lehigh

Charleston, S.C.

Feb. 18 

9 a.m.

Ball State

Charleston, S.C.

Feb. 23 

Noon

Indiana State

Port Charlotte, Fla.

Feb. 23 

3:30 p.m.

Marshall

Port Charlotte, Fla.

Feb. 24 

3:30 p.m.

Marshall

Port Charlotte, Fla.

Feb. 28 

6 p.m.

Georgia

Athens, Ga.

March 1 

6 p.m.

Western Michigan

Greenville, S.C.

March 2 

6 p.m.

Florida State

Greenville, S.C.

March 3 

10 a.m.

Illinois

Greenville, S.C.

March 8 

2 p.m.

VCU

Greenville, S.C.

March 9 

10 a.m.

Western Carolina

Greenville, S.C.

March 9 

2 p.m.

Western Carolina

Greenville, S.C.

March 10 

10 a.m.

Western Michigan

Greenville, S.C.

March 15 

3:35 p.m.

Evansville

East Lansing, Mich.

March 16 

3:35 p.m.

Evansville

East Lansing, Mich.

March 17 

1:05 p.m.

Evansville

East Lansing, Mich.

March 20 

4:05 p.m.

Purdue Fort Wayne

East Lansing, Mich.

March 22 

6:30 p.m.

Maryland

College Park, Md.

March 23 

2 p.m.

Maryland

College Park, Md.

March 24 

1 p.m.

Maryland

College Park, Md.

March 26 

4 p.m.

Michigan

Ann Arbor, Mich.

March 27 

4:05 p.m.

Oakland

East Lansing, Mich.

March 29 

3:35 p.m.

Rutgers

East Lansing, Mich.

March 30 

3:35 p.m.

Rutgers

East Lansing, Mich.

March 31 

1:05 p.m.

Rutgers

East Lansing, Mich.

April 2 

6:30 p.m.

Notre Dame

South Bend, Ind.

April 3 

6:05 p.m.

Lansing Lugnuts

Lansing, Mich.

April 5 

6:05 p.m.

Niagara

East Lansing, Mich.

April 6 

3:35 p.m.

Niagara

East Lansing, Mich.

April 7 

1:05 p.m.

Niagara

East Lansing, Mich.

April 9 

6:05 p.m.

Central Michigan

East Lansing, Mich.

April 12 

6 p.m.

Purdue

West Lafayette, Ind.

April 13 

2 p.m.

Purdue

West Lafayette, Ind.

April 14 

1 p.m.

Purdue

West Lafayette, Ind.

April 17 

6:05 p.m.

Western Michigan

Lansing, Mich.

April 19 

6:05 p.m.

Penn State

East Lansing, Mich.

April 20 

3:35 p.m.

Penn State

East Lansing, Mich.

April 21 

1:05 p.m.

Penn State

East Lansing, Mich.

April 26 

6 p.m.

Ohio State

Columbus, Ohio

April 27 

2 p.m.

Ohio State

Columbus, Ohio

April 28 

1 p.m.

Ohio State

Columbus, Ohio

April 30 

7:05 p.m.

Notre Dame

East Lansing, Mich.

May 3 

6:05 p.m.

Michigan

East Lansing, Mich.

May 4 

3:35 p.m.

Michigan

East Lansing, Mich.

May 5 

3:05 p.m.

Michigan

East Lansing, Mich.

May 7 

6:05 p.m.

Bowling Green

East Lansing, Mich.

May 10 

6 p.m.

Minnesota

Minneapolis

May 11 

2 p.m.

Minnesota

Minneapolis

May 12 

1 p.m.

Minnesota

Minneapolis

May 14 

6:05 p.m.

Eastern Michigan

East Lansing, Mich.

May 16 

6:05 p.m.

Nebraska

East Lansing, Mich.

May 17 

6:05 p.m.

Nebraska

East Lansing, Mich.

May 18 

1:05 p.m.

Nebraska

East Lansing, Mich.

May 21 

TBA

Big Ten Tournament

Omaha, Neb.

May 31 

TBA

NCAA Regional

TBA

June 7 

TBA

NCAA Super Regional

TBA

June 14 

TBA

College World Series

Omaha, Neb.

2024 Michigan State Baseball Roster 

No.

Name

Position

Year

1

McKay, Ryan

INF

Fr.

2

Kark, Dillon

INF

Sr.

3

Thompson, Sam

C

Gr.

5

Williams, Christian

C

R-Jr.

6

Brewer, Garrett

LHP

Fr.

7

Huffman, Jaxon

RHP

Fr.

8

Cook, Harrison

RHP

Sr.

9

Anderson, Jacob

INF

R-So.

10

Williams, Nick

OF

Jr.

11

Farquhar, Tate

RHP

So.

12

Arbaugh, Aidan

LHP/OF

Jr.

13

Lozier, Landen

INF

Fr.

14

Szczepanski, Tommy

RHP

So.

15

Grundman, Gannon

LHP

Fr.

16

Dzierwa, Joseph

LHP

So.

17

Holloway, Jayden

OF

Fr.

18

Bright, Noah

C

Jr.

19

Broski, Adam

C

Fr.

20

Terres, Jayden

OF

R-So.

21

Frank, Jack

OF

Sr.

22

Moczydlowsky, Gavin

RHP

Fr.

24

Busch, Sam

INF

R-Jr.

25

Klann, Robert

RHP

So.

26

Pianto, Dominic

RHP

R-Jr.

28

Mishoulam, Aaron

RHP

Gr.

29

Matheny, Noah

RHP

R-Jr.

30

Dresselhouse, Jake

OF/C

So.

31

Ziegler, Greg

OF

R-Sr.

32

Kaminski, Dylan

RHP

Fr.

33

Falish, Quinn

RHP

Fr.

34

Pikur, Logan

RHP

Fr.

35

Seymour, Randy

INF

So.

36

Jones, Jack

RHP

Fr.

37

Ferazzi, Nick

RHP

Gr.

38

Bassett-Kennedy, Sam

LHP

Jr.

39

Sitarz, Gavin

LHP

So.

41

Higgins, Nolan

RHP

So.

42

Szczepaniak, Ryan

RHP

Jr.

44

Long, Hunter

RHP

Fr.

46

Powers, Nick

LHP

Sr.

50

Ruhle, Stephen

RHP

So.

How To Watch 2024 Snowbird Baseball

Watch the 2024 Snowbird Baseball on FloBaseball and the FloSports app.

FloBaseball will be streaming several season-opening college baseball tournaments, including the Shriners Children's College Showdown, Sanderson Ford College Baseball Classic and the Kubota College Baseball Series.

2024 Snowbird Baseball Schedule

All times Eastern

Friday, Feb. 16 

  • Illinois State vs. St. Thomas, noon
  • Maine vs. Pitt,  1 p.m.
  • Saint Louis vs. St. Thomas, 3:30 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 17 

  • St. Thomas vs. Illinois State, noon
  • Maine vs. Pitt, 1 p.m.
  • Maine vs. Saint Louis, 4 p.m. 

Sunday, Feb. 18 

  • St. Thomas vs. Illinois State, 11 a.m.
  • Maine vs. Pitt, noon
  • Saint Louis vs. Illinois State, 2 p.m. 

Wednesday, Feb. 21 

  • Indiana State vs. Florida Gulf Coast, 7 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 23 

  • Michigan State vs. Indiana State, noon
  • Marshall vs. Michigan State, 3:30 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 24 

  • Marshall vs. Indiana State, noon
  • Marshall vs. Michigan State, 3:30 p.m. 

Sunday, Feb. 25 

  • Marshall vs. Indiana State, 1 p.m.

Friday, March 1 

  • Otterbein vs. Heidelberg, 5 p.m.

Saturday, March 2 

  • Otterbein vs. Misericordia, noon
  • Baldwin Wallace vs. Misericordia, 3 p.m.
  • Wabash Intrasquad, 3 p.m. 

Sunday, March 3

  • St. John's vs. Otterbein, 11 a.m.
  • Misericordia vs. Heidelberg, noon
  • Wabash vs. Otterbein, 2:30 p.m.
  • Misericordia vs. Heidelberg, 3 p.m. 

Monday, March 4 

  • Heidelberg vs. St. John's, 11 a.m.
  • Marietta vs. Wabash, noon
  • Misericordia vs. St. John's, 2 p.m. 

Tuesday, March 5 

  • St. John's vs. Marietta, 10 a.m.
  • Bluffton vs. Heidelberg, 11 a.m.
  • St. John's JV vs. Marietta JV, 12:30 p.m.
  • Bluffton JV vs. Heidelberg JV, 2 p.m.
  • Wabash vs. Misericordia, 2:30 p.m.
  • Wabash vs. Misericordia JV, 6 p.m. 

Wednesday, March 6

  • Misericordia vs. Marietta, 11 a.m.

Thursday, March 7 

  • Misericordia vs. Marietta, 11 a.m.
  • Wabash vs. Heidelberg, 3 p.m. 

Friday, March 8 

  • Misericordia vs. Wabash, 9 a.m.
  • Kean vs. Webster, 12 p.m.
  • Heidelberg vs. Babson, 12:30 p.m.
  • Webster vs. Marietta, 3 p.m.
  • Kean vs. Heidelberg, 4 p.m.
    North Central JV vs. Denison JV, 6 p.m. 

Saturday, March 9 

  • Marietta vs. North Central, 10 a.m.
  • Wabash vs. Heidelberg, 10:30 a.m.
  • Denison vs. Babson, 1 p.m.
  • Kean vs. Marietta, 1 p.m.
  • Baldwin Wallace vs. Babson, 4:30 p.m.
  • Denison JV vs. North Central JV, 4:30 p.m. 

Sunday, March 10 

  • United States Merchant Marine Academy vs. Denison, noon
  • Babson vs. North Central, 1 p.m.
  • Denison vs. Kean, 3 p.m. 

Monday, March 11 

  • Denison vs. Stevens Institute of Technology, 10 a.m.
  • Denison JV vs. Stevens Institute of Technology JV, 1 p.m.
  • United States Merchant Marine Academy vs. North Central, 5 p.m. 

Tuesday, March 12 

  • Denison vs. United States Merchant Marine Academy, 11 a.m.
  • Stevens Institute of Technology vs. North Central, 11:30 a.m.
  • Denison JV vs. North Central JV, 1:30 p.m.
  • Ohio Wesleyan vs. Kean, 3 p.m. 

Wednesday, March 13 

  • North Central vs. Ohio Wesleyan, 11 a.m.
  • Stevens Institute of Technology vs. United States Merchant Marine Academy, noon

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