COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State baseball team released its 2017 schedule Friday. The Buckeyes will play 28 home games at Nick Swisher Field at Bill Davis Stadium, while 13 contests are against 2016 NCAA Tournament teams.
“We have put together a schedule designed to drive our RPI ranking,” seventh-year head coach Greg Beals said. “This is critical in positioning ourselves to once again represent The Ohio State University in the national tournament. We have an exciting weekend in Phoenix for the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge hosted by Oregon State who will have a preseason national ranking. We open up the first two weekends of conference play here at home. It will be critical to get off to a good start in Big Ten play. Another feature on the schedule is a midweek home series with Texas Tech, who played in the College World Series last year.”
Ohio State opens the 2017 season Feb. 17-19 in Viera, Fla., with contests against Kansas State, Delaware and Pittsburgh. The Buckeyes will then travel west to Surprise, Ariz., for the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge Feb. 23-26 to face Utah and Oregon State. The Scarlet and Gray begin the month of March with back-to-back road series. Ohio State will make its first trip to Buies Creek, N.C., for a three-game series against Campbell March 3-5. The Buckeyes will then travel to Florida Gulf Coast for the first time too, playing the Eagles March 10-12 in Fort Myers, Fla. The squad closes out the early season schedule with games against Bucknell and Lehigh March 14-15 at the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla.
The Buckeyes open Bill Davis Stadium March 17-18 against Xavier followed by a road game against the Musketeers March 19 in Cincinnati, Ohio. After a home contest against Youngstown State March 21, the Buckeyes start Big Ten play hosting Minnesota March 24-26 and Purdue March 31-April 2. Ohio State also will host Ohio March 28 and Kent State April 5 during the nine-game homestand. The Buckeyes hit the road to University Park, Pa. for a three-game series vs. Penn State April 7-9, marking the first trip to Happy Valley in five years. The Buckeyes host Cincinnati April 11 and Eastern Michigan April 12 in Columbus before heading north for a three-game conference set against Michigan State April 14-16.
Ohio State will then begin a second nine-game home slate, opening with Northern Kentucky April 19 and a three-game series vs. UNC-Greensboro April 21-23. Nebraska will make its first trip to Columbus since 2012 April 28-30 in a key three-game Big Ten home series. The Buckeyes open the final month of the regular season against Texas Tech, a 2016 College World Series participant, who will make its first trip to Columbus May 2-3. The team will travel for road conference series at Michigan May 5-7 and at Iowa May 12-14. Bowling Green and Ball State will face the Buckeyes at Bill Davis Stadium in midweek games May 9-10. The Scarlet and Gray concludes the regular season with four straight home contests, taking on Toledo May 16 before a three-game series against Indiana May 18-20.
The Big Ten Tournament is set for May 24-28. Location is TBD. The Buckeyes return 16 letterwinners, including three position players and eight pitchers that saw significant playing time from the squad that won 44 games, captured the Big Ten Tournament crown and advanced to a NCAA Regional a year ago.
2017 Ohio State Baseball Schedule
