The Michigan Wolverines Hold Their Destiny
A blog by Will at Overdue Sports
By far the biggest standout to me over the first week of the young 2025 college baseball season was the Michigan Wolverines. The started their season in the Puerto Rico Challenge where they would take down #2 Virginia 5-4 in walkoff fashion, and never look back. Truly dominated the rest of the way taking down Rice 5-2, Villanova 19-0, and capping off their championship with a 6-1 win over a solid Stetson group.
The Wolverines averaged 8.75 runs/game while slashing .319/.375/.525 in their first weekend while getting breakout performances from junior outfielder Jonathan Kim, junior two-way Mitch Voit, grad-senior catcher Matt Spear, and grad-senior infielder Jeter Ybarra.
Jonathan Kim: .500/.500/.611, 2 2B, 6 RBI, 2-2 SB
Mitch Voit: .471/.474/1.059, 4 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI
Matt Spear: .357/.438/.571, 1 HR, 6 RBI
Jeter Ybarra: .353/.421/.529, 1 2B, 1 3B, 4 RBI
On the pitching side, it was a similar story all weekend, as the Wolverine staff held opposing hitters to a .193 batting average, allowing just six earned runs over 38 IP (1.42 ERA) and punching out 42 while surrendering just 12 walks. Michigan used 14 different pitchers through opening weekend, showing their depth across the board, none of which allowed more than two runs. Gavin DeVooght was the star for the Wolverines, getting the win against Virginia, going 2.1 shutout innings with two strikeouts. He’d back up that performance with a start against Stetson, going five scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, surrendering only four hits to the Hatters ’s hot offense.
Gavin DeVooght: 2 APP, 2-0, 7.1 IP, 9 K, 4 H, 0.82 WHIP, 0.00 ERA, .174 b/avg
David Lally Jr: 5.0 IP, 3 K, 1.00 WHIP, .176 b/avg, 0.00 ERA
Kurt Barr: 5.0 IP, 8 K, 0.00 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, .158 b/avg
Will Rogers: 4 IP, 3 K, 2.25 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, .200 b/avg
Dylan Vigue: 5.1 IP, 3.38 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 3 K, .286 b/avg
Why do the Wolverines hold their own destiny? After their performance in Week 1, they cracked most Top-25 polls (24 in the Backside GB Poll) and have a serious chance to shock the college baseball world this weekend. They head to Arlington, Texas, where they’ll take on #17 TCU on Friday, Kansas State on Saturday, and #2 Arkansas on Sunday. While they should take care of business against the Wildcats, if they split or even sweep the remainder of the weekend, they should be in the Top 25 for the majority of the season and control their own destiny through Big 10 play.
Their conference schedule, while tough, is balanced enough for a big run if what we saw early on from Tracey Smith’s ballclub is who they are, and I truly believe we could see Ann Arbor as a regional host site for some postseason play. They’ll take on Penn State, Iowa, Michigan State, USC, and Indiana at home, while their road sets will be Oregon, Purdue, Ohio State, and Nebraska. This is a very winnable schedule for the Wolverines, sprinkling in a non-conference series with Long Beach State and Mount Saint Mary’s. The remainder of their non-con schedule is rounded out by Eastern Michigan, UCLA, Toledo, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, and UW Milwaukee.
If the Wolverines find a way to leave Arlington undefeated, 6-1, or even 5-2 (not all losses are created equal), their RPI may be boosted enough to ride them through the 2025 season as long as they don’t stumble. Based on what I have seen so far, I feel very confident in their ability to hang with the top of the conference in Oregon, Nebraska, Indiana, Penn State, and Ohio State.
This is a big statement weekend for Michigan, and they could write their own destiny in a few short days.
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