Nebraska Baseball Pitching Preview

After previewing the Husker hitters, now it is time to look at who will be on the mound for the Huskers. Nebraska will be replacing their entire weekend rotation and has seen two of their best relief pitchers leave the program since last season.

Connor Curry will be out for the season as he will have his second Tommy John surgery of his career. It is a tough break for Curry who pitches well when he can be on the mound.

Starting Rotation

Colby Gomes will get a crack at starting in the rotation for the Huskers. Gomes will transition from his closer role to starting for the Huskers. He features possibly the best raw talent for the Huskers on the mound. He was inconsistent at times last season and will need to work on having the stamina to go far into games. Gomes has a heavy fastball that can work up to 97 mph and pairs it with a quality slider and an improving change up.

Cade Povich, a junior college transfer from South Mountain Community College looks to be another candidate for the rotation. Povich is a left hander who throws four quality pitches but will not overwhelm with velocity. He threw eight complete games last season for South Mountain.

Gareth Stroh comes to the Huskers after transferring from Purdue. Stroh was a third team All-Big Ten. He again won’t wow with velocity, but has quality command. He won’t be afraid to throw inside and change up speeds against hitters. His Big Ten experience could be huge for a Husker rotation that has to rebuild.

Max Schreiber is a name that Husker fans have heard about in the past as a key piece for the Huskers. Schreiber got in 11 games last season, but had an ugly 5.91 ERA along with 9 walks in just 10.2 innings. He has worked on a hammer curve this fall while also possessing a solid low 90’s fastball and a slider. If he can put it together, the Huskers could use him as a starter in the midweek and out of the bullpen on the weekends.

Bullpen/Mid Game Options

Braxton Bragg and Sayer Diederich are a pair of true freshman who could provide instant impacts for the Huskers. Bragg is a 6’2” 200 lbs freshman from Kansas City that could project as a starter in the future for the Huskers. Diederich was a strikeout machine in high school and should be one of the Huskers top relief options.

Paul Tillotson and Ben Klenke are possible reclamation projects for the new coaching staff. They were hard hit last season and had difficulty recording outs without walking an excessive number of batters. Both may get the chance to start fresh with a new start and could be factors for the Husker coaching staff this fall.

Caleb Feekin is fully recovered from his injury last year and is ready to make an impact for the Huskers. Feekin got in the fall scrimmage and got scoreless outings against Wichita State and Kansas. Feekin is a left hander who could come in to get a tough lefty or could pitch multiple innings.

Ethan Bradford is another impact freshman. He dominated the state of Kansas last year, throwing a no hitter in a playoff baseball game. Bradford was stretched out a little in the fall and could throw multiple innings for the Huskers in a middle relief role.

Trey Kissack had an impressive showing in the Expedition League and looks to keep it going for the Huskers in the spring. He had 81 strikeouts in only 59.1 innings for Hastings last summer. The transfer from UNC-Greensboro could be another candidate to see long relief work.

Kyle Perry came into last season as a hyped up freshman. He started the first weekend in the second game of a doubleheader against UC-Riverside. He would go on to strikeout over a batter per inning and would get the most work of any Husker freshman reliever. Perry was on a throwing program in the fall. If he is back healthy he can be another weapon in the Husker pen. Perry could also see action in the midweek as he had several quality starts last season in that slot.

Closer

Shay Schanaman is one of the Huskers best options at the closer position. He got key outs last season as a freshman in the Husker bullpen. He showed well in the fall, but has had bouts of wildness. He will get a chance to be a stopper out of the Husker pen and has been named to the Stopper of the Year Watchlist. If the Huskers can get games to Schanaman, he should be able to save a high number of games.