The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: Ohio State

The Good
Drew Leininger - Leininger (9 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 8 K) simply has not received the credit he deserves for his performance thus far this season. While I realize he doesn't throw 97 (like Eric Arnett) or even 94 (like Matt Bashore), he has been nothing short of phenomenal this year. I'll admit I had my doubts as to how long the lefty would keep this up, but with back-to-back top-notch efforts in Big Ten play against the likes of the stellar Michigan and Ohio State offenses, I am convinced Leininger is the real deal.

Michael Earley - While protecting Alex Dickerson is no small task, Earley has proven up to the challenge as of late and continued his hot hitting against Ohio State by going 5-12 at the dish, including a pair of clutch 9th inning home runs.

The Bad
Slow starts - In Games 1 and 3 (losses), the Hoosiers were outscored a combined 5-1 in the first inning. While that disparity is not as large as in previous games, it is still a continuation of what has been a troubling trend for this team throughout the season.

24 K's in 3 games - While this number is skewed in part by the fact that OSU's Alex Wimmers fanned 14 Hoosiers on Friday, it is still startling nonetheless. IU simply cannot afford to come up empty-handed at the plate so often.

The Ugly
The #2 hole - The duo of Sterling Mack and Brian Lambert combined to go 0 for 10 with 5 strikeouts for the series. If the production out of this spot does not improve soon, it is possible Coach Smith may look to move Sabourin, Dickerson and Earley up in the order. Regardless, the Hoosiers need people getting on base at the top of the order, and last weekend's effort out of the #2 slot in the order simply isn't getting the job done.

Hoosier defense - Although averaging 2 errors a game (IU committed 6 in 3 games against Ohio State) doesn't sound awful, those errors led to a staggering 10 unearned runs last weekend.