(Photo: Aaron Fit)
Indiana baseball puts another player in the majors with a second Hoosier drafted in the 2019 MLB Draft. LHP Andrew Saalfrank gets selected in the sixth round with the 182nd overall pick belonging to the Arizona Diamondbacks. With OF Matt Gorski drafted in the second round among the Day 1 picks, Saalfrank becomes the 96th Hoosier in program history to be drafted to the MLB draft. The Hoagland, Indiana native was named Big Ten’s Pitcher of the Year and boasted a record of 8-1 for the 2019 season.
Saalfrank has a career record of 11-5 at Indiana University with an overall ERA of 3.81. The left-handed pitcher finished the 2019 campaign with an career-best ERA of 2.84 and he pitched almost as many innings as he did in his freshman and sophomore seasons combined. In a six-game stretch earlier this season, Saalfrank tallied at least 11 SOs in five of those contests. He struck out 14 against Canisius, 11 against Maryland, 13 against Penn State, and 11 against Michigan State.
His success this past season can largely be attributed to his improved control and consistency on his fast ball – a pitch that he throws in the upper 80s, lower 90s. In turn, opposing batters have had to devote more respect to Saalfrank’s curveball.
Andrew Saalfrank’s Indiana University Pitching Statistics
| Season | ERA | W | L | APP | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | 2B | 3B | HR | BF | BAVG | WP | HBP | BK | SFA | SHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 5.58 | 2 | 1 | 16 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40.1 | 49 | 30 | 25 | 17 | 43 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 183 | 0.314 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 2018 | 3.79 | 1 | 3 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35.2 | 27 | 15 | 15 | 19 | 47 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 149 | 0.211 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2019 | 2.84 | 8 | 1 | 15 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 73 | 68 | 26 | 23 | 26 | 98 | 13 | 2 | 5 | 308 | 0.246 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Totals | 3.81 | 11 | 5 | 47 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 149 | 144 | 71 | 63 | 62 | 188 | 32 | 7 | 11 | 640 | 0.257 | 23 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
