If Ohio State baseball can boost its pitching in 2027, they will reach the Big Ten Tournament final

From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about cause and effect. We will explore domino-effect scenarios that could impact OSU’s season. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”If This, Then That” articles here.

In Ohio State baseball’s second season under head coach Justin Haire, the team has shown tremendous year-over-year improvement. 

After finishing 2025 in dead last in the Big Ten—winning just five conference games and 13 overall—Haire brought in 23 new names (16 transfers and three freshmen). The massive roster overhaul worked, turning the program around seemingly overnight. The Buckeyes finished the 2026 regular season No. 6 in the Big Ten, going 18-12 in conference and 30-24 overall. 

They advanced in the Big Ten Tournament before falling to Michigan Thursday night in an elimination game to conclude the impressive season. 

Now that the foundation for success has been set, it’s become easier to identify areas for future improvement, all in service of continuing on this upward trajectory. In particular, pitching stability is one facet of the game that could further solidify the Buckeyes as legitimate Big Ten contenders. 

This season, Ohio State had a solid trio of core starters in Pierce Herrenbruck, Gavin Kuzniewski, and Chris Domke. All three have remaining eligibility, though Herrenbruck and Domke are MLB Draft-eligible, and there are still no guarantees about who will return next season. 

The trio played particularly well to end the regular season and start the Big Ten Tournament, but only Herrenbruck, whose 3.72 ERA is top 10 in the Big Ten, boasts a sub-4.00 ERA. Kuzniewski and Domke, for their parts, have ERAs of 4.90 and 5.55, respectively, though both have had absolutely standout moments this season (including Kuzniewski’s outing against Michigan in what wound up being the final game of their season. Despite the loss, Kuzniewski gave up just one hit in 7.2 innings pitched, striking out six in the process. 

Their late-season performance marked a tremendous stabilization just from the beginning of this season. At one point early on, the Buckeyes carried a team ERA of 6.73, which ranked 212th nationally at the time. By the end of the year, this had improved drastically. 

Still, in order for the Buckeyes to reach the Big Ten Tournament final in 2027, even early wins are important. In addition to the pitching stamina needed to sustain the team through the tournament, when rest time between games is more limited, it also needs to position the team well enough in the regular season to earn a high tournament seed.

Successful pitching usually amounts to a really solid ace plus two or three consistently solid starters in rotation and a reliable bullpen. The ace needs to not just be able to consistently win Game 1 of a three-game series in the regular season but also has to be capable of shutting down top offenses and, in tournament play, of returning to the mound on little rest. 

The latter two are particularly important in the context of the Big Ten Tournament, when even one mistake can end a season (just look at Kuzniewski’s unbelievable outing against Michigan a few days ago). 

Should all three pitchers return, another year of experience could put the Buckeyes in a good spot if they can start the season as strong as they finished this one and then continue on that trajectory, though again, it remains to be seen who will be back next season. 

But while the starters shoulder a lot of the burden, the team also needs additional bullpen depth, especially when we consider the strain conference tournaments put on pitchers. Having a few steady relievers who can rack up a few strikeouts and throw swing-and-miss-type pitches can help the team avoid late-game collapses, something that becomes even more likely as Tournament play goes on. 

If the Buckeyes can stabilize these elements of their pitching game even further, whether through roster additions or year-over-year improvements, they could build upon this season’s commendable success to become serious threats in the Big Ten Tournament next year.