OSU Baseball Opens New Season With New Coach Friday

The Bill Mosiello era of Ohio State baseball officially begins Friday at the Snowbird Classic in Venice, Fla.

Mosiello, formerly an assistant coach for Jim Schlossnagle at TCU, begins his first collegiate head coaching stint. He does have four years of head coaching experience at the minor league level, managing the Minnesota Twins’ High-A affiliate in the Cedar Rapids Kernels and the Seattle Mariners’ Texas League team, the Arkansas Travelers.

He takes over for Greg Beals, who was fired last year after 12 seasons at the helm of the program. Beals compiled a 345-288-1 career record in Columbus and made three NCAA tournaments, though the Buckeyes never made it past the regional round in his tenure. OSU won conference championships under his guidance in both 2016 and 2019. It faced some regression the past two seasons, however, going 22-20 and 21-30, respectively.

Beals has since taken over as head coach at Marshall.

Isaiah Coupet is expected to get the start on the bump for Ohio State in its season opener against Uconn Friday. He posted a 5-5 record with a 5.85 ERA in 2022. Justin Eckhardt, a transfer from Texas, will follow up against the Huskies Saturday.

Infielder Marcus Ernst, who played every infield position except second base in 2022, is among the most productive hitters returning for the Buckeyes. He posted a team-high .337 batting average last season with 24 RBI. Outfielder Kade Kern provides the most returning pop, with nine home runs in 2022, second to departed outfielder Zach Dezenzo’s 19.

First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday.