THE BOYS ARE BUZZIN

• The Blue Jays are trying to follow a similar path to the 2020 shortened season. After dropping a season-opening doubleheader, Johns Hopkins won nine of 10 to end the season. After dropping a seson-opening doubleheader in 2021, the Blue Jays have won four of five to put themselves back into the Centennial mix. Taking on the 5-1 (conference play) Shoremen, the Blue Jays pulled off the doubleheader sweep, using a grand slam to lead them to a 6-3 victory in Game One and getting lights out pitching throughout the day. 

NO PLACE LIKE HOME(WOOD)

• Homefield advantage is a real thing on the Johns Hopkins Homewood Campus and it shows at Babb Field. In the last three seasons (2019, 2020, 2021), the Blue Jays hold a home record of 36-6. Hopkins is off to a 4-0 start at home in 2021 after going 7-3 last year and 25-3 back in the College World Series season of 2019. Babb Field is unique and there is no doubt that Johns Hopkins has used it to its advantage. 

LAST MEETING

• The Bullets and the Blue Jays last met back on April 7th of 2019. It is safe to say things went well for the 17th-ranked Jays. After a pair of scoreless innings, Hopkins scored in six straight innings on the way to a 15-0 victory over the Bullets at Babb Field. Chris Festa, Nate Davis & current Blue Jay right-fielder Austin Sacks homered for JHU. Blue Jay catcher AJ King went 2-4 with a pair of RBI in the contest. Mark Lopez and  Mike Ainsworth picked up hits while Matthew Ritchie drew a pair of walks. Jaspar Carmichael threw 2.1 shutout innings out of the 'pen. 

HOT STARTERS

• In eight games this season, Johns Hopkins has scored in the first inning five times. JHU opened their season, manufacturing a Dai Dai Otaka leadoff walk into an RBI ground out from Barrett Smith. The Blue Jays failed to score in the first inning of Game Two against F&M, but scored in the first inning of both games against Dickinson. Austin Sacks & Matt Ritchie both drove in runs in the top of the first inning against Dickinson this two weekends ago. This past weekend, Isaiah Winikur hit a solo shot in the first inning of Game Two. Dating back through last season, the Jays have scored in eight of 18 first innings. Continuing the  trend, Hopkins scored in the 1st inning of Game Two as AJ King brought home Matthew Ritchie with a sacrifice fly. 

STREAKIN'

• While still early in the shortened season, there are some early streaks to keep an eye on. Matthew Ritchie has reached base in 13 straight games dating back to last season. The senior second basemen has reached base in 22 of his last 23 contests, only failing to reach in a single contest last year. Jared deFaria and Isaiah Winikur have both reached base in four straight games with deFaria holding a four-game hitting streak.

THIS WORLD IS MINE FOR THE TAKING, MAKE ME KING

• After an 0-8 start to the year, AJ King has bounced back in a major way. In Game 2 against McDaniel, King went 4-4 with a run scored and two RBI. In Game 1 against Washington College, King kept it going, finishing the day 3-3 with an RBI. The junior backstop picked up a hit in seven straight at-bats. Add in a walk and a sacrifice fly and it was nine at-bats in a row without being retired. 

CAPTAINS OF THE SHIP

• With the departure of key players, and 2020 captains, Mike Eberle and Chris Festa, the Jays have announced a quartet of captains for the 2021 season. Matthew Ritchie, Mark Lopez, Jonah Offman & Brian Linton will act as the team captains for the Blue Jays this season. 

• Each one of the captains has contributed to the team's success this season.

 - Jonah Offman earned the win out of the bullpen in Game One against McDaniel, tossing 3.2 innings, allowing just one run and striking out five. On the season, Offman has struck out 10 in 7.2 innings pitched.

 - Matthew Ritchie is third on the team among qualified hitters with a batting average of .286. Ritchie leads the team with three doubles and has the second highest OBP of .412.

 - Mark Lopez has crushed massive home runs in back-to-back weeks. Against McDaniel it was a three-run HR to jump out to a nice lead for the Blue Jays and this past weekend, it was a grand slam against the Shoremen to break open the game early. Lopez leads the team with 8 RBI. 

 - Brian Linton continued his fantastic season out of the bullpen. After closing out Game One against Washington College, Linton has thrown 6.1 scoreless innings, struck out 8 and earned a save. 

STOP TRYING TO MAKE FETCH HAPPEN

• *NOTE* The Three Soph-Migos nickname has not caught on quite as quickly as matt lawrence & i had anticipated. however, these three pitchers still rule. 

• Jack McRae, Peter Schaefer & Kieren Collins have eaten the brunt of the innings for JHU so far this season. The three right-handed sophomores have combined to throw 43.2 of the team's 68.2 innings this season. The trio have a combined ERA of 1.65 while striking out 56 batters. 

• Schaefer leads the Jays with 18.0 innings pitched and 28 strikeouts. Opponents are hitting .222 off the righty. Schaefer has struck out at least five in every game this season. Schaefer has pitched to an ERA of 2.50 with a WHIP of 1.39.

• After coming out of the bullpen for the first two contests, Collins has made a pair of starts for the Jays. Collins is second on the team with 16.1 innings pitched and 17 strikeouts. Collins has pitched to a 1.10 ERA and a WHIP of 0.92. Opponents are hitting just.207 against the righty. 

• After starting a pair of contests, the righty has made a pair of relief appearances. McRae has thrown 9.1 innings this season, striking out 11 and allowing opponents to hit just .161. The sophomore has compiled a 0.96 ERA and a WHIP of 1.39. 

PITCHER PARADISE

• Opposing hitters have not had much success against Blue Jay pitching in 2021. Through six games, hitters have combined for a .226 average against Blue Jays with just ten extra-base hits. Seven different Blue Jay pitchers have held opponents to a batting average of .250 or less. Against the three starting pitchers, Collins, McRae and Schaefer, opponents have hit .207, .161 and .219 respectively. In six-plus innings, Brian Linton has held opposing hitters to an average of .217.

GETTING IT DONE WITH RISP

• Success with runners in scoring position is key to winning at any level of baseball. The Blue Jays have performed admirably with RISP and have done an even better job of keeping opposing teams in check with RISP. Through eight games this year, Johns Hopkins is 28-87 w/ RISP, good for an average of .322. Eight different Hopkins hitters have multiple hits with RISP. AJ King leads the way with five hits in seven tries. Jared deFaria has three hits with RISP while Matthew Ritchie, Dai Dai Otaka and Austin Sacks each have three. On the flip side, opposing hitters are hitting .193 (16-83) with runners in scoring position. 

WELCOME WAGON

• The Blue Jays welcomed a slew of newcomers to the program in 2021, including five transfers that are immediately eligible to play. 

• Dai Dai Otaka (Yale) joined the Blue Jays via Yale and has contributed immediately in the middle infield. Otaka appeared in 111 games at Yale, starting 104 of them. A star on social media (@dai_squared) with over 10,000 followers, Otaka is an outstanding defensive player who helped Yale lead the nation in fielding percentage (.985). 

• Isaiah Winikur (Towson) has gotten the chance to start immediately in the outfield, making four starts in left and two in center. Winikur played in 29 games with the Tigers, starting 22 contests. Winikur had eight extra base hits, including six doubles as a Tiger. As a Blue Jay, Winikur has four hits, two homers, three RBIs and four stolen bases. He leads the team with five runs scored. 

• Barrett Smith (Maryland) will try to add some extra pop into an already powerful lineup. The 6-3, 235 pounder appeared in eight games with the Terrapins, making two starts. Smith has appeared in three contests for Hopkins, picking up a hit and an RBI in six at-bats. 

• Carson McKoon (Washington & Lee) will provide the Jays with another lefty option on the mound. McKoon pitched in 29 contests, making 24 starts at Washington & Lee. The southpaw pitched 123.1 innings, striking out 96 batters. McKoon has thrown 1.2 innings in three appearancs, striking out three.

• David Harding (Princeton) appeared in 107 games, making 99 starts with the Tigers. Harding drove in 53 runs while at Princeton and will battle for time in the Blue Jay outfield. In two appearances, Harding has one hit in six at-bats.