Two Iowa Hawkeyes Baseball Players Land On Midseason Watch Lists

Heading into a big weekend series against the Michigan Wolverines, the Iowa Hawkeyes' baseball team is 24-11 overall with a 14-4 Big Ten record.

The Hawkeyes are playing good ball, and they're being led by two players, in particular, who are starting to get national attention. Those players would be junior shortstop Gable Mitchell and left-handed junior pitcher Cade Obermueller.

Both players are getting it done in a big way midway through this 2024-25 season. As such, both have found their names on midseason watch lists.

Mitchell is on the watchlist for the Brooks Wallace Award, which goes to college baseball's best shortstop. He's one of 100 on the list, but his play so far this season suggests he may have a good chance to become a finalist.

He's started all 35 games for Iowa while leading the team with a .364 batting average. His OBP is .465 and his SLG is .517. He's knocked in 30 runs on 52 hits and has 13 doubles and three home runs on the season.

Mitchell has shone at the plate for Iowa and is rocking a 36-game on-base streak. What makes him even more impressive is that he's not just doing it on offense, though. He's got a .955 fielding percentage and leads the team with 87 assists.

As far as Obermueller is concerned, he's on the Pitcher of the Year Watch List. He has a 2.18 ERA in 53.2 innings pitched. The Iowa City southpaw has struck out 76 and allows an opponent batting average of just .197. He's been incredible for Iowa; his 4-2 record in nine starts does not tell the whole story.

Obermueller was on the same watch list last season and finished with a 4-3 record with a 3.92 ERA in 13 starts and 59.2 innings pitched. He did suffer a rib injury last season that cost him a few games.