Ahead of the 2026 season, Indiana head coach Jeff Mercer detailed the offseason process of bringing in veteran arms while retaining talent within to set his squad up for a return to the postseason. Both of those translated to on-field success Friday as the Hoosiers defeated Washington 4-2 to open Big Ten play.
One of the aforementioned veteran arms new to Bloomington is LHP Tony Neubeck, a graduate student who transferred to Indiana from Missouri. Neubeck came into Friday’s series opener having allowed just two earned runs over 12.1 innings pitched in three starts this season, and he continued to build on his early-season success following another strong outing against the Huskies.
Neubeck spanned six innings in his fourth start of the season, marking his longest outing as a Hoosier. Meanwhile, his nine strikeouts were a career high, but Neubeck emphasized postgame that his sole focus is to do what he can to help Indiana win games.
“I was just out there trying to do my job,” Neubeck said. “Knowing that my team’s got my back if they do put a bat on.”
Neubeck allowed two runs on five hits, maintaining a sub-2 ERA through his first four starts of 2026. Mercer noted postgame that Neubeck managed to do this on a night where his execution wasn’t quite where it should be.
“Tony didn’t have his best stuff today,” Mercer said. “Velo was a little bit down. He was behind in some counts, and I told him that it doesn’t give you the right to not go out and compete and give your team a chance to win.”
Considering the line Neubeck put up despite this, Mercer has to feel good about the guy he is sending out on Fridays as the Hoosiers enter conference play, and Neubeck’s ceiling will be key to elevating the pitching staff around him.
Even after Neubeck exited the game, Indiana continued to dominate on the mound. Graduate student RHP Gavin Seebold took over and threw two scoreless innings while striking out four. After posting a 7.28 ERA in 55.2 innings pitched last season, Seebold has flipped the switch and is a key piece of a Hoosier bullpen that is aiming to put everything together.
In 13.2 innings pitched this season, Seebold has struck out 15 batters and has yet to allow a run through five total outings. Additionally, two of those outings came against teams currently ranked in the top 10 (No. 2 LSU, No. 8 North Carolina). Despite experiencing discomfort, Seebold put up yet another scoreless outing, showing his ability to anchor Indiana’s bullpen all season long.
“Gavin’s dealing with some top of the forearm stuff,” Mercer said. “You just go give your team what you got, and you execute pitch after pitch.”
Junior RHP Jackson Yarberry pitched the ninth inning and earned the save for the Hoosiers while stranding the tying run at second base in the process. Even though Indiana put up four runs, the offense was “not as good” as it should have been, in Mercer's words, but Neubeck and Seebold led the charge as the Hoosiers found a way to begin Big Ten play with a win.
“We pitched it tremendously today,” Mercer said. “We made good plays and played really complimentary baseball from a pitching and defensive standpoint.
Sophomore LHP Brayton Thomas will look to build on Friday’s pitching performance as he will start game two of this weekend’s series against Washington with first pitch scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday.
