The Saint John's baseball team begins a busy weekend with a 1 p.m. doubleheader against Augsburg on Saturday, April 12, and returns home to host St. Olaf for a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Sunday, April 13, at Saint John's Field. – Listen Live/Live Stats (Saturday)

DATE WITH GOPHERS SET FOR APRIL 23: SJU and Division I Minnesota have rescheduled their game that was originally scheduled for March 26 but postponed due to field conditions, to Wednesday, April 23, at Siebert Field in Minneapolis. A start time has yet to be set for the nine-inning game.

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (10-3, 2-2 MIAC) recorded its second consecutive MIAC split against Bethel in its home opener April 8. SJU committed three errors and surrendered five unearned runs in a 7-1 loss to the Royals in game one, but bounced back with 12 hits in a 6-3 victory to earn the split. BU took advantage of a leadoff double and an SJU error to post two runs, one unearned, in the first inning of game one. The Royals added to their lead with a single run in the second inning before SJU answered with a run of its own, on an RBI double from senior catcher and closer Justin Thompson (Chanhassen, Minn./Chaska), in the bottom half. Bethel broke the game open with four unearned runs in the top half of the seventh and final inning to end the scoring at 7-1. BU cut SJU's lead to 2-1 in the seventh inning of game two before the Johnnies added four runs in the bottom half. The Royals made things interesting with two runs in the eighth inning, but left the bases loaded. The visitors loaded the base-paths once again in the ninth, but Thompson closed the door for good to seal the win and earn his fourth save of the young season.

FIRST START, THIRD WIN: Freshman Derek Graves (Mora, Minn.), Dylan's younger brother, improved to 3-0 on the season with a win in his first collegiate start in game two against Bethel. He earned his first two pitching victories as a reliever in Fort Myers, Fla., in early March. Graves allowed the unearned run on only three hits, with three strikeouts and four walks in seven innings.

THREE MORE HITS: SJU outfielders Dylan Graves and Pfaff each travel to Minneapolis Saturday with 97 career hits. 

WINS vs. LOSSES: The Johnnies generated a .256 batting average, including .194 with runners in scoring position, in the three losses so far this spring. In comparison, SJU totaled a .348 batting average, .388 with runners in scoring position, in the 10 wins. Defensively, the Johnnies allowed five unearned runs in the 10 victories, compared to eight unearned runs in the three losses.

A LOOK AT THE AUGGIES: Augsburg (8-10, 2-2 MIAC) split a pair of one-run, nine-inning games with Hamline on Thursday (April 10). The Auggies won the first game 5-4 on a walk-off single from freshman Andrew Douglas and distributed a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the ninth to fall in game two, 7-6. The Auggies' top three batters (min. 30 at-bats) are underclassmen: freshman Rhett Hebig (.390, 23-for-59); freshman Jonesy Buescher (.386, 22-for-57); and sophomore Andrew Julkowski (.382, 13-for-34). Augsburg's pitching staff has a 5.34 ERA in 145 innings. Seven of the team's 10 losses were decided by three runs or less, including a 1-0 game at Division I Minnesota April 2.

LAST YEAR: SJU tallied a pair of one-run wins against Augsburg on May 6 (2013) in Collegeville. After Augsburg gained a 7-6 lead in the top of the ninth of game one, Max Forster '13 drilled a 3-2 pitch over the left-field fence, his second home run of the day. The Johnnies then loaded the bases before Dylan Graves drove a single over the right fielder's head for the game-winning run, 8-7. The Johnnies responded from an early 2-0 deficit in game two with two runs in the fifth before Connor Cline '13 smoked the first pitch he saw for a walkoff homer, with two outs, for the 3-2 win.

SERIES HISTORY: SJU is 40-22 against Augsburg since 1984, including a 26-10 record away from Collegeville. The Johnnies have won six of the last eight meetings overall.

A LOOK AT THE OLES: St. Olaf (12-8, 3-1 MIAC) begins three straight days of doubleheaders Saturday at home against Macalester before traveling to Collegeville Sunday. The Oles split a pair of high-scoring games with Carleton April 8, losing the first game 11-6 and before salvaging the split with a 13-8 win in the nightcap. Senior Sam Maus leads the Oles in batting average (.431), runs (30), hits (31), doubles (9), home runs (3) and RBI (18). Although STO's pitching staff has a strong 2-to-1 strikeout/walk ratio (103-49), it has a 6.44 ERA and a .322 opponent batting average in 144 innings.

IT'S BEEN A WHILE: The last time Saint John's and St. Olaf met on the baseball diamond was April 24, 2012, in Collegeville. The two schools were unable to play each other last spring due to the weather. SJU is 23-42 against the Oles since 1982, including a 12-12 record in Collegeville, but has won five of the last six meetings overall. Half (21) of the 42 losses to the Oles, since 1982, were decided by two runs or less.