Rhode Island will face Connecticut at Dunkin’ Park in Hartford on April 21, with the game set to begin at 6 p.m. The matchup continues a long-standing rivalry between the two baseball programs.
The meeting is significant as it marks the 204th time Rhode Island and Connecticut have played each other, making UConn Rhode Island’s most frequent opponent in team history. Their first contest took place in 1896, highlighting the historical depth of their competition.
Last season, the Huskies defeated the Rams 16-6 in seven innings at Elliot Ballpark. In that game, DJ Perron hit a grand slam for Rhode Island, scoring Eric Genther, Reece Moroney, and Jack Hopko. Both Perron and Genther graduated last spring; Genther has started this year with the Hudson Valley Renegades, a High-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. Moroney remains Rhode Island’s starting shortstop while Hopko is now their starting right fielder.
Rhode Island enters Tuesday’s game with a record of 15-23 while Connecticut stands at 21-20. Despite losing all three games over the weekend against St. Bonaventure, reliever Manny Santos delivered strong performances out of the bullpen for Rhode Island. The sophomore pitched three innings across two games without allowing any runs and struck out five batters overall. In Saturday’s series finale, Santos entered with no outs and runners on second and third but retired six consecutive batters—including four straight strikeouts—to end his outing.
Santos has not allowed a run in his last six-and-two-thirds innings pitched and holds an earned run average of 1.47 this season as opponents are hitting just .150 against him.
