Nebraska baseball’s summer breakouts bring momentum to fall

NU pitchers and hitters are back on campus after two months competing in collegiate leagues around the country. Assignments are not one size fits all — some players go out looking to stack innings and plate appearances while others aim to compete against top talent. Ideally, their gains stick for fall ball as Nebraska’s new roster comes together.

Productive stretches in June and July often hint at future breakouts. Recent summer warnings for Nebraska include examples like pitcher Cade Povich (before the 2021 season), outfielder Garrett Anglim (before 2022) and Max Anderson and Brice Matthews (before 2023). Last summer Brett Sears dominated the Northwoods League in the first sign he was on his way from a mid-leverage NU reliever to Big Ten Pitcher of the Year and a seventh-round MLB draft pick.

A young player or newcomer earning a prominent Husker role for 2025 will require challenging an incumbent almost everywhere. NU could again roll out the entire infield — minus catcher — and outfield it used in May to win a Big Ten tournament title and advance to an NCAA regional. Of seven Big Red pitchers to start a game in the spring, only Sears is no longer around.

Here are the top Nebraska summer performers who bring momentum into the fall for potentially bigger impacts when the games count again:

The Lincoln Southeast graduate posted the third-highest batting average (.395) and fourth-best on-base percentage (.504) during the Northwoods League regular season, adding 14 doubles, nine homers and 62 RBIs across 53 games. His plate discipline proved elite too with 32 walks against 31 strikeouts. The 6-foot-1, 215-pounder also stole 30 bases in 33 tries.

Buettenback, who turns 20 next month and once considered a college career as a running back, went 1 for 6 with Nebraska last year as a freshman reserve catcher. The left-handed hitter played outfield all summer and will vie for a corner spot or DH job, in the mix with returning starters Gabe Swansen and Case Sanderson. The Huskers needed more outfield options and found a big one after moving on from Cole Evans, Anglim and Clay Bradford.

“What he’s doing now, that guy is going to hit and get opportunities,” NU assistant coach Lance Harvell said this summer.

The first commit of Nebraska’s 2023 class more than four years ago mowed through hitters in the Alaska Baseball League. Timmerman logged 33 innings and a 0.27 earned-run average — that’s one earned run — with seven walks and 29 strikeouts. The right-hander from Beatrice fell nine innings shy of qualifying for the league ERA crown but would have claimed it even if he had allowed seven runs in those hypothetical extra frames.

Timmerman faded late as a Husker freshman reliever, only appearing in one game after mid-April and finishing with an 8.10 ERA in 16 2/3 innings. Most of his summer experience came as a starter, suggesting a possible new Husker role ahead.

The steep upward trajectory continues for the outfielder coming off an All-Big Ten Third-Team debut campaign where he hit .338. He became a fixture in the middle of the summer lineup for the La Crosse Loggers — who played in the Northwoods title game last week — with a .359 average and .505 on-base percentage in 46 regular-season contests. That went with 13 doubles, six homers and a walk-to-strikeout ratio (47 to 32) among the top 10 in the league.

Sanderson settled in in right field for Nebraska’s stretch run but also saw time at DH and even first base. The lefty-hitting Missouri native will slot high in the lineup again next spring.

The shortstop was the lone regular Husker rep in the prestigious Cape Cod League and held his own. He batted .304 with a .383 OBP in 27 games — his sophomore numbers at NU were .255 and .326 — while adding five doubles and a homer. Most notable was his surehandedness defensively, committing just four errors in 25 defensive contests while playing mostly shortstop and third base.

Another former NU freshman on breakout watch. The Lincoln Southeast product batted .320 with a .401 OBP across 40 games in the Prospect League with three homers, nine steals and more walks (17) than strikeouts (seven). Like Buettenback, the 6-foot-1, 215-pounder will shift from reserve catcher to the outfield. Jesske appeared in 19 games for the Huskers in the spring while hitting .280 in 25 at-bats.

Christo had the option to move to pro ball as an undrafted free agent but will run it back once more as a senior with the Huskers. The Elkhorn grad provided quality innings as a starter and reliever last year, with pitching coach Rob Childress helping him unlock more consistent mechanics and a deeper pitch arsenal en route to a strong finish. Christo carried it into 19 quality innings in the MLB Draft League with a 2.37 ERA and — most significantly — just nine walks against 24 strikeouts.

The former touted prep prospect from Kansas flashed his potential in the West Coast League with a 2.20 ERA, 19 walks and 39 strikeouts in 32 2/3 frames. This after a 5.91 ERA in 21-plus innings as a Nebraska freshman. Horn could quickly emerge as a Husker option out of the bullpen or in the midweek.

Other Huskers put up less spectacular but still notable numbers. Ryan Harrahill journeyed to the Alaska League and posted a 3.09 ERA with encouraging underlying metrics (.190 batting average against, 1.15 walks/hits allowed per inning pitched) as a reliever after throwing one inning in a game as an NU freshman. Returning senior third baseman Josh Overbeek hit .336 with 10 doubles, six homers and 13 steals in 37 games in the Mid-America League.

Second baseman Rhett Stokes (.372, six doubles, nine steals in 23 games) and Swansen (.333, .402 OBP, one homer in 18 games) found success in the Northwoods. Six-foot-7, 230-pound lefty Carson Jasa — coming off a redshirt — threw 39 2/3 innings in the California League, showing a 4.08 ERA with 31 walks and 52 strikeouts. An incoming true freshman, Pryce Bender, played both ways in the Jayhawk League and will have the chance to do the same at Nebraska.