Big 12 Names Pair of Mountaineers Player, Pitcher of the Week

The West Virginia baseball team’s recent win streak took a total team effort, but a couple players stood out from the rest.

Second baseman JJ Wetherholt’s carried the charge for WVU over the last week, earning him Big 12 Baseball Player of the Week honors. But he wasn’t the only Mountaineer to claim individual hardware. Blaine Traxel was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week as well.

Dominance at the plate and on the mound! The Mountaineers were showing out this week!@jj_wetherholt ➡ Big 12 Player of the Week@moneytraxel12 ➡ Big 12 Pitcher of the Week

📰https://t.co/lAkYjYNoko#HailWV pic.twitter.com/seFSLYLvdf

— WVU Baseball (@WVUBaseball) February 27, 2023

Wetherholt absolutely racked, hitting .529 with a pair of home runs to help the Mountaineers to a big midweek win over then-No. 13 Maryland and a series victory over Arizona. He also stole eight bases in those four games.

Against Maryland, Wetherholt went 2-for-4 while stealing three bases in the win. But it was against Arizona that he had his most memorable moment. The Mars, Pennsylvania native stole home in the 11th inning during Friday’s 6-5 win over Arizona.

JJ Wetherholt Steals Win as Mountaineers Defeat Arizona 6-5 in 11 Innings

The sophomore then blasted two homers, one in each of the final two games of the series in Arizona. Aside from just the power, Wetherholt finished the week with a 1.659 OPS.

This is the first time Wetherholt’s has been named the Big 12’s Player of the Week. He did win a Newcomer of the Week award last season.

On the mound, Traxel put up a dominating pitching performance in Saturday’s 5-1 win against Arizona. He tossed a complete game, recording six strikeouts while allowing just one run on five hits. The Burbank, California native retired the final 13 batters and 21 of the last 24 in the game.

WVU Baseball Downs Arizona 5-1 Behind Blaine Traxel’s Complete Game

This was Traxel’s first complete game for WVU and sixth of his career, having thrown five during his tenure at Cal State Northridge.