Junior pitcher Eli Kraus doesn’t mind pitching in the cold.
In fact, the Kent State left-hander prefers when the temperature hovers around 40 degrees. He finds that hitters tend to get more “complacent” at the plate when the weather is chilly.
He surrendered an early unearned run in the top of the first inning on a brisk Saturday afternoon against the University at Buffalo.
But then Kraus settled down and threw six consecutive scoreless innings to help the Flashes (17-8, 5-1 Mid-American Conference) to a 9-1 victory and, ultimately, a MAC series win over the Bulls (8-16, 1-2 MAC) this weekend at Schoonover Stadium.