Youngstown -- Youngstown State senior baseball player Phil Klein has been named the Horizon League Pitcher of the Week for the period ending April 10, the league office announced on Monday.
Klein (Gahanna, Ohio) pitched seven strong innings against Butler on Saturday to win his fourth consecutive start. He held the Bulldogs to four singles and three walks while striking out 10 batters. He allowed just one unearned run after Butler had 15 runs and 18 hits the previous night.
He retired the first nine batters he faced and struck out two batters in three of the first four innings. A passed ball assisted with Butler's run in the fourth, and Klein worked out of a first-and-third jam with one out in the seventh to help YSU keep a 2-1 lead. He got batter Zach Sizemore to miss on a squeeze and start a rundown, and he struck Sizemore out looking to end the inning.
Over his last five starts, Klein has a 1.32 ERA in 34 innings. He has allowed just five earned runs and struck out 40 batters. Klein leads the Horizon League with 54 strikeouts in 46.2 innings.
Klein was also recognized as the League's Pitcher of the Week on March 21.
Klein and the Penguins have a busy week ahead with five games in five days. YSU plays at Kent State on Tuesday at 3 p.m. and hosts the Golden Flashes at Eastwood Field on Wednesday at 3 p.m. The Penguins will start a three-game series at Valparaiso on Friday.
