This past weekend's series gave Ben Heath a chance to match up against Ohio State's Dan Burkhart -- one of the top catchers in the nation -- and Heath shined.
The Buckeyes' backstop is the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year and was voted by PING! Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association as a second-team preseason All-American.
After Heath's performance during the Penn State baseball team's (17-22, 4-8 Big Ten) series win against Ohio State where Penn State took two-of-three, the Nittany Lion catcher has a case for consideration as the best catcher in the conference.
Heath batted a combined 7-for-14 in the three games and had three home runs, seven RBI and six runs scored.
His performance earned him Big Ten Baseball Co-Player of the Week honors.
Despite seeing Heath play in just three games, Ohio State pitching coach Eric Parker could see the junior's ability.
"Looking at his numbers and getting to see him play for one weekend, he's obviously having a great year and doing a great job back there [at catcher]," Parker said. "I can't really speak for all the other coaches, but he's definitely going to be up for consideration [for an All-Big Ten team]."
While Heath excelled offensively in the series, Burkhart's presence in Ohio State's lineup was also noticeable.
The Buckeye catcher was held hitless but walked seven times, scored twice and had two RBIs.
Parker said it's difficult to compare the two catchers since he's only seen Heath play in three games.
However, the Lions catcher has a significant advantage in batting statistics this season.
Heath's .379 batting average is .51 points higher, and he has 15 home runs while Burkhart has none.
Penn State coach Robbie Wine pointed to Heath'a consistent production throughout the entire season.
"It's not like he's going on tears," Wine said.
"He's just being consistent. Not only is he hitting the ball out of the ballpark and driving in some runs, but he's getting base hits and getting on base."
Heath said he saw the ball well in the weekend series against Ohio State. The junior said he's trying to stay relaxed at the plate while focusing on the mechanics he's been working on.
His approach at the plate has him in position to break the school record for home runs in a season.
Heath needs just three more long balls to break the record set by Dave Simononis in 1978.
The catcher's 19-game hitting streak earlier in the season was also good enough for the fourth-longest in Penn State history.
With all of his success this season, Heath has opposing pitchers aware of his spot in the lineup.
"He's a guy going in to the weekend that you're going to have make quality pitches to in order to get outs," Parker said.
"Knowing that, if you're going to make a mistake, with the season he's having, he'll have the chance to hurt you."
