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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 26 • 21 ing the greatest, like the day after I pitch, I don't want to waste bul- lets in in-and-out. But I still get my work in; during (batting practice), I make sure I get ground balls and the defensive work." But it's in the batter's box that he's had the greatest impact this season. Throughout his career, Wood has been a solid hitter, with a three-year batting average of .293. But average doesn't tell the whole story, as Wood has hit the ball dur- ing his career but hasn't always seen results on the scoreboard. Last season, despite hitting .302 in the middle of the lineup, Wood drove home only 15 runs. He's nearly matched that now, in only a third of the games. "Batting average can be a little bit false sometimes," Coach Doug Schreiber said. "He hit over .300 last year, but to me it was a light .300 because he didn't produce the runs sitting in the middle of our or - der. When you don't score a whole lot of runs as a team, it gets magni- fied and I think sometimes you put a little more pressure on yourself. This year, we're scoring more runs and it doesn't get all put on your shoulders, and that's a little bit of a reason why too. He's been able to produce a little bit more for us." Wood likely is helped by hav- ing a greater understanding of his role. He's attempted to be a starting weekend pitcher in the past, like during his redshirt fresh- man season when he would be the designated hitter for a couple games before taking the ball to the mound for the third game of a series. But his arm frequently gave him trouble. In 2013, his first year after sitting out the year before while rehabbing, he had to shut down after a couple successful outings because of soreness, then tried to come back at the end of the year. Then, last season, after starting the year in the rotation, he slid out of favor because of poor re - sults. He finished the year with an 11.88 ERA. But before this season, Sch- reiber told Wood he'd be a reliever, allowing him to focus on that, rath- er than starting, and his duties at the plate. "In individual meetings with Coach, he talks about our roles," Wood said. "And part of my role is to be a run-producer, either scor- ing runs or driving RBIs. When the opportunities have come, I've felt like I've cashed in a decent amount of times — you're not going to get it every time — but if we could find ways to put runs up, it'd be good." Wood has done well. In early March, he was named the Big Ten Player-of-the-Week after a three-game series at Okla - homa in which he was 9-of-11 with two home runs, seven RBI and four runs scored. Between his success at the plate and on the mound, he's feel- ing good about his impact. "It's like I'm playing grammar school baseball again," he said. "Hit, (then) run down to the pen, come out to pitch, go up to hit again. But I love it. I've been doing it my whole life." j Purdue Wood has battled arm trouble over the years, after having Tommy John surgery following his senior year at St. Lawrence in Orland Park, Ill., but has found a niche as a reliever. The iPad app is available at the App store. Search "Gold and Black" for an easy download. The app is created for your Newsstand on your iPad and will download directly there. It does NOT download as a separate app on your desktop. The digital edition of Gold and Black Illustrated, including 30 issues of Gold and Black EXPRESS includes all the great content you have come to expect, plus special features such as video and audio content and the best in social media updates. • Immediate delivery — no waiting for postal service • Searchable archive of back issues • Available on desktops and laptops and now optimized for the iPad • One-click access through e-mail bulletin which allows easy access. Just make sure we have your e-mail address. Contact us at 1-800-876-GOPU or GNBManager@aol.com if we can answer any questions. on the iPad Access Included for all print subscribers!