"I believe he'll be available in some capacity, whether starting or in relief out of the bullpen," Crockett said. "He threw today, and it seemed as though he was feeling pretty good after."

Crockett, Birtwell, and the rest of the Crimson pitching staff will have all they can handle, however, against Columbia and Penn.

"It's pretty important for us to come away with a sweep this weekend," Crockett said. "Both Columbia and Penn have 3-1 records and it's an important chance for us to gain ground on them and Dartmouth, who's also playing well."

Columbia swept Yale and split the double-header with Brown last weekend, led by the hot bat of junior first baseman Pete Aswad.

Earning Ivy Player of the Week honors, Aswad was 10-for-19 from the plate with 12 RBI, four homeruns, and a pair of doubles in four games.

Aswad, already a two-time Ivy Player of the Week this year, combines power and speed, leading the league in both homeruns (7) and stolen bases (59).

After facing the Lions on Saturday, the Crimson pitching staff won't have time to rest before Penn brings its league-leading .315 batting average to O'Donnell field.

Topping the Quaker bats with a .391 batting average through 19 games is junior first baseman Chris May.