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143 Heading into his first season at Iowa, Booker knew there was going to be a transition jumping to the Division I level, so he put in time with Heller and hitting coach Marty Sutherland, working on his mindset and hitting approach. "At Indian Hills I could get away with swinging at every pitch because they threw more pitches in the zone," said Booker. "When you get to higher levels, pitchers locate better, so you have to look for a certain pitch, in a certain location, at a certain time. "Once you get it, you can't miss it, you have to hammer it. at's what we are taught." Booker isn't missing much. He has hit safely in 17-of-23 games with eight multi-hit contests -- the second most on the team. He has tallied three three-hit games and drove in two or more runs four times, including a four RBI game at Middle Tennessee. "He's a talented player," said Heller. "He has made nice adjustments and continues to do so. He works hard every day at his skills, and it shows. He has gotten better at everything since day one and grows every day as a player. at's the type of player you want to coach." A t the start of the season, University of Iowa head coach Rick Heller saw junior college transfer Joel Booker as a potential difference-maker for the Hawkeye baseball program. e outfielder hasn't disappointed. rough the first half of the 2015 season, Booker is hitting .311 and is second on the team with 15 RBIs. He has two home runs — tied for most on the team — and six steals — the second-most on the roster. "Joel has had big RBIs and has come through for us in clutch situations," said Heller. "We knew he was fast when we recruited him, but his speed really plays." Heller identified Booker as a potential replacement for Taylor Zeutenhorst when scouring the Iowa junior colleges in the fall of 2013. e North Carolina native was coming off a freshman season at Indian Hills Community College where he earned second-team all-region honors aer hitting .365 with 32 runs and 31 RBIs. "We went aer Joel hard because we wanted a guy with speed (in right field)," said Heller. "Joel is a unique player that possesses speed and the ability to hit for power, and also was a plus defender. It was a good fit for both of us." Booker excelled during his final junior college season, earning All-America aer hitting .403 with 75 hits, 58 runs, 61 RBIs and 24 multi-hit games. He ranked in the top five in the nation in 10 statistical categories. APRIL SCHEDULE April 1 at Western Illinois April 3-5 at Purdue April 8 Milwaukee April 10-12 at Maryland April 14 at Bradley April 15 Cornell College April 17-19 Northwestern April 22 Northern Illinois April 24-26 Nebraska April 28 Sacramento State (DH)