Logan Knowles said he and fellow Navy hitters will have to resist the desire to go deep when they play at Camden Yards today.

Knowles, starting center fielder for the Midshipmen, said he may try to hit one out of Oriole Park during batting practice, but will take a more disciplined approach once the doubleheader against archrival Army West Point gets underway.

“I think the idea of hitting a homer at a major league park has probably crossed most of our minds,” Knowles said. “We do need to fight that urge to swing for the fences.”

Navy’s annual home series with Army is being held at Camden Yards as part of a new partnership between the Baltimore Orioles and the Naval Academy Athletic Association. That multi-year agreement also calls for the Orioles to play an exhibition game at Max Bishop Stadium and for the Navy baseball team to travel to the Baltimore organization’s spring training facility in Sarasota, Florida.

Knowles says the Midshipmen are anxious to play two at a major league park.

“Pure excitement I would say. We’ve all gone to Camden Yards to watch an O’s game so the thought of being out on that field is really exciting,” he said. “Most of it will be trying to contain the extra energy you have by being on that stage.”

This is one of two games the Midshipmen and Black Knights will play in a major league stadium this season. Army will host the opener of a three-game series with Navy at fabled Fenway Park on April 20.

“I’ve been talking to some of the Navy baseball alums and obviously there is a lot of jealousy there. We are very fortunate to be getting the opportunity to play at such historic places,” Knowles said.

Navy has not played in a professional facility since the 2006 Army-Navy doubleheader was held at Oriole Park.

“Every kid that plays baseball grew up dreaming of playing in the majors. This is a chance for our players to live that childhood dream,” Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos said.

Navy is giving up home-field advantage for one of the most important doubleheaders of the Patriot League campaign. The Midshipmen infielders know how the ball bounces at Terwilliger Field while the pitchers are comfortable on the mound and the outfielders are familiar with the dimensions.

“Those are all good points and they are all true, but the last time I checked the distance from home plate to the pitcher’s mound is still 60 feet, 6 inches and the basepaths are still 90 feet,” Kostacopoulos said.

Knowles has heard the academy leadership has issued movement orders to the Brigade of Midshipmen to get a good number to Camden Yards and thinks there is a lot of buzz around Annapolis about the doubleheader.

“I think it will probably feel like a home game. I know there are a lot of people from the academy coming to support us,” he said.

This week’s snowstorm blanketed Max Bishop Stadium and prevented Navy from practicing on Wednesday and Thursday.

Navy’s hitters were able to use the indoor batting cage at the stadium to get in some swings while the team utilized the artificial turf facility at Halsey Field House to do some throwing and catching.

“We took Monday off so this week has been a bit of a wash as far as practice,” Kostacopoulos said. “So we’re not able to immediately address or correct the mistakes we’re making. We made mistakes last weekend against Bucknell that we can address in the classroom, but not on the field.”

Navy enters the weekend with a 17-5 overall record and a 3-1 mark in Patriot League play after opening with back-to-back doubleheaders at Bucknell last weekend. Kostacopoulos feels good about the way his ballclub has performed to date. Five of nine starters are batting .330 or better while the pitching staff boasts a collective earned run average of 3.12.

“Our offense has been good. We’ve got a ton of doubles so we’re hitting gaps. We walk more than we strike out, which is almost unheard of at this point in season,” he said. “Defensively, we seem to make the routine play. Every now and then we make the plus play. I would say the pitching has been solid, which is reflected by a pretty low team ERA. So the three major components are there — pitching, defense and hitting.”

Second baseman Zach Biggers is hitting .381 (32-for-84) with 19 runs scored while third baseman Jacob Williamson is batting .349 (30-86) with 11 extra base hits and a team-high 27 RBIs. Left fielder Evan Lowery owns a .337 average with eight doubles and 17 RBIs while older brother Liam Lowery, usually the designated hitter, sits at .340 with seven doubles.

“Biggers and Williamson have been very consistent at the plate,” Kostacopoulos said.

Standout right fielder Stephen Born is batting .330 with seven extra base hits, 17 RBIs and 21 runs scored. Knowles is only hitting .240, but has gotten on base enough to be tied for the team lead with 21 runs scored.

Tommy Goodridge (3-0, 2.25), Noah Song (3-2, 2.93), Andrew Sauer (2-1, 2.25) and Sean Kamhoot (1-1, 3.30) have comprised a strong starting rotation. Freshman right-hander Jared Leins (2-0, .044, three saves) has worked consistently in the closer role and has been almost unhittable while classmate Sante Grossi (1-0, 2.13, three saves) has also been outstanding on the back end of the bullpen.

“Leins and Grossi have emerged as big out guys,” Kostacopoulos said.

Kostacopoulos said the pitchers need to do a better job of holding runners on base as opponents have been able to run on the Mids. Conversely, Navy’s team speed is suspect so becoming a better at baserunning is another point of emphasis.

Patriot League officials made a change to the schedule this season in order to reduce the number of four-game weekend series each school must play. Kostacopoulos likes the new format, noting that no other conference in the country plays back-to-back doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday.

This weekend is one of the tougher ones as Navy is scheduled to host Holy Cross in a doubleheader on Saturday while Army must play a twinbill at Bucknell. Kostacopoulos declined to announce his starting pitching rotation for the weekend.

“Obviously, there is a bit of a chess match that goes on with pitching. I’m not going to tell Holy Cross or Army which starters to expect,” he said. “At a minimum, I want to keep them guessing.”

This is the opening weekend of Patriot League play for Army, which went 7-12 during the non-conference portion of the schedule. Kostacopoulos said the Black Knights are better than the record indicates and expects them to challenge for the championship.

“I think this is the best Army team in a while. It is a very dynamic team that is really relying on pitching,” he said. “Army has played a monster non-conference schedule so the record is really misleading.”

Army took two of three from a strong Big Ten Conference program in Maryland then was swept in a three-game series by Rutgers. The Black Knights went 1-8 on a recent road trip.

bwagner@capgaznews.com

twitter.com/BWagner_CapGaz