National Exposure

The advent of networks like ESPNU and Fox College Sports have given college baseball more opportunity to appear on national television. Along with already established CSTV, college baseball has its largest television schedule in years, maybe ever. Here is a link to Baseball America's story about the increasing chances of watching college baseball on cable television.

Of course, for those of us in Big Ten country, there are two problems. First, I think only the regional Fox stations are available on my cable package and they come as a premium on the digital package. Second, aside from the conference championship tilt, only one Big Ten team appears on the schedule. Iowa's game versus Nebraska made CSTV's coverage.

Michigan Moves Up

The University of Michigan continues to move up in the national polls. The NCBWA version has the Wolverines at number eighteen, while Collegiate Baseball lists coach Rich Maloney's squad at # 19. Michigan remained outside both Baseball America's and the Sports Weekly/ESPN polls, but did gain more votes this week in the latter. Ohio State also got it's first vote from the coaches this season, as well.

Nationally, the polls are split as to whom is the top dog. Depending on which flavor of poll you prefer, you either get Texas or Georgia Tech as the number one team in the country. To see the entire poll dating for the week, click on the links below.

Baseball America Top 25
Sports Weekly/ESPN Top 25
NCBWA Top 35
Collegiate Baseball Top 30

I'm Working On It

The mystery that is my sidebar continues to baffle me. Apparently, something I've typed or linked to is beyond the parameters of the page. The question is which item(s)? I am in the process of editing March posts, as February's archives have the links correctly placed at the top of the page, so don't be shocked if a link in a post that once was there is gone later.

I just wanted everyone to know that I am trying to correct the annoying little problem. If you need to see the links in my sidebar, they remain at the bottom of the page. Once again, I apologize. Hopefully, I can get to the bottom of this before the weekend. Thank you for your patience.

Weekend Wrap-Up

Today was the beginning of what appears to be a very busy week. Allow me to apologize in advance if the quantity and/or quality of my posts diminishes over the next seven days. I realize it's difficult to imagine things getting worse, but they can. Enough of that, onto scores from the weekend.

Indiana 10 Longwood 4, Game 1 (Box)
Longwood 4 Indiana 1, Game 2 (Box)

Wichita State 17 Iowa 6 (Box-Saturday)
Wichita State 7 Iowa 3 (Box-Sunday)

#22 Michigan 5 Oakland 4, Game 1 (Box-Saturday)
#22 Michigan 8 Oakland 2, Game 2 (Box-Saturday)
#22 Michigan 7 Oakland4 (Box-Sunday)

Michigan State 4 Western Illinois 3 (Box-Saturday)
Western Illinois 3 Michigan State 0 (Box-Sunday)
Michigan State 2 Western Illinois 1 (Box-Sunday)

Butler 2 Minnesota 1 (Box-Saturday)
Minnesota 9 Butler 4 (Box-Sunday)

Ohio State 11 Cornell 2 (Box-Saturday)

Purdue 9 Western Michigan 5, Game 1 (Box-Saturday)
Purdue 4 Western Michigan 0, Game 2 (Box-Saturday)
Purdue 6 Western Michigan 0 (Box-Sunday)

James Madison 12 Penn State 3, Game 1-Saturday
Penn State 3 James Madison 2, Game 2-Saturday
Penn State 1 James Madison 0 Sunday

Once again, my apologies for not providing the usual details. If I get a chance, I may add the notes tomorrow. Just don't hold me to that. Next week should be much less busy. The Big Ten begins conference play next weekend, so things will become even more interesting.

Congratulations to Minnesota's hockey team on advancing to the Frozen Four and to Illinois and Michigan State for make the Final Four in men's hoops. A tip of the cap from BTH.

Friday's Mess

Today was just a mess. First, there is my sidebar's plunge to the bottom of the page. (Scroll down, it's there. Really.) Then there is the weather. Michigan State's Kobs Field is in such bad shape, courtesy of our crummy winter, that the Spartans are playing at Western Illinois this weekend. Indiana's contest against Longwood fell victim to poor weather, too.

Then there is Northwestern's doubleheader with Vermont. Somehow, I didn't find this two game tilt on NU's original schedule. There is probably an 80% chance, I just screwed something up. However, in no other sport do schools have only partial schedules, or incomplete schedules, on Opening Day, the way college baseball does. It makes following the sport a tad frustrating to follow. Again, it could just be me, but I've seen these late additions/subtractions/changes before. (I'll get back to the 'Cats games in a minute.)

I even called this post "Saturday's Mess", as having an extra day off work apparently confuses me. Basically, it was a messed up day on many fronts around BTH this Friday. However, some positive news did emerge, as a number of Big Ten schools came out on the winning end. Here is a review of all of Saturday's action. (Well, all meaning all I am aware of currently.)

Ohio State swept a doubleheader from Dartmouth. The Buckeyes took game one 4-1 behind another strong outing from Cory Luebke. Luebke, one of Baseball America's top freshmen, went eight innings allowing only one unearned run and three hits. Trey Fausnaugh earned his second save.

The Buckeyes took game two, 5-3. 2B Jason Zoeller led the OSU offense with three hits. The win went to Jeffrey Carroll in relief.

#22 Michigan opened its home campaign with a 10-0 triumph over Oakland. Jim Brauer improved to 4-0 with six shutout innings. Clayton Richard came on in relief and combined with Brauer to toss a four hit shutout. Mike Schmidt homered for Michigan.

Jimmy Conroy led Illinios past Cornell 12-0. Conroy threw six innings yielding four hits, no walks and no runs while fanning five. James Morris and Dusty Bensko, who played first and walked four times, completed the shutout. Ryan Rogowski went 3 for 5 scored three times and stole two bases.

Wichita State dropped Iowa, 6-1. Kris Welker got two of Iowa's seven safeties on the day. Shockers' starter Mike Pelfrey struck out 11 Hawkeyes in seven innings and is now 4-2 on the year.

Matt Loberg's eight shutout innings led Minnesota past Butler, 7-0. The Gophers' righthander struck out a career high nine batters. Luke MacLean had three hits, including a triple, and three RBI to lead the Gophers' attack.

As for the NU-Vermont doubleheader, the Catamounts took the opener, 3-1. Mark Ori had two hits for NU. The Wildcats claimed the nightcap, 4-3. NU scored three in the bottom of the seventh inning to win it. Jon Mikrut's single drove in the winning run.

Finally, congratulations to Michigan State and Wisconsin on advancing to the Elite Eight. The Spartans knocked off #1 seed Duke tonight, 78-68. The Badgers dropped NC State, 65-56. Now, it's Illinois' turn.

Hopefully, the weather and this blog will improve tomorrow.

Technical Difficulties

It appears all of my links are now at the bottom of the right hand column. I have no idea how soon I can get this repaired, as I'm not even sure what the problem is, but I apologize for the inconvenience.

Big Ten OPS

Here is my weekly look at the OPS (on base + slugging percentage) leaders in the Big Ten.

1) Zach Boswell, Indiana 1.325 2) Pat McMahon, Northwestern 1.264 3) Matt Lewis, Penn State 1.234 4)Jay Brant, Indiana 1.210 5) Ryan Parker, Indiana 1.188 6) Joe Kemp, Indiana 1.165 7)Andy Lytle, Iowa 1.164 8) Jason Zoeller, Ohio State 1.128 9) Ryan Basham, Michigan State 1.127 10) Matt Butler, Michigan 1.120

Near as I can tell, seven other Big Ten regulars cracked the 1.000 mark. In order, they are Kyle Bohm, Michigan (1.094), A.J. Scheidt, Michigan (1.084), Neal Gorka, Purdue (1.057), Dusty Bensko, Illinois (1.048), Trevor Huisinga, Illinois (1.017), Jedidiah Stephen, Ohio State (1.014) and Chris Getz, Michigan (1.001)

As usual, these are not official numbers. My math is subject to question. The stats are through March 22 and reflect the OBP and SLG figures I obtain via the Big Ten's official stat page shown here.

Spring Is In The Air

Somewhere spring has sprung. However, in the heart of Big Ten Country, spring is still a rumor. That's not quite right, either. It was spring-like yesterday. Mid-40s and sunny. Then came today. In my little corner of the world, we received about two inches of unnecessary snowfall. Apparently, some other areas got less than ideal baseball weather, as well.

The Ohio State vs. Dartmouth game was cancelled, as was Indiana vs. Ball State. The long winter refuses to give up, but the teams are heading north regardless. Here's hoping the baseball programs bring the sun and warmth with them.

I'm A Bit Confused

The nice folks at the NCBWA have released their poll for the week. Tulane has assumed the number one ranking on the heels of Baylor's sweep of previous #1, Texas. The second place club is Cal State Fullerton. Didn't the defending champs take two of three from the Green Wave, at Tulane, about a week ago? How can you rank the Wave ahead of the Titans? There must be something I am missing.

Then there is the Big 10 snub. Michigan fell a spot to twenty-third in the land. They didn't lose, but dropped a spot. Again, on it's own, I might dismiss it, but combined with the rankings at the top, I am curious as to what the voters were thinking.

Thankfully, in the end, we don't have to worry much about the polls. They just make for interesting discussion for fans and the media during the season (hey, I got an extra post out of it), but the championship is decided on the field.

Monday Scores

Ohio State 4 Illinois-Chicago 2 (Box)
Cody Caughenbaugh's two run double capped a three run eighth inning and led OSU to a comeback win. Trey Fausnaugh got the victory.

Illinois 11 Dartmouth 6 (Box)
Chris Robinson's four RBI led the Illinois offense. J.R. Kyes had three hits and two RBI. Matt Whitmore earned his first win of the year.

Kent State 4 Northwestern 1 (Box)
Jon Mikrut went two for four with a RBI for NU. Andrew Davis had two hits and two RBI for the Golden Flashes.

Myers, Boswell Earn Weekly Awards

Northwestern's Ryan Myers and Indiana's Zach Boswell were named the Big Ten's Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively. Here is the conference's official release. Boswell gets some love from the IU website here and the Wildcats' press release for Myers is here.

Myers' amazing effort also netted him one of Louisville Slugger's National Player of the Week Awards.

The Polls Are Out

As is normal for Monday night, the USA Today Sports Weekly/ESPN poll, the Baseball America poll and the Collegiate Baseball poll are all out. Cal-State Fullerton, the defending national champions, have claimed the top spot overall.

Collegiate Baseball has Michigan ranked twenty-second, up one spot from a week ago. Coach Rich Maloney's squad also earned votes in the coaches' poll, but failed to crack the top 25.

Weekend Recap

So, are your brackets looking as bad as mine? Yeah, that's what I figured. Although, my final game is still possible-Illinois vs. Kentucky. Nonetheless, it's baseball we are here to discuss.

Pitchers took center stage this weekend. Jim Brauer (Michigan), Derek Feldkamp (Michigan), Brian Blomquist (Illinois) and Josh Lewis (Indiana) all posted their third win of the year. However, it was today's efforts from Ohio State freshman Cory Luebke and Northwestern sophomore Ryan Myers that will catch the most national attention.


Saturday
Indiana 11 Kent State 6
Josh Lewis improves to 3-0. IU's Zach Boswell goes five for five with four RBI.

#22 Michigan 5 Ohio 0
Jim Brauer worked eight innings, fanning nine Bobcats, allowing three hits and no runs. Brauer is now 3-0. A.J. Scheidt led the Wolverines offense going three for three with a RBI.

Penn State 6 Delaware 1
Sean Stidfole pitched a complete game. The junior struck out eleven Blue Hen batters. Aaron Greenfield went yard for the Nittany Lions.

Penn State 12 Delaware 6
PSU's Matt Lewis had four RBI and stole a base. Craig Clark was credited with his first win of 2005.

Bradley 7 Michigan State 3
Tony Clausen and Adam Tripp each went yard for MSU. Bradley's Brandon Magee (3-1) struck out eleven Spartans in eight innings.

Michigan State 5 Bradley 1
Ryan Basham hit a homerun (4) and knocked in four runs for the Spartans. Chris Malec (2-1) got the win. He whiffed eight Braves in eight innings of work.

Illinois 4 Miami (Ohio) 2
Brian Blomquist improved to 3-1. Blomquist went 7.2 IP, allowing one earned run and walking no one. Jake Toohey earned his second save of the year. Dusty Bensko hit his third homer for the Illini.

Rutgers 6 Minnesota 2
Rutgers SS Todd Frazier had three hits including his fifth homerun. The Gophers' Tony Leseman went three for four with a RBI.

Northwestern 18 St. Francis 2
Caleb Fields went three for four and drove in four runs. Max Mann went three for three and scored three times for NU. Andrew Smith (1-2) worked eight innings and yielded one earned run.

Ohio State 14 Bucknell 3
Bucknell basketball success didn't translate onto the diamond. OSU's Adam Schneider had three hits and three RBI. Jedidiah Stephen powered his third homer for the Buckeyes. Rory Meister got the win in relief.

Sunday
Indiana 9 St. Francis 0
Zach Boswell collects two more hits and has two RBI in the Hoosier triumph. Jay Brant and Joe Kemp each homer for IU. Brian Lortz claimed the victory going five innings allowing two hits, no runs and walking zero.

#22 Michigan 10 Ohio 4
SS Leif Mahler had three hits and two RBI for Michigan. Matt Butler hit his third HR and plated three more Wolverine tallies. Michael Penn (2-1) got the win.

#22 Michigan 8 Ohio 2
Mike Schmidt had three doubles and drove home four to lead the Michigan offensive attack. Derek Feldkamp earned the win. He is now 3-0 on the year.

Penn State 7 Delaware 1
Matt Lewis went three for four with two runs scored and two RBI. Lance Thompson hit a two-run homer and scored twice. Alan Stidfole struck out eight in six innings and earned the win.

Bradley 6 Michigan State 5
Four Spartans collected two hits a piece, but it wasn't enough. Michael Christl fanned seven MSU batters in 3.2 innings of relief, although didn't get the win. That went to Peter Elmer (1-0) who worked the last three frames for Bradley.

Kent State 5 Illinois 4
Dusty Bensko hammered his fourth homer for Illinois. Kent State Kurt Eichorn drove in three runs. Chad Wagler (3-1) got the win in relief. Wagler pitched four innings, striking out five.

Illinois-Chicago 5 Iowa 4, 10 innings
Nate Yoho, Kris Welker and L.J. Mims each went two for four. Mims also stole two bases for the Hawkeyes.

Rutgers 7 Minnesota 6
Matt Fornasiere homered and drove in four Gopher runs, however the Scarlet Knights swept the weekend series with Minnesota.

Northwestern 8 Cornell 7
Ryan Myers pitched a legendary relief performance. After starter George Kontos got chased after 1.1 innings, Myers entered the game. In the next 7.2 innings, Myers struck out fifteen batters. He relinquished only four hits, a walk and no runs. Pat McMahon had three NU hits, Anthony Wycklendt homered for the 'Cats.

Ohio State 4 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 1
OSU freshman Cory Luebke pitched a complete game. Luebke, a lefty, surrendered only four hits and one run. He struck out nine UWM batters and had a no-hitter through 6.2 innings of work. Cody Caughenbaugh had two RBI for OSU.

PSU Board Approves Stadium Plan

Penn State's Board of Trustees approved the preliminary plans for a new ballpark. Here is the link to the press release courtesy of gopsusports.com.

Steroids On Campus?

USA Today Sports Weekly columnist Dana Heiss Grodin tries to get some answers about steroid use in college baseball.

PSU-Delaware Preview

Nate Heckenberger of the Daily Collegian gives us this preview of the Nittany Lions weekend against the Blue Hens.

TGIF

It's the weekend. Finally. For some national perspective, Will Kimmey provides his weekend preview here. From a Big Ten angle, let's see who is on the schedule.

Minnesota: Rutgers
Indiana: Vermont, Kent State
Purdue: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Ohio State: Northern Iowa, Bucknell, Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Iowa: Illinois-Chicago
Michigan State: Bradley
Northwestern: St. Francis, Cornell
Penn State: Delaware
#22 Michigan: Ohio
Illinois: Miami (Ohio)

You may note a number of schools that have made some big news in the Big Dance are on the slate. Vermont, Bucknell and Wisconsin-Milwaukee all posted opening round upsets in the hoops tourney. I can only hope that their baseball teams are quite as successful.

As I didn't get around to posting this information until Saturday morning, a quick recap of Friday's action is in order.

Rutgers 13 Minnesota 2 (Box)
Matt Fornasiere led the Gophers with a hit, run and RBI. Steve Hook drove in three for the Scarlet Knights.

Vermont 5 Indiana 3 (Box)
The Catamounts managed to slow down the IU bats. Corby Heckman pushed across two Hoosier runs. Raymond Montanez hit walk-off homer to win it for Vermont.

Texas A &M-Corpus Christi 9 Purdue 2 (Box)
Mitch Hilligoss and John Hunter had four of the Boilers' six hits. Josh Mitchell pitched a complete game of TAMUCC.

Ohio State 11 Northern Iowa 3 (Box)
Paul Farinacci collected four RBI and Jedidiah Stephen drove home two, scored twice and had two hits. Trent Luyster improved to 3-1. The game marked the return of All-America candidate Steve Caravati. The Buckeye outfielder had two hits and two RBI.

Illinois-Chicago 2 Iowa 1, 10 innings (Box)
Ryan Zink pitched a ten inning complete game for UIC. Zink allowed ten hits, but fanned nine Hawkeyes and walked none. Andy Lytle's three hits paced Iowa's offense.

Caravati's return is the news of the day. I expect OSU, who was a pretty good hitting club anyway, to really start to post some big numbers with Caravati back in the lineup.

NCBWA: Michigan # 22

Michigan moved up eight spots in the NCBWA poll. The Wolverines are now ranked twenty-second in the nation. Both Minnesota and Ohio State continue to garner votes in the weekly poll, as well. For a look at the entire poll, click here.

Online With Stanford's Mayberry

ESPNU, the new college-only network from the media giant, had this interview with Stanford's John Mayberry, Jr. I know Stanford's not in the Big Ten, but I really need to post more about college baseball in general, so you get this.

As an additional note of little interest to you, I know that I am really old as I remember John Mayberry, Sr. as a Kansas City Royal. In the Seventies.

Midweek Meanderings

As I try to decide if I like Vermont over Syracuse and do I have the courage to pick Utah State over Arizona, let's take a peek around the Big Ten to see what I've been missing on the diamond over the last day or two.

The most obvious thing is that Indiana is still white hot. The Hoosiers just pounded on Illinois State Tuesday, 17-7. I'll bet IU supporters wish their football team scored as much as the baseball squad does. Corby Heckman led the way with four hits, three runs scored and two RBI. Zach Boswell plated four runs the old fashioned way. He hit a grandslam. Nearly every Hoosier is raking at the moment and it shows. (Here is the boxscore.)

Purdue's brutal non-conference slate continues in Texas. The Boilermakers lost to Rice, 9-1. Neal Gorka continues to shine through the losses. Gorka had two more hits vs. the Owls. Here is the boxscore. Purdue faces Lamar today. I give the Purdue administration points for courage for scheduling the programs they have this year.

Minnesota returned to the win column with a 10-6 triumph over Minnesota-Duluth. Andy Hunter paced the Gophers attack with three hits. Minnesota plays St. Cloud today. (I thought it was St. Cloud State? Remind me to check on that.)

A quick peek at the upcoming schedule reveals that this weekend doesn't feature quite as many big-time match-ups as previous weekends. Although, as the Big Ten struggles with strength of schedule questions, RPI rankings, national perception and the like, the programs of the conference had best just polish off all opponents regardless of their stature.

Good luck to all the Big Ten schools in the Big Dance.