2008 BTH Preview: Minnesota

Minnesota
Head Coach: John Anderson
2007 record: 41-18; 18-9 in Big Ten (lost in NCAA Regionals)
2007 RPI: 50
2008 Projected Big Ten Finish:
Collegiate Baseball - 4th
Rivals - 2nd


At The Plate: Minnesota’s lineup is paced by juniors Nate Hanson and Matt Nohelty. Both were named first team All-Big Ten in their sophomore seasons. Hanson, a third baseman, hit .338 with ten homers and fifty-one RBI. Hanson also slugged at a .533 clip and scored 50 runs. Nohelty, the Gophers’ CF, hit .367, scored 48 runs and stole 24 bases. Nohelty’s career Big Ten average is .393.

Joining Hanson in the Gophers infield are senior 2B Jeremy Chlan (.241) and sophomore SS Derek McCallum (.340 with 34 RBI). Firstbase remains a battle between Joe Maciej, Tom Steidl and freshman Nick O‘Shea. Expect to see both Jeff Desmidt and Kyle Knudson get time at catcher.

The right field job appears to be between freshman Michael Kvasnicka and junior Jon Hummel. Kvasnicka, Minnesota’s Gatorade High School Player of the Year, is the favorite. He’s also the son of former Golden Gopher, Jay Kvasnicka. The leftfield slot is a battle between Jeff Engel and Eric Decker. Engel, a senior, sat out last year after transferring from Iowa. Sophomore Decker played football this fall and was sixth in the Big Ten in receptions and seventh in yards. A walk-on, Brooks Albrecht, might also push his way into the OF.

The designated hitter will probably come down to O’Shea, Kvasnicka or Hummel, whichever isn’t in the field will still get to swing the bat.

On The Mound: The Gophers return a number of experienced arms to their rotation. Dustin Braebender (5-1, 4.40) and Tom Buske (5-2, 3.43) will vie for the Friday role. Braebender, a senior, is coming off a spectacular NCAA Regional performance where he beat USD’s All-America Brian Matusz. Buske, a junior, was Minnesota’s number one pitcher from about mid-April on last year. Regardless of which one grabs the Friday honor this season, the Gophers will have two veteran arms atop the rotation.

The other two weekend starts appear to belong to juniors Kyle Carr and Tyler Oakes (3-2, 5.16). Carr (5-2, 3.95, 8 saves) was a third team All-Big Ten relief pitcher in 2007, but moves into the rotation this season. Sophomore Allen Bechstein (2-0, 4.25) did get some starts last year and could wind up in the rotation.

While veterans have the lead in the rotation, youth will be served in the Gophers’ bullpen. A pair of freshman -- Scott Matyas and Seth Rosin -- appear to be the leading candidates to secure the closer’s spot. Coach Anderson also has JUCO transfer Chauncey Handran in the late inning mix.

The Schedule: The highlights of the non-conference slate are three games at Mississippi, the DQ Classic field -- TCU, Tulane and Pepperdine and three more road affairs at Pacific. California, Northern Iowa and New Mexico also visit the Metrodome. In the Big Ten, the Gophers host IU, Illinois, Michigan and Penn State. The road features Ohio State, Northwestern, Purdue and Iowa.

Overall: Led by Hanson, Nohelty and a veteran rotation, Minnesota should have no problem making the Big Ten Tournament field. Whether or not the Gophers can make a repeat performance in the NCAA Tournament will depend on how well they tread through a rough pre-Big Ten slate. With a number of fresh faces looking to play a significant role, how quickly they can adjust to DI ball may hold the key to another berth in the field of sixty-four.

2008 BTH Preview: Michigan State

Michigan State
Head Coach: David Grewe
2007 record: 25-26 overall; 15-16 in Big Ten
2007 RPI: 113
2008 Projected Big Ten Finish:
Collegiate Baseball - 7th
Rivals - 8th

At The Plate: Almost the entire everyday lineup returns for Michigan State. The most potent bat amongst the returnees is Steve Gerstenberger, a second team All-Big Ten selection in 2007. The senior hit .368 (the eighth best mark in the conference) and had 100 total bases. Gerstenberger is getting some preseason all-conference nominations heading into the new campaign.

Incumbent 1B Evan Friedland (.312/0/28), SS Brandon Doherty (.310/2/26) and 3B Justin Potes (.275/0/16) join Gerstenberger in the infield. This group could be usurped by Jonathon Roof, a hotshot freshman shortstop out of Paducah, Kentucky, and A.J. Shindler, a JUCO transfer. Both could find themselves in the starting lineup forcing a re-shuffling of the group.

The catching duties belong to Kyle Day. Day hit .295 with three homers and twenty-six RBI in 2007. Day also stole 14 bases and has to be the best running catcher in the Big Ten. In spite of not having the kind of season he would have liked in ‘07, Day is still considered a pro prospect. A rebound year in 2008 would not be unexpected.

Sophomore outfielder Chris Roberts appears ready to have a breakout season and garnered some all-conference consideration, as well. In his first year, Roberts hit .331 with two homers and twenty-seven RBI while spending quite a bit of time in the heart of MSU’s order. The other two outfield roles should be occupied by sophomore Eli Boike (.270/2/20) and senior Dennis Jones (.322/1/36/15 SB).

Here again, a freshman may push for a starting role. Don’t be surprised if freshman Tyler Newsome (Palos Heights, IL) pushes is way into a starting outfield spot before too long. Depending on how many changes are made in the infield, both Day and Potes could see time in the outfield, too.

On The Mound: The entire Spartans pitching staff is one giant position battle. Rumors out of East Lansing indicate that Mike Monterey, their closer in 2007, will be given every opportunity to join the starting rotation this season. One would suspect that sophomore Kyle Corcoran (2-1, 6.87 in 36.2 IP) will also be given a shot at a weekend start, as would junior Mark Sorenson (1-2, 7.59 in 10.2 IP). The thought here is that sophomore Scott Heitshusen and freshmen A.J. Achter, Kurt Wunderlich and Newsome might be vying for those prized Big Ten starts, as well.

If Monterey (2-2, 5.33, 8 saves) moves to the rotation, that means a battle for the closer’s role would be underway. The guess is that, perhaps, junior Anthony Dunn or freshman Seth Williams might get the call.

Now, remember that everything above is based on an educated guess or wild speculation. There’s little difference in this case.

The Schedule: Stetson. Missouri. LSU. Western Carolina. Rice. These are just some of Michigan State’s non-conference opponents in what some have ranked as the toughest schedule in the Big Ten. In conference action, the Spartans host Illinois, Ohio State, Iowa and Indiana plus the Saturday doubleheader of their weekend series with Michigan. On the road, the Green and White visit Northwestern, Penn State, Purdue and Michigan (on the Friday and Sunday portion of that series).

Bottom Line: While Michigan State has a number of familiar faces returning in 2008, it could be a transition season for Coach Grewe’s side. After finishing outside the conference tournament a year ago, Baseball America’s best recruiting class in the Big Ten appears ready to push their way into the Spartans lineup and play a large role on the pitching staff, as well.

It’s hard to place the Spartans in the conference tournament field in ’08 with so many questions about pitching. However, MSU only finished outside the top six by a game last year. If the frosh class can contribute immediately, MSU could be the surprise in the Big Ten.

Golden Spikes Watchlist Announced

Three Big Ten players have made the 2008 Golden Spikes Award Watchlist. Michigan's Zach Putnam, Penn State's Drew O'Neil and Purdue's Josh Lindblom are amongst the seventy-five players named to the initial list.

The Golden Spikes Award goes to the top amateur player in the country and is presented by USA Baseball.

2008 BTH Preview: Michigan

Michigan
Head Coach: Rich Maloney
2007 record: 42-19; 21-7 in Big Ten (lost in NCAA Super Regionals)
2007 RPI: 35
2008 Projected Big Ten Finish:
Collegiate Baseball - 1st
Rivals - 1st


At The Plate: The Wolverines return five hitters that earned all-conference nods in 2007. DH Zach Putnam (.330/8 HR/59 RBI/.518 slugging %) and Kevin Cislo (.364/40 runs/23 RBI), who moves from second base to centerfield, were both first team All-Big Ten. The second team All-Big Ten performers were 1B Nate Recknagel (.352/12/61/.612 slugging %) and SS Jason Christian (.328/7/44/.520 slugging %) 3B Adam Abraham (.320/5/45) grabbed a third team selection.

Outfielder Derek VanBuskirk didn’t manage a regular season all-conference selection, but did garner an All-Big Ten Tournament Team selection and is Michigan’s leading returning hitter with a .328 average. He also enters 2008 on the Wallace Award watch list along with Putnam. The third outfield spot is a battle between Alan Oaks, whose homerun off of Vanderbilt’s David Price propelled Michigan to the Super-Regionals, and freshman Ryan LaMarre. Sophomore Oaks would appear to be front-runner. LaMarre is a natural centerfielder who some believe was the best high school player in Michigan last season. Both might even get into the lineup at the same time throughout the season.

Leif Mahler returns to the lineup after missing 2007 with an injury. Mahler, formerly a shortstop, will take over at second base. The senior hit .325 in 2006. Behind the plate, Chris Berset will get the first chance to hold down the job. In his freshman campaign, Berset hit .301 with two homers and eighteen RBI in a part-time role. It’s also possible that Recknagel will spend time at catcher.

On The Mound: In addition to being a first-team All-Big Ten pick at DH, Putnam grabbed the same honor as a pitcher. (He’s the first player in Big Ten history to be a first team all-conference selection at two positions in the same season.) The Wolverines Friday starter, Putnam (8-5, 3.87) is the preseason conference player of the year.

On Saturdays, the Wolverines will most likely trot out Mike Wilson (7-1, 3.52), a first team All-Big Ten selection, and Chris Fetter (6-3, 4.71), a third team All-Big Ten pick last year. The fourth spot remains up for grabs. The battle for starting on Sunday is between Eric Katzman (3-2. 5.92) and Matt Gerbe.

The bullpen is a bit of a question for Michigan. Abraham (5-1, 2.97, 2 saves) will probably open the season as the closer, but dependable Mike Powers (3-3, 4.76, 4 saves) and veteran Ben Jensen (2-1, 4.39, 5 saves), both of whom have occupied that role before, are in the mix.

The Schedule: I’m not sure I’d classify it as daunting, but Michigan’s path is not an easy one. Two against Arizona State, a team many, myself included, believe is the top squad in the land. There’s also contests against East Carolina (1) and Coastal Carolina (2). On the Big Ten portion of the slate, Michigan opens the renovated Ray Fisher Stadium against Iowa. Also appearing in Ann Arbor are Ohio State, Northwestern and Michigan State (2 games). The road includes trips to Penn State, Indiana, Michigan State (2 games) and Minnesota.

Overall: Michigan enters the 2008 season with a veteran, talented team coming off a super-regional appearance, ranked in the preseason polls, the prohibitive favorite in the Big Ten, opening a renovated ballpark and with more than just whispers of Omaha in the air. It’s probably the most anticipated and hyped season in Michigan baseball history.

While this is the atmosphere Coach Maloney probably dreamed of when he first arrived in Ann Arbor, this new environment comes with a new burden -- expectation. How the Wolverines handle this pressure will be the question throughout the season.

2008 BTH Preview: Iowa

Iowa
Head Coach: Jack Dahm
2007 record: 32-22 overall; 18-12 in Big Ten (lost in conference tournament)
2007 RPI: 102
2008 Projected Big Ten Finish:
Collegiate Baseball - 5th
Rivals - 4th

At The Plate: The Hawkeyes offense focuses around CF Caleb Curry and 2B Justin Toole. Curry was a second team All-Big Ten performer last year when he hit .354 (12th best in the Big Ten) with a .482 slugging percentage and .441 on base percentage. Curry, who is moving to center from a corner OF slot, also drove in 41runs and stole 11 bases for Iowa. Toole, a third team All-Big Ten player, hit .367 (good for ninth in the conference) with a .490 slugging percentage and a .451 OBP.

The player most are looking to have a breakout season is SS Kevin Hoef. Last year, Hoef hit .295 with a .365 slugging mark and a ..408 OBP. Hoef, who played third base last year, also finished amongst the Big Ten leaders in hit by pitch (14; good for 2nd) and sacrifice flies (tied for first with seven). However, it was Hoef’s productive summer in the Cape Cod League that has elevated expectations for 2008. He hit .317 for Bourne which was the fifth best mark on the Cape and was named an all-star.

Another player looming large in Iowa’s plans is transfer Matt Mossey. Mossey will take over at third base with Hoef’s move to short. Mossey comes from North Dakota State where he paced the team in at bats, triples, walks and assists while NDSU’s shortstop.

The Hawkeyes have the luxury of two dependable catchers -- Ben Geelan and Tyson Blaser. Geelan will start and Blaser, who was in the top ten prospects in Central Illinois Collegiate Summer League, will get at bats at designated hitter.

Wes Freie will get the start at first with T.J. Cataldo seeing some time there as well. On either side of Curry in the outfield will be senior outfielder Kyle Riffel (.337 in 83 at bats) and sophomore Justin Brauer, who only saw action in 14 games in 2007.

On The Mound: Iowa’s weekend rotation consists of senior righthander Brock Alberts (2-1, 3.47), Nick Erdman (7-3, 5.15) junior Steve Turnbull (2-4, 5.26) and Mike Jacobs (3-0, 4.91). Erdman, a junior righthander, earned a second team All-Big Ten nod in 2007. Jacobs, a sophomore lefthander, is making the transition from reliever to starter.

The closer role appears to be in the hands of Mossey, who also pitched at NDSU. Jason Belk, Kyle Heim and Patrick Schatz are battling to be the set-up man. The Hawkeyes also have prized freshman Zach Kenyon who is probably destined for bullpen work in his first year.

The Schedule: The marquee match-ups of the pre-Big Ten slate include a game at Vanderbilt, three at Missouri State and three more against Rutgers. Not that the pair versus Stetson are a cakewalk, either. Iowa also get Nebraska in Iowa City once conference play begins. In Big Ten action, the Hawkeyes open with a trip to Michigan and visit Indiana, Michigan State and Penn State. At home, the first conference guest in is Purdue followed by Northwestern , Minnesota and Ohio State.

Bottom Line: Iowa has all the elements necessary to return to the Big Ten Tournament in 2008 -- a balanced lineup, albeit lacking in some power and a pitching staff with some experience and expected to improve. Coach Dahm also brings in a recruiting class amongst the best in the Big Ten. That combination should assure the Hawkeyes of another post-season appearance.

Ping! Interviews IU's Means

Ping! has posted an interview with Indiana University centerfielder Andrew Means.

CSTV Previews The Big Ten

Eric Sorenson got the job of previewing the Big Ten race for CSTV. His submission can be found here. Fellow CSTVer Doug Kroll provides us with a post on Michigan's upcoming season. Finally, Wolverines' P/DH Zach Putnam is ninth in CSTV's preseason Player of the Year voting.

2008 BTH Preview: Indiana

Indiana
Head Coach: Tracy Smith
2007 record: 19-35 overall; 8-23 in Big Ten
2007 RPI: 195
2008 Projected Big Ten Finish:
Collegiate Baseball - 10th
Rivals - 9th

At The Plate: The Hoosiers’ bats are led by OF Andrew Means. A second team All-Big Ten selection in 2007, Means hit .369 which was the seventh best mark in the conference. The IU centerfielder was also third in the Big Ten in steals with 27 and led the Hoosiers with a .467 slugging percentage. Means is not the only offensive threat in Bloomington, however.

Evan Crawford had a very nice freshman campaign hitting .333 while driving in thirty runs. He also stole 18 bases. Crawford will be moving from second base to shortstop this season. Another freshman who made an impact was catcher Josh Phegley. Phegley, a former Mr. Baseball in Indiana, hit .232 a year ago and had 16 RBI. Where Phegley impressed was behind the dish where he cut down 35.4% of base stealers and made only two errors in 46 games (42 starts). Phegley was so highly regarded he wound up playing summer ball in the Cape Cod League where he also received high marks in limited action.

Another strong defensive player is starting third baseman Tyler Cox. Cox, who hit .240 in ‘07, led Big Ten 3B in assists last year with 121. He made only two miscues in his final 38 games of 2007. Across the diamond, the Hoosiers got a boost at first base when Jerrud Sabourin transferred in from Arizona. The lefthanded hitting Sabourin is a San Diego area product who will be a freshman at IU. Sabourin hit .390 as a senior at Torrey Pines High School and pitched, as well. He should get the nod at first base.

Another transfer should fill in at second base. Michael Earley arrives from Cincinnati where he hit .320 with five homers last year. Noted for his bat, Earley has also impressed with his glove thus far.

Redshirt freshman Kipp Schutz was off to a strong start last year before getting injured. He returns and should claim one of the outfield jobs next to Means. Sophomore Brian Lambert looks to be holding down the remaining corner slot.

On The Mound: Junior Tyler Tufts (3-9, 4.21) looks to begin the year as the Hoosiers‘ number one starter. He will be pressed by super sophomore Matt Bashore (4-7, 4.33). Bashore probably has the best stuff on the staff. In his initial campaign, he paced the Hoosiers staff with 50 strikeouts.

The three and four spots are a bit less clear. Freshman Kyle Leiendecker is in the mix to make the second start on Saturday. Leiendecker was drafted by Cleveland in the 25th round a year ago. Sophomore Eric Arnett (2-2, 2 sv, 6.11) is also in the running to be IU’s final weekend starter. Veterans Doug Fleenor and Chris McCombs are capable of claiming the final two weekend spots, as well.

Joe Vicini is also an important cog in the Hoosiers success. Vicini (2-1, 2 sv, 4.88) pitches long relief, short relief and even started a game a year ago. Sophomore Chris Squires (2-1, 4.50) holds down the closer’s job.

The Schedule: This year’s slate is a bit brutal. The opening series is a three game set at LSU. The Hoosiers get to play Fresno State, ranked #18 by Baseball America, three times. In conference play, the Hoosiers travel to Minnesota, Penn State, Northwestern and close the year at Michigan State. At home, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Purdue all come calling.

Bottom Line: The easy thing to do is dismiss Indiana based on history, but this is an intriguing team. They’ve got a better than average nucleus -- Means, Phegley, Crawford, Tufts, Bashore -- to build upon, a couple of potential impact transfers on the right side of the diamond (Sabourin and Earley) plus a couple of freshmen that could surprise. The downside is, of course, that IU is wildly young. That tends to yield wildly unpredictable results. Even with that factored in, I think this Hoosiers squad should be better than last year’s. Maybe quite a bit better.

2008 BTH Preview: Illinois

Illinois
Head Coach: Dan Hartleb
2007 record: 31-27 overall; 16-14 in Big Ten (lost in conference tournament)
2007 RPI: 145
Projected 2008 Big Ten Finish:
Collegiate Baseball - 6th
Rivals.com - 7th

At The Plate: Coach Hartleb returns a number of veteran faces on offense. Ryan Hastings is coming off a year where he had career highs in batting average (.330), runs (38), homeruns (6) and slugging percentage (.487). Hastings will be in the lineup, but where is the question. The senior could see time at second base, first base, outfield or designated hitter in 2008. One reason Hastings could move from his more familiar second base slot is the emergence of Joe Bonadonna. Bonadonna hit .318 (with a .427 on base percentage) in just 85 at bats last year, but had a terrific summer where he set a Northwoods League record for stolen bases (45) and won a gold glove for his play at Duluth.

The other half of the Illini’s keystone combination is Brandon Wikoff. The sophomore will be making the move from third base to shortstop this year. In his first year with Illinois, Wikoff hit .286 with a .358 OBP. Like Bonadonna, Wikoff had a good summer in the Northwoods League. He was considered one of the top 25 pro prospects in the NWL and one scout suggested he might be the most exciting player in that league.

The rest of Illinois infield is up for grabs. Trying to fill the considerable shoes of Big Ten Player of the year Lars Davis behind the plate are Michael Giller and Aaron Johnson. Both are also vying for the first base job along with Hastings. Thirdbase is a battle between Dominic Altobelli and transfer John Schlichter.

Centerfielder Kyle Hudson continues his two-sport Illini career. In addition to being a receiver for Illinois’ Rose Bowl squad, Hudson hit .351 with a .428 on base percentage and stole sixteen bases in ‘07 for the diamond Illini. DH/OF Daniel Webb was a third team All-Big Ten selection last year. Webb hit .332 with a .416 slugging percentage. Also figuring into the outfield mix will be Nick Stockwell and freshman Casey McMurray. Expectations are high for McMurray, who may open the year as the starting leftfielder. That would leave Stockwell and Webb most likely seeing time in right. Expect Craig Lutes to fill in when Hudson is called off to pigskin responsibilities or needs a break.

On The Mound: Illinois lost ace Tanner Roark just before January closed due to grades. One would presume that pushes either Mike Stankiewicz (4-6, 7.25) or Scott Shaw (5-4, 6.42) into the Friday starter’s role. The other should be the first starter on Saturday. I would give an edge to Aaron Martin (3-3, 8.41), who is coming off a solid Coastal Plains League summer session, for the other Saturday start. The fourth starter position is up for grabs. Ben Reeser, perhaps? Billy Barrett? Or, maybe, freshman Nick Chmielewski? The highly touted Chmielewski was a high school standout who appeared destined for the bullpen, perhaps, even the closer spot. The unexpected pre-season shuffle might give the first year player more innings than originally anticipated.

The Schedule: The non-conference portion of the ‘08 schedule provides solid competition. A game with nationally ranked Baylor and three at Texas Tech are the marquee match-ups before the Big Ten season opens. The Illini get Michigan, Penn State, Purdue at Northwestern in Champaign, while traveling to Michigan State (to open the year), Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio State.

Bottom Line: The Illini lose four regulars, their Friday starter and closer from a team that qualified for the conference tournament on the final day of the season a year ago. Without them, it’s difficult to enter this campaign with too lofty an expectation. The good thing for Illinois is that outside of Michigan, the remainder of the conference appears to be very close. The hunch here is the Illini finish in the middle of the pack in 2008. However, if McMurray and Chmielewski explode onto the Big Ten scene, all bets are off.

BTN Broadcast Schedule And Other Things

Here is an array of news items from around the conference. Hopefully, you'll find something in the group interesting.

The Big Ten Network has released their baseball broadcast schedule for the upcoming season. They won't begin until conference play does, but BTN will make the rounds. If I read the schedule correctly, only a home game at Purdue keeps the network from hitting every program at home once.

It also looks to me like the network gave some consideration to avoiding the cold(er) weather early in the season. Can't say I blame them on that account. Now, if I can only get my cable provider to pick-up BTN before then.

The Big Ten Network's Kara Lentz chats with Michigan head coach Rich Maloney.

Both Ohio State and Michigan have Meet and Greets on the horizon.

The Bucks have also announced their 2008 broadcast schedule with WMNI radio in Columbus. You can also catch games on the internet.

Here are your Buckeye captains for '08.

Ron Kittle will be the keynote speaker at Saturday's University of Illinois Hot Stove Banquet.

Michigan State's First Pitch Dinner is slated for February 19. Drayton McLane, Jr., owner of the Houston Astros, will be awarded as the MSU Baseball Alumnus Of The Year.

Joe Giradi spoke at Northwestern's First Pitch Dinner in January.

Indiana has begun their annual Newcomer Profiles. So far, IU has featured Michael Earley, Tyler Rogers, Anthony Agnew, Jeff Caldwell, Matt Carr and Anthony Cera.

Iowa has issued a 2008 season preview. It gives all my quality information away, but go ahead and read it anyway. Serves me right for not cranking my previews out sooner.

Yes, The Previews Are Coming

Amongst other things, I am in the process of working on previews for all ten programs. I hope to begin posting them this weekend. They are going to be released in alphabetical order. My desire is to have them all up by February 22 -- Opening Day.

Hawkeyes Support A Friend

One of the great joys of operating this blog is getting to meet the people around the game. One such person is Iowa's Ray Gilmore. It may be a bit strong to classify Ray as a legend, but it's probably safe to call him a Hawkeye baseball institution. Ray has served Iowa baseball in any number of capacities throughout the years including his current title as "Official Scorekeeper".

While I haven't known Ray that long, it was with sadness that I've learned of the passing of his mother, Rose. However, I was pleased to learn (via this article from Pat Harty of the Press-Citizen ) that the Hawkeye baseball program took the time to support the man that has spent a lifetime supporting them.

There is a laundry list of items wrong with college athletics today. Radio, television, newspapers and blogs -- including this one -- hang each offense out to dry where the public can get a clear view. Yet, perhaps in this moment of loss we still get a glimpse of what it really means to be a team.

Illini's Roark Off Team

Just when I was thinking how incredibly mediocre the Big Ten Network's website is, at least in a baseball sense, they post some breaking news. BTN is reporting that Illinois' Friday starter, Tanner Roark, is off the team due to academic reasons. Roark paced the Illini in wins a year ago and was named to the All-Big Ten second team.

I'm never quite sure what to say in these situations. It's far too easy to make assumptions about the situation, so I certainly don't want to wander down that path. Here's what I definitely know: Illinois is not as good a team without Tanner Roark at the top of their rotation. And the young man can't pitch for his school this season. Neither is a positive.

Here's hoping that one of the pitchers on Illinois' roster will step-up to the new challenge and that Tanner Roark will do the same.

Michigan # 18 In Coaches Poll

The USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll is out. Michigan finds their way into the Top 25 at number eighteen. No other Big Ten squad garnered a pre-season vote. One of the Wolverines early season opponents, Arizona State, is ranked number one.

Rivals: Michigan # 13

Rivals.com continues their countdown of the Top 25 teams in the land. Michigan recently checked in at number thirteen. Editor Kendall Rogers has provided the most extensive preview of Michigan (or any other Big Ten program, for that matter) thus far.

Hanson, Christian, Abraham Tabbed For Breakout Season

Patrick Ebert of PG CrossChecker has assembled a list of breakout players for 2008. Ebert has created a team of those college players flying under the radar. Three Big Ten stars have made his list. Minnesota 3B Nate Hanson, Michigan SS Jason Christian and Michigan 3B/RP Adam Abraham each hold down a roster spot on Ebert's squad.

In addition to naming the team, Ebert includes a brief introduction to each player complete with some scouting insights.

Michigan At # 8 In BA Poll

Baseball America is the latest to release a pre-season poll. In their edition, the University of Michigan comes in at number eight. No other Big Ten program made their Top 25. (BA did not include others receiving votes outside the top 25.)

The top spot in the BA poll belongs to UCLA. The Bruins are followed by Pac-10 foe Arizona. Vanderbilt, Mississippi and North Carolina round out the top five.

PG CrossChecker Top 100

Six Big Ten teams have made PG CrossChecker's Top 100 list for 2008. The list begins with Michigan at number fifteen. After the Wolverines, it's a long, long way down the list until Ohio State appears at number 70. The Buckeyes are closely followed by Penn State at seventy-two and Minnesota at seventy-four.

Ten slots later, Purdue is ranked at number eighty-four. The final Big Ten program in the Top 100 is Michigan State at number ninety-eight.

Michigan At Fifteen In Writers' Poll

The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association has released their 2008 pre-season poll. The University of Michigan finds itself checking in at number fifteen in the land. Coach Rich Maloney's team is the only Big Ten side in the NCBWA's Top 35. However, both Penn State and Minnesota garnered votes.

Sitting atop the initial poll of the year is Arizona State. The Sun Devils are followed, in order, by North Carolina, Rice, South Carolina and Arizona. Rounding out the top ten is Texas, Mississippi, Vanderbilt, San Diego and Wichita State. Two-time defending national champion Oregon State is in at number eleven.

Unfortunately, the NCBWA hasn't put the poll up on their website as of yet, so I can't provide a link.

(A note to the NCBWA: My check will be in the mail by Monday.)

A Gophers Preview

This frozen morning I've come across a Minnesota preview. This look at the '08 Gophers comes courtesy of Jon Marthaler of the blog The National Anthem Before A Cubs Game (or TNABACG, for short). Mr. Marthaler does such a solid job of summarizing the upcoming season that I may just put a link up to this post again when I present my Gophers' preview next month.

In the interest of full disclosure, I must point out that the TNABACG post does link back here and says something nice about BTH. I'd call it self-serving except you are already here, aren't you? Besides, I can use all the local bloggers covering Big Ten teams I can get. You don't just want to read my thoughts.

Regardless, as TNABACG does spend time covering Minnesota baseball, I'm going to toss the blog onto the sidebar here. Where exactly, I'm not sure. Nor am I sure if I will use the full name or the acronym. Look for the addition within the next several days and go read his preview.

Two Transfers Join Indiana Roster

Head Coach Tracy Smith announced that Indiana University will have a couple of transfers eligible for the 2008 season. Jerrud Sabourin, a firstbaseman, has joined the Hoosiers after a semester at Arizona. IU also added catcher Wes Wilson who left Mississippi State after the fall semester. Both will be freshmen in 2008.

Ping! All-Americans

A handful of Big Ten players claimed pre-season All-Ping! honors from Ping! Baseball. Ping's second team includes Ryne White of Purdue, Michigan's Zach Putnam and Penn State closer Drew O'Neil.

Ping! also included a "For Your Consideration" slot that highlighted a player, while perhaps not next in line for all-Ping! selection, is worthy of your attention. Purdue's Matt Bischoff and Northwestern's Jake Owens both merited recognition in this category.

Baseball America Conference Rankings

The staff at Baseball America, Aaron Fitt and John Manuel to be exact, have handed out grades to programs from eight conferences (.pdf file). They used the six BCS conferences plus noted baseball conferences Conference USA and the Big West. The boys at BA ranked the programs on the basis of seven categories: National Impact, Competitiveness, Fans & Facilities and Academics. Using this criteria, BA also gave an overall baseball GPA to each conference.

The good news for the Big Ten? The conference was the only one of the eight that got an "A" in Academics. OK, The Big East did land an "A-". Is this cool? Absolutely. Unfortunately, though, this was a "baseball" GPA.

I'll let you read the report card yourself for the specifics, but overall the Big Ten didn't fare well. The conference's GPA? An underwhelming 1.82. Individually, no Big Ten program received better than a C grade. Worse, four got F's.

My initial reaction to such negative press is to defend the conference. However, it's simply impossible to argue with the conference's overall performance. On-the-field, Minnesota and Ohio State have been left to carry the load for the entire conference for much of the last twenty years. Yes, Michigan has re-joined the elite in recent years, but their return to success as been short-lived.

Off-the-field, the Buckeyes have gone it alone. OSU's commitment to facilities ran unrivaled in the conference until Penn State's new ballpark opened last season. Yes, there is a wave of new or renovated buildings on the docket, but they will all arrive over a decade after the folks in C-bus made the move.

While the future of Big Ten baseball looks bright, Baseball America's rankings were based on recent history, which isn't quite as attractive. Hopefully, if BA revisits this in five years, the Big Ten's renewed commitment to baseball will yield a much higher grade.

Five Make Louisville Slugger's All-America Squads

On Christmas Eve, Collegiate Baseball released their pre-season Louisville Slugger All-America Team. Five players from the Big Ten have earned recognition from CB. Michigan landed three players with P/DH Zach Putnam gaining a second team nod as a utility player. Putnam's teammates, SS Jason Christian and 1B/C Nate Recknagel, each landed on the third team.

Penn State closer Drew O'Neil and Purdue 1B Ryne White were the final two Big Ten players receiving All-America status from CB. Both were third team selections.

Michigan Cracks Ping! Top 30

Ping! has issued their pre-season Top 30. The University of Michigan checks in at number twenty-one. Arizona State is Ping's pre-season number one. (Just for the record, I'd select ASU, as well.)

In addition to including Michigan in their Top 30, Ping! has submitted a preview for the Wolverines.

Michigan Checks In At # 10

Collegiate Baseball has issued their pre-season poll and the University of Michigan is ranked number ten in the nation. No other Big Ten squad made the initial list, although both Ohio State and Minnesota did receive votes. Arizona was voted as the pre-season # 1.

It's great to see a Big Ten team in the polls, especially one in the top ten. It will be interesting to watch Rich Maloney's team in the position of having an even larger bullseye on their back. It's one thing to have everyone in the conference looking to dethrone you, it's another to walk into that month-long road trip with the number ten ahead of your name.

Update 12/22/07: That trip to the eye doctor may need to be bumped up. I missed seeing Penn State in the "Others Receiving Votes" space. Now, how I missed it when they come before either the Gophers or Bucks is beyond me, but I got a heads-up from a PSU fan in the comments. My thanks to psu4ever. My apologies to the Nittany Lions and BTH readers for missing a layup.

On a positive note, I'm glad to see four Big Ten teams get some degree of pre-season love.

Winter Links

A day after our first significant snowfall of the winter, I'm providing a few baseball links to help keep our minds on warmer thoughts. I toss in a ongoing rant to help melt the ice, as well.

First, there's Rivals.com top Midwest programs. The Big Ten manages to land three of the top five places. (Yes, I'm going to make you click on the link to see which three and in what order. Sorry.)

Rivals also mentions the Michigan/Ohio State baseball rivalry.

Michigan's Jason Christian is "On The Radar" of Doug Kroll's list of top returning shortstops.

I can't recall if I posted this one before, but Rivals Baseball Editor Kendall Rogers also offered up this piece on Michigan's success.

MORE WALLACE AWARD RANTING
In keeping with BTH unwritten policy, here is the link to CSTV's Kroll's blog about the Wallace Award Watchlist. (The unwritten BTH policy states that if you mention this blog, and I know about it, you get a link here. Oh, and it helps if you say something positive. Negative comments are generally just emailed to me.) As Doug points out, a number of lesser known baseball programs landed multiple award nominees.

Here, again, is my problem. No, not being obsessive-compulsive. That's a different problem. The issue I'm typing of is one where Southern Illinois lands three Wallace Award nominations and Michigan gets only two. Ohio State has only one. So, SIU has three players as good as Nate Recknagel, Jason Christian, J.B. Shuck and Jake Hale, all of whom got overlooked. It's lunacy.

Not only do noted baseball programs like Brown and Delaware land two players -- just as many as the Wolverines and one more than Ohio State, "my" Oakland University can't get a single nod? Seriously, are any of the three, yes, three Appalachian State players selected mathematically more likely to win the Wallace Award than Golden Grizzlies Andrew Stafford or Justin Wilson? The simple answer is no. So why not honor the kids and help the program by including them?

Don't get me wrong, I say let the Salukis have three nominees. Give Brown and Delaware as many spots as seem deserving, but don't leave out the other players that warrant a pre-season nomination. If you are worried about the list being too big, then, perhaps, you pass out the honor a bit too loosely. As it stands now, over 200 names make the watchlist. What's a few more going to hurt? Your reputation?

The College Baseball Foundation -- overseers of the Wallace Award -- either needs to modify their standards to keep the list smaller or expand the list to include everyone worthy of the recognition.

Rivals Previews The Big Ten

Kendall Rogers at Rivals.com has released his 2008 Big Ten Baseball Preview. Go check it out.

Iowa Feature On Kevin Hoef

The University of Iowa has released a feature entitled 24 Hawkeyes to Watch. The objective is to introduce one athlete from each of the university's 24 sports. For Jack Dahm's baseball program, SS Kevin Hoef is the Hawkeye to Watch.

As the release indicates, and I've been mentioning around here, Hoef had a strong summer with the bat in the Cape Cod League and looks ready to emerge as one of the Big Ten's top performers in 2008.

Putnam Gets NCBWA Nod

The University of Michigan's Zach Putnam was named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association 2008 pre-season All-America Team yesterday. The Michigan junior was selected to the NCBWA first team as the utility player.

Last season, Putnam hit .330 with eight homers and fifty-nine RBI while going 8-5 with a 3.87 ERA as Michigan's Friday starter. Putnam was the only Big Ten representative on any of the three All-America teams the NCBWA chose.

2008 Michigan State Schedule

Michigan State University released their 2008 baseball schedule (.pdf file) late last week. The Spartans season will begin in Florida with a three game series in DeLand. On February 22, Coach Grewe's nine will face the host, Stetson. That game will be followed by a Saturday match-up with Missouri before closing out the visit with a Sunday tilt versus Connecticut.

From Florida, MSU travels to Texas. The Spartans will be in Beaumont from February 28 - March 2. The opposition will come from Lamar, Kansas State, Arkansas State and KSU again in the finale. Then its a hop over to Baton Rouge where Michigan State will play two against Louisiana State beginning on March 4.

After the two game stop in Cajun Country, it's back to the Lone Star State for three games in Houston. Western Carolina, Rice and Creighton will take on the Spartans on successive days beginning March 6.

The pre-season road trip comes to a close in Greenville, South Carolina where MSU will play a three game series against Quinnipiac, March 14 - 16. Once that's over with, Coach Grewe and the boys come home to Kobs Field and host Oakland University. The Golden Grizzlies will be in East Lansing from March 21 - 23.

Once OU leaves town, the Big Ten season kicks off with a visit from Illinois. The other home conference series feature Ohio State, Iowa and Indiana. The Spartans will host the Saturday doubleheader with Michigan as part of their annual home and home and home series.

The road series for MSU are at Northwestern, Penn State and Purdue, as well as the single games against Michigan on Friday (April 18) and Sunday (April 20).

Other highlights of their schedule include a game against the minor league Lansing Lugnuts as well as a two games versus Central Michigan -- one in East Lansing, one in Mt. Pleasant. As always, check the official schedule to see the complete list of games and times.

With this release, I believe we now have the schedules for all ten teams in the conference. All that's left is to get through winter.

Wallace Award Nominees

The watchlist for the 2008 Brooks Wallace Award has been released. For those of you new to college baseball, and as the hits are up, I'm guessing not all of you are familiar with this stuff, the Wallace Award is one of 265 college player of the year honors.

The good news about the '08 Wallace Award watchlist is that a number of Big Ten players have been nominated. Here's the list:

Zach Putnam, Michigan

Derek VanBuskirk, Michigan

Nate Hanson, Minnesota

Matt Nohelty, Minnesota

Jake Owens, Northwestern

Justin Miller, Ohio State

Drew O'Neil, Penn State

Matt Bischoff, Purdue

Ryne White, Purdue

All fine selections. I congratulate all of them on the recognition. However, and you knew there was going to be an "however", a couple of players got left off the list. Actually, more than a couple. I'll begin by hitting the obvious ones out of the park first.

Michigan's Nate Recknagel and Jason Christian were omitted. Big, honkin' boo-boo by those that make the list. Yeah, I know. You already had two Maize and Bluers, can't have more than that. Someone might think those northern boys can play.

Another glaring omission is Michigan State's Chris Roberts. I know Roberts is only a sophomore, but he hit cleanup as a freshman and should be ready to explode in his second campaign.

Then, we come to a pair of Indiana second year standouts. Both Matt Bashore and Josh Phegley got overlooked. Two more enormous mistakes.

Are you kidding me? Where in the world are Ohio State's Jake Hale and J.B. Shuck? No sign of either and that's simply hard to imagine.

That's seven huge and I mean HUGE errors of omission. Several somebodies were asleep at the wheel during this nomination process. Now, if I were asked to submit a list, here are some other names that I'd be pondering.

Spartans Kyle Day and Steve Gerstenberger, as well as, Illinois' Tanner Roark, Ryan Hastings and Brandon Wikoff.

Two more Hoosiers in the form of Andrew Means and Evan Crawford, plus Iowa's Kevin Hoef who just tore up the Cape Cod League. Jake Goebbert of Northwestern got hosed in this process, as well. As did Joe Blackburn of Penn State.

All this makes you wonder if anyone from the Big Ten submit a list? It's also indicative of the general lack of knowledge about Big Ten baseball amongst those who are "in the know" around college baseball.

CSTV Links And Shameless Self Promotion

In addition to his football beat, CSTV's Eric Sorenson has been cranking out monthly baseball columns this off-season. In October, Eric mentioned yours truly and this little piece of cyberspace while discussing the stadium projects underway around the conference.

Now, saying nice things about BTH doesn't get you a link in return. Well, come to think of it, yeah, it does get you a link. However, it doesn't necessarily get you a timely one. (Sorry, E. I've been watching a little basketball and enjoying the off-season.)

This month, Eric reviews his 2008 Omaha predictions and stops to ponder a certain Big Ten program.

While I'm plugging CSTV employees, Doug Kroll has his list of top returning firstbasemen and Michigan's Nate Recknagel gets an "On The Radar" mention. That places Recknagel in the top ten returning firstbasemen. At a position that's traditionally loaded, that's high praise.

Recuriting News

Here are some links to each program's official press release regarding those high school players who signed a letter of intent during the early signing period. Translation: here's a recruiting update. Enjoy.

Illinois signs four.

Hoosiers get four, too.

Iowa's class gets ranked.

Wolverines sign seven.

Spartans' class ranks top in conference.

Minnesota signs five.

2008 Minnesota Schedule

The University of Minnesota has released their 2008 baseball schedule. (No, I did not copy and paste that line from the OSU schedule post and change Ohio State to Minnesota. I actually typed the whole thing over again.) The Gophers begin the new season in Oxford, Mississippi with a three game series against Ole Miss. The opening weekend is February 22 - 24.

After the Rebels, Minnesota will host the Dairy Queen Classic at the Metrodome. On Friday, February 29 the Gophers will take on TCU. The next day Coach Anderson's nine will face Tulane. Pepperdine will be the last opponent for Minnesota on March 2. The weekend after the DQ concludes, the Gophers will host another tournament at the Metrodome.

New Mexico, California and Northern Iowa will face Minnesota on consecutive days beginning March 7 in the new, and aptly named, Metrodome Tournament. Once that series wraps up, Minnesota will head west to take on Pacific in a three game series opening on March 14.

The California trip is brief, as it's right back to indoor ball as the Gophers will play seven straight non-conference games at the dome starting March 18. North Dakota State (2 games), South Dakota State (3 games) and Missouri (2 games) all come calling. The protracted home stand will finish with a four game visit from Indiana to open conference action.

Illinois, Michigan and Penn State will all be on the home schedule for the Gophers in '08. Road trips include Ohio State, Northwestern, Purdue and Iowa.

Yes, I've left out a handful of non-conference games. I will note that ND State, SD State and Northern Iowa all pop back up on the Gophers schedule after their earlier visits.

2008 Ohio State Schedule

The Ohio State University has released their 2008 baseball schedule. The Buckeyes will open the year in Millington, Tennessee with a three game series. Arkansas State, Memphis and Seton Hall will provide the competition from February 22 -24. Then, it's three at College Station, Texas.

Host Texas A&M, Louisiana Tech and Arkansas will be on the docket from February 29 - March 2. From the Lone Star State, OSU will finish their winter road trip with a stay in Florida. Air Force, Maine and Connecticut will take on the Buckeyes in West Palm Beach from March 7 -9. OSU will then travel to Bradenton to play their Spring Break schedule from March 15 - 21. The opposition for those dates has not been announced.

Coach Todd's side opens the home slate with a visit from Pittsburgh on March 26. The Panthers will be the lone home opponent before Big Ten play begins. OSU will host, in order, Penn State, Minnesota, Purdue and Illinois. The road series will be at Michigan State, Northwestern, Michigan and Iowa.

As always, I'm leaving out a few non-conference games. I do expect you to click through and check the whole schedule, if you are so interested. (I will mention that the Central Michigan game on April 9 could be interesting. Well, interesting to me anyway.) It's also important to keep in mind this is a college baseball schedule, thus it is not only subject to change, it's almost a sure thing.

Cape Calls Three From Ann Arbor

It appears three of Michigan's players will be in the lineup for Hyannis in the Cape Cod League next summer. Adam Abraham, Jeff DeCarlo and Erik Katzman are all penciled in on the 2008 Hyannis Mets roster.

As is the case with all this early summer league data, it's subject to change.

A hat tip to Codball is in order, as well.

Hoosiers, Hawkeyes Heading To The Cape

Courtesy of a link at CodBall, I've found number of players from Indiana and Iowa will be playing in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2008. The Bourne Braves have the Hawkeyes' battery of sophomore C Tyson Blaser and freshman P Zach Kenyon while the Hoosiers are sending P Matt Bashore, C Josh Phegley and OF Kipp Schultz to the Wareham Gatemen.

As it's a long, long time before summer, it's best to keep in mind that this is all tentative. However, it's good to see a number of Big Ten players already getting interest from the highest profile summer league.

Kroll's Top 25 - Fall Edition

Deep breath in.

Exhale.

Another deep breath in.

Exhale.

Forgive me. I'm trying to calm down. I was doing rather well until I came across CSTV's Doug Kroll's fall Top 25. Kroll does admirable work and I figured this off-season list would give me an idea where the national media perceived Michigan stood a few months removed from a Super Regional appearance.

I started to look for where Kroll had Michigan ranked. I zipped past the top five. Then, the top ten. Fifteen came and went and still no sight of a team that beat number one overall seed Vanderbilt to capture a regional title.

The top twenty disappeared before I finally stumbled upon Rich Maloney's troops at number twenty-two. Twenty-two? Twenty-freakin'-two?!?!?!? A team that returns nearly all of its players from a regular season conference title, a regional tournament crown and a super regional appearance can't get a ranking above twenty-two?

Now, this alone might have me cranky. However, the topper for me was Kroll's summary of the Wolverines:

22. Michigan (42-19, Lost In Corvallis Super Regional)
Winning the Big Ten is always the goal for the Wolverines, so knocking off No. 1 seeded Vanderbilt in the Regionals last season was icing on the cake. Two-way star Zach Putnam is back for his junior season to lead Big Blue.

Breath, Brian, breath.

Yes, winning the conference is a goal for Michigan. It's also a goal for Ohio State, Minnesota, Illinois, Penn State and the other five teams in the Big Ten. Of course, I'm thinking that winning their conference crown is also a goal for Texas, Louisiana State, Stanford, USC, North Carolina, Oregon State and any other elite baseball program in the land.

Suggesting that Michigan or any other Big Ten program only has eyes on a conference title sounds more like football talk from the Seventies than current baseball thinking around the Big Ten. (The conference office notwithstanding.) This just in: This ain't football, Bo and Woody aren't coaching anymore and the Seventies are thirty years in the rear view mirror.

I'm not sure how many times I've heard Coach Maloney speak, but he rarely goes on for very long without mentioning Omaha. The college baseball media may believe it's folly, but the goal for Michigan is to play in the College World Series. That's not just the prevailing thought in Ann Arbor, either.

Does anyone think that Ohio State and Penn State have spent all that money building state-of-the-art ballparks just to host a Big Ten conference tournament? I've talked to people at both programs and they can't wait for the chance to host a regional. (In the Buckeyes case, another regional.) Does that sound like anybody's ultimate goal is the conference crown?

What of the other programs? Well, let's see, Michigan State, Purdue and Indiana are either renovating, building new or have plans to build new parks. Illinois is currently remodeling and hoping to lure a Frontier League team to partner with them, so they can upgrade even more. Minnesota, a program with plenty of CWS history, recently announced the outline for a new Siebert Field, as well. This increased financial commitment to facilities speaks to a goal that exceeds just a Big Ten banner.

It's not only shortsighted to believe that Big Ten programs have smaller goals than the schools in college baseball's power conferences, but it was unfair to the Michigan players and coaches to dismiss their regional victories over Vanderbilt as "icing on the cake". One would have hoped that Michigan would have garnered some respect after dispelling all the media's preconceived notions prior to the Nashville Regional.

By placing a veteran Michigan team so low in the Top 25, it only affirms that most of the college baseball media still view the Wolverines regional triumph as little more than a fluke. Never mind those regular season wins over programs like Mississippi State and Oklahoma. Forget the one-hit, one-run loss in the Super Regional opener at Corvallis against defending national champion Oregon State. (As if anyone played OSU better, let alone in their building.) No, that Nashville performance had to be luck.

I'm probably more upset about this than normal because Kroll is usually more balanced in his assessment about northern programs than most of his media brethren. (Sans fellow CSTVer Eric Sorenson, of course.) To see his general underwhelming preview makes me pessimistic about what the rest of the college baseball media is going to say about the Big Ten and Michigan heading into 2008.

2008 Illinois Schedule

The University of Illinois has released their 2008 baseball schedule. The Illini open the '08 season in Edinburg, Texas at the Al Ogletree Classic. The tournament will be held from February 22 - 24. None of Illinois' three opponents are known as of yet.

Coach Hartleb's side then does a little two-step over to Waco for that Quala-T Imprints Baylor Classic. (Hey, at least, they got a sponsor, right?) That series opens on February 29 with a game against the host, Baylor. The next day is Stephen F. Austin and the finale features the Blue and Orange versus Illinois-Chicago. (UI goes all the way to Waco to play UIC. Gotta love it.)

The next weekend features a rare four game road test against Texas Tech at Lubbock. (Hopefully, the team will visit the college baseball hall of fame.) The last series in the Lone Star State concludes on March 9.

After the Texas, the Fightin' Illini head for Florida and their Spring Break Trip. Beginning on March 14, the Illini will play Eastern Kentucky, Miami (OH), Akron, UMBC, Kansas, Northern Iowa and Central Connecticut State. The only day off will be March 17.

The Illini head north to play Indiana State in Terre Haute on March 25 before launching the Big Ten season on the road at Michigan State. The weekend in East Lansing begins on March 28. The other road opposition, in-conference is Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio State.

While the home opener is April 2 against Saint Louis, the first Big Ten home date in April 11 when Michigan comes calling. Penn State, Northwestern and Purdue are all visiting Champaign-Urbana in 2008, as well.

Per usual, I'm leaving out a few midweek, non-conference tilts, but I did leave you a link to the entire schedule after all. Besides, we'll have plenty of time down the road to discuss the quality of everyone's non-conference slate.

The Big Ten Schedule

I have pieced together the 2008 Big Ten baseball schedule. It wasn't a terribly difficult process, as six of the ten teams have their schedules posted already and, as I mentioned in a prior post, all the schedule makers did was turn the 2007 schedule upside down (so you start '08 where you finished '07) and flipped all the home dates for road dates (and vice versa).

If you are totally confused, not to worry. Here is what the '08 conference schedule should look like:

March 28 - 30
Indiana @ Minnesota
Iowa @ Michigan
Northwestern @ Purdue
Penn State @ Ohio State
Illinois @ Michigan State (*)

April 4 - 6
Illinois @ Indiana
Purdue @ Iowa
Michigan State @ Northwestern
Michigan @ Penn State
Minnesota @ Ohio State (*)

April 11 - 13
Iowa @ Indiana
Minnesota @ Northwestern
Penn State @ Purdue
Michigan @ Illinois (*)
Ohio State @ Michigan State (*)

April 18 - 20
Indiana @ Penn State
Northwestern @ Iowa
Purdue @ Ohio State
Michigan vs. Michigan State
Illinois @ Minnesota (*)

April 25 - 27
Michigan @ Indiana
Iowa @ Michigan State
Ohio State @ Northwestern
Penn State @ Illinois
Minnesota @ Purdue

May 2 - 4
Purdue @ Indiana
Minnesota @ Iowa
Northwestern @ Illinois
Michigan State @ Penn State
Ohio State @ Michigan

May 9 - 11
Indiana @ Northwestern
Iowa @ Penn State
Michigan State @ Purdue
Michigan @ Minnesota
Illinois @ Ohio State (*)

May 15 - 17
Indiana @ Michigan State
Ohio State @ Iowa
Northwestern @ Michigan
Penn State @ Minnesota
Purdue @ Illinois

The (*) indicates that it's a meeting of two teams that don't have their schedules released. Basically, I can't confirm those games as neither party has made an official announcement, but as we have the other schedules and we know the formula for this year's pairings, I think it's safe to call even the asterisk games a sure thing.

As usual, I could have screwed something up in the process here. If I have, I'm confident one of you will let me know.

Rivals Fall Power Rankings

Kendall Rogers of Rivals.com has issued his autumn power rankings. These are not team rankings, but for individual players. The rankings include the following positions: Pitcher, catcher, firstbase, middle infield, thirdbase, outfield and head coach. Rogers lists the top 15 players in each category.

I have to admit, Mr. Rogers' poll surprised me. First, I suspected there would be no more than one Big Ten player. By my count, three made the field. Three?!?!?! That's almost enough to make you would think I wrote the list.

The one player I suspected might merit inclusion was Michigan's Zach Putnam. Near as I can tell, I was wrong about that, as well. No sign of Michigan's All-America P/DH. I'm not sure quite what to make of that, but if Putnam's not in the top 90 players in college baseball, I'm the Batman.

In fairness to Mr. Rogers, he may have had a positional problem with Putnam. He might not view Michigan's Friday starter (you know, the guy that one hit national champ Oregon State in their house) as a top 15 hurler. And as there wasn't a utility position, perhaps, Rogers didn't have a place to put Putnam. (Putnam was the Wolverines DH most of last year.) I'll spot him that, but if Putnam's not on a bunch of first team All-America lists in the pre-season, we will be left to assume that the college baseball media is not subjected to drug testing.

Who did make the list? Two Big Ten representatives managed to make the loaded firstbase position. Purdue's Ryan White checked in at number fourteen. The Boilermakers top hitter was followed by Michigan's Nate Recknagel. Again, I'm floored.

A pro-southern beat writer selects two Big Ten players in his Top 15 at a loaded position? Nope, I didn't see that coming. Kudos to Mr. Rogers for thinking outside the box. Or waking up and smelling the coffee, depending on your perspective in life. (I'll take the former, as I'm not always that cranky.)

The other Big Ten player to sneak into the fall power rankings is Michigan SS Jason Christian. Rogers not only selected Christian as the 11th best middle infielder in the land, but called him "One of the rising stars in college baseball". I'm nearly speechless. He combines the shortstop and secondbase slots and a Big Ten guy still makes the top15? What a difference a year makes.

Hopefully, this kind of very early, very positive media attention will open the door to more recognition for the players in the north in 2008. I also hope it might indicate a willingness on the media's part to give these players some All-America consideration at year's end.

Illinois Goes To Turf

Field Turf is now being installed at the University of Illinois. I'm not crazy about plastic, rubber or any other kind of artificial surface, but I understand why so many opt for it.

As an aside, isn't this the same stuff Oregon State plays baseball on? I remember watching the Super Regional from Corvallis last spring and all the grounders kicking up sprays of old tires. It was very odd to view on television.

Hat tip: Tom at The Baseball Zealot via Illinois' official site. (Note: Tom at TBZ also covered the Blue and Orange series.)

Penn State Releases '08 Schedule

Penn State University has officially released their baseball schedule for next season. The Nittany Lions will begin the 2008 season with a three game set against High Point in North Carolina on February 22. From there, PSU ventures south to Dothan, Alabama for a three game series. The Lions will play Troy, Kennesaw State and Wake Forest on consecutive days beginning on February 29.

Penn State's pre-conference schedule road trip heads even further south with their participation in the Papa John's Palm Beach Classic. PSU will be in action from March 9 - March 15 in West Palm Beach versus competition yet to be determined.

Friday, March 21st marks the first date of 2008. Lehigh will open Medlar Field will a three game series. The following weekend is the opener of Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions will head to Columbus to take on Ohio State. The remaining road trips in conference are against Purdue, Illinois and the season finale at Minnesota.

The first home Big Ten series features a visit from Michigan, April 4 - 6. Other Big Ten teams visiting the Lions' shiny new park are Indiana, Michigan State and Iowa.

Per usual, I'm skipping past the non-conference midweek affairs, but you can check those out by clicking on one of the link above.

Michigan's 2008 Schedule

While the University of Michigan still hasn't posted their 2008 schedule on their website, copies were available at Sunday's intra-squad game. I'm going to presume the schedule distributed is correct with the caveat that this is college baseball, thus changes are almost inevitable. Keeping that in mind, let's review what we know.

As previously discussed, Michigan's season will begin with three games in Port St. Lucie, Florida against Villanova. The opening series is February 22-24. After the Wildcats, Michigan will play a game against the New York Mets. Most readers will recall that Mets' owner Fred Wilpon is a Michigan grad and made a significant donation towards the renovation of the baseball and softball complex.

After the exhibition game in Florida, the Wolverines travel west to play in a tournament hosted by Arizona State. Regular readers will recall I posted the link to Hawaii's schedule which indicated the field included ASU, Michigan, Portland and UH. Michigan will play each team once beginning on February 29. Nothing new here.

What we didn't know was that Michigan and the Sun Devils will also play a single contest on Thursday, February 28. That means the Wolverines will get to play ASU -- who should be highly ranked in the pre-season polls -- twice. (Will somebody please broadcast these games? Big Ten Network? CSTV? Anybody?)

As was rumored weeks ago, the East Carolina tournament and Coastal Carolina stop are on the schedule. ECU hosts a tournament with Georgia Southern and Pittsburgh rounding out the field. Michigan will play GA. Southern, ECU and Pitt in that order. That series begins March 7.

The Coastal Carolina tournament includes games against Presbyterian, Ball State and two-in-a-row versus the hosts, Coastal Carolina. The first CCU encounter is the back half of a Saturday doubleheader that opens with Ball State. That tournament runs March 14-16.

Michigan, as has been the case for several years, opens the home portion of the schedule with three games against Oakland starting March 21. (Just don't ask me who I'm rooting for, OK?)

The Big Ten schedule isn't all that difficult to figure out, especially if you know last year's slate. The conference took the 2007 schedule and swapped home games for road dates and flipped the schedule upside down in '08. Example 1: Last year Michigan opened with Northwestern in Evanston. This year, NU will end the year at Michigan. Example 2: Michigan ended last year at Iowa. In 2008, Iowa will be the first Big Ten team at Ray Fisher Stadium. Got it?

In addition to Iowa and NU, Ohio State will visit Ann Arbor next season. Penn State, Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota will be road series for Michigan. Of course, Michigan State will be a home-and-home-and home series with the Saturday doubleheader in East Lansing.

The annual contest versus Notre Dame will be on May 13 in Grand Rapids. I've got to make that game one of these years. There are a few other non-conference games on the docket that I'll save to review as we get closer to the season.

Northwestern's 2008 Schedule

Northwestern University became the fourth team in the Big Ten to release their 2008 baseball schedule. The Wildcats, whose announcement follows those of Iowa, Indiana and Purdue, will open next year's slate with a three game series at Cal State Northridge, February 22-24.

From California, NU will travel to Florida to play three games against South Florida (February 29-March 2). After three with the Bulls, comes a trip north to play College World Series participant Louisville. The 'Cats and Cards will begin a three game set on March 7.

Then, unless my eyes deceive me, NU will head back to Chicago to play Illinois-Chicago. Three games in Chicago beginning March 13? That's brave. Or optimistic. Or crazy. I'll let you decide. Let's just hope they get them in.

Upon concluding the trio of mid-March contests in the Windy City, NU will venture back to the warm Florida for what seems like their annual Bradenton trip. While the opposition remains TBA, the games will begin on March 21 and conclude on March 26. The Wildcats will play everyday.

The final weekend in March will mark the opening of Big Ten play for NU. The 'Cats will travel to take on Purdue from March 28-30. The home opener in Evanston is the following weekend when Michigan State pays a visit.

Minnesota, Ohio State and Indiana round out the home portion of the conference schedule. The remaining road series, after visiting West Lafayette, include Iowa, Illinois and the season finale at Michigan.

Their are a few non-conference midweek affairs I'm overlooking, but you more than get the idea.

Pingipedia!

The folks at Ping! have come out with Pingipedia! Just as you might guess, the Ping! staff has used the same software as the gang at Wikipedia to develop a college baseball only database. I have to admit I'm not much of a Wikipedia user, but I can see where this concept would help spread the word about college baseball. For that reason alone, I'm sold.

So, BTH readers, go ahead. Write about your school. Add an entry for your student/athlete. Players, you may as get a jump on everyone else and give yourself some love now.

Globe Feature On Roblin

Former University of Michigan player Brad Roblin was featured in an online story in The Boston Globe. Roblin spent his summer playing for Traverse City (MI) in the Frontier League. I'll let you read the rest.

Hat tip to Brian Foley of the College Baseball Blog for sending along this link.

Illini To Share Field With Pro Team

The University of Illinois announced a partnership with the Frontier League, National Sports Services and team ownership to bring a professional independent league franchise to Champaign-Urbana.

The guess here is that UI is looking for additional revenue streams to keep Illinois Field on par with all the other programs in the conference. If, in fact, this is an attempt to generate some funds to put back into the ballpark, UI would become the eighth team in the Big Ten to make some kind of renewed commitment to facilities.

Fisher Stadium Renovation Photos

Both before and afternoon the awards presentation, I passed by Ray Fisher Stadium. Here are some of the renovation photos I took. (Remember, I am not a photographer.) The top picture is the primary entrance. It's the area right behind homeplate. (It's the shot you get when you visit the live webcam of the construction.) Photo #2 is the thirdbase line. The offices, batting cages and other buildings are taking shape. Photo #3 is the exterior of that side.

Photo #4 is the pressbox and primary seating area. It's the inside view of the first picture. For those unfamiliar with the setting, that's Yost Ice Arena in the background. The last photo is of one of the walkways alongside the primary entrance. (This portion of the park reminds me of, cover your eyes OSU and Michigan fans, the Buckeyes yard.)

I was told today that the planned "Green Monster" like wall scheduled to be built in rightfield will be changed to leftfield. In addition to having a higher wall in left (or right, again, if they change their minds), the wall will be brought in. I'm not sure I'm crazy about this idea, but I'm willing to give it a chance.

Michigan Award Ceremony Pictures

It's a bit like Christmas. Here are all the championship rings still unwrapped. One Michigan player was kind enough to let me take some photos of his ring, but, alas, they didn't turn out very well. Apparently, a setting needs to be adjusted for taking that kind of photo. Who knew? I'm a blogger not a photographer. My apologies to all. (Trust me, the rings are nice.)

Michigan Award Ceremony Pictures

The 2007 Big Ten Championship Trophy and, I believe, the Coach of the Year Award won by Coach Maloney.

Michigan Award Ceremony Pictures

The University of Michigan's awards for Player of the Year (foreground) and Pitcher of the Year (background). Both honors were given to All-American Zach Putnam.

Michigan Award Ceremony Pictures

The 2007 Big Ten and NCAA Regional Champions.

Wolverines Award Ceremony

In my previous post, I mentioned that I received quite a bit of email this week. One of the things that arrived in my inbox was a notice about the University of Michigan's baseball award ceremony scheduled for today.

Presented with spending a Saturday afternoon either doing those mundane, but necessary household tasks -- painting, replacing washers in a faucet, yardwork -- or fighting the 100,000 plus Michigan football fans invading Ann Arbor at the same time I needed to be there, I opted for the logistics nightmare that included college baseball over the boring work around the house. Proving, once and for all, that my priorities are completely out of whack.

I know, I know. Stop whining and get to the baseball stuff. Coach Rich Maloney addressed the gathering and spoke about last year's team and about the expectations for the 2008 squad. Not surprisingly, the expectations for the new year are high. Real high. Rosenblatt high.

Coach Maloney also mentioned that the university was going to market the team more this coming season and that a season ticket package is going to be available -- both interesting concepts. We will see if either has an effect on attendance. Of course, winning frequently tends to create interest and Michigan should be in a position to do that in '08.

The schedule was still not available, and no one in an official capacity spoke about it, but it's rumored that the season will begin in Florida, once again. Some of the teams that I heard might comprise the non-conference schedule include Villanova, Coastal Carolina and East Carolina. Yes, the Arizona State field trip is on the docket, too. Oakland University (yes, "my" Golden Grizzlies) will open the Wolverines home slate at renovated Ray Fisher Stadium.

Somewhere between Coach Maloney's opening comments and the post-event chatter was the purpose of the gathering -- to distribute the 2007 awards. Individual awards were presented and each member of last year's team got their Big Ten Championship rings.

I had a very pleasant afternoon and have even have some pictures to share. I'll get to those in a moment. First, I have to thank some people. I'll start with the Michigan baseball community for their kindness. Like so many around the conference and really throughout college baseball, the Wolverine baseball family has been very good to me. I sincerely appreciate their support of this endeavor.

And since I'm talking about support, I have to thank Mrs. BTH. She drove your blogger into Ann Arbor, headed off to meet some friends in a neighboring community, and returned to pick me up. I appreciate that as well.

Inbox Filled With Gophers News

My email inbox yielded some unexpected news about baseball at the University of Minnesota. First, a BTH reader sent along the link to a column by Sid Hartman in today's Star Tribune. Amongst the things Mr. Hartman shares is news that The U has announced plans for a new 3,000 seat Siebert Field. The long-awaited and much needed facility will be on the same site as the current ballpark.

Most regulars here realize that I have been subtly (and not so subtly) pushing for this. At a time when seemingly everyone else in the Big Ten was making a commitment to upgrade their baseball facilities, it was ridiculous for one of the conference's best programs not to keep pace. Minnesota has now made that first step.

We are still quite a long way from completion, as 85% of the money needs to be raised before building will begin, but it's a start. A long overdue start, but a start nonetheless. Thanks to the BTH reader for the tip.

My next email came from old friend Brian Foley of the College Baseball Blog. Brian shared an email from Patrick Ebert (Perfect Game USA, PG Crosschecker and Brewerfan.net) who sent along the 2008 schedule for TCU. Now, why is this news for the Gophers? Well, the Horned Frogs' schedule reveals that they are playing in the 2008 Dairy Queen Classic, which is hosted by Minnesota.

In addition to TCU, next year's field includes Tulane and Pepperdine. I'm not going to pretend to know where these three schools will be ranked in the pre-season polls, but I think it's safe to say there is a strong field for the '08 DQ Classic. The annual tournament will be held from February 29 - March 2 in the Metrodome.

Thanks to both Brian and Patrick for passing along this information.

Putting In A Transfer

Baseball America has provided a list of players that have transferred. It appears the Big Ten has lost two players. Pitcher Billy Kitchen has left Indiana for Wright State. Joe Mercurio, catcher, has departed Illinois for Maine. I hate to see kids leave the conference, but I wish both of them success at their new schools.

On the other side of the coin, three players have transferred into Big Ten universities. Penn State -- which did a great job with transfers a year ago (think Drew O'Neil) -- has added two players. Wes Borden, a middle infielder formerly of (cover your eyes Michigan fans) Appalachian State, and Jack Greenberg, a corner infield who played at Rhode Island last year, are now Nittany Lions.

IU also added infielder Michael Earley. Earley transferred to Bloomington from Cincinnati.

Still No Badgers

On the heels of Oregon's return to the college diamond, CSTV's Doug Kroll wonders about the remaining BCS programs not fielding a baseball team. His column includes a few comments from Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez. Suffice to say, the return of Badgers baseball isn't on the horizon.

Indiana's 2008 Schedule

The University of Indiana has released their 2008 baseball schedule. The Hoosiers open up the new season in Baton Rouge against Louisiana State. The three game set versus LSU is followed by a trip to Clarksville, Tennessee for a tournament hosted by Austin Peay. A single game with Indiana State is followed by a protracted stay in Fresno, California.

Coach Smith's side will play FSU twice before participating in a tournament hosted by the Bulldogs. Opposition in that field consists of Gonzaga, New Mexico State, Utah, Portland, the hosts, Fresno State and one TBA. A single game at Evansville will be the last game on the road. Back-to-back affairs with IPFW and one contest against Xavier will mark the first games in Bloomington.

Conference action starts with a trip to Minnesota. The remaining Big Ten road series include: Penn State, Northwestern and Michigan State. The home portion of the conference slate features Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Purdue. Midweek non-conference games are highlighted by home and road dates with College World Series participant Louisville.

ABCA Hall Selects Gophers' Anderson

University of Minnesota head coach John Anderson has been selected to the American Baseball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame. Anderson, who is entering his twenty-seventh year at the helm of the Gophers baseball program, will be inducted in a ceremony on January 8, 2008.

Congratulations to Coach Anderson on a well deserved award.