Illinois will be traveling to West Lafayette to face Purdue for the last regular season series of the season. Not quite a weekend series as they will be playing Thursday-Saturday.
|
|
Game #49 |
Record: 32-16 (15-6 Big Ten) |
 |
vs Purdue University Boilermakers | at Lambert Field, West Lafayette, IN |
| May 14 | 3:00pm CT | |
| May 15 | 12:00pm CT | |
| May 16 | 12:00pm CT |
The Purdue-Illinois series will have double implications as both teams have a lot at stake. Illinois, of course, is playing for first place and a top seed in the Big Ten Tournament. Purdue, however, is simply playing for tournament qualification.
Right now, Purdue has a 1 1/2 game edge on Michigan (8-13).
Look out for junior Dan Black. He’s a slugger. I saw him play at the 2008 Big Ten Tournament and he had a big role in their wins there.
Pitching seems to have been Purdue’s achilles heel in 2009 with a team 5.84 ERA and no pitcher that they can really call an ace though Matt Morgan is 5-4 with a respectable 4.32 ERA.
Does anyone remember Phil Haig’s start against Purdue in 2008? I do. Phil was a freshman and like this year, we were playing Purdue for the last regular season series of the season. Haig pitched a two-hit shutout and it got him a lot of attention including Big Ten Co-pitcher of the Week.
Let’s do it again!
Opponent:
|
Purdue University Boilermakers |
| Conference: | Big Ten |
| Head Coach: | Doug Schreiber (11th year) |
| Current Record: | 22-23 (9-11 Big Ten) |
| Baseball Program website | Team Media Guide |
| Purdue Team Facts: | Purdue is fifth in the conference in hitting (.312) and 8th in pitching (5.84 ERA). |
| Purdue Player to Watch: | Dan Black has the team lead in HR (13) and rbi (44). |