Casey McMurray hopes to continue his hot hitting against Penn State this weekend
Nothing brings out the best in our players than an honest-to-goodness Big Ten battle. This weekend, we’re getting just that. Coach Robbie Wine brings his 10-13 Penn State Nittany Lions to town to face the 9-9 Illini.
The Nits are coming off a 3-1 weekend against Hofstra in which they rebounded from a 7-1 loss then won the next three. They also split two midweek games against Kent State. Once again, they came back to win the second game after losing the first. My point? Don’t expect them to lose heart or get demoralized after a loss. They’re more likely to become motivated.
If you haven’t already, take a look at the interview I did with Larry Fall. Larry runs Happy Valley Hardball which covers the Penn State baseball team. He’s got a lot of good insights on the team and the program.
Some facts/opinions on Penn State:
Penn State Nittany Lions |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2, 2010 | 6:05 pm ct | |||
| April 3, 2010 | 3:05 pm ct | |||
| April 4, 2010 | 12:05 pm ct | |||
| Illinois Field | Champaign, IL | |||
| Program website link | Record | 10-13 | ||
| Head Coach: | Robbie Wine | Key player: | Ben Heath | |
-It seems the Big Ten is a breeding ground for good hitting catchers. Penn State’s backstop Ben Heath is no exception. With seven homeruns and 27 rbis to go with his .348 batting average, Heath is the big offensive threat on this team.
-Penn State’s pitching is a bit suspect. They are ninth in the conference in with a 6.57 ERA behind only Northwestern.
-Offensively, PSU seems to rely on power. They are 3rd in the Big Ten in homeruns and fourth in triples despite being ninth in batting average. Watch out for the long ball! That said, 11 of their 15 homeruns have come from two players (Heath and Jordan Steranka).
-Coach Robbie Wine isn’t afraid to put a runner on if he thinks it will help the team get out of a nasty situation. Penn State leads the conference with five intentional walks. No other Big Ten team has more than two intentional passes.
Random Ramblings
Don’t forget all three games will be live streamed on Big Ten Network’s web site. Not the same as being there but better than Gametracker (that’s no dig on Gametracker… I actually quite like/depend on it).
It won’t be long before we take on Michigan. The Indiana baseball blog, Behind the Plate, has an interview of formerlyanonymous who writes for mgoblog.com. If you want to get some quick info on the Wolverines, it’s a good read.
Just a random thought to process here. Here at the University of Illinois, football and men’s basketball reign supreme at least in terms of fans drawn and revenue brought in. But my friend Robin who I chat with at the ballpark brought up this interesting point: of all the athletics at the University, baseball has been around the longest. Men’s basketball’s first season was 1905. Football has been with us since 1910.
Take that, revenue sports.
Finally, if you’re on Facebook, stop by Illinois Baseball Report’s Facebook fan page and become a fan! I’ve seen a few of you have joined up and recognize many of you and recognize the names of others. Become a fan and feel free to make comments on the page. I’d love to hear from you!
Good Luck Illini!!!
Michigan is much the same way. First varsity sport on campus was baseball in the 1866, where we went 3-0 for an undefeated season!
Football didn’t arrive until 1890, basketball in 1909.