Doran Turchin has nine hits in the last four games!
Illinois’ weekend was almost like the name “Ohio”. Illinois high point was in the middle but there wasn’t much on the edges.
Last weekend, there great weather and lots of fans at Illinois Field. There was even free food and a beer tent on Friday night. Unfortunately, things didn’t go quite the way Illinois would have wanted as a tough Ohio State took Friday’s and Sunday’s games to win the series. Illinois won Saturday, 11-3.
Illinois 2-1 series loss puts them in a tie with the Buckeyes for fourth place. Both teams are 11-7 in the Big Ten. Of note, Indiana are 3-7 in their last 10 games. The 9-8 Hoosiers have been ranked highly for most of the season and just now have dropped of the national rankings. Iowa has overtaken them in the Big Ten standings with their 9-7 record.
There were some highlights, of course. Not only did Bren Spillane hit two homeruns this weekend but so did shortstop Ben Troike. Troike kept his streak of consecutive game reaching base alive. He has now been on base for 48 games going back to last season.
Doran Turchin is on a quiet tear. In the last week, he has gone 9 for 16 for a .563 batting average. He has scored six runs and driven in six.
| Game #41 / May 4, 2018 | |||
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| 6 | 5 | ||
Ben Troike is learning from Bren Spillane
It could have been another great comeback just like the very first Bleacher Bum BBQ in which Illinois won in the ninth inning. This time, the Illini came back from a 6-1 deficit to make it a one-run game. Unfortunately, time had run out and the Buckeyes came away with a victory 6-5.
Ohio State had a key 3rd inning scoring five runs. Illinois managed to make it interesting by scoring three of their own including a Ben Troike homerun and an rbi triple by Michael Massey.
Kudos to the bullpen of Ryan Schmitt, Jackson Douglas, Ryan Thompson and Quinten Sefcik who kept the Buckeyes scoreless for the last 5 2/3 innings of the game.
| Game #42 / May 5, 2018 | |||
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| 11 | 3 | ||
Quinn Snarskis with five wins
Saturday, the Illini got their revenge and how! It was just a good old fashioned win with lots of hitting, solid pitching, and a reward of a win afterwards. Starting pitcher Quinn Snarskis becomes the first pitcher not named Thompson (7-3) to have at least five wins.
Eight Illini hit safely and eight also drove in a run as well. Bren Spillane hit his 17th homerun. You know who else did? Ben Troike did. Troike hit a homer in his second consecutive game.
Doran Turchin seemed to be in the middle of every rally too. He went 3 for 4 with three runs, two rbis and a double.
| Game #43 / May 6, 2018 | |||
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| 10 | 5 | ||
A Jeff Korte round-tripper!
Sunday’s game was not a pretty one to watch. Illinois committed a season-high four errors which led to eight unearned runs for the Buckeyes. Not only that, Illinois had their chances to come back. They left the bases loaded in the fifth and in the sixth, runners were stranded on first and third. Even Joey Gerber wasn’t at his best. He gave up three hits and three unearned runs.
On the bright side, Ben Troike extended his on-base streak. He has reached base every game this season and going back to last year, has a 48-game on-base streak.
In addition, Bren Spillane and Jeff Korte both hit dingers.
Random Ramblings
Bren Spillane is hitting uncharted territory now.
With his 17th and 18th homeruns this weekend, he is now tied with former Illini Bubba Smith for fourth with 18 homeruns in one season. With one homerun, he will jump to second, tied with Forry Wells (1994) and former MLB player Scott Speizio.
Can Bren Spillane break the all-time record? He’ll have a ways to go. Josh Klimek hit a total of 26 in 1996. The above screen shot (record before the season started) is taken from the Illinois Baseball Record Book. It’s a fun site to get lost in.
A total of 3,227 fans showed up for the annual Bleacher Bum BBQ on Friday. That helped contribute to the three-game attendance of 5,513 which is eighth best all-time at Illinois Field.
Lots of fun was had on Friday and honestly, not too much trouble. There were a few jeers here and there but I love seeing fans at the ballpark and I’m sure the players do too. There is a different vibe in the park compared to those early season games. This becomes Champaign-Urbana’s team!
Dave Loane gets his kudos!
A lot is being made of Dave Loane and his 30 years of broadcasting for the Illini. Dave threw out the first pitch on Friday. I’m glad that he is getting his due. Dave is a top notch voice behind the mic and those who aspire to go into the field, should take some time to listen to him.
Next up:
If you’re wondering, there won’t be any more midweek games and non-conference games this years. From here on out, it’s Big Ten, baby!
The bad news… Illinois plays first place Michigan this weekend at Michigan. The good news… the previously undefeated Big Blue lost once each against Rutgers and Iowa in the last two weekends. There is a chink in the armor.
Go Illini!