Hi Illinois baseball fans,
In the spirit of the new year and new season, I thought I would write up a quick article about “What is the Illinois Baseball Report?” Many of you see my posts and photos and might wonder, “who is the guy behind the Illinois Baseball Report?”
This is my way of introducing myself especially to those new to the website.
What is the Illinois Baseball Report?
Illinois Baseball Report (IBR) is a locally-produced fan website which covers the Illinois baseball program. I’ve been doing it since 2005. The site monitors news, covers games, and tries to bring a positive, human element to the program especially through photography.
Who maintains IBR?
My name is Thomas Nelshoppen. That’s me on the left next to former Illini shortstop Shawn Roof in 2015 when he landed a coaching gig with Indiana). My family of four lives in Urbana, Illinois. I am an alumnus of the University of Illinois and I work for the university as an IT consultant. In fact, I work in a building a block away from Illinois Field (I can hear the crack of the bat outside my door!).
My first memory of baseball was seeing Ernie Banks hit a grandslam at Wrigley Field. I was a young child at the time but that should tell you where my MLB loyalties lie. Now when people ask me what my favorite sports team is, I just tell them “Illinois baseball”.
Does IBR generate revenue?
Currently, the IBR website does not receive revenue from advertising or other means. I do this because:
- I love the game of baseball (especially college baseball)
- I love photography
- I want to support the Illinois baseball program
Is IBR affiliated with the Illinois Baseball program?
IBR is a completely independent entity and not directly affiliated with the U of I of the program. That said, the program has been helpful and supportive of the site. I appreciate this very much!
What’s this about photos?
IBR has an entire photo gallery of Illinois Baseball going back to 2006. The galleries are indexed by season and game.
If you view my early photos from before 2010, you can certainly see some improvement in my later photos. I leave the early ones up for archival purposes. Thankfully, I feel I have progressed in my skills in recent years.
New feature! Recently, I have implemented something new in my IBR photo gallery. You can now view galleries of photos of current and recent individual players. I’ll be adding more as the season progresses!
How can someone follow the Illinois Baseball Report?
You can always visit http://illinoisbaseballreport.com and read the website (leave a comment if you wish!).
If you are on Facebook, feel free to follow the Illinois Baseball Report Facebook page. I am pretty active there. Also, the IBR Twitter account is busiest during the season.
While I am throwing out links, here is my photo gallery of Illinois baseball again.
Is IBR open to feedback?
Yes, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to leave a comment below any article or privately send me an email via IBR’s contact web form. Any constructive feedback would be appreciated.
That’s a little bit about me and the Illinois Baseball Report. If you see me at Illinois Field (or even at this Saturday’s Hot Stove Banquet), feel free to come up and introduce yourself.
See you at the ballpark!
As an Illinois freshman parent thank you for doing this and I look forward to meeting you.
Hi Tracy,
I am happy to do this and look forward to meeting you as well!
Good luck to Andrew!
Tom
Because we live in Minnesota it’s sometime hard to stay in touch with the baseball program. Because of what you do with this web site enables us to follow the Illini anywhere. Thank you so much for what you do.
Thank you, Steve and Char,
I believe I have talked to you along the third base fence, Steve. I hope you can make it down for a couple weekends again. It’s always a pleasure to talk.
Tom
It is always a pleasure to read the articles you wrote on Illini Baseball.
Thank you, Phil! I enjoy doing them.
Good luck to Garrett this season!
Tom