Illinois currently has a 4-4 record but they have won four of their last five games. With this momentum, they will tackle the Michigan Wolverines (7-1) and the Michigan State Spartans (4-4) this weekend in Ann Arbor.
This weekend will be their first foray into the new pod schedule format in which each of three teams will face off against each other twice. Michigan will play host to both Illinois and State. Illinois will be home team against State in their games.
If you haven’t noticed, #22 Michigan is off to a great start in 2021. They have a 7-1 record and have won their last six games in a row. Pitchers Ben Dragani and Steven Hajjar have combined for three wins and have allowed only three runs in 21 innings.
Bring the big bats, boys!
Pitching Probables
- Friday | Andrew Hoffman (0-0, 1.42 ERA)
- Saturday Game 1 | Riley Gowens (1-0, 4.91 ERA)
- Saturday Game 2 | Ty Rybarczyk (1-1, 9.35 ERA)
- Sunday Cole Kirschsieper 1-1, 4.82 ERA)
Coach Hartleb is going with the same rotation this weekend. Three of the Illini have one win each. Interestingly, the one who doesn’t have a win, may be the team’s most consistent starter so far. Andrew Hoffman has two quality starts and comes into this weekend with a nifty 1.42 ERA.
Apparently, others agree that Hoffman has something to offer too.
By the way, don’t let Ty Rybarczyk’s 9.35 ERA fool you. He had a rough first start but pitched well in Minneapolis last weekend and got the win. He allowed just one run on four hits in seven innings against Minnesota on Saturday for the win.
| Ray Fisher Stadium | Ann Arbor, MI |
| Friday, March 19 | 3pm CT Saturday, March 20 | 11am CT |  |
| Saturday, March 20 | 3pm CT Sunday, March 21 | 11am CT |  |
Random Ramblings
BTN coverage
Illinois baseball announced this week that three Illinois games will be televised on the Big Ten Network.
Sunday, May 2 at Northwestern (3:30 p.m. CT)
Sunday, May 9 vs. Maryland (12 p.m. CT)
Saturday, May 22 vs. Penn State (7:00 p.m. CT)
All other games will be broadcasted on BTN Plus.
Illinois leaders
The Illini rank second in hitting with a .285 behind Northwestern’s .301 mark. Here a few of the Illini pacing the Big Ten in the early season…
- Justin Janas BA .400 (9th), OBP .556 (4th)
- Andrew Hoffman ERA 1.42 (4th), Strikeouts 17 (5th)
…and something interesting. Three Illini rank in the top ten in the conference in walks. Brandon Comia, Jackson Raper both have seven (T3rd) and Taylor Jackson has six (T9th). The only team that has a higher OBP is of course, Michigan.
Should be plenty of scoring opportunities this weekend.
Go Illini!