Big Ten Hardball

One Last At Bat

2010-01-17T00:19:00.007-05:00

Yesterday marked the fifth anniversary of Big Ten Hardball. Today, 979 posts later, I bring BTH to a close.

This decision has not been an easy one. Nor is it one that I have come to quickly. As some of you can attest, I have wrestled with future of the site for the last several years. While no single reason has brought Big Ten Hardball to an end, one central theme binds all the issues together -- change.

It is clear to me that it’s time for change for both the blog and myself. For the blog, the growing media coverage of Big Ten baseball programs -- from the institutions themselves to the Big Ten Network to an expanding force of national media and local bloggers -- has made it evident that Big Ten Hardball needs to evolve.

What is equally clear, and here’s where the change I need personally jumps in, is that some of the passion I had to pursue this game on a daily basis has faded. After five years of being, in effect, a beat writer for ten teams, I could use a break.

I explored a number of options before deciding to close up shop. I considered everything from writing less frequently to asking some of my blogging allies to join BTH and bring new perspective, energy and carry some of the workload. During those discussions, we pondered merging this blog with another or having me leave this site and write elsewhere. Occasionally, I contemplated starting an entirely new blog.

However, I found it difficult to commit to any of the alternatives. I realized any decision I would make would be a half-hearted one. That wouldn’t be fair to anyone. Instead, the best option, although the hardest one for me, is to close the doors at Big Ten Hardball.

While I am bringing BTH to an end, I’m not shutting the door on the college baseball world. You will still see me around the ballpark. I’m also going to continue to check my email, so you can always contact me there. Who knows? If the right circumstances arise, I might be back writing about college baseball someday. (A few who were forewarned of my decision are already trying to push me back in.)

It’s been a tremendous five years. This experience has been far greater than I could have ever imagined. Much, if not all, of that is because of you -- those who have interacted in some way with Big Ten Hardball and it’s author. I thank you all.

Four Named All-America By Ping

2010-01-09T17:05:00.005-05:00

Ohio State's Alex Wimmers headlines four Big Ten Conference players to be named preseason All-Americans by Ping! Baseball. The Buckeyes righthander was the lone Big Ten star tabbed as a first-team selection.

Ohio State catcher Dan Burkhart, the conference's defending Player of the Year, collected a second-team choice as did Minnesota closer Scott Matyas. Indiana sophomore Alex Dickerson was named to Ping's third-team as a designated hitter.

Bucks, Gophers In CB Poll

2009-12-19T20:59:00.003-05:00

Ohio State and Minnesota continue to garner national attention prior to the 2010 season. Both the Buckeyes and Gophers have made Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's preseason Top 40 poll. OSU impressively checks in at number fourteen in the land. Minnesota is in at number thirty. Michigan and Illinois were on the ever-popular "Other Teams Receiving Votes" list.

In case you were wondering, Texas grabbed the top spot overall. LSU, Virginia, Cal State Fullerton and Arizona State round out the top five.

Big Ten Trio Named All-America

2009-12-18T13:57:00.004-05:00

The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association has released their 2010 preseason All-America Teams. Three Big Ten players were selected to one of three All-America sides the NCBWA announced on December 16.

The Ohio State duo of catcher Dan Burkhart and pitcher Alex Wimmers were named to the second-team All-America squad. Michigan outfielder Ryan LaMarre was tabbed as a third-team All-America.

Two In Ping! Poll

2009-12-18T13:48:00.004-05:00

Two Big Ten squads have made Ping's preseason Top 30 poll. Ohio State comes in at number twenty-four while Minnesota checks in at number thirty. The gang at Ping! introduces their Top 30 in Haiku form. Here's the page where both OSU's and Minnesota's Haiku can be found.

2010 Schedules: Illinois & Minnesota

2009-12-18T12:42:00.003-05:00

Illinois and Minnesota have both made their 2010 schedules known to the public. The Illini issued a press release back on December 8 and Minnesota revealed their 2010 docket on December 5.

Coach Dan Hartleb's side has put together an interesting non-conference schedule. Arguably the most interesting bit of all comes right at the beginning. The Illini are scheduled to open the season at home -- on February 20 -- against Bradley. The Braves, an appropriate name for a team play in Champaign in February, will also be at Illini Field on the 21st. Two home dates in late February? At minimum, here's hoping the sun is out those afternoons.

Another date that caught my eye was the annual affair versus Missouri. No, not just because the Tigers are rumored to be on the list of potential new members of the Big Ten, but because of the location of the contest. Illinois and Missouri will be playing at the (relatively) new Busch Stadium in St. Louis on April 7.

Other non-con games of note include: single games (at) East Carolina, (vs.) West Carolina and two at Coastal Carolina. Of course, there's the Big East/Big Ten Challenge opposition (Notre Dame, South Florida and St. John's) and a six game spell in Winter Haven, Florida.

The conference schedule has Illinois opening at home versus Penn State. Michigan, Northwestern and Purdue will also be visiting Champaign-Urbana. The Big Ten road series are at Iowa, Michigan State, Ohio State and Indiana.

The first noteworthy item on Minnesota's docket is that the Gophers will be playing their entire home schedule at the Metrodome. Other than all but eliminating weather related cancellations (hey, it's not like domes haven't sprung a leak before), one wonders what effect playing the entire year inside will have on Coach John Anderson's side?

By playing all their games off-campus in 2010, I'm presuming that the rumors are true -- a renovated or brand new on-campus facility is (finally) being built. I certainly don't see any mention of either on Minnesota's baseball page, but why else would they spend the entire season at the Metrodome?

The Gophers will open 2010 in Florida with a three-game set versus Akron. Then, it's the Big East/Big Ten Challenge with Louisville, Connecticut and St. John's providing the opposition. The U will spend the next few weeks back in the dome. The Dairy Queen Classic will feature Loyola Marymount, Oklahoma State and Northwestern. (Okay, this year's DQC lacks some of the sizzle of years past.)

Harvard, Creighton and South Dakota State will be in the Twin Cities to play in the Metrodome Tournament the following weekend. Then, it's off to Alabama for two games at the Crimson Tide and four at Samford. There are other games on the non-conference schedule, but only two more merit mention here.

Louisiana Tech will play three at Minnesota including one game at Target Field on March 27. It's the lone home date not in the Metrodome for the Gophers. Wait a minute. Target Field isn't covered, is it? (A quick look at the web cam says "Absolutely not".) I hope the LTU folks buy some gloves at the airport. Finally, in early May, the Gophers will venture to Kansas State and play two versus the Wildcats in Manhattan.

The U will open their Big Ten campaign at Purdue and will also be on the road versus Northwestern, Iowa and Ohio State. Michigan State, Indiana, Michigan and Penn State will all get to play in the Metrodome in 2010.

Fans of both programs should like their schedule for the upcoming season. There are some fun (and important) home dates and more than enough quality opposition to give either team NCAA at-large consideration, if they can navigate the schedule properly.

Three More Years In Columbus

2009-12-16T21:35:00.007-05:00

The Big Ten has announced that Columbus will continue to host the conference's baseball tournament through 2012. While Huntington Park, the site for this year's tourney, will host the Big Ten tournament again in '11 and '12, Bill Davis Stadium, Ohio State's home field, gets the honor in 2010 due to a scheduling conflict.

While I'm glad to see the conference schedule the tournament for several years in advance, I remain in favor of rotating venues throughout the Midwest. There is no shortage of high quality minor league parks within the Big Ten's footprint. I realize things are never quite as easy as they seem, but I'd like to think that the conference could find a host city that wasn't also home to a Big Ten institution.

All that said, let me offer two reasons why I'm okay with the tourney staying in Columbus for three more years. Reason #1: By all accounts, Columbus did a very good job hosting the event in 2009. Sure, there were a few complaints, there always are, but most were minor and the overall reaction I received was clearly positive.

Reason #2: Not only did C-bus do a good job in year one, but city officials want the tourney at their house. I'm not sure how the selection process works, but it's been clear from Day One that Columbus coveted the role. I presume this announcement signifies that C-bus officials continue to make the best offer.

I still favor a true neutral site, but Columbus clearly offers the Big Ten something they aren't getting anywhere else. As such, the tournament is going to stay put for three more years.

Michigan State, Penn State Schedules Are Out

2009-12-03T15:45:00.004-05:00

While I was busy preparing for turkey dinner and pumpkin pie, as if I need to prepare to eat, two more Big Ten programs officially released their schedules. Michigan State and Penn State made their 2010 plans known to the public.

The Spartans have a very solid non-conference slate next year. They will take on the likes of Clemson, Louisville, West Virginia, Mississippi State (twice), Alabama and Notre Dame (three games in South Bend). I'll allow you to check the docket for a complete list of opponents and dates.

Michigan State's first home stand in 2010 comes versus Oakland University on March 26. The Big Ten campaign will also open at McLane Stadium against Iowa. Ohio State, Illinois and Indiana will all travel to East Lansing. Michigan also comes calling, but as a non-conference game, on May 11. The Spartans will return the favor and visit Ann Arbor the next day.

Coach Boss' club will face Minnesota, Penn State, Purdue and Northwestern on the road in conference action.

In Happy Valley, the non-conference portion of Penn State's schedule features a swing through the Lone Star State. Coach Wine's team will take on McNeese State, Dallas Baptist, Lamar (twice), Texas A&M (twice) and Texas State (three times). Other notable opponents include Notre Dame, Winthrop and three games at three different venues versus Kent State.

PSU will return to open the home slate versus Hofstra on March 26. The Nittany Lions' Big Ten season will begin on the road at Illinois. Purdue, Ohio State and Minnesota will be the other conference road trips. Northwestern, Michigan State, Iowa and Michigan will make the trek to Lubrano Park in 2010.

What I like about both these schedules are the opportunities. There are games against some of college baseball's traditional powers. There are other contests versus solid programs that offer plenty of RPI-value. Both Michigan State and Penn State will also get a shot to play Ohio State and Minnesota, who we can safely assume will be the preseason favorites to finish 1-2 in the Big Ten.

Basically, both programs can play themselves into at-large NCAA Tournament berths with these kinds of slates. It's up to them to win the games.

Rogers Loves Ohio State

2009-11-13T19:37:00.004-05:00

Yahoo's Kendall Rogers continues his off-season praise for Ohio State. This time, not only does Rogers bang the drum for the Buckeyes' Omaha chances, but suggests that Coach Todd's 2010 side will be better than the '08 Michigan team. Wow. Gotta give credit to Rogers for making a bold statement.

Well, Buckeye fans, does this kind of hype make you happy, nervous or both?

Indiana, Ohio State Release 2010 Schedules

2009-11-10T15:31:00.009-05:00

We can add Indiana and Ohio State to the programs that have issued their 2010 schedule. The Hoosiers made their new schedule public on October 27, while the Buckeyes' docket for the new year was released on November 5. Although, neither IU or OSU are able to reveal everything quite yet.

While official announcements have been made, there are plenty of TBD's on both schedules. Indiana has seven dates, all during their Spring Break Trip in Winter Haven, Florida, that don't have opponents listed as of yet. The Ohio State is seeking opposition on eleven dates, by my count. While this is not uncommon, it does make it more difficult to evaluate their schedules immediately.

Here's what we do know thus far. Coach Smith's team opens the year in San Diego with three games in two days versus USD. That's followed by a lone contest against San Diego State. Other attention grabbers from the non-conference slate include the Big East/Big Ten Challenge (the West Virginia game is the highlight for me), a three-game trip to Nashville capped by a contest with Vanderbilt, a home-and-home with Louisville and a midweek visit from Kentucky.

Michigan will be the first Big Ten visitor to Bloomington in 2010. Iowa, Purdue and Illinois will also come calling. The Hoosiers will pack their bags for conference dates at Ohio State, Minnesota, Northwestern and Michigan State.

For the Buckeyes, the non-conference highlights include a pair of games against Louisville (both in Columbus), the Big East/Big Ten Challenge dates (including an always interesting contest with Notre Dame and a game vs. a North Florida side that did some in-state damage a year ago) plus a three-game set in Knoxville topped off by a single affair with the host, Tennessee.

(As an aside, it should be noted that Ohio State has nineteen home games on the schedule in 2010. The Buckeyes also have eighteen games scheduled in Florida. 19 in Columbus. 18 in the Sunshine State. I'll let you draw your own conclusions.)

The conference slate has OSU opening the campaign at Northwestern. Other road trips include Michigan State, Michigan and Iowa. The home portion of the Big Ten schedule has Indiana, Penn State, Illinois and a season-ending series with Minnesota (that could be filled with post-season implications).

These two bring the total of Big Ten baseball schedules released to four. Michigan and Iowa had announced their 2010 schedules previously. Six more to go.

2010 Iowa Schedule

2009-10-15T13:58:00.002-04:00

I haven't seen an official announcement, but Iowa has posted their 2010 baseball schedule. The highlight of the Hawkeyes' non-conference slate is a nine game swing through the Lone Star State. Head Coach Jack Dahm's side will open the year with three at Kansas before a four game series with national superpower Texas. After the Longhorn battle, Iowa will visit both UT-San Antonio (two games) and Texas Pan-American (three games).

The home portion of the schedule begins with a three game set with Western Illinois. WIU will also visit Iowa City for a single game just over a week later and the Hawkeyes will visit Western Illinois for a midweek game late in the season.

The Big Ten slate has Iowa opening at Michigan State as well as traveling to Indiana, Michigan and Penn State. Illinois, Minnesota, Ohio State and Purdue will head to Iowa City in 2010.

CB360.com To Stream Challenge

2009-10-04T20:25:00.003-04:00

College Baseball 360.com will be streaming eight games from the Big Ten/Big East Challenge. This, of course, is great news. It's not only a sign of college baseball's expanding coverage, but provides the event and the conference with more exposure, as well.

Michigan Releases 2010 Schedule

2009-09-17T14:50:00.010-04:00

The first Big Ten program to release their 2010 schedule is Michigan. The Wolverines have scheduled themselves quite a challenging road next year. Rich Maloney's side has road trips to Lubbock, Texas where they will face Maine twice and the home-standing Red Raiders twice. There are three games at national powerhouse North Carolina and a four game trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina where the Maize and Blue will take on Coastal Carolina twice in what's becoming an annual match-up.

Of course, there's the Big East/Big Ten Challenge contests with Louisville, St. John's and South Florida.

The home docket opens with a three game series versus IPFW. The Big Ten portion of the slate has Purdue, Iowa, Ohio State and Northwestern at Ray Fisher Stadium. The conference road series are at Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota and Penn State. There's also a home-and-home with Michigan State, but that's a midweek non-Big Ten affair. Weird, but credit to both programs for working around the scheduling hiccup.

There is also a home-and-home date with Notre Dame. The usual in-state MAC opposition appears (EMU, CMU, WMU) as does a sneaky Ball State side. This is certainly a difficult schedule. One that could yield an at-large NCAA Tournament berth, if Michigan can win enough games.

Formerly Anonymous gives a more detailed preview over at MGoBlog and projects UM's won-loss record.

Rogers Grades Big Ten

2009-08-12T20:07:00.002-04:00

It's report card time. Kendall Rogers of Rivals/Yahoo grades the Big Ten programs.

Three Hoosiers Drafted On Day One

2009-06-09T22:51:00.003-04:00

Indiana University's Eric Arnett, Josh Phegley and Matt Bashore were all selected on Day One of the Major League Baseball Draft. Arnett went in the first round, twenty-sixth overall, to Milwaukee. Phegley went thirth-eighth overall to the Chicago White Sox and Bashore went forty-sixth to Minnesota.

Dickerson, Pettersen Honored

2009-06-09T14:49:00.003-04:00

The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association has named their Freshmen All-America Team. Two first-year Big Ten standouts have been selected. Indiana's Alex Dickerson was tabbed as the first-team designated hitter and Minnesota's AJ Pettersen garnered a first-team nod at shortstop.

OSU's Hale Is Stopper Award Finalist

2009-06-04T15:32:00.002-04:00

The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association has announced the five finalists for the Stopper of the Year Award. Jake Hale, of Ohio State, is one of the honorees. The other four are San Diego State's Addison Reed, Kyle Bellamy of Miami (FL), Matty Ott of Louisiana State and UC Irvine's Eric Pettis.

Freshmen All-Americans

2009-06-03T13:05:00.005-04:00

Collegiate Baseball and Louisville Slugger have issued their Freshmen All-America Team. A number of first-year Big Ten stars have made the squad. Nick O'Shea (Minnesota), Eric Charles (Purdue), AJ Pettersen (Minnesota), Justin Gominsky (Minnesota), Willie Argo (Illinois) and Alex Dickerson (Indiana) were all honored.

Yes, I was disappointed that several names weren't on the list. Penn State's Jordan Steranka and Illinois' Josh Parr would top my list of oversights, but it was good to see a strong representation from the Big Ten.

A Couple Of Requests

2009-06-03T12:11:00.005-04:00

In surfing the college baseball spectrum, I've come across a couple of requests. The first is from Eric Sorenson. Seems his former employers at CBS asked Eric if he would provide some material wrapping up the regionals. Eric obliged and now requests some assistance from us. He would like you to click on the link to his column.

The basic premise here is that we are trying to show the gurus at CBS that someone besides Big E cares about college baseball. Let's face it, the mainstream sports media avoid college baseball like the plague. (As such, you get stuck with hacks like me trying to fill in the blanks.) If Eric's column at CBS can generate enough traffic, perhaps, just perhaps, they might devote more space to the sport. And, if they move forward, maybe other .com's might follow.

At minimum, Eric might be able to reclaim a paycheck from CBS (or someone else) and I think that's a concept we can all appreciate right now. So, let's help him, and college baseball, out. Go to his site. Here's the link. Once at E's internet home, click on the link in the column. Spend a few minutes reading his work at CBS (yes, even if you read it originally at his site) and go about your day. Or, better yet, you can help out another college baseball fan.

The Big Ten's Valerie Todryk-Krebs is asking you what your favorite moment of the Big Ten baseball season was. Here's another opporunity to show some decision makers that people are passionate about college baseball. In this case, it's right in our own backyard. You can overflow Valerie's inbox with your favorite moments and she can show her supervisors at the Big Ten your overwhelming response. If they get the notion that there's a hungry fanbase out there, who knows where it might lead?

Her request appears in a post dated June 1 at the Big Ten's baseball blog. The email address she wants you to use is vtodryk@bigten.org.

We can complain all we want about the inequities in college baseball. From the lack of media coverage to the imbalance in scheduling to the NCAA Tournament selection process. Yet, at some point, we have to do our part. We have to give the powers-that-be a reason to care about college baseball. That begins by demonstrating our support for the game. Eric and Valerie have given us an opportunity to do just that. I encourage you to participate in their requests.

Heading For The Cape

2009-06-03T11:45:00.004-04:00

As the season is over for all but sixteen college teams, it's time to turn our attention to the summer leagues. The annual wood bats circuits are where college players not only get to continue to develop their skills in the "off-season", but often get a chance to perform in front of Major League scouts.

The most noted of the summer leagues is, as you probably know, the Cape Cod League. Brought to the mainstream's attention in books and a bad movie, the Cape invites the top college talent in the country to compete in a setting without the ping of metal bats.

This season, ten players from the Big Ten Conference have been invited to play on the Cape. The list is made up of Alex Wimmers of Ohio State (Bourne), Seth Rosin of Minnesota (Hyannis), Ohio State's Dan Burkhart (Hyannis), Blake Monar, Alex Dickerson and Kipp Schutz of Indiana (Wareham), Michigan's Ryan LaMarre (Wareham), the Northwestern duo of Jake Goebbert and Eric Jokisch (Harwich) and Tyler Burgoon of Michigan (Yarmouth-Dennis).

Now, this is just the list I've been able to compile. If you are aware of any other players heading to the heart of Red Sox Nation, please note them in the comments or drop me an email. I'll be happy to update the list. (And, yes, I'm attempting to assemble lists for all the summer leagues, so if you know where a player will spend his summer, you can send me an email.)

You can take this opportunity to follow your favorite players all summer long. And not just the Cape Cod League, either. Nearly each summer circuit has a website and I've got a healthy list of links in the sidebar. You might even be able to watch a game or two right from you computer. Imagine how impressed your friends will be when you are able to spit out summer league stats this winter.

NU's Avila Wins Ashe Award

2009-06-02T12:07:00.004-04:00

Northwestern's Kenneth Avila has won the 2009 Arthur Ashe, Jr. Sports Scholar Award. Avila beat out ten other male finalists, including Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford of Oklahoma. Avila reached the final ten candidates by triumphing over a field that originally included 600 athletes.

Avila captured the award not only based on his academic and athletic success, but his committment to the community. Here's a link highlighting some of Mr. Avila's off-the-field service.

The Wildcats double major will spend his summer working on Wall Street as an intern with JPMorgan. (Where we presume he will straighten out the economy before he has to return to Evanston for fall classes.) We congratulate Kenneth Avila on winning this prestigous award.

Putting A Bow On It

2009-06-01T16:18:00.005-04:00

I didn't want to leave all of yesterday's negativity atop the blog, so how about we take a couple of minutes and share some of the positives from the 2009 season? Here are just a few highlights.

Three teams -- Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio State -- make the NCAA Tournament field.
Indiana's romp through the Big Ten Tournament.
The entertaining race for the regular season crown that came down to the final day of the season before OSU claimed it.
Minnesota's road wins at places like TCU and Dallas Baptist.
Illinois' series win at Louisiana State.
Ohio State's win at Miami (FL).
No-hitters from Ohio State's Alex Wimmers and Michigan State's Nolan Moody.
MSU opening a renovated McLane Stadium.
Indiana's Eric Arnett amongst the finalists for National Pitcher of the Year.
Two Big Ten catchers -- Indiana's Josh Phegley and Ohio State's Dan Burkhart -- vying for the Johnny Bench Award.
Derek McCallum, of Minnesota, in the running for the Dick Howser Trophy.

This season also featured one of the better crop of freshmen I can recall. Alex Dickerson (Indiana), Willie Argo (Illinois), Jordan Steranka (Penn State), AJ Pettersen (Minnesota), Eric Charles (Purdue) and Tony Bucciferro (Michigan State) were just a few of the first-year players making an immediate impact.

Yes, the season came to an abrupt and rather painful conclusion, but the year overall was far from a disappointment. In looking at the success of both teams and individuals, one could argue that it was one of the better baseball seasons around the Big Ten in recent history. Let's not lose sight of that after a weekend of lopsided defeats.

LSU Takes Control

2009-05-31T20:07:00.004-04:00

It's not quite as bad as in Tallahassee, but Louisiana State has taken a commanding 7 - 0 lead over Minnesota in the third inning. Our season may be just about over, Big Ten fans.

9:49pm Update - LSU cruises to a 10-3 triumph over Minnesota and wins the Baton Rouge Regional. The Gophers season ends with the loss.

Gophers Outslug Baylor

2009-05-31T17:39:00.003-04:00

Minnesota posted thirteen runs over the last three innings to beat Baylor, 15-12. The Gophers held a 15-5 lead going into the bottom of the ninth only to see the Bears plate seven runs, but fall short. Baylor's season has concluded, Minnesota moves into the championship round against LSU.

I'm afraid, though. After seeing a burned out Ohio State staff take on a well-rested, top seed at home, I'm fearful for the Gophers against the Tigers. Let's hope somebody tosses a whale of a game for the U.

Update - You know I should mention that Derek McCallum 4-for-6 with four runs scored and seven RBI in this game. McCallum, displaying why he should have been the Big Ten's Player of the Year, doubled three times and homered.

It's All 'Noles

2009-05-31T17:35:00.004-04:00

Ohio State has yet to take their third at bat, but they trail Florida State by a score of 20 - 0. The Buckeyes have gone through four pitchers thus far. Ugly.

Update 6:49pm - It's now 32 - 2, Florida State. Yes. 32. I don't even know what to say.

Update 8:04pm - Mercifully, it's over in Tallahassee. The final is 37-6, FSU. Florida State goes onto the Super Regionals. OSU's campaign comes to a close.