Wednesday, April 19
East Lansing, Mich.
6 PM
Purdue Fort Wayne
at
Michigan State
'Dons Head to Michigan State on Wednesday
4/18/2023 12:23:00 PM | Baseball
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Mastodon baseball team plays at Michigan State on Wednesday.
Game Day Information
Who: Purdue Fort Wayne (9-28) at Michigan State (23-10)
When: April 19 | 6 p.m.
Where: McLane Stadium at Kobs Field | East Lansing, Mich.
Weather: 59, partly cloudy
Live Stats: Link
Live Video: Link
Series History: Michigan State leads 5-0. The Spartans won 7-4 last season.
Probable Starters:
Purdue Fort Wayne: RHP Brendan Reid (1-2)
Michigan State: RHP Nolan Higgins (2-1)
Scouting the Spartans: Michigan State has won six straight games including a non-league sweep of Western Illinois. Brock Vradenburg is hitting .426 and owns an OPS of 1.259. They own a 5.33 team ERA.
Return of the SAC: Dylan Stewart is tied for the league lead with seven sacrifice bunts.
Back in Black: Braedon Blackford owns a Horizon League-best 11 home runs. He is fourth in slugging (.601), fourth in runs (33) and third in RBIs (38).
Double-Digits: Braedon Blackford's 11 home runs has him tied for fifth in program history for home runs in a season. The all-time single season record is Shaun VanDriessche's 18 in 2010.
Cade Gets on Base: Cade Nelis is ninth in the league with a team-best .440 on-base percentage. He is fifth in the league in walks with 25. He enters the week with a current 18-game on-base streak.
Strong Up The Middle: Cade Nelis has only three errors on the season, for a .981 fielding percentage. The starting second baseman has turned 17 double plays.
Masto-Slams: The 'Dons hit grand slams in back-to-back games against Northern Kentucky. On March 24 Ben Higgins hit a grand slam and then in game one on March 26 Jarrett Bickel hit a game-tying grand slam in the seventh inning of a 9-5 win.
Record Within Striking Distance: The 2023 season is Justin Miller's fifth as a Mastodon. Miller owns 203 career strikeouts, the second most in program history for a career. He will look to pass Jason Horvath (2001-04) for the most in program history this season. Horvath recorded 210 strikeouts.
Save X4: Four different Mastodons have recorded a save this season. Brody Fine, Mac Ayres, JD Deany and Justin Miller own saves for the 'Dons.
'Dons Dig The Long Ball: Eight different Mastodons have hit a home run this season.
Turn It!: The Mastodons are 31st in the nation in double plays turned with 30 this season.
Multi-verse: 14 different Mastodons have had a multi-hit game this season.
Hey Batter Batter (of the Week): Braedon Blackford hit .429 and slugged 1.357 with four home runs in 14 at bats over four games played in Winston-Salem, N.C. (March 3-5). He also recorded one double, seven RBIs, five runs scored, two walks and 19 total bases to earn the Horizon League Batter of the Week honor.
Hey Batter Batter (of the Week) X2: Ben Higgins was named the Horizon League Batter of the Week on April 4 for his play the prior weekend. His play was highlighted by his thee home run performance at Youngstown State on March 31). Higgins was the first Mastodon to hit three big flys in a game since 2016.
D1Baseball Top 30: Braedon Blackford was named a Top 30 Hitter of the day for his two-run home run game vs. Cornell. He was ranked No. 11. He also earned the No. 12 spot on the list after his five-hit, six-RBI doubleheader against Milwaukee (April 15). JD Deany was selected as a Top 30 pitcher for his five shutout innings vs. Cornell. Ben Higgins was named the No. 3 hitter of the day by DIBaseball.com for his three dinger day against Youngstown State.
Up Next: The 'Dons host Wright State this weekend in Horizon League play.
Game Day Information
Who: Purdue Fort Wayne (9-28) at Michigan State (23-10)
When: April 19 | 6 p.m.
Where: McLane Stadium at Kobs Field | East Lansing, Mich.
Weather: 59, partly cloudy
Live Stats: Link
Live Video: Link
Series History: Michigan State leads 5-0. The Spartans won 7-4 last season.
Probable Starters:
Purdue Fort Wayne: RHP Brendan Reid (1-2)
Michigan State: RHP Nolan Higgins (2-1)
Scouting the Spartans: Michigan State has won six straight games including a non-league sweep of Western Illinois. Brock Vradenburg is hitting .426 and owns an OPS of 1.259. They own a 5.33 team ERA.
Return of the SAC: Dylan Stewart is tied for the league lead with seven sacrifice bunts.
Back in Black: Braedon Blackford owns a Horizon League-best 11 home runs. He is fourth in slugging (.601), fourth in runs (33) and third in RBIs (38).
Double-Digits: Braedon Blackford's 11 home runs has him tied for fifth in program history for home runs in a season. The all-time single season record is Shaun VanDriessche's 18 in 2010.
Cade Gets on Base: Cade Nelis is ninth in the league with a team-best .440 on-base percentage. He is fifth in the league in walks with 25. He enters the week with a current 18-game on-base streak.
Strong Up The Middle: Cade Nelis has only three errors on the season, for a .981 fielding percentage. The starting second baseman has turned 17 double plays.
Masto-Slams: The 'Dons hit grand slams in back-to-back games against Northern Kentucky. On March 24 Ben Higgins hit a grand slam and then in game one on March 26 Jarrett Bickel hit a game-tying grand slam in the seventh inning of a 9-5 win.
Record Within Striking Distance: The 2023 season is Justin Miller's fifth as a Mastodon. Miller owns 203 career strikeouts, the second most in program history for a career. He will look to pass Jason Horvath (2001-04) for the most in program history this season. Horvath recorded 210 strikeouts.
Save X4: Four different Mastodons have recorded a save this season. Brody Fine, Mac Ayres, JD Deany and Justin Miller own saves for the 'Dons.
'Dons Dig The Long Ball: Eight different Mastodons have hit a home run this season.
Turn It!: The Mastodons are 31st in the nation in double plays turned with 30 this season.
Multi-verse: 14 different Mastodons have had a multi-hit game this season.
Hey Batter Batter (of the Week): Braedon Blackford hit .429 and slugged 1.357 with four home runs in 14 at bats over four games played in Winston-Salem, N.C. (March 3-5). He also recorded one double, seven RBIs, five runs scored, two walks and 19 total bases to earn the Horizon League Batter of the Week honor.
Hey Batter Batter (of the Week) X2: Ben Higgins was named the Horizon League Batter of the Week on April 4 for his play the prior weekend. His play was highlighted by his thee home run performance at Youngstown State on March 31). Higgins was the first Mastodon to hit three big flys in a game since 2016.
D1Baseball Top 30: Braedon Blackford was named a Top 30 Hitter of the day for his two-run home run game vs. Cornell. He was ranked No. 11. He also earned the No. 12 spot on the list after his five-hit, six-RBI doubleheader against Milwaukee (April 15). JD Deany was selected as a Top 30 pitcher for his five shutout innings vs. Cornell. Ben Higgins was named the No. 3 hitter of the day by DIBaseball.com for his three dinger day against Youngstown State.
Up Next: The 'Dons host Wright State this weekend in Horizon League play.
~ Feel the Rumble ~
Players Mentioned
INF/P
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INF/C
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P
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P
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C/OF
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