Weekly Release No. 6
4/9/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Tuesday, April 9 C vs. St. Joseph's (Ind.) (Ray Fisher Stadium), 3 p.m.
Wednesday, April 10 -- vs. Central Michigan (Ray Fisher Stadium), 3 p.m.
Friday, April 12 -- at Illinois (Champaign, Ill), 6:35 p.m. CDT
Saturday, April 13 -- DH at Illinois (Champaign, Ill), 4:05 p.m. CDT
Sunday, April 14 -- at Illinois (Champaign, Ill), 1:05 p.m. CDT
Wednesday, April 17 -- vs. Oakland (Ray Fisher Stadium), 3 p.m.
Friday, April 19 -- vs. Michigan State (Ray Fisher Stadium), 3 p.m.
Saturday, April 20 -- DH at Michigan State (East Lansing, Mich.), 1 p.m.
Sunday, April 21 -- vs. Michigan State (Ray Fisher Stadium), 1 p.m.
Michigan Heads Back On Big Ten Road
The University of Michigan baseball team (8-16, 4-4 Big Ten) continues its April Big Ten road marathon with a four-game weekend series at Illinois (April 12-14). The Wolverines have a pair of non-conference single games scheduled for Ray Fisher Stadium this week, hosting Saint Joseph's (Ind.) on Tuesday (April 9, 3 p.m.) and Central Michigan on Wednesday (April 10, 3 p.m.).
The Wolverines play 14 of 16 April Big Ten games on the road. Michigan plays Illinois (15-6, 3-5 Big Ten) in single nine-inning Big Ten games on Friday (April 12, 6:35 p.m. CDT) and Sunday (April 14, 1:05 p.m. CDT) with a doubleheader (two seven-inning games) slated for Saturday (April 13, 4:05 p.m. CDT) at Illinois Field. The series takes on added importance as the Wolverines (4-4) enter the third Big Ten weekend series in sixth place, the final playoff position in the standings, after salvaging a 4-3 win the series finale at Minnesota. Illinois (3-5) is in seventh place after splitting a home series with Purdue.
Illinois is scheduled to face Western Illinois (April 9) and play at Indiana State (April 10) before hosting the Wolverines. Saint Joseph's enters the week with an 18-16-2 record, while Central Michigan (16-8, 6-2 MAC) hosts Northwood (April 9) before heading to Ann Arbor.
Coaching Matchups
The coaching matchup in Champaign, Ill., this weekend will once again feature the "newest kid on the block" in the Big Ten in Michigan's Chris Harrison vs. one of the legends in college coaching, Richard "Itch" Jones of Illinois.
Harrison, Michigan's interim head coach, enters the week with an overall record of 8-16 (4-4 Big Ten) record after taking one of four games at Minnesota last weekend (April 5-7). A head coach in the NAIA ranks at The Master's College (San Clarita, Calif.) for four seasons, Harrison collected his first win as a Wolverine at UC-Irvine (2/26/02) and his first Big Ten win vs. Iowa (March 30). Harrison is 5-1 in Ray Fisher Stadium.
Rick O'Dette, in his second season as head coach at Saint Joseph's, enters the week with a career coaching record of 41-46-2 with the Pumas.
Judd Folske, in his fourth season as head coach at Central Michigan, enters the week with a 116-81 record with the Chippewas, including the 16-8 start this season. Folske's 15-year overall coaching mark, including 11 years at Ferris State, is 355-386-5. The Chippewas share first place in the MAC-West heading into a showdown series at Eastern Michigan this weekend (April 12-14).
"Itch" Jones, in his 36th season as a head coach and his 12th at Illinois, enters the week with an overall career record of 1,141-657-5. His record at Illinois is 375-279. He coached for 21 years at Southern Illinois and started in 1966 and coached three years at MacMurray. Jones started the year tied for 16th on the all-time NCAA Division I win list and tied for ninth on the active winning list.
Opponent Matchups
Michigan holds the series edge with all three opponents this week, with a 1-0 edge over the Pumas from Saint Joseph's, a five-game (30-25) edge over Central Michigan and a 99-75-2 lead over Illinois. Michigan beat Saint Joseph's 11-1 in the inaugural matchup last season, while Michigan and Central Michigan split two games a year ago, with CMU winning 15-3 and the Wolverines 10-7 as the home team prevailed each time. Michigan and Illinois split four Big Ten games in Ray Fisher Stadium a year ago with the Wolverines winning the first two games 11-10 (10 innings) and 7-5, while the Fighting Illini took the second two games 3-2 and 5-1.
Probable Wolverine Pitching Rotation
The probable starting pitchers for the Wolverines this week include sophomore Bobby Garza (Southgate, Mich./Anderson HS) vs. Saint Joseph's and freshman Paul Hammond (Mason, Ohio/Mason HS) vs. Central Michigan in non-conference action. The probable weekend starters at Illinois include senior Bobby Korecky (Saline, Mich./Saline HS), junior Rich Hill (Milton, Mass./Milton HS), sophomore Jim Brauer (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS) or junior Tim Leveque (Northridge, Calif./Crespi HS) and senior Jeff Trzos (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington HS). Michigan's probables for the week:
- Tuesday vs. Saint Joseph's -- Bobby Garza (RHP, 0-1, 20.25 ERA) will make his second start of the season while making his 11th career appearance. He worked four innings and allowed eight hits and nine runs in a loss to UC-Riverside in his only other appearance this season. Garza is 2-2 as a Wolverine with wins over Western Michigan and Detroit Mercy as a freshman.
- Wednesday vs. Central Michigan -- Paul Hammond (LHP, 0-0, 3.00 ERA, one save) will make his second career start while making his fifth appearance. He worked two shutout innings with three strikeouts in his first start last week vs. Detroit Mercy. He made his career debut against Oregon State and collected a save with two innings at UC-Irvine. He has seven strikeouts in six innings of work.
- Game #1 at Illinois (Friday) -- Bobby Korecky (RHP, 2-3, 4.95 ERA, one save) is slated to make his sixth start of the season and the 30th start of his U-M career. Last weekend he took the opening loss at Minnesota by a 10-0 score even though he left after seven innings trailing 7-0 with all seven runs unearned. He shares the Big Ten ERA lead at 0.00. He tossed a two-hit shutout in the Big Ten opener vs. Iowa, his third career complete-game win over the Hawkeyes. He has completed 16 of his 29 career starts after serving as Michigan's closer as a freshman. Last season Korecky had a no-decision vs. Illinois in a game the Wolverines won 11-10 in 10 innings. He has completed three of his five starts in 2002 and finished the game in five of his seven appearances including a save vs. Bowling Green (seventh career save). Both wins this season have been shutouts, vs. Iowa and Texas-San Antonio. His start at Illinois will be his third night game start of the season; the first was a 7-0 shutout at Texas-San Antonio in which he fanned a career-high 13. Korecky's losses have been at UC-Riverside, Kansas and Minnesota. Korecky is hitting .233 in seven starts (DH-5, 2B-2) and he drew a walk to start the winning rally last Sunday (April 7) at Minnesota. A second team All-Big Ten performer, he earned the Geoff Zahn Award as Michigan's Most Valuable Pitcher in 2001. Korecky is second among Michigan's active pitchers with 140 career strikeouts.
- Game #2 at Illinois (Saturday) -- Rich Hill (LHP, 1-3, 4.86 ERA) is scheduled to make his 23rd career start and 37th career pitching appearance in the game vs. Illinois. He struck out eight in a 3-1 complete-game loss at Minnesota last weekend (April 6). He fanned seven in tossing a four-hit shutout, the second shutout of his career, over Iowa (March 30). He leads the team in strikeouts (48) and is second in innings pitched (35). He fanned a career-high 15 batters in a nine-inning no-decision at Texas-San Antonio (March 9). Hill took the loss in the season opener vs. Oregon State and lost to Oral Roberts. Hill reached 100 strikeouts in just 22 career appearances and he is Michigan's active career strikeout leader with 173 K's in 136 innings after leading the team in 1999 (53 strikeouts) and in 2000 (72). Hill was drafted by Cincinnati out of high school (1999) and by Anaheim in 2001.
- Game #3 at Illinois (Saturday) -- Tim Leveque (RHP, 1-1, 6.75 ERA) would be making his 12th career start and 33rd career appearance in the third game of the series. Leveque earned Michigan's first win of the season with a 4-2 win at UC-Irvine (Feb. 26) when he worked the first six innings and fanned six while allowing one run. He took the loss in the third game of the series at Minnesota last weekend (April 6), allowing seven hits and four runs. Leveque is 5-7 as a Wolverine and was drafted out of high school by Detroit.
-- OR -- Jim Brauer (RHP, 1-3, 6.92 ERA) would make his 12th career start in the third game of the weekend. He allowed two hits in 2.2 shutout innings out of the bullpen at Minnesota last weekend (April 6). He earned his first win of the season in relief against Bowling Green (March 19). He has taken losses vs. Iowa, Texas-San Antonio and San Diego. He pitched seven innings at Texas-San Antonio (March 10) after pitching six innings in each of his spring trip starts vs. San Francisco (no decision) and at San Diego (loss). He enters the week third on the team in innings pitched (26) and third in strikeouts (20). He collected all three wins as a freshman out of the bullpen vs. Bowling Green, Siena Heights and Illinois and had save at South Florida. Brauer was drafted out of high school by Montreal.
- Game #4 at Illinois (Sunday) -- Jeff Trzos (LHP, 1-3, 5.18 ERA) will make his fifth career start in the Illinois series. Trzos worked seven innings in a no-decision at Minnesota last weekend (April 7), allowing six hits and three runs in a game won by the Wolverines 4-3. He pitched his first career complete game in beating Iowa 4-1 in the series finale (March 31). He was 0-2 on the spring with losses to Oregon State and San Diego in the first starts of his career after 40 relief outings in first three seasons. He took the third loss in relief in extra innings at Texas-San Antonio (March 9). Trzos allowed earned runs in just one of 18 appearances as the closer in 2001 and did not allow an earned run in the last 16 appearances. Trzos has 69 strikeouts in 89 innings pitched in Wolverine career and he owns a .260 career batting average with three homers. He was drafted out of high school by Kansas City.
Korecky Tops Big Ten
Senior RHP Bobby Korecky tossed seven innings at Minnesota (April 5) without allowing an earned run and limited the Gophers to four hits. Korecky shares the lead in Big Ten play with his 0.00 ERA and he leads the conference with the lowest opponent batting average (.125). Korecky has made seven pitching appearances this season heading into the Illinois weekend, giving him 58 for his career, snapping a tie with former Major Leaguer Ross Powell (57, 1987-89) for ninth on Michigan's career list. Korecky will advance a step on the list with each of his next three outings. Korecky's team-leading total of 43.2 innings pushes his Wolverine career total to 245.2 innings, good for seventh place.
U-M Career Leaders in Pitching Appearances
Pitcher (Years) L/R Games Wins Saves Todd Marion (1990-93) R 106 9 32 John Arvai (1993-96) R 86 15 16 Mike Ignasiak (1985-88) R 76 33 10 Greg Everson (1985-87) R 73 12 15 Tyler Steketee (1995-98) R 66 6 15 Nick Alexander (1998-2001) L 61 9 3 Mark Temple (1993-96) R 60 12 1 Bryan Cranson (1997-2000) L 59 15 1 BOBBY KORECKY (1999-present) R 58 14 7
Collins Captures Both Wolverine Wins
Freshman RHP Matt Collins (Bloomfield Village, Mich./Country Day) collected the first two wins of his career in relief last week over Detroit Mercy (April 3) and at Minnesota (April 7). Collins pitched two innings vs. Detroit Mercy and retired six of the seven batters he faced (runner reached on error) and he notched his first Big Ten win in relief at Minnesota working two hitless/scoreless innings against the Gophers. Collins worked the eighth inning with Michigan trailing 3-2 and after the Wolverines grabbed a 4-3 lead in the top of the ninth he worked a 1-2-3 ninth, striking out the last two batters to close out the win. Collins is 2-0 with a 2.38 ERA and nine strikeouts in 11 innings in his rookie season. He faced 13 batters in the week, allowing two batters to reach base (one on an error and the other walked).
Butler Does It in Dome
Freshman CF Matt Butler (Glendale Heights, Ill./Driscoll Catholic HS), noted for his defense, had a breakout game in the Metrodome, collecting Michigan's first four-hit game of the season in the series finale at Minnesota. Butler was 0-for-14 as a Wolverine in eight games including seven starts before he collected his first hit, a single in the second game of the series, and in game three he was 1-for-3 and had a hitting streak (two) for the first time as a Wolverine.
In the series finale Butler, a 5-6, 150-pound true freshman, went 4-for-4 with two doubles, a triple and a single. He tripled and scored in the seventh inning to cut Minnesota's lead to 3-2. In the ninth inning he singled, recorded his first career stolen base and scored the winning run as Michigan scored twice in the ninth inning for a 4-3 win to salvage the final game of the weekend series. Butler's batting average went from .000 to .273 and he now has a three-game hitting streak and has six hits (all indoors). He also made a great diving catch in the seventh inning to keep the game close.
Butler Fifth with First Career Hit in 2002
Freshman CF Matt Butler, who notched his first career hit last weekend at Minnesota, was the fifth Wolverine to collect career hit number one during the 2002 season. Michigan first career hits in 2002 include:
- Senior RHP Bobby Korecky, making his career debut at second base in the season opener vs. Oregon State (2/22/02) singled in his first career at-bat in his 53rd game as a Wolverine.
- Junior transfer 2B Dan Augustine (Wausau, Wis./West HS) with a first-inning single at UC-Riverside (2-24-02). Augustine was 3-5 in the game with a double.
- Freshman SS Nick Rudden (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS), who singled and scored in the third inning of the 4-2 win at UC-Irvine (2/26/02). Rudden was 2-for-4 in the game and made several flashy defensive plays, including an assist on the 6-4 final out of the game.
- Freshman OF Chris Burhans (Alpharetta, Ga./The Marist School) collected an RBI single in the second inning at UC-Riverside (2-27-02) for his first career hit.
- Freshman OF Matt Butler singled to right at Minnesota in the second inning of the first game of the doubleheader (4/6/02).
Wuerfel Provides "Gamer" in Pinch
Junor catcher Jason Wuerfel (Cedar, Mich./Glen Lake HS) collected a two-out, two-run pinch single in the ninth inning to provide Michigan with the winning margin, 4-3, in Sunday's (April 7) series finale against Minnesota in the Metrodome. Wuerfel has the top pinch-hitting average for the Wolverines at .400 (2-for-5) and he has chipped in with a run-scoring double at UC-Riverside along with his two-run single vs. Minnesota. He also was "robbed" in a pinch role vs. Iowa when his bid for a single was batted in the air by the second baseman and the ball was snagged by the rightfielder for a rare 4-9 scoring play.
Wuerfel has handled 48 fielding chances (46 putouts, two assists) without an error and he is hitting .318 (7-for-22). He has made the most of his opportunities at the plate as he has accounted for eight runs (two scored and six RBI) on his seven hits, and three of the hits have been doubles.
Koman Enters Doubles Chart, Nears 100th RBI
Junior shortstop Brock Koman (Pueblo, Colo./South HS) enters the Illinois week in Michigan's career doubles top 10 and he is just shy of 100 career RBI. Koman notched his 39th career double as a Wolverine as he hit the famed rightfield "baggy" in the Metrodome that would have been a homer in most Big Ten parks. The "baggy" kept Koman at 98 career RBI, but did pull him into a tie for 10th place on Michigan's career doubles list with Rodney Goble (38, 1992-95).
Koman, who leads the Wolverines in hitting (.360), has 44 career multiple-hit games and has hits in 20 of the 24 games this year. He has hits in 62 of the last 76 games in the last two seasons. He leads the Wolverines in starts (24), at-bats (89), hits (32) and runs scored (17).
U-M Career Leaders in Doubles
Player (Years) Games Doubles Mike Cervenak (1996-99) 214 67 Bryan Besco (1995-99) 207 55 Jason Alcaraz (1996-99) 213 54 Phil Price (1987-90) 222 53 Casey Close (1983-86) 229 49 Ken Hayward (1982-85) 234 49 Jim Paciorek (1979-82) 197 47 Derek Besco (1995-98) 154 42 Bobby Scales (1996-99) 190 41 Brock Koman (2000-present) 128 39 Rodney Goble (1992-95) 203 39
Lollio Adds Hit Multiples
Junior OF Gino Lollio (Cape Coral, Fla./Mariner HS) enters the Illinois week after having delivered five hits in the last two games in the series at Minnesota, going 3-for-3 game in the second game of Saturday's (April 6) doubleheader and 2-for-4 in the 4-3 win on Sunday (April 7). Lollio has 11 multiple-hit games this season and has 26 for his career. Lollio is hitting .310 (26-for-84) in overall action and he shares second place in hits (26) and RBI (13) on the team with senior/junior DH/1B Mike Sokol (Sterling Heights, Mich./DeLaSalle HS).
Lollio also has provided a strong defensive threat with his arm in right in Big Ten action, shown in the win at Minnesota with a 9-2 double play, throwing out Gopher 2B Luke Appert out at the plate to keep Minnesota's lead a 3-2 in the eighth inning. The Wolverines scored twice in the ninth inning for the win. In the Big Ten opener against Iowa Lollio started a 9-4-5 relay to cut down a runner at third base for the third out to protect a 1-0 lead.
Jominy Adds Power to Speed
Sophomore 3B Brandon Jominy (Coral Springs, Fla./Westminster Academy), who leads the Wolverines in stolen bases, used power and speed to help lead Michigan to its 4-3 win at Minnesota (April 7). Jominy launched his first career homer into the leftfield seats in the Metrodome to tie the game at 1-1 in the second inning and the speed came through in the ninth inning rally.
Jominy's speed allowed him to advance to second on an infield single by freshman CF Matt Butler and then they pulled off a double steal to put the tying and winning runs in scoring position. The steal was Jominy's team-leading sixth of the season (in six attempts) and moments later both runners scored on Jason Wuerfel's pinch single. Jominy made a sparkling 5-3 play for the first out in the bottom of the ninth as he continues to adjust to his switch from shortstop to third base. Jominy enters the Illinois week hitting .261 in Big Ten play.
Lineup Versatility Notes
After 24 games in 2002 the most versatile Wolverines continue to be senior Bobby Korecky (pitcher, DH and 2B), sophomore Brandon Roberts (DH, LF and RF), sophomore Jake Fox (catcher, 3B and DH) and freshman OF Chris Burhans (LF, CF and RF) with starts at three different positions.
Junior OF Gino Lollio (first, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth), junior IF/OF Jordan Cantalamessa (first, second, seventh, eighth and ninth) and junior catcher Alex Coleman (second, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth) have started in five different positions in the batting order.
Heading into the Illinois week junior Brock Koman (SS-15, 3B-9) is the only player to start in all 24 games and Lollio has also played in all 24. Koman has batted third in all 24 games. The Wolverines have had five different starters at DH and in LF and four different starters in CF, RF and at 2B, while nine different players have started in the eighth batting slot.
Following the games at Minnesota (April 5-7) the players with the most starts at each position thus far include (2002 starts at position/total career starts at any position): 1B -- Nate Wright (16/59); 2B -- Jordan Cantalamessa (17/111); SS -- Brock Koman (15/129); 3B -- Brandon Jominy (10/32) and Koman (9/129); LF -- Brandon Roberts (18/46); CF -- Matt Butler (10/10), Blake Rutkowski (7/76) and Gino Lollio (6/83); RF -- Lollio (17/83); C -- Alex Coleman (13/38) and Jake Fox (8/57); and DH -- Mike Sokol (15/79).
Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423
