Michigan
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Western Michigan
No. 24 Wolverines Welcome Broncos to Wilpon Complex for Tuesday Game
3/19/2019 9:44:00 AM | Baseball
• Michigan plays its first midweek home game on Tuesday (March 19) against Western Michigan.
• Michigan is ranked 24th nationally by D1Baseball.com and 23rd by Baseball America.
• Michigan will return to the road this weekend with four games in Texas.
NEXT GAME
Tuesday, March 19 -- vs. Western Michigan (Wilpon Complex), 4 p.m.
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ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 24-ranked University of Michigan baseball team (13-4) will wrap up a five-game homestand today (Tuesday, March 19) with a midweek contest against in-state foe Western Michigan. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. at the Wilpon Complex, home of Ray Fisher Stadium.
• The Wolverines are coming off a perfect 4-0 weekend in which they swept the visiting Manhattan Jaspers. Michigan outscored Manhattan by a total of 48 runs to 10, and the series was highlighted by a 23-2 win on Friday (March 15) and a 4-0 shutout on Sunday (March 17) to clinch the sweep. The Maize and Blue offense combined for a .378 batting average over the four-game series, while the pitching staff surrendered just seven earned runs for a 1.85 weekend ERA.
• The Western Michigan Broncos enter the week with a 6-12 record after dropping a three-game series at Butler last weekend. Sophomore two-way player Blake Dunn leads the Bronco offense with an impressive .408 batting average to go with a .566 slugging percentage and three homers.
• Michigan and Western Michigan have met 174 times in program history, with a 94-76-4 record in favor of the Maize and Blue. The Wolverines took the last game by a 7-6 score back in March of the 2018 season and have won the last three meetings dating back to 2014. The Broncos last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2016 after winning the Mid-American Conference tournament.
• Junior ace Tommy Henry is now 5-0 on the season after picking up a series-opening victory over Manhattan last Thursday (March 14) in which he allowed just two hits with no walks and no runs. The lefty ranks first in the Big Ten and eighth in the nation with a 0.51 earned run average through 35.0 innings, while also leading the conference and ranking sixth among D1 pitchers with 49 strikeouts.
• Michigan has posted a conference-low 2.42 earned run average through its first 17 games, which ranks eighth-lowest among Division I schools. Michigan pitchers have also combined to allow just 6.22 hits per nine innings, which ranks fourth in the nation and leads the conference. The Wolverine pitching staff leads the Big Ten with 3.21 walks allowed per nine innings (22nd in NCAA) and ranks second with 9.6 strikeouts per nine innings.
• Offensively, Michigan leads the Big Ten in stolen bases (24) and triples (4). The Wolverine offense also ranks in the top three among conference schools in slugging percentage, doubles and sacrifice flies. Michigan's .975 fielding percentage also ranks in the top three in the Big Ten.
• Following Tuesday's contest, Michigan will travel to Lubbock, Texas, for a three-game series at Texas Tech and a neutral-site contest against Stetson. The trip is scheduled during the Wolverines' Big Ten bye week, as the rest of the conference schools will open up Big Ten play this weekend (March 22-24).
• The Wolverines are ranked in five of the six national polls this week after sweeping Manhattan in convincing fashion. The Maize and Blue is ranked 22nd by the NCBWA, 23rd by Baseball America, 24th by D1Baseball.com and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, and 30th by Collegiate Baseball News. Michigan leads the Big Ten Conference with its five national rankings, while Illinois appeared in two polls this week and is the only other Big Ten team included.
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