KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan baseball team is set to open up Mid-American Conference play on the road in a four-game series March 19-21 at Ball State.
Game Information
Game One: Friday, March 19 | 3:00 PM |
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Game Two (DH1): Saturday, March 20 | 12:00 PM |
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Game Three (DH2): Saturday, March 20 | 3:00 PM |
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Game Four: Sunday, March 21 | 1:00 PM |
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Probable WMU Starters
Game One:
RHP Zach Mehelich (0-0, 3.38 ERA) vs. RHP John Baker (1-1, 1.54 ERA
Game Two (DH1):
RHP Brady Miller (0-2, 9.00 ERA) vs. RHP Chayce McDermott (1-1, 3.50 ERA)
Game Three (DH2):
RHP Brandon Petersen (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. LHP Lukas Jaksich (2-0, 2.81 ERA)
Game Four:
RHP Jack Huisman (0-1, 2.89 ERA) vs. TBA
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Scouting the Broncos
Western Michigan enters conference play with an overall record of 0-6 with four of the six games played being decided by two runs or less. WMU dropped three games to Cincinnati last weekend, scoring 10 runs on 19 hits in the series.
Return of the MAC
WMU has lost its last two MAC opening series, with its last MAC opening series win coming in 2017 at Miami.
Clip the Cardinals
WMU seeks its first series victory over Ball State since 2015, doing so in Kalamazoo. The Broncos look to earn their first series win at Ball State since sweeping the Cardinals back in 2012.
MAC Attack on Base
Junior
Justin McIntyre heads into the weekend having reached base safely in 16 straight games dating back to last season. McIntyre ranks third on the team with a .261 batting average with an OPS of .824 and an on-base percentage of .346.
Big Sean
At Cincinnati this past weekend junior
Sean O'Keefe went 5-for-13 at the plate with one double and two RBIs. O'Keefe leads the Brown & Gold with a .320 batting average to go along with a .440 slugging percentage.
One Base is Overrated
Of WMU's 39 this this season, 21 have gone for extra-bases.
Justin McIntyre leads the way with four extra base-hits while the Broncos rank third in the MAC with 15 doubles.
Road to 2,000
Western Michigan is just two wins away from clinching 2,000 wins as a program. With two wins the Broncos can become just the second team in Mid-American Conference history to reach 2,000 wins.
Scouting the Cardinals
Ball State heads into the weekend with an overall record of 6-7 after dropping three straight to Old Dominion last weekend. The Cardinals have played the toughest schedule in the MAC this season and have been successful, splitting its four-game series with College World Series contender Arizona and winning its series over Kentucky.
Ball State's offense is led by the duo of Ross Messina and Noah Navarro who have combined for 26 hits, eight runs scored, seven doubles, one triple and 12 RBIs. Overall the Cardinal offense has registered 43 runs on 90 hits in 13 games.
On the mound Ball State ranks third in the MAC with a 3.67 ERA led by RHP John Baker. Baker has a record of 1-1 with a 1.54 ERA in 23.1 innings. The right-handed pitcher also has two saves and leads the Cardinals with 29 strikeouts.
What's Next?
Following its four-game series with the Cardinals, Western Michigan returns home for its first action inside Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field, March 26-28 against in-state foe Eastern Michigan.
