ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Fifth-year seniors Joe Butler, Colton Johnson, and Jordan Libman were named Preseason All-Missouri Valley Conference while the Illinois State baseball team was picked to finish second, in the preseason poll taken of the league's eight head coaches, the conference announced Wednesday.
The Redbirds' three selections are tied for the most with Bradley.
Illinois State received 53 points in the poll, 11 behind Dallas Baptist, which received all eight first-place votes. Missouri State was third with 42 points.
Butler was selected as an outfielder. He batted .242 with a trio of home runs in 2020. Butler led the MVC in batting average during conference play in 2019, hitting a torrid .422 while also leading the league in on-base percentage (.489) and hits (35) during Valley play.
Johnson was selected as a starting pitcher after leading the MVC with 37 strikeouts in 2020. He recorded a 3.60 ERA in 25 innings pitched in the shortened campaign. Johnson became the eighth Redbird since 2000 to record at least 28 strikeouts in a three-start stretch after he struck out eight at Little Rock on 2/14, 10 at No. 23 Oklahoma on 2/21, and 10 at Louisiana-Monroe on 2/28.
Libman was selected as the designated hitter. He batted .281 with seven RBI, seven runs scored, and a home run in 2020. Libman hit .299 in 2019, adding 28 RBI, 43 runs scored, and 14 extra-base hits. His 49 walks in 2019 are the fourth-most in a single season in ISU history.
Illinois State is scheduled to open its season on Saturday, February 20 with a doubleheader at Belmont.
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