NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State is set to host Bradley in a three-game set from April 22-24. The trio of contests will on ESPN3.
GAME INFORMATION
Illinois State (14-17, 2-4 MVC; 152nd in RPI) vs Bradley (11-19, 3-3 MVC; 112th in RPI)
Day/Time (CT):
Friday, April 22; 5:00 p.m. CT
Saturday, April 23; 3:00 p.m. CT
Sunday, April 24; 1:00 p.m. CT
City: Normal, Ill.
Field: Duffy Bass Field
ESPN3: https://es.pn/38YeCNu (game one); https://es.pn/3OswVe6 (game two); https://es.pn/38cO7DR (game three)
Radio: https://wznd.com/
Live Stats: bit.ly/RedbirdStats
PROJECTED ILLINOIS STATE STARTING PITCHERS
LHP Jared Hart (1.32 ERA, 27.1 IP, 31 K, 5 BB)
RHP Derek Salata (4.02 ERA, 53.2 IP, 53 K, 12 BB)
RHP Jordan Lussier (4.79 ERA, 20.2 IP, 16 K, 12 BB)
ABOUT THE BRAVES+ SERIES HISTORY + LAST MEETING
Bradley went 20-22 in 2021, going 8-11 on the road. Bradley is 11-19 with a 4-10 record at on the road in 2022, coming off a series win against 16th-ranked Dallas Baptist before falling to Iowa in a midweek game. Common opponents for Bradley and Illinois State in 2022 outside of the MVC include Western Illinois, Iowa, and Illinois.
Illinois State holds a 117-111 advantage in the series as the first game between the two teams was in 1901. ISU has never played another school as much as Bradley (Indiana State is second with 205 meetings). Illinois State and Bradley met in 2021's regular-season finale as the 'Birds had already been eliminated from the top-4 (receive bye to double-elimination bracket). ISU pushed projected starting pitcher Sean Sinisko to game one of the MVC Tournament and the 'Birds fell, 3-1, against the Braves.
OWEN MILLER IN THE MLB
Redbird baseball alum Owen Miller is making a splash in the MLB for the Cleveland Guardians. Entering 4/18, Miller leads the MLB in average (.500) and doubles (7) and is second in OPS (1.510) and SLG (.964). Miller currently does not meet ranking minimums for plate appearances after being placed on the COVID-IL list on Wednesday.
MILWAUKEE WIN
ISU rallied to win 4-3 in 11 innings at MKE on 4/19. Jake McCaw hit a solo HR in the 11th before Jared Hart recorded his first save. Ryan Cermak had an inside-the park HR in the 1st inning.
INSIDE-THE-PARK AND LEADOFF MAN
Ryan Cermak led off 4/19's game at Milwaukee with an inside-the-park HR for his 14th HR of 2021. Cermak has four lead-off HRs (on the road - eight games hitting lead-off on the road) and five HRs in his first AB of the game (all in last 16 games). If Cermak hits HR #15, he will be the first 'Bird since 1999 (Ryan Duncheon) to hit 15 in a season.(Paul DeJong hit 14 in 2015)
McCAW IS STREAKING (LEGALLY)
Jake McCaw now holds a 23-game on-base streak, tying Ryan Cermak's 2021 team-high. Current assistant coach Derek Parola had a 33-game on-base streak in 2019. After starting 0-for-4 McCaw's streak was in serious danger on Tuesday but an 11th-inning HR kept the streak going. Connor Olson also holds an active 17-game on-base streak.
CER-SMACK: NATIONAL POW x4 (QUICK HITS ON RYAN CERMAK'S WEEK - 4/11)
- Named National Player of the Week from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, Perfect Game, D1Baseball, and NCBWA
- 11-for-21 (.524)
- .600 OBP
- five home runs, two doubles
- home runs in four-straight plate appearances (hit 470-foot home run for fourth-straight home run)
- three home run game on 4/6 with grand slams in back-to-back innings
- 14 RBIs; broke a 37-year old school RBI record on 4/6 (10 now - was nine by Mike Prior in 1985)
- nine runs scored; tied the school record for runs scored in a game on 4/6 (five - most recent was Brett Kay in 2012)
- recorded 100th career hit via home run on 4/10
- scaled the center-field wall and appeared to have taken away a home run on 4/10
- celebrated the honors by lining a HR over the LF wall to lead off 4/12's game at Illinois
VALPARAISO SERIES
Illinois State dropped the series to Valparaiso, despite winning the first game. The 'Birds controlled all aspects of game one, throwing a three-hit shutout of the Beacons. Valparaiso blitzed the 'Birds in game two, winning, 10-2. Illinois State could not quite get over the hump in game three, falling in a tight 2-1 decision.
NEW FRIDAY NIGHT GUY
Illinois State rolled out bullpen ace fifth-year junior Jared Hart on Friday, making his first start of 2022. Hart took a no-hitter into the 6th inning, finishing with six scoreless innings, one hit, and an HBP on just 65 pitches. Hart was MVC Pitcher of the Week in the first week of the season. Hart recorded the save in Tuesday's win at Milwaukee.
TOP-2 TAKEDOWN
Illinois State took down second-ranked Arkansas to open the 2022 campaign by a 3-2 score. Arkansas had not previously lost a home or season opener since 1994. The 11 runs the Razorbacks scored were tied for the fewest plated by an SEC team and tied for the third-fewest scored by a top-25 (D1Baseball top-25).
The 'Birds were competitive all series, outhitting the Razorbacks in game two and trailing by a run in the 8th inning of game three.
Illinois State is no stranger to the national stage, upending #1 Vanderbilt and #7 Louisville in 2019 as the team made the program's first NCAA Regional final. Likewise, ISU is no stranger to success in Fayetteville as the 2020 team knocked off the 13th-ranked Razorbacks, 8-7.
TOUGH TESTS IN 2022
Illinois State is scheduled to play six games against preseason ranked opponents (three at No. 2 Arkansas, three vs No. 22 Dallas Baptist). Purdue has also exceeded expectations in 2022, earning a No. 19 ranking from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and was bumped up to 17th after taking two-of-three from ISU. Illinois State is also scheduled to play a program-record 16 games against Power Five schools, including 10 contests against the Big Ten. 2022 marks the first time ISU has opened against a Power Five since 2004 (win at Louisville). 2022 marks the first time ISU has ever opened against a ranked opponent.
PROMOS
Friday, April 22nd @ 5pm
Saturday, April 23rd @ 3pm
Sunday, April 24th @ 1pm
For the latest updates on Illinois State Baseball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdBaseball) and Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
