Drasen Johnson deals against Illinois State on Tuesday, April 17.
It was a tough weekend for Illini Baseball. They took on the #18 Purdue Boilermakers at West Lafayette and while the pitching held up okay, the offense never got going. Illinois (19–17, 3–6 Big Ten) lost all three games to Purdue (28–5, 10–2 Big Ten), the first time they were swept by a Big Ten team in four years. The sweep by Purdue cements their place atop the conference standings while Illinois falls in the second division.
As I said, the pitching held their own during the series. Friday starter Kevin Johnson was a hard luck loser, pitching a complete game and allowing just three runs on eight hits. When the offense doesn’t score any runs, that’s three runs too many. Interestingly, Johnson didn’t walk any batters and only struck out one batter in his complete game effort. It was a tough loss for Johnson, whose record is now 5–3.
Weather played a part in the Purdue series as Saturday’s game was rained out. That game was postponed till Sunday and played as part of a doubleheader. Starter John Kravetz pitched a solid if not spectacular game, giving up three runs in five innings. The bullpen of Luke Joyce, Ronnie Muck, and Anthony Milazzo kept it close, only giving up one run, but it was only when Reid Roper singled in Jordan Parr in the ninth did Illinois get their sole run of the game. Yes, that’s 17 straight scoreless innings by Purdue pitching for those keeping score. Both Parr brothers, Jordan and Justin, banged two hits in the game as did Reid Roper.
We saw a little more excitement by the Illini offense in the nightcap of Sunday’s doubleheader. Brian de la Torriente got the call for the Illini. Purdue got off to a 3–2 lead but in the eighth inning, Thomas Lindauer singled home Will Krug to tie the game 3-all. A rally-killing double play ended the inning and Purdue promptly scored two runs off reliever Matt Milroy in the bottom of the inning to win it 5–3.
Honestly, offensive heroes are a bit hard to find for the series. That said, Justin Parr was 3 for 7 and Jordan Parr was 3 for 8 for the Sunday doubleheader.
The Illinois squad did manage to give the home fans a thrill for a midweek home game on Tuesday. They took on a tough Illinois State Redbirds (20–13) team. When ISU scored five runs in the first two innings, fans may have wondered if it was going to be more of the same. However, behind the bats of Reid Roper (3 for 4), Willie Argo (2 for 4, 3 RBI) and Kelly Norris-Jones (2 for 3), Illinois scored seven unanswered runs to win 7–5. Drasen Johnson who came on in relief in the second inning, pitched five plus innings of shutout ball to get his first win of the year.
These midweek games don’t count in the standings but do serve a few purposes. One overlooked one is that it gives Coach Dan Hartleb a chance to experiment with pitching and lineup changes that he wouldn’t normally try in conference games. If these experiments work, he might give them a whirl when the games really count. So maybe we’ll see Drasen Johnson on the mound this weekend.
Stat-Wise
LF Justin Parr now leads the team with 32 RBI and 14 extra base hits… OF Willie Argo has stolen 14 bases in 16 attempts… Illinois has 16 triples as a team (opponents have 4)… Matt Milroy has 32 strikeouts in only 27 2/3 innings… Illinois pitchers’ ERA is lower than their opponents’ (4.81 to 5.80) and the hitters’ batting average is higher (.293 to .270).
Next Up
This weekend is a big series (I know, I say that with every conference series) with Ohio State. Currently, the Buckeyes are 20–15 with a 6–6 Big Ten record. Despite their so-so conference mark this year, they have historically been a tough baseball team. I’d say outside of Michigan, they have been the toughest baseball programs in the conference in the last ten years. I know the team won’t take them lightly.
Assuming the weather cooperates, there are three games on the schedule with the Buckeyes this weekend. Friday’s game time is 6:05 p.m.
Get out to the park and support your team! See you at the ballpark!
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Read more of Thomas Nelshoppen at Illinois Baseball Report.