Baseball Picked Fourth in the MAC West

CLEVELAND, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – The Mid-American Conference announced its preseason baseball coaches poll Thursday, Jan. 28, and Eastern Michigan University was predicted to finish fourth in the West Division, as voted on by the league's head coaches.

The Eagles return 15 letterwinners from a year ago, including seven starting position players and seven pitchers. The team also welcomes 15 newcomers in Jay Alexander's first recruiting class as head coach.

The Eagles were predicted to finish behind Central Michigan University, University of Toledo, and Ball State University. The defending MAC West champions from BSU earned 72 points to take home preseason favorites honors as both the regular season and tournament champion (5 votes). The Eagles earned 35 points, while also getting two votes to win the MAC Tournament. The defending MAC regular season champions from Bowling Green State University were predicted to win the East Division, while the defending MAC Tournament champions from Kent State University were predicted to finish second in the East.

The Eagles begin the 2010 season on the road for 26 straight games, beginning with a three-game series in Lawrence, Kan. to take on the Kansas Jayhawks, Feb. 19-21.

MAC Preseason Coaches Poll:

East Division

1. Bowling Green – 64 points

2. Kent State – 61 points

3. Ohio – 49 points

4. Miami – 39 points

5. Akron – 25 points

6. Buffalo – 14 points

West Division

1. Ball State – 72 points

2. Toledo – 52 points

3. Central Michigan – 44 points

4. Eastern Michigan – 35 points

5. Northern Illinois – 29 points

6. Western Michigan – 21 points

Tournament Champion:

Ball State (5), Kent State (3), Bowling Green (2), Eastern Michigan (2), Miami (1)

Eastern Michigan Athletics

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