Eagles Baseball to Meet Golden Grizzlies in Mid-Week Contest

Baseball vs Oakland (10-11)
Date	Wednesday, March 30
Location	Ypsilanti, Mich.\| Oestrike Stadium
Game Notes	EMU Notes
Live Stats	EMUEagles.com
Audio	N/A
Twitter	@EMU_Baseball

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University baseball team, remains at home for a mid-week showdown with in-state foe Oakland University, Wednesday night, March 30. The second meeting this season between the two opponents is set to begin at 5 p.m. from Oestrike Stadium.

    The action can be followed via live stats or by following our Twitter account, @EMU_Baseball. Links can be found on the schedule page of EMUEagles.com.

ALL-TIME SERIES: The Eagles and Golden Grizzlies have met 56 times in their respective histories, with EMU holding the all-time advantage 44-12. The two schools have met once already this season, when Oakland got the better of Eastern, 11-3, at the Flyer Classic in Dayton, Ohio.

GAUGING THE GOLDEN GRIZZLIES: Oakland enters the week with a 10-11 record, not including a game versus Michigan State later tonight, March 29. They have yet to play a home game, but are 9-11 in true road games. They have gotten out to a solid start in Horizon League play, with their record sitting at 4-2, including a sweep of Northern Kentucky.

    The OU offense hits at a .236 clip with 168 hits. They are narrowly being outscored, 105-108. Oakland is led by everyday starter Mike Brosseau, who is hitting at a .284 average with a team-high four home runs.

    Defensively, the staff holds a 4.09 ERA, yielding opponents to a .267 batting average. Wednesday's starter, Collin Gee, has a 5.40 ERA in 13.1 innings this season. It will be his first start.

CLEAN SWEEP: The Eagles began conference play with a commanding sweep of Bowling Green State University, March 25-27. EMU won games, 5-4, 4-0, and 8-4, and did not yield an earned run in the series until the ninth inning of the third game. It marked the first weekend sweep of a conference opponent since taking three from Western Michigan, April of 2014.

RUN EAGLES RUN: EMU has been alert and impactful on the base paths early in the season, as the team currently ranks second in the country in steals (56). In addition, redshirt junior Marquise Gill is fifth in the nation in steals with 18 on the season, while four Eagles are in the top-five of the conference.

BROTHERLY CONNECTION: Wednesday's game will have a family connection between the two ball clubs, with brothers Tony DiLeo and Matt DiLeo, who are both catchers for their respective teams.

GOTTA EARN THOSE RUNS: Freshman Davis Feldman is third in the MAC in earned run average with a 1.84 mark. This also ranks as the 96th best ERA in the country, and Feldman is one of just 12 true freshman to rank within the top-100. Additionally, fellow freshman Tyler Butzin is second in team ERA with a 3.07 mark, and has not allowed an earned run in his last two starts, totaling 14.2 innings.

GOING STREAKING: Senior Mitchell McGeein is currently on a 10-game hitting streak, as well as a 13-game reached base streak, which are both the longest of the season for any EMU player.

EAGLES DIG THE LONG BALL: EMU currently ranks 87th in the nation, second and in the MAC, in home runs with 16 as a team on the season. Individually, senior Jackson Martin has hit a team-high five so far, which is tied for fourth in the MAC and 84th in the nation. The Eagles hit a season-high four home runs in the win over BGSU, March 27.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER: Senior Jackson Martin is making the most of his final season in the Green and White. The Ontario native is hitting .304 on the year with 24 hits and team-highs in RBI's (20) and home runs (5) and slugging percentage (.608). In the first 18 games, he matched the amount of starts he had all of last season, while his 19 hits, four home runs, four doubles, four steals and 19 RBI's were more than he had in his first three seasons combined.

DESIGNATED MASHER: Sophomore designated hitter Brennan Williams has done it all with the stick this season for EMU. He leads the team and is 10th in the MAC with a .333 batting average, including a team-high 29 hits. He is one of two players for Eastern Michigan to start every game this season, the other being shortstop Marquise Gill.

TRACKING THE TATERS: Senior Mitchell McGeein entered his final season with 19 career homers, good for 20th on the all-time EMU list. He currently has three home runs this season, putting him tied for 16th place all-time.

TAKING ONE FOR THE TEAM: Eastern has been able to get on base any way possible this season, especially through hit-by-pitch. EMU is 74th in the nation and second in the MAC, being plunked 27 times. The Eagles were nailed a program record seven times against Arizona State, March 6. In addition, Jackson Martin got beamed three times in that game, tying the most in a single game since 1999. Martin is 40th in the nation, being hit six times this season.

WORKHORSE OUT OF THE PEN: Senior lefty Michael Marsinek has been the go-to guy in relief so far this season for the Eagles. The veteran leads EMU in appearances (9), and in innings pitched out of the bullpen (13.2). Against Dayton, March 16, Marsinek struck out a career-high five batters in three innings without allowing an earned run. His ERA sits at a career-low 3.95.

PUTTING ON THE HITS: Despite the team being out-scored this season 135-122, the Eagles are out-hitting opponents by 19, 204-185 and have a better team batting average, .268-.254. They have also hit more doubles and home runs than the opposition.

FANTASTIC FRESHMEN: A trio of freshmen have proven they will make significant contributions for the Eagles in 2016. Pitchers Davis Feldman and Tyler Butzin have already locked in spots in the weekend rotation. They are one-two in team ERA. Meanwhile in the field, Max Schuemann has seen his name in the starting lineup 16 times this season, splitting time between second and third base.

BULLS ON THE HORIZON: The Eagles head on the road for the first road conference weekend series of the season, a three-game set in Buffalo versus the Bulls. The weekend begins with a Friday afternoon game, April 1, with a 3 p.m. first pitch.

Eagles Baseball to Meet Golden Grizzlies in Mid-Week Contest

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Players Mentioned

Tyler Butzin

Tony DiLeo

Davis Feldman

Marquise Gill

Michael Marsinek

Jackson Martin

Mitchell McGeein

Max Schuemann

Brennan Williams

Eastern Michigan Athletics