Baseball Readies for Tuesday Mid-Week Game Against Butler

Baseball vs Butler
Date	Tuesday, April 16
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Oestrike Stadium
Preview Info	EMU Notes (PDF) \| Media Guide (PDF)
Live Stats	Live Stats
Live Video	Watch Live
Social Media	@EMU _Baseball \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University baseball team will continue its season-long eight-game homestand Tuesday, April 16, as they will play host to the visiting Butler University Bulldogs. First pitch is slated for 4 p.m.
Fans can follow along on Eagles All-Access using a live stats and watch link which can be accessed on the EMU baseball schedule page at EMUEagles.com/baseball/schedule. Also stay tuned to EMU baseball socials including EMU_Baseball on X (formerly Twitter), and emu.baseball on Instagram for live in-game updates.
Following the tilt against BU, EMU will remain in Ypsilanti, as they will next host the University of Akron Zips Friday-Sunday, April 19-21.

FIRST PITCHES
» Cory Taylor had five hits in Eastern's game against Oakland University, April 9. He became the first Eagle to have five hits in a game since former Eagle Jeff Timko did so in the 2018 season.
» EMU currently stands sixth in the MAC with a 8-7 conference record after winning its first three MAC series, marking the first time the Eagles have done so since the 2008 campaign.
» The Eagles most recently set season-highs in runs (17), hits (24), and RBI (15) against Oakland, April 9. EMU's 24 hits that day were the most from the Eagles since the 2009 campaign.
» With series wins over rivals Western Michigan (March 23-24) and Central Michigan (March 28-30), Eastern has beaten both its Michigan MAC foes in a series in the same season for the first time since 2012.
» After losing its first three one-run affairs to start the season, EMU has prevailed to win in each of its last five one-run games.
» The Eagles and Bulldogs will meet for just the 10th time on Tuesday, the Bulldogs hold a slight edge in the series, as they have won five of the nine games thus far.
» Following the tilt against BU, EMU will remain in Ypsilanti, as they will next host the Akron Zips Friday-Sunday, April 19-21.
» For all things EMU Baseball, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMU_Baseball on X (formerly Twitter), emu.baseball on Instagram, and emu.baseball on TikTok.

DOUBLE DOWN
Eastern currently lead the MAC in doubles (65), and doubles per game (1.91), figures that rank EMU 105th and 104 th in the nation, respectively. The Eagles also hold the highest single-game total in doubles, as they have barreled seven twice this season, first against Belmont University, Feb. 18, and most recently against Morehead State University, March 17. Furthermore, Eastern posts a .472 slugging percentage, ranking fourth in the MAC and 91st in the country.

CORY TAYLOR: NATIONALLY RANKED IN TRIPLES
Cory Taylor recorded his third triple of the season when he smoked a ball off the right-field wall of Oestrike Stadium in the series opening game against Ohio, April 13. Taylor's three three-baggers rank as the most on the team, second most in the MAC and slot him 41st nationally.

CORY TAYLOR: FIRST FIVE-HIT DAY SINCE 2018
Senior Cory Taylor swung a blazing-hot bat against Oakland, April 9. The second baseman went 5-for-7 from the dish, marking the first five-hit day from the Eagles since former Eagle Jeff Timko did so in an 11-5 win over Nicholls State, March 3, 2018. The Shelbyville, Ind., native, homered twice in the game, for the first multi-homer game of his career, tying for the team-lead (seven). Additionally, both Taylor's hits (five) and RBI count (four) went down as career-highs.
AIDAN ARBOSMASH
First-year Eagle Aidan Arbogast tabbed his first multi-homer game of the season, as he rocketed two over the Oestrike Stadium walls in EMU's 15-6 win over Ohio University, April 13. One of his homers came with the bases juiced, marking Eastern's first grand slam of the season, and the first since former Eagle Matt Kirk walked-off the University of Toledo, April 23, 2023.

HOT BATS
The Eastern offense erupted for a 17-run, 24-hit, 15-RBI performance from the dish in its mid-week game against Oakland, April 9. The runs, hits, and RBI totals each mark season-highs for the Eagles, while the hits are the most from the program since they knocked 28 in a 27-7 win over Bowling Green State University, April 8, 2009. The 17 runs went down as the second time this season the Eagles have eclipsed the 15-run mark, previously doing so in their 16-6 thumping of the Belmont University Bruins, Feb. 18.

KLEIMAN THE LADDER
After tallying three hits in his first seven games played, first year transfer student-athlete Brendan Kleiman has fully adjusted to the Division I level. Kleiman went on a team-high 10 game hit-streak, the longest from the Eagles so far this season, recording at least one knock in every game he played from March 16-April 6. Additionally, the junior tallied multi-hit games in five contests during his 10-game streak. Kleiman most recently tallied the first long ball of his Eastern career, sending one over the left field wall of Oestrike Stadium in the seventh inning against Oakland, April 9. Altogether, the catcher has quickly risen to the top of the EMU leaderboards in batting average, as he is batting at a .388 clip this season, the fourth best figure in the MAC.

TOUGH TO SHAKE
Eastern showed its resilience in its series against Central Michigan, March 28-30. In both of EMU's wins in the three-game set, the Eagles walked-off the Chippewas in the ninth inning, coming back from down four runs in the first game (March 28), and three runs in the series finale (March 30). In total, EMU scored 10 runs in the final two innings in both of its walk-off triumphs over the Chippewas. Furthermore, the wins marked the Eagles first time coming back from down three runs or more to win a game this season.

THE MORE THE MERRIER
Eastern won its first extra-innings contest of the season with a 13-12 win over the Golden Flashes in 11 innings, April 6. The win marked the first extra-innings win of the Head Coach Robbie Britt era. The Eagles are now 1-0 in extra-inning contests under Britt.

COMPLETE GAMES NATIONWIDE
Senior Nick Chittum is one of 19 players in the nation to record multiple complete games this season, doing so against the University of Southern Indiana, Feb. 25, and most recently against Western Michigan University, March 24. One of 126 Division I pitchers to go the distance this season, Chittum held the Broncos scoreless in his most recent CG, the senior became the first EMU pitcher to toss a nine-inning shutout since former Eagle Brad Allen notched a 3-0 complete-game triumph over Bowling Green, March 25, 2017.

KYLE SCHROEDLE: MID-SEASON FORM
Kyle Schroedle has turned a corner in his second Division I season. The Redding, Calif., native has already surpassed his home run total from last season (seven), which stands as the eighth-most in the MAC. The graduate student has also eclipsed his RBI total from last season (23), as he has currently driven-in 25 this season. Additionally, Schroedle is four hits away from tying his total from last season (41), and has made improvements to his slugging percentage (up .101 points from last season), OPS (up .131 points from last season), and batting average (up .31 points from last season).

McRAE'S BREAKOUT SEASON
Also in his second Division I campaign, Blake McRae has grown leaps and bounds since last season, as the senior has already surpassed his 2023 season total in nearly every hitting statistic. Last season, the Armada, Mich., native batted .292 with 26 hits, 16 runs, two doubles, two home runs, 13 RBI, and 34 TB. This season, McRae is batting .344 with 42 hits, 32 runs, seven doubles, one triple, five homers, 26 RBI, and 66 TB. McRae has also increased his OPS 207 points (up from .772 to .979), batting average (up from .292 to .344), and slugging percentage (up from .382 to .541). In his most recent game versus the Bobcats, April 14, McRae rocketed his fifth home run of the season.

STRONG START
Freshman relief pitcher Liam Baker has had a strong start to his young career. The right-hander has allowed just three earned runs in his collegiate career (13.2 IP). Baker most recently had another strong appearance in relief effort against Ohio, April 13, allowing no hits, one earned run, while striking out two and issuing one walk.

BOB GETS THE NOD
Senior Bobby Jones started in the series opening game against Ohio, April 13, marking his 10th start of the season. Jones' 10 starts rank as the most in the conference thus far, and sixth most in the nation. Jones also sits 47th in the nation and first in the MAC with five wins on the year.

BOBBY JONES: NATIONALLY RANKED
Bobby Jones is nationally ranked in both strikeout-to-walk ratio and walks allowed per nine innings. Jones stands second in the conference in both categories, while ranking eighth nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio (7.86) and 13th in the country in walks allowed per nine innings (1.18). Jones most recently sent a career-high 10 packing via the strikeout against Ohio, April 13.

DANGEROUS ON THE BASE PATHS
Junior Logan Hugo ranks second in the MAC and stands 49th nationally with 16 stolen bases. He also stands 39th in the country and second in the conference in stolen bases per game (0.53). Hugo leads an Eagles team that ranks 56th nationally in stolen bags, and second in the conference with 55. EMU also ranks high in stolen bases per game, averaging 1.62 swipes per contest (56th nationally, second in MAC).

SCORING FIRST
When scoring first, Eastern posts an 8-5 record. The trend continues when Eastern Michigan scores in the first inning of the game, as the Eagles hold a 6-3 record in such occurrences.

12 HITS = WINS
The Eagles have a 9-3 record when recording 12 or more hits in a single game this season. Most recently, EMU tabbed 24 hits in its game against Oakland, April 9. Additionally, the Eagles have out-hit their opponent 18 times this season, compiling a 10-8 record when doing so.

IMPORTANCE OF THE SIXTH
The Eagles post a 11-1 record when leading after six innings of play. Conversely, when trailing after six, EMU is 2-19. Eastern lost for the first time this season after leading past the sixth inning, falling to Oakland, 20-17, April 9. EMU is still perfect when leading after seven and eight innings, producing a 8-0 record in both scenarios.

MOVE EM' UP
Glenn Miller has excelled this season in advancing EMU baserunners via the sacrifice bunt. Miller has notched six sacrifice bunts on the season, ranking him second in the MAC and 38th nationally. The senior most recently executed a sacrifice bunt in the bottom of the third inning against Oakland, April 9, advancing an EMU baserunner to second base.

IN THE SERIES: BUTLER
The Eagles and Bulldogs will meet for the 10th time on Tuesday, Butler holds the slight edge in the series, winning five of the nine total matchups thus far. Tuesday's game will mark just the second time the Eagles have hosted Butler, as they first did so in the 2018 campaign. The matchup between the Eagles and Bulldogs is typically a high scoring affair for the Eagles, as they average 6.22 runs when facing Butler.

SCOUTING BUTLER
Picked to finish seventh in the Big East preseason poll, the Bulldogs currently hold a 13-21 record, and have struggled in conference play, as they have won just one of their six Big East games this season. BU will enter Tuesday's contest having lost seven consecutive games, most recently being swept by Georgetown University, April 13-14.

ON THE HORIZON
Following the tilt against BU, EMU will remain in Ypsilanti, as they will next host the University of Akron Zips Friday-Sunday, April 19-21.

FOLLOW US
For all things EMU Baseball, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMU_Baseball on X (formerly Twitter), emu.baseball on Instagram, and emu.baseball on TikTok.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Aidan Arbogast

Liam Baker

Nick Chittum

Logan Hugo

Bobby Jones

Matt Kirk

Brendan Kleiman

Blake McRae

Glenn Miller

Kyle Schroedle

Cory Taylor

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