BGSU baseball returns to Steller Field for a three-game series against Eastern Michigan.
First pitch between the Falcons and Eagles is set for 1 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Falcon Media Sports Network will have a call of all three games, with every broadcast streaming on bgfalconmedia.com.
Coyle Withrow and Sam Morris will have the call on Falcon Radio on Friday. Then, Tyler Kavalecz and Chas McNeil will be on the air on WBGU 88.1 FM on Saturday and Falcon Radio on Sunday.
Matchup History
The teams have played each other 190 times, with Eastern Michigan leading the all-time series 113-77.
However, Bowling Green has had recent success, winning two out of three games against the Eagles each of the past two seasons.
Last year, the Falcons clinched the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Regular Season Championship on EMU’s home field.
Scouting Bowling Green
Bowling Green sits in fourth place in the MAC standings with a 25-14 overall and 13-8 conference record. But the Falcons are only 7-6 at Steller Field this season.
BGSU has had a rough stretch lately, losing their past three MAC series to Miami (OH), Western Michigan and Ball State. Overall,
BG has lost four of their past five MAC series.
The Falcons are also coming off a 9-2 non-conference loss to Michigan on Tuesday.
“It’s winning time,” BGSU head coach Kyle Hallock said. “You start getting into the back half of April and into May; playing competitively won’t be enough to extend your season. You have to play, and you have to win.”
Bowling Green is currently banged up, with junior two-way player DJ Newman, a preseason First Team All-American, and junior infielder Sam Seidel, an All-MAC First Team selection last season, currently out with injuries.
BGSU’s offense has been solid this season; however, the power numbers are much lower than last year.
The Falcons rank second in the MAC with a .306 batting average and 57 stolen bases, third with 81 doubles, 197 walks drawn and a .412 on-base percentage (OBP), fifth with 295 runs scored, sixth with a .466 slugging percentage and seventh with 43 home runs.
Bowling Green’s pitching has been up and down this year.
The Orange and Brown rank fifth in the MAC with a 6.45 earned run average (ERA) and sixth with 306 strikeouts.
The Falcons have allowed 57 home runs and thrown 47 wild pitches, the most in the conference.
Scouting Eastern Michigan
Eastern Michigan is currently just inside the MAC Tournament bracket, sitting in fifth place in the MAC standings with a 17-18 overall and 9-9 conference record.
Although the Eagles have lost back-to-back conference series against Ball State and Toledo, they are coming off back-to-back wins against Albany and Youngstown State.
EMU’s offense has been solid this season.
The Eagles rank fourth in the MAC with a .296 batting average and a .407 OBP, fifth with a .467 slugging percentage, sixth with 281 runs scored and 44 home runs, eighth with 168 walks and ninth with 70 doubles.
Eastern Michigan is one of the hardest teams to get out at the plate, striking out just 254 times this year, the fewest in the conference.
EMU’s pitching has been subpar for most of this season.
The Eagles rank just seventh in the conference with 297 strikeouts and eighth with a 7.50 ERA.
They have also walked 220 batters, the second-most in the MAC. However, Eastern Michigan has only given up 35 home runs this year, the fewest in the conference.
Falcon Four Players to Watch
Garrett Wright (Bowling Green #3)
The sophomore catcher has been one of the best hitters in the MAC this season.
Wright leads the MAC with a .423 batting average and a .530 OBP. He also ranks second with a 1.227 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS), third with a .697 slugging percentage, 47 runs scored and five sacrifice flies, fourth with three triples and sixth with 12 doubles.
The Massillon, Ohio, native is batting .600 (9-15) over the past three games, with five runs scored, three runs batted in (RBI), two doubles and no strikeouts.
He is also one hit-by-pitch (HBP) away from tying his own single-season program record of 21.
Gunner Antillon (Bowling Green #41)
Antillon has been arguably the hottest bat in the MAC over the past week.
The senior infielder is the reigning MAC Player of the Week, Brooks Wallace Award Player of the Week and Dick Howser Trophy National Player of the Week.
The Rancho Cucamonga, California, native is batting .625 (15-24) over the past five games with 12 RBIs, six runs scored, five doubles, two home runs, two walks and just one strikeout.
Antillon ranks sixth in the MAC with 12 doubles and eighth with 50 hits.
Logan Hugo (Eastern Michigan #7)
Hugo has been arguably Eastern Michigan’s best hitter this season.
The senior outfielder ranks sixth in the MAC with 12 doubles, seventh with 13 stolen bases, eighth with 42 RBIs and 10th with nine home runs.
Drew Beckner (Eastern Michigan #22)
The senior left-handed pitcher has been the anchor of EMU’s pitching staff.
Beckner leads the MAC with 60 strikeouts. He also ranks fifth in the conference with a 3.79 ERA and 54.2 innings pitched, sixth with three wins and ninth with 15 strikeouts looking.
The Westerville, Ohio, native struck out a season-high batters in his last game pitched against Albany on Thursday.
