David Craan (Fighting Illini bio) was a speedy, fine-gloved catcher for the Illinois baseball team. David finished his tenure with the Illini in spring 2019. Apparently, his time at Illinois is not done yet. David wasn’t your typical catcher and there is lot more to him than meets the eye.…
The Illinois baseball recruitment team has been busy lately. Today, it was announced that seven high school athletes and two junior college transfers have signed national letters of intent to play for the Illini. According to FightingIllini.com, they are… Jack Crowder RHP Plainfield East HS Ryan Hampe C John A.…
The Illinois baseball fall season has now come to an end. With it, comes some needed staff changes to complete the coaching staff. Illinois baseball announced that former San Francisco Giants pitching coordinator Mark Allen will now be the pitching coach for the Illini. Not only does Coach Allen bring…
Last week, Illinois baseball announced that Assistant Coach Drew Dickinson has accepted a position as assistant coach for Virginia. I never saw Drew Dickinson pitch at Illinois Field. I started following Illinois baseball during their championship season of 2005 so I never had the pleasure. As I began to learn…
On Saturday, Illinois baseball traveled to Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana to take on the Butler Bulldogs in their first fall game. Robin and I decided to make a road trip of it and boy, we’re sure glad we did! With some help of some new Illinois players, the Illini…
In addition to the changes in the newly-released roster, there is one change on the coaching side of Illinois Baseball in 2020. Illini right-handed pitcher Quinn Snarskis will be staying on and will serve as the student assistant coach. Snarskis will join head coach Dan Hartleb, assistant coaches Drew Dickinson…
Today, Illinois Baseball released the roster for the 2020 season! And boy, it’s a young team! The FightingIllini.com article gives a very detailed summary of the twelve freshman and six incoming transfers who are joining the best team in the Big Ten. One name that sticks out is Xavier Watson.…
It was announced Wednesday that former Illini shortstop Shawn Roof was named Manager of the Year of the Class A Advanced California League. Roof earned the honor as manager of the Visalia Rawhide who have a league-best 78-46 record. The Rawhide easily won the Northern Division championship in the first…
When the 2019 MLB rookie draft came and went without Illini starter Andy Fisher’s name being called, I was more than a bit surprised. Fisher had been the staple of the Illini rotation going 7-1 with a 2.75 ERA in the 2019 season. More than that, I don’t think I…
Just a few days after the Fall 2019 schedule was released, Illinois baseball has announced the schedule for the 2020 season. In the fifteen years that I have been covering the team, this is the earliest I have seen the new season schedule released. Official announcement from FightingIllini.com Illinois’ season…