Spartan Baseball Opens Big Ten Tournament Against Northwestern
5/22/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 22, 2002
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -
2002 BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
Michigan State (36-17, 16-12)Nick Bates (9-3, 3.04 ERA)
Vs.
Northwestern (24-27, 14-15)Gabe Ribas (5-4, 4.92 ERA)
Seibert FieldMinneapolis, Minn.4:30 p.m. EDT
Michigan State Baseball Notes
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MSU IN BIG TEN TOURNAMENT: Michigan State is making its sixth appearance in the Big Ten Tournament and the first since 1994. In five previous appearances, the Spartans have a record of 4-10. MSU's best showings were a pair of second-place finishes in 1988 and 1992.
SPARTANS ON A ROLL: Michigan State enters the tournament on a hot streak, having won seven of its last nine games, including five of six against Big Ten opponents.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HOPEFULS: With a strong showing this week, the Spartans are hoping to make a case for a bid to the NCAA Tournament. Selections for the 64-team field will be announced on Monday, May 27. Michigan State has made four appearances in the NCAA Tournament, but none since the 1979 season.
RED CEDAR SLUGGERS SET OFFENSIVE RECORDS: This season, Michigan State's offensive attack has rewritten nearly every school record. Entering the Big Ten Tournament, the Spartans have set new team marks for hits (635), runs (471), RBI (429), doubles (116) and home runs (88).
THIRD PLACE NOT TOO SHABBY: The Spartans finished the regular season with a 16-12 Big Ten record, good for third place in the conference. This marked the best finish for Michigan State since 1994, when MSU tied for third with a 13-15 mark. Michigan State has not recorded 16 or more conference victories since 1992, when it finished 17-11.
36 WINS PLACE 2002 SPARTANS IN ELITE COMPANY: Michigan State enters the Big Ten Tournament with 36 wins this season. That total is good for a tie for second place on the Spartan all-time list. The 1992 and 1971 squads also recorded 36 wins. The MSU single-season win record is 41, set by the 1988 Spartans.
MSU'S HIT MEN: Indiana's Kennard Jones leads the Big Ten with 88 hits. He is followed, however, by a trio of Spartans who are close behind. Chris McCuiston is second in the conference with 84 hits, followed by Bob Malek (80) and Jared Koutnik (79).
SAFE AWAY FROM HOME: A large part of Michigan State's success is its ability to win away from East Lansing. This season, MSU is 23-4 on the road and 2-2 on a neutral site for a 25-6 mark away from home.
THE STORY OF THE LONG BALL: In 2002, the home run has been a friend of Michigan State. Not only have the Spartans hit a team record 88, but the MSU pitching staff has allowed just 33 in 429 innings of work. That equates to one home run allowed for every 13 innings.
MALEK'S ATTACK ON THE RECORD BOOKS: In just three years, junior outfielder Bob Malek is rewriting many of MSU's hitting records. Last weekend at Penn State, Malek became the Spartans' career RBI leader with 162 runs driven in. With 237 hits, he stands one safety behind Steve Money's 238. Malek also currently has 43 doubles, ranking second on the career list. It is important to note that the players he trails in both the doubles and hits categories played four years at Michigan State.
BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Bob Malek was named Tri-Big Ten Player of the Year on Tuesday. This marked the first time in Michigan State history that a Spartan has been named Player of the Year. Malek ranked in the top 10 in most every Big Ten offensive category, including hits (80, 3rd), runs (60, t-2nd), doubles (19, 1st), home runs (13, t-4th), total bases (144, 2nd), slugging percentage (.709, 2nd) and stolen bases (16, 7th).
ALL-BIG TEN HONOREES: Along with being named Big Ten Player of the Year, Bob Malek was named First-Team All-Big Ten. He becomes just the fifth player in Michigan State history to be a two-time first-team all-conference honoree, joining Charles Matthews (1954-55), Joe Porrevecchio (1962-64), Al Weston (1974, '76-77) and Mark Mulder (1997-98). Malek was joined on the first team by designated hitter Kyle Geswein. Pitcher Nick Bates and outfielder Chris McCuiston earned second-team honors.
SPARTANS SWEEP NITTANY LIONS: Michigan State closed out the regular season with a four-game sweep of Penn State in State College. This marked the first four-game series sweep of a Big Ten opponent by the Spartans since 1992 when MSU swept a series at Northwestern. During the four games last weekend, the Spartans outscored the Nittany Lions, 62-10.
A PERFECT "10": Allright, so Tim Day isn't perfect, but with his 10-3 record he has tied the MSU single-season record for wins. Previously, Dick Radatz (10-1 in 1959), Rob Clancy (10-1 in 1971) and Stuart Hirschman (10-3 in 1992) were the only three Spartans to earn double digit victories in one season. MSU's tournament-opening starter, Nick Bates, is just one win away from 10 wins, boasting a 9-3 mark.
RING 'EM UP: Nick Bates is leaving his name on the MSU single-season and career strikeout charts. He currently ranks 10th on the career list, four shy of ninth-place Ed Hobaugh. His 94 strikeouts rank fourth on the single-season list.
RBI GUY: Chris McCuiston has also made an attack on the Spartan record books. The senior outfielder is having a career year and has set a single-season record with 67 RBI. McCuiston's 147 total bases are also a single-season record.
FUNDAMENTALLY SOUND: Besides having a great offensive attack and solid pitching, the Spartans are a very sound defensive team. Michigan State ranks third in the Big Ten with a .964 fielding percentage. This season, the Spartans have committed 20 fewer errors than their opponents.
STREAKS OF SIGNIFICANCE: Six Spartans have recorded double-digit game hitting streaks this season, including Bob Malek (17), Jared Koutnik (14), Charlie Braun (13), Chris McCuiston (12), James Moreno (12) and Brady Burrill (11).
20 AND COUNTING: This season was the quickest the Spartans reached the 20-win plateau since 1988, when the Green and White recorded their 20th win in their 26th game. Last season, it took MSU 40 games to reach 20 wins, compared with just 26 in 2002.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Junior Brady Burrill was named Big Ten Player of the Week Feb. 25, after hitting .583 and knocking in nine runs. Sophomore Scott Koerber earned the award the following week after belting four home runs in a three-game series with Charlotte. Bryan Gale was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week on April 22 after a complete game shutout vs. Michigan on April 19. Bob Malek earned the first weekly honor of his stellar career on May 20.
