May 6, 2005
by Ben Taylor, Illinois Sports Information
Leading the Big Ten and ranked 17th in the nation in victories with an 8-2 record, junior pitcher Brian Blomquist has been a major reason for Illinois' resurgent 2005 season.
After missing the 2004 campaign as he rehabilitated his injured right arm following Tommy John surgery, Blomquist has been in top form since his first start against Wagner on Feb. 27.
"Bloomie," as his teammates and coaches refer to him, has thrown 73 1/3 innings already this season in 10 starts, nearly doubling his career innings pitched total, tripling his career win total and leading Illinois to a first-place standing in the Big Ten.
"Any time you have a No. 1 pitcher who can go out and set the tone in the Friday game and be considered an ace, that allows everybody else on your pitching staff to fit in their correct slot," said Dan Hartleb, Illinois associate head coach and pitching coach.
"If you don't have that true ace then everybody kind of pitches out of order and it creates havoc for the entire weekend," continued Hartleb. "Bloomie coming back from his surgery and taking over as our ace has really helped us to put everybody in order in the pitching staff."
But Blomquist isn't the only Illinois pitcher in his first season back from Tommy John surgery. Junior Jake Stewart (Normal, Ill.) and sophomore Jake Toohey (Chicago, Ill.) also underwent the surgery to replace a damaged ligament in the elbow and missed the 2004 season. While those three pitchers rehabilitated their arms, Illinois struggled to a 22-33 overall record, 11-21 in the Big Ten.
"Last year we'd sit on the side and watch the games and it was pretty brutal watching everybody struggling," Toohey said. "It's nice to be back working together and playing well."
In that first start against Wagner, Blomquist gave a preview of what was to come, cruising through six shutout innings of a 16-1 blowout, allowing only three hits and a walk while striking out six. Six days later, Blomquist bewildered Texas-Pan American hitters, throwing a complete-game two-hit shutout while walking one and striking out six. A hit batter and a fielding error accounted for the only other baserunners UTPA managed as Blomquist faced three batters more than the minimum.
"Against Wagner, he kind of got his feet wet, and when he shut down UTPA it was kind of an eye-opener for him," Illinois catcher Chris Robinson said. "I'm sure he thought he could do it, but going out there and proving it is something different. Once he did that, he's been lights-out for us."
Blomquist lost his first game of the season on March 11 and didn't lose again until April 29, a string of six victorious starts in Friday games, the first game of a series.
"One of the most important things for having a successful season, especially in the Big Ten, is having a good Friday guy," Toohey said. "Bloomie's been great on Friday, and if you're winning on most of your Fridays it gives you a ton of momentum for the rest of the weekend."
Toohey has been a great story as well, taking over the closer role for the first half of the season before running into shoulder problems he thinks are unrelated to his earlier surgery.
"He's done a great job out of the bullpen," Hartleb said. "Even when he's not real sharp, he still competes and gives us an opportunity to win. He's been very, very good for us because any time you have a closer you feel like you can go to the bullpen and you're as good if not better (than with a starter), and that doesn't happen a lot in college baseball."
Toohey had one of his best career outings on March 6 against Sam Houston State, holding the Bearkats scoreless in 6 2/3 innings of relief while allowing only five hits and striking out six. Thanks to some excellent fielding, Toohey faced only four batters more than the minimum despite the five hits.
All three of the comeback pitchers credit a great deal of their success to the role they assumed in 2004. While sidelined, the trio sat behind the backstop and charted pitches, videotaped and tracked the game. Doing this allowed them to see how different pitchers worked and how successful they were.
"What you learn from that is what certain guys do to get guys out and what you need to do based on your own talents," Stewart said. "We all learned a lot, Bloomie especially. You see what kind of year he's having. He knows what he has and he knows how to get people out with it. Watching the games definitely helped with that."
Stewart has been something of a surprise for the Illini, starting the year in the bullpen before becoming the team's fourth starter. Having been a reliever for his entire college career - except one start in his freshman year at Illinois State - Stewart has made a successful transition to a starting role.
"Stew has come in the last couple weeks and been the guy we've turned to on Sunday," Robinson said. "He comes in and throws strikes, fills up the zone. Every time he goes out there, the guys know he's going to give us a chance to win and that's all you can ask for on Sunday."
With their success already in 2005, the "Tommy John Crew," as Robinson jokingly refers to them, has exceeded the traditional success rate of 70-80 percent for the surgery, according to Dr. Art Rettig, associate clinic professor at Indiana University and physician at Methodist Sports Center.
By exceeding projections and consistently throwing solid outings, these three pitchers have helped revive a tradition-rich Illinois baseball program and put the Illini in position for a successful postseason run.
