PREVIEW
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- [11] Illinois heads to Omaha, Neb., for the 20245Big Ten Baseball Tournament Presented by IFS.ai, at Charles Schwab Field Omaha. The 12-team tournament will determine the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
This year's tournament will incorporate pool play with four groups consisting of three teams each. The four pool winners will meet in the single-elimination semifinals on May 24, followed by the championship game on May 25.
In Pool B, the Fighting Illini will face [7] Michigan on Tuesday and [2] UCLA on Wednesday. Both games feature a 10 a.m. CT first pitch.
NOTES
THE 2025Â BIG TEN BASEBALL TOURNAMENT
Illinois baseball begins postseason play when they head to Omaha, Neb., for the 2025 Big Ten Baseball Tournament Presented by IFS.ai.
The Illini secured the No. 11 seed by going 2-1 from May 15-17 at Ohio State, earning their sixth-straight berth to the conference tournament.
All games will be broadcast nationally on Big Ten Network and will also be available on the FOX Sports app.
Connor McKnight, Jeff Leise, Danan Hughes, Connor Onion and Scott Pose will be on the call for all tournament long on BTN.
Scott Beatty will call the action for the Illini on the Busey Bank Illini Sports Network (1400 AM/93.9FM).
Streaming, audio, and stats links are also available at FightingIllini.com.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
[11] Illinois will face [7] Michigan and [2] UCLA during Pool B play at the tournament. The Illini would face the winner of Pool C if they advance, which features [3] Iowa, [6] Indiana and [10] Rutgers.
Michigan salvaged its series vs. Indiana with a victory on May 17 to avoid a sweep at home. The Wolverines finished the season 33-21 with a 16-14 record in conference play.
The Wolverines are led at the plate by INF Benny Casillas, who slashed .406/.491/.579 to go along with 20 doubles, one triple, four home runs, 38 RBI and 28 walks over 53 games. INF Mitch Voit paces the squad in the power department, leading the team in OPS (1.132), home runs (13) and RBI (58).
Michigan is led on the mound by RHP Kurt Barr, who went 6-5 with a 4.26 ERA (33 ER/69.2 IP) in 15 games, 13 starts, striking out 74 batters. RHP Max Debiec leads relief arms, going 0-1 with a 2.63 ERA (8 ER/27.1 IP) in 18 appearances, holding opponents to a .181 average.
UCLA won two of three games vs. Northwestern from May 15-17 to claim a share of the Big Ten championship with Oregon. The Bruins into the contest with an 39-15 record, including a 22-8 mark in conference play.
Golden Spikes Semifinalist INF Roch Cholowsky leads UCLA at the plate this season, posting an overall slash of .371/.511/.762 to go along with 17 doubles, one triple, 20 home runs and 63 RBI. 1B Mulivai Levu leads the team with 71 RBI.
RHP Michael Barnett leads the starters, going 10-1 with a 4.23 ERA (31 ER/66.0 IP) in 15 games, 10 starts, amassing 66 strikeouts. RHP Jack O'Connor is leading arm out of the bullpen, going 2-0 with a 1.83 ERA (4 ER/19.2 IP) in 19 relief appearances, firing 14 strikeouts.
ALL-TIME SERIES INFO
Tuesday's contest vs. Michigan marks game No. 264 in a series that dates back to 1892, with Illinois trailing in the series 110-151-2.
The two teams opened Big Ten play this season at historic Holman Stadium in Vero Beach, Fla., where the Wolverines took two of three games over the Illini.
Michigan has ended Illinois' Big Ten Tournament runs in each of the last two season, claiming a 4-2 victory on May 24, 2024, and a 6-3 win on May 24, 2023, in contests played at Charles Schwab Field Omaha.
Illinois trails in the all-time series vs. UCLA, 2-5, with the Illini going 0-3 at home, 1-1 on the road and 1-1 at neutral sites.
The Bruins claimed a sweep over the Orange and Blue from May 9-11 at Illinois Field in the first-ever conference meeting between the two sides.
ILLINOIS AT THE BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
This will be Illinois' sixth-straight appearance at the Big Ten Tournament at the program's 27th overall appearance.
The Illini have an overall record of 32-45 in the tournament and have claimed tournament crowns in 1989, 1990, 2000 and 2011.
The Orange and Blue have appeared in six of the eight tournaments played at Charles Schwab Field Omaha and have an overall record of 4-12 at this facility.
Illinois snapped an eight-game losing skid in the Big Ten Tournament with its 4-2 win over Iowa in 10 innings on May 23, 2024.
OHIO STATE WEEKEND RECAP
Illinois closed regular season Big Ten play by taking two of three games over Ohio State from May 15-17 to finish 14-16 in conference play.
Offensively, the Illini put up a team slash of .292/.430/.593, scoring 32 runs over the three games on five doubles, one triple and nine home runs. The Orange and Blue also drew 23 walks during the series, earning 11 free passes on May 16.
Jacob Schroeder led at the dish, slashing .500/.643/1.400. He and Collin Jennings each slugged three homers during the series to share the team lead. Jennings, along with Kyle Schupmann, led the squad with seven RBI.
The Illinois pitching staff posted a team ERA of 6.83 (21 ER/27.2 IP) during the series, totaling 27 strikeouts. Tyler Schmitt turned in his fourth quality start of the season on May 15, going 7.0 IP and allowing two runs on six hits to go along with five strikeouts. Reed Gannon turned in 3.1 scoreless frames in relief work in the series finale on May 17.
SCHROE SHOW
Jacob Schroeder turned in one of his best weekends at the plate at Ohio State, going 5-for-10 (.500) with four runs scored, three home runs, six RBI and drawing two walks.
Schroeder tallied his first multi-HR game of the season and the fifth such performance of his career in the series finale on May 17.
The Chicago native now has 38 home runs in his Illini career, which ranks tied for sixth most all time in program history.
THE JENNERATOR
Collin Jennings continued to bring the power at the plate in Columbus, going 4-for-13 with five runs scored, three home runs and seven RBI.
Jennings recorded his first-career multi-HR game on May 16 and now leads the Illini with 16 home runs and 61 RBI on the season. His 16 home runs are tied for eighth most in a single season in program history and his 61 RBI are just four shy of tied for 10th all time at Illinois.Â
The Orland Park, Ill., is also the first Illini to reach the 60-RBI mark since Bren Spillane (60) in 2018. The 61 RBI are also the most by an Illini batter since Brandon Wikoff (61) in 2008.
CLOSE CALLS
After falling in extra innings on May 17 by a margin of one run, Illinois is now 2-6 on the season in games decided by one run and 6-4 in games decided by two runs, good for an overall record of 8-10 in contests decided by two runs or fewer.
Illinois played its narrowest series of the season at Washington from April 18-20, getting outscored by just one run, 8-7. All three games were decided by two runs or fewer, with the Illini splitting the ballgames decided by two runs on April 18 and 20, while dropping the one-run ballgame on April 19.
In 2024, the Fighting Illini went 3-3 in one-run ballgames and 5-1 in two-run games, compiling an 8-4 record in close contests.
HOME COOKING
After going 20-3 in 2024 at Illinois Field, the Illini another solid record at home, going 15-6 in Champaign this season.
Illinois outscored its opponents 188-130 in its 21 home contests, averaging 9.0 runs per game.
The Fighting Illini scored at least 10 runs in nine of those ball games after having 14 such games during the 2024 season.
CATCH THEM IF YOU CAN
Through 52 games this season, the Illini have stolen 68 bases in 85 attempts more than doubling their 2024 total of 25 stolen bases.
2025 marks the first time since 2018 (62) that Illinois has swiped at least 60 bags in a single season and the 68 stolen bases are also the most in a single campaign since 2013 (115).
As a team, Illinois has stolen a game-high six bases three times this season, doing so on Feb. 15 vs. Abilene Christian, Feb. 25 vs. Aurora and April 6 vs. Maryland.
Nick Groves leads the Illini with 15 stolen bases in 19 attempts, which also ranks tied for sixth among Big Ten players.
On Feb. 25 vs. Aurora, Cameron Chee-Aloy set the single-game program record with five stolen bases in the contest.
Collin Jennings (6-for-6), Greg LaChance (5-for-5) and Jack Zebig (3-for-3) are also all perfect in multiple stolen base attempts.
CLUTCH HITTING
Through 52 games this season, the Illini have delivered in big spots at the plate, posting a team average of .311 with runners in scoring position as well as a team average of .294 with two outs in an inning. This has led to a total of 169 two-out RBI, which accounts for 40.9 percent (169/413) of runs scored by the offense this season.
Vytas Valincius leads the team with 25 hits with runners in scoring position, while Collin Jennings leads the squad with 28 two-out RBI. Valincius also leads the team with 24 hits with two outs.
Illinois has also been successful at moving runners over in their plate appearances, doing so at a .500 clip (539/1078).
QUICK STARTS
In all three games of its series vs. Maryland from April 5-6, Illinois got off to some fast starts, scoring run in the first inning of each game while also keeping the Terrapins off the board.
In the doubleheader opener on April 5, the Illini plated a pair of runs and in the doubleheader nightcap and the finale on April 6, the Orange and Blue jumped out to 5-0 leads.
On April 15 vs. SIUE, Illinois plated six runs in the first inning, a season-high mark for the opening frame.
From April 25-27 vs. Purdue, the Illini scored in the first inning in all three games, using their early advantages on Friday and Saturday to lead throughout those contests.
Four the fourth-straight game on April 29, the Orange and Blue scored in the opening frame, plating two runs against Bradley.
The Illini extended that streak to five games in the first game of the doubleheader on May 2 by scoring twice at Rutgers. That run was snapped in the second game but Illinois got on the board in the first inning of the contest on May 3.
For the seventh time in a stretch eight games, Illinois got on the board in its first trip to the plate by scoring once vs. Bradley on May 6.
The Illini had a four-run outburst in the first inning at Ohio State on May 16, which paced the squad to a season-high 18 runs in Big Ten play.
Overall, Illinois is outscoring its opponents 45-41 in the first inning this season.
41-HOMER CLUB
Drake Westcott moved another spot up Illinois' all-time home run leaderboard after slugging the 41st homer in his Illini career in the series finale on April 27 at Purdue.
Westcott is now alone in second place all-time in program history, trailing only Scott Spiezio (1991-93), who slugged 48 homers in his Illinois career.
The Edwardsville, Ill., native reached the 40-homer mark on April 22 at Indiana State with his two-home run performance, becoming the third Illini in program history to reach 40 dingers.
It was the first multi-HR game of the season for Westcott and the eighth such performance of his career.
D1BASEBALL WEEK 6 RANKINGS
Two Fighting Illini found themselves on D1Baseball player ranking lists in the outlet's week six update in late March.
Jack Zebig is ranked as the No. 44 shortstop in the country and Kyle Schupmann is ranked to the No. 45 third basemen.
Zebig, at the time of ranking, started all 22 games at short, has slashed .361/.476/.651 with six home runs and a team-high 29 RBI, which ranks 10th among Big Ten players.
Kyle Schupmann, at the time of ranking, appeared and started in 20 games during the campaign, all at third base. The Geneva, Ill., native, is slashing .325/.419/.675 with a team-high seven home runs and has also driven in 20 runs.
Neither player was featured in D1Baseball's preseason rankings.
DAN HARTLEB'S 20TH SEASON
Illinois head coach Dan Hartleb begins his 20th season at the helm of the program in 2025.
The winningest coach in Illini baseball history has currently amassed 596 wins, three Big Ten championships, one Big Ten Tournament title, five NCAA Regional appearances and one NCAA Super Regional Appearance.
Along with being named Big Ten Coach of the Year two times, Hartleb was named Big Coach of the Decade (2010s), by D1Baseball.
As he enters his 35th season overall at Illinois, Hartleb has seen 148 players have earned Big Ten All-Conference honors under his watch, with 47 of those players earning first-team selections. He's also coached a total of 27 All-Americans and 96 players who have gone on to play professionally.
Among active Big Ten coaches, Hartleb is one of two coaches that have spent at least 20 seasons as head coach at their current school (John Savage, UCLA, 21st season in 2025).Â
2024 B1G CHAMPS
For the 31st time in program history, Illinois was crowned Big Ten champions after its 9-4 victory over Purdue on May 17, 2024. The Illini were able to claim an outright title with Nebraska's loss to Michigan State on May 18, 2024. Their 18-10 triumph later that day over the Boilermakers would have also solidified an outright title had the Huskers won.
The conference title was the program's third in the Dan Hartleb era (2006-pres.) and the first since 2015. Hartleb's three Big Ten championships are fifth-most in program history.
Illinois 31 conference titles are second-most all-time in the Big Ten.
ILLINI PLAY LONG BALL
During the 2024 campaign, the Fighting Illini launched 104 home runs, setting a new program record and shattering the previous of 91 (1998) in the process.
Illinois' 104 home runs were the most among Big Ten teams, slugging 21 more than second-placed Indiana (83). It also ranked 28th nationally and ninth among teams that played fewer than 60 games.
The Orange and Blue averaged 1.86 home runs per game, which was the 19th-highest mark in the country and the best in the Big Ten.
Five players tallied double-digit home runs last season (Brody Harding, Ryan Moerman, Jacob Schroeder, Vytas Valincius, Drake Westcott) and were the only team in the conference with more than four players in double figures.
The Illini return 54.8 percent (57/104) of their home run production in 2025.
FOUR IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
Illinois slugged at least four home runs in a single game seven times last season, winning each one of those contests.
The Illini did so for the first time in the 2025 campaign in the first game of the doubleheader vs. Valparaiso on March 15, but suffered a rare defeat when hitting that mark.
The Illini crushed a season-high five home runs in the second game of the doubleheader on March 21 at Northwestern to defeat the Wildcats 11-6.
The Orange and Blue reached the four-HR mark for the first time at home this season on April 15 vs. SIUE, slugging five.
Illinois match its season high of five homers on May 16 at Ohio State, the second time hitting that mark this season.
Illinois had nine such games in 2023, going 8-1 in those ballgames. Since 2018, Illinois is 21-3 when they hit at least four homers in a single game.
NEW YEAR, NEW FACES
Illinois has 17 returners and 18 newcomers on the 2025 roster.
  » Thirteen newcomers are transfers: LHP Zach Bates (Iowa Central CC), RHP Ryan Daly (St. Francis), RHP Mitch Dye (Lincoln Land CC), OF Nick Groves (Niagara), C/1B Will Johannes (Madison College), INF Greg LaChance (Jefferson College), LHP Reece Marley (Case Western Reserve), RHP Christian Morel (Tampa Unviersity), INF/RHP Grant Ross (Madison College), RHP Tyler Schmitt (UW-La Crosse), INF Kyle Schupmann (Cincinnati), OF Alexander Wright (George Washington), INF Jack Zebig (Marryville University)
ILLINI TRIO EARN BIG TEN PRESEASON HONORS
A trio of Illini baseball players were selected Big Ten Preseason Players to Watch, the conference announced on Feb. 12.
Right-hander Ben Plumley along with catcher Jacob Schroeder and first baseman Drake Westcott, were all named to the list.
Plumley is coming off of a breakout 2024 season, where he amassed 33 strikeouts in 35.1 innings of work last season over 23 relief appearances. He had a season-long six-game span (8.1 IP) without allowing an earned run from May 10 to June 1, striking out eight batters compared to three walks.
Schroeder, who earned 2024 College Baseball Foundation All-American Second Team and All-Big Ten First Team honors slashed .306/.434/.613 to go along with seven doubles, 14 home runs and 41 RBI. Schroeder ranked tied for ninth in the Big Ten in home runs and also ranked among conference leaders in slugging (8th) and OPS (1.047, 10th).Â
Westcott slashed .290/.421/.571 to go along with 11 doubles, 16 home runs and 52 RBI. He ranked among conference leaders in walks (T-3rd, 47) and home runs (T-4th). Westcott enters the 2025 campaign with 34 career dingers in the Orange and Blue, 14 away from matching Scott Spiezio's (1991-93) program record of 48.
ONES TO WATCH
D1Baseball Big Ten Top 2025 MLB Draft
Prospects: No. 19 RHP Tyler Schmitt, No. 22
OF Nick Groves, No. 37 RHP Julius Sanchez
D1Baseball Big Ten Top 2026 MLB Draft Prospects: No. 10 OF Cameron Chee-Aloy
Perfect Game Preseason All-Conference Team: 1B Drake Westcott
Perfect Game Big Ten Top 2025 MLB Draft
Prospects: No. 30 RHP Julius Sanchez, No. 38 Ben Plumley
Perfect Game Big Ten Top 2027 MLB Draft Prospects: No. 16 OF/LHP Brayden Mazzacano
ILLINI BASEBALL INKS SEVEN TOÂ 2025 CLASS
"I am extremely excited about the group of great athletes that we have signed to join our Illini family," head coach Dan Hartleb said.Â
"We feel as if this group has the ability to help us to pursue future championships. In the changing times of college athletics, I feel as though our staff did a tremendous job of identifying great athletes and helping to secure their talents which will ensure our success moving forward."
- Michael Farina / INF / Mundelein, Ill.
- Aidan Flinn / LHP / Mokena, Ill.
- Lucas Krebs / SS / Edwardsville, Ill.
- Ryan Ohm / RHP / Rochester, Minn.
- AJ Putty / 1B / McHenry, Ill.
- Jack Wheeler / 3B/RHP / Morris, Ill.
- Ike Young / RHP / Cisco, Ill.
