Feb. 8 Preseason Fan Fest
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue baseball's daily countdown to the Valentine's Day season opener hit Black Jack on Friday, meaning it was time for full preseason practice to begin inside the Mollenkopf Athletic Center.
The Feb. 14 season opener vs. Hofstra in Sanford, Florida – just north of Orlando – is in line to be the program's second-earliest opener on the calendar. The 2015 played its first game on Feb. 13. All college teams are allowed to begin full preseason practice three weeks prior to the season-opening Friday.
The Mollenkopf Athletic Center and Madia Hitting Facility inside the clubhouse at Alexander Field are the primary locations of the program's preseason practices. Grand Park in Westfield remains another options thanks to the facility's multiple artificial turf fields.
Utilizing its allotted eight hours a week prior to the official opening of preseason practice, Purdue was also able to practice outside at Alexander multiple times this month. The weather oddities of the 2019-20 school year in Greater Lafayette have featured more snow on Halloween than the entire month of January. And Purdue could have easily played a home game on a 60-degree Christmas Day last month.
Now under the leadership of Greg Goff, who was elevated from assistant to head coach in June, the Boilermakers have welcomed back 21 letterwinners from the 2019 team. Together, that group has allowed Purdue to return at least 70 percent of last season's production in 10 statistical categories. In 2018, the Boilermakers were fortunate to have a similar amount of production returning from the year prior. That experience coupled with some key contributions from newcomers spearheaded a 38-win campaign, which was highlighted by a second-place finish in the Big Ten standings, a return to the Big Ten Tournament title game and an NCAA Regional bid.
RETURNING PRODUCTION BREAKDOWN
LINEUP
PITCHING STAFF
Meanwhile, there are still a number of key players in the mix from that successful 2018 campaign. That group includes…
• Skyler Hunter – In line to become a four-year starter in center field
• Ben Nisle – Healthy again after an injury limited him to just 19 games last year
• Trent Johnson – The junior has registered 112 strikeouts vs. 64 hits allowed in 101 1/3 career innings
• Bo Hofstra – An All-Big Ten closer in 2019, the big righty has 96 strikeouts vs. 74 hits allowed in 91 1/3 career innings
• Andrew Bohm – The workhorse of the staff in 2019, sharing the team leading in strikeouts (73) with Johnson
• Matt Moore – The lefty has improved every year since redshirting in 2017, making a team-high 27 appearances in 2019
• Dalton Parker – Another very stingy reliever, surrendering only 75 hits in 94 1/3 career innings over 45 appearances
• Milo Beam – Speedy outfielder has been involved in numerous memorable moments in his 127 career games
• Bryce Bonner – A Freshman All-American in 2017 who has played in 112 games as a steady and respected catcher
• Tyler Powers – Purdue's most versatile infielder is an equally skilled base runner with a good eye and bat control
• Trevor Cheaney – Back for a redshirt-senior season after racking up 44 strikeouts in 40 innings in 2018
The Boilermakers set team records for strikeouts (477) and strikeouts per nine innings (9.10) last season. For pitchers with a minimum 75 career innings, Johnson (9.95), Bohm (9.66) and Hofstra (9.46) have the top three strikeouts per nine innings marks in program history. Johnson (5.68), Parker (7.16) and Hofstra (7.29) are also among the top 10 for fewest hits allowed per nine innings.
Hunter's six triples last season led the Big Ten through the end of the regular season and were just one shy of a program record. He enters his senior season with 11 career triples and 204 career hits. Purdue's all-time records are 13 and 279.
The Boilermakers' pre-Big Ten schedule is much more manageable, but the league slate is expected to be more of a challenge. Going into Big Ten play last year, 15 of Purdue's 20 contests had been true road games. And it would have been even more if a March series at Creighton had not been replaced by a neutral-site series vs. NJIT due to snow in Omaha. The Boilermakers staggered early as part of a 5-15 start.
This season, nine of the Purdue's first 10 games are neutral-site affairs and the team plays only seven true road games going into its conference-opening series at nationally ranked Michigan (March 20-22). In 2018, the Boilermakers raced out to an 8-1 start while playing each of their first nine games at neutral sites. Purdue finished the year 12-4 in neutral-site affairs and an Alexander-best 15-5 at home. But it was the 21-2 stretch from April 20 to May 26 that ultimately came to define the successful 2018 campaign. That proved to be one of the most amazing runs in program history.
The Boilermakers are hosting a preseason fan fest Saturday, Feb. 8 from 10 a.m. to noon at Mollenkopf. It is free and open to fans of all ages.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue baseball's daily countdown to the Valentine's Day season opener hit Black Jack on Friday, meaning it was time for full preseason practice to begin inside the Mollenkopf Athletic Center.
The Feb. 14 season opener vs. Hofstra in Sanford, Florida – just north of Orlando – is in line to be the program's second-earliest opener on the calendar. The 2015 played its first game on Feb. 13. All college teams are allowed to begin full preseason practice three weeks prior to the season-opening Friday.
The Mollenkopf Athletic Center and Madia Hitting Facility inside the clubhouse at Alexander Field are the primary locations of the program's preseason practices. Grand Park in Westfield remains another options thanks to the facility's multiple artificial turf fields.
Utilizing its allotted eight hours a week prior to the official opening of preseason practice, Purdue was also able to practice outside at Alexander multiple times this month. The weather oddities of the 2019-20 school year in Greater Lafayette have featured more snow on Halloween than the entire month of January. And Purdue could have easily played a home game on a 60-degree Christmas Day last month.
Now under the leadership of Greg Goff, who was elevated from assistant to head coach in June, the Boilermakers have welcomed back 21 letterwinners from the 2019 team. Together, that group has allowed Purdue to return at least 70 percent of last season's production in 10 statistical categories. In 2018, the Boilermakers were fortunate to have a similar amount of production returning from the year prior. That experience coupled with some key contributions from newcomers spearheaded a 38-win campaign, which was highlighted by a second-place finish in the Big Ten standings, a return to the Big Ten Tournament title game and an NCAA Regional bid.
RETURNING PRODUCTION BREAKDOWN
LINEUP
| Statistic | Percentage Returning | Returning/2019 Totals | Top Returnee(s) |
| Starts | 83% | 402 of 486 | Fascia/Powers (35) |
| Stolen Bases | 80% | 40 of 50 | Tyler Powers (8) |
| Runs Scored | 78% | 171 of 219 | Skyler Hunter (37) |
| Walks | 75% | 138 of 185 | Hunter/Powers (20) |
| Extra-Base Hits | 74% | 67 of 90 | Skyler Hunter (16) |
| RBI | 71% | 134 of 188 | Zac Fascia (37) |
| Hits | 70% | 295 of 419 | Skyler Hunter (61) |
PITCHING STAFF
| Statistic | Percentage Returning | Returning/2019 Totals | Top Returnee(s) |
| Saves | 89% | 8 of 9 | Bo Hofstra (7) |
| Wins | 75% | 15 of 20 | Matt Moore (5) |
| Relief Appearances | 75% | 114 of 151 | Matt Moore (27) |
| Strikeouts | 67% | 320 of 477 | Bohm/Johnson (73) |
| Innings | 66% | 312 2/3 of 471 2/3 | Andrew Bohm (65) |
| Starts | 61% | 33 of 54 | Andrew Bohm (12) |
Meanwhile, there are still a number of key players in the mix from that successful 2018 campaign. That group includes…
• Skyler Hunter – In line to become a four-year starter in center field
• Ben Nisle – Healthy again after an injury limited him to just 19 games last year
• Trent Johnson – The junior has registered 112 strikeouts vs. 64 hits allowed in 101 1/3 career innings
• Bo Hofstra – An All-Big Ten closer in 2019, the big righty has 96 strikeouts vs. 74 hits allowed in 91 1/3 career innings
• Andrew Bohm – The workhorse of the staff in 2019, sharing the team leading in strikeouts (73) with Johnson
• Matt Moore – The lefty has improved every year since redshirting in 2017, making a team-high 27 appearances in 2019
• Dalton Parker – Another very stingy reliever, surrendering only 75 hits in 94 1/3 career innings over 45 appearances
• Milo Beam – Speedy outfielder has been involved in numerous memorable moments in his 127 career games
• Bryce Bonner – A Freshman All-American in 2017 who has played in 112 games as a steady and respected catcher
• Tyler Powers – Purdue's most versatile infielder is an equally skilled base runner with a good eye and bat control
• Trevor Cheaney – Back for a redshirt-senior season after racking up 44 strikeouts in 40 innings in 2018
The Boilermakers set team records for strikeouts (477) and strikeouts per nine innings (9.10) last season. For pitchers with a minimum 75 career innings, Johnson (9.95), Bohm (9.66) and Hofstra (9.46) have the top three strikeouts per nine innings marks in program history. Johnson (5.68), Parker (7.16) and Hofstra (7.29) are also among the top 10 for fewest hits allowed per nine innings.
Hunter's six triples last season led the Big Ten through the end of the regular season and were just one shy of a program record. He enters his senior season with 11 career triples and 204 career hits. Purdue's all-time records are 13 and 279.
The Boilermakers' pre-Big Ten schedule is much more manageable, but the league slate is expected to be more of a challenge. Going into Big Ten play last year, 15 of Purdue's 20 contests had been true road games. And it would have been even more if a March series at Creighton had not been replaced by a neutral-site series vs. NJIT due to snow in Omaha. The Boilermakers staggered early as part of a 5-15 start.
This season, nine of the Purdue's first 10 games are neutral-site affairs and the team plays only seven true road games going into its conference-opening series at nationally ranked Michigan (March 20-22). In 2018, the Boilermakers raced out to an 8-1 start while playing each of their first nine games at neutral sites. Purdue finished the year 12-4 in neutral-site affairs and an Alexander-best 15-5 at home. But it was the 21-2 stretch from April 20 to May 26 that ultimately came to define the successful 2018 campaign. That proved to be one of the most amazing runs in program history.
The Boilermakers are hosting a preseason fan fest Saturday, Feb. 8 from 10 a.m. to noon at Mollenkopf. It is free and open to fans of all ages.
First official practice of 2020 ✔️
— Purdue Baseball (@PurdueBaseball) January 24, 2020
Ready to get after it 😤#BoilerUp pic.twitter.com/6rfVsxGuPb