WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The final Friday of January once again marked an opportunity to begin full preseason practice for Purdue baseball as the countdown to the Feb. 18 season opener moved to just three weeks away.
Optimism abounds throughout the program as the Boilermakers prepare for their first traditional 56-game schedule and season since the 2019 campaign. When Purdue opened preseason practice at this time last year, the players and coaching staff were still awaiting a schedule from the Big Ten Conference. Ultimately it was a 13-weekend, conference-only campaign that did not begin until the first Friday in March. This year non-conference play is back for the Big Ten, including the national universal start date (third Friday in February) and midweek play.
Purdue athletics director Mike Bobinski, a pitcher at Notre Dame as a student-athlete, addressed the team before practice Friday. He offered words of encouragement and briefly discussed his playing days as a connection with the current Boilermakers now enjoying similar experiences in college baseball.
The Mollenkopf Athletic Center and Madia Hitting Facility inside the clubhouse at Alexander Field remain the primary locations of the program's preseason practices. Loeb Stadium in Lafayette and Grand Park in Westfield are other options thanks to those facilities' artificial turf fields. The Boilermakers also practice outdoors at football's Bimel Practice Complex in conjunction with their time in the adjacent Mollenkopf.
Purdue opens in Texas for the second year in a row, visiting another Triple-A stadium. Constellation Field in suburban Houston will be the site of a four-game series between Purdue and first-time opponent South Dakota State the weekend of Feb. 18 to 20. Midweek play opens March 2 at Charlotte as part of an eight-game, 10-day road trip in North Carolina.
The home opener is Friday, March 11 vs. Bellarmine and is in line to be the earliest home opener in program history. With 28 dates on the home schedule, it is slated to be Purdue's busiest home slate ever. Illinois State, Ohio State, Indiana, Belmont, Michigan and Maryland also come to Alexander for weekend series.
Due in part to the shutdown in 2020 coupled with opponent cancellations in 2021, the Boilermakers have played 43 of their last 56 games away from Alexander Field dating back to the Valentine's Day season opener in 2020.
BOILERMAKERS HIGHLIGHTED IN D1BASEBALL'S BIG TEN PREVIEW
• Big Ten's Top Prospects for 2022 MLB Draft: Wyatt Wendell (RHP, No. 10), Jackson Smeltz (LHP, No. 18), Curtis Washington Jr. (OF, No. 25)
• Impact Freshmen in the Big Ten: Troy Wansing (LHP, No. 2), Khal Stephen (RHP, No. 14)
• Purdue's Glue Guys: Eric Hildebrand, Ricky Castro, Griffin Lohman (All RHP)
• Purdue's Pick to Click: Jackson Smeltz (LHP)
• Purdue's Top Newcomer: Paul Toetz (IF)
Optimism abounds throughout the program as the Boilermakers prepare for their first traditional 56-game schedule and season since the 2019 campaign. When Purdue opened preseason practice at this time last year, the players and coaching staff were still awaiting a schedule from the Big Ten Conference. Ultimately it was a 13-weekend, conference-only campaign that did not begin until the first Friday in March. This year non-conference play is back for the Big Ten, including the national universal start date (third Friday in February) and midweek play.
Purdue athletics director Mike Bobinski, a pitcher at Notre Dame as a student-athlete, addressed the team before practice Friday. He offered words of encouragement and briefly discussed his playing days as a connection with the current Boilermakers now enjoying similar experiences in college baseball.
The Mollenkopf Athletic Center and Madia Hitting Facility inside the clubhouse at Alexander Field remain the primary locations of the program's preseason practices. Loeb Stadium in Lafayette and Grand Park in Westfield are other options thanks to those facilities' artificial turf fields. The Boilermakers also practice outdoors at football's Bimel Practice Complex in conjunction with their time in the adjacent Mollenkopf.
Purdue opens in Texas for the second year in a row, visiting another Triple-A stadium. Constellation Field in suburban Houston will be the site of a four-game series between Purdue and first-time opponent South Dakota State the weekend of Feb. 18 to 20. Midweek play opens March 2 at Charlotte as part of an eight-game, 10-day road trip in North Carolina.
The home opener is Friday, March 11 vs. Bellarmine and is in line to be the earliest home opener in program history. With 28 dates on the home schedule, it is slated to be Purdue's busiest home slate ever. Illinois State, Ohio State, Indiana, Belmont, Michigan and Maryland also come to Alexander for weekend series.
Due in part to the shutdown in 2020 coupled with opponent cancellations in 2021, the Boilermakers have played 43 of their last 56 games away from Alexander Field dating back to the Valentine's Day season opener in 2020.
BOILERMAKERS HIGHLIGHTED IN D1BASEBALL'S BIG TEN PREVIEW
• Big Ten's Top Prospects for 2022 MLB Draft: Wyatt Wendell (RHP, No. 10), Jackson Smeltz (LHP, No. 18), Curtis Washington Jr. (OF, No. 25)
• Impact Freshmen in the Big Ten: Troy Wansing (LHP, No. 2), Khal Stephen (RHP, No. 14)
• Purdue's Glue Guys: Eric Hildebrand, Ricky Castro, Griffin Lohman (All RHP)
• Purdue's Pick to Click: Jackson Smeltz (LHP)
• Purdue's Top Newcomer: Paul Toetz (IF)
Ricky Castro is ready for his senior season. @castro_the_boss discusses the opening of preseason practice & his optimistic outlook for the new campaign. #BoilerUp pic.twitter.com/fc7ywT0J0p
— Purdue Baseball (@PurdueBaseball) January 28, 2022