OMAHA, Neb. – As a pure designated hitter that was a consistent run producer while batting in the heart of the order all season, CJ Valdez garnered first-team All-Big Ten recognition to headline the all-conference accolades for Purdue baseball.
Jackson Smeltz and Troy Wansing were also recognized for their leading roles on the pitching staff. Smeltz was recognized as a third-team All-Big Ten starting pitcher. Wansing was selected as a starting pitcher on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.
Senior Tanner Haston was spotlighted as Purdue's Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree. Haston has played in a team-high 30 games off the bench and is the only Boilermaker to see action in all three outfield positions this season.
Valdez is the first Boilermaker to be named to an All-Big Ten first team since 2012. He has made all of his 44 starts this season as a DH – batting third or fourth in every start – and has yet to play the field defensively. He opened the season with a 34-game on-base streak and enters the Big Ten Tournament batting .323 with a .436 on-base percentage. The Arizona native is second on the team with 43 RBI, becoming one of just six Boilermakers in the last 20 years with a pair of five-RBI game. He batted .361 with 33 RBI while seeing action in 26 of Purdue's 29 wins.
Smeltz proved himself the ace of the pitching staff, registering a 2.83 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 57 1/3 innings over his 10 starts before an injury. He dominated rival Indiana to the tune of 13 strikeouts in a one-hit shutout in April, earning National Player of the Week and Big Ten Pitcher of the Week honors. It was the last of his four double-figure strikeout performances, matching single-season and all-time strikeouts leader Matt Bischoff for the most by a Boilermaker in the last 20 years. Smeltz's mark of 12.40 strikeouts per nine innings will eclipse a program record (minimum 30 innings) that has stood since 1965.
Wansing made 12 of his 14 appearances as a starting pitcher, opening the season in the rotation and saving his finest performance for a must-win rubber game May 15 at Northwestern. He worked 5 2/3 shutout innings that day in Evanston to help the Boilermakers qualify for the Big Ten Tournament. The lefty struck out at least five batters in six of his outings and with 57 punchouts is only seven shy of Purdue's freshman record. Wansing is averaging 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings and has surrendered only two homers in 48 2/3 innings.
Valdez gives the Boilermakers an all-conference DH for the second year in a row after Mike Bolton Jr. was a third-team honoree last year. Prior to last season, Purdue had not had an all-conference DH since 2006. Valdez is the first Boilermaker to be a first-team performer at DH since all-time hits leader Daryl Hallada in 2000.
Smeltz joins Gareth Stroh (2017) as Purdue's only left-handed starting pitcher to be an all-conference honoree this century. Wansing joins Jordan Minch (2013) and Trent Johnson (2018) as Purdue starting pitchers to be selected to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team since the league adopted the first-year honors in 2009.
The Boilermakers begin the Big Ten Tournament on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET vs. Rutgers, the only team in the field Purdue did not play in the regular season.
Jackson Smeltz and Troy Wansing were also recognized for their leading roles on the pitching staff. Smeltz was recognized as a third-team All-Big Ten starting pitcher. Wansing was selected as a starting pitcher on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.
Senior Tanner Haston was spotlighted as Purdue's Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree. Haston has played in a team-high 30 games off the bench and is the only Boilermaker to see action in all three outfield positions this season.
Valdez is the first Boilermaker to be named to an All-Big Ten first team since 2012. He has made all of his 44 starts this season as a DH – batting third or fourth in every start – and has yet to play the field defensively. He opened the season with a 34-game on-base streak and enters the Big Ten Tournament batting .323 with a .436 on-base percentage. The Arizona native is second on the team with 43 RBI, becoming one of just six Boilermakers in the last 20 years with a pair of five-RBI game. He batted .361 with 33 RBI while seeing action in 26 of Purdue's 29 wins.
Smeltz proved himself the ace of the pitching staff, registering a 2.83 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 57 1/3 innings over his 10 starts before an injury. He dominated rival Indiana to the tune of 13 strikeouts in a one-hit shutout in April, earning National Player of the Week and Big Ten Pitcher of the Week honors. It was the last of his four double-figure strikeout performances, matching single-season and all-time strikeouts leader Matt Bischoff for the most by a Boilermaker in the last 20 years. Smeltz's mark of 12.40 strikeouts per nine innings will eclipse a program record (minimum 30 innings) that has stood since 1965.
Wansing made 12 of his 14 appearances as a starting pitcher, opening the season in the rotation and saving his finest performance for a must-win rubber game May 15 at Northwestern. He worked 5 2/3 shutout innings that day in Evanston to help the Boilermakers qualify for the Big Ten Tournament. The lefty struck out at least five batters in six of his outings and with 57 punchouts is only seven shy of Purdue's freshman record. Wansing is averaging 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings and has surrendered only two homers in 48 2/3 innings.
Valdez gives the Boilermakers an all-conference DH for the second year in a row after Mike Bolton Jr. was a third-team honoree last year. Prior to last season, Purdue had not had an all-conference DH since 2006. Valdez is the first Boilermaker to be a first-team performer at DH since all-time hits leader Daryl Hallada in 2000.
Smeltz joins Gareth Stroh (2017) as Purdue's only left-handed starting pitcher to be an all-conference honoree this century. Wansing joins Jordan Minch (2013) and Trent Johnson (2018) as Purdue starting pitchers to be selected to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team since the league adopted the first-year honors in 2009.
The Boilermakers begin the Big Ten Tournament on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET vs. Rutgers, the only team in the field Purdue did not play in the regular season.