SUGAR LAND, Texas – As Purdue Baseball's top three returning hitters, Mike Bolton Jr., Couper Cornblum and Connor Caskenette represented the Boilermakers among the 39 players on the Big Ten Preseason Honors list.
Bolton, Cornblum and Caskenette are Purdue's returning starters in left field, center field and catcher. Bolton (28) and Cornblum (26) combined for 56 stolen bases last season, ranking first and third in the conference individually. Caskenette led the team in home runs (5) and RBI (24) in Big Ten play, starting 37 of the Boilermakers' 53 games behind the plate overall.
While Purdue's lineup may have some new faces in it this season, the pitching staff returns nine of the 11 Boilermakers that took the mound in a Big Ten play a year ago. Weekend starters Kyle Iwinski and Jonathan Blackwell headline that group. Aaron Suval, Jackson Dannelley and Avery Cook all have experience closing games for Purdue. CJ Backer has returned from the injury that sidelined him for the final month of 2023.
As a member of the program since the fall of 2019, Bolton is the longest-tenured active Boilermaker and the team's all-time stolen base leader with 74 for his career. He's also the Big Ten's active career leader. A .438 career on-base percentage and 32 extra-base hits speaks to his versatility at the top of the lineup. The Chicago native was an All-Big Ten honoree in 2021.
Cornblum enters his final collegiate season, and second at Purdue, riding a 20-game on-base streak. He was of only two Boilermakers to start every game in 2023, rarely leaving the field once he took over as the starting center fielder in mid-March. The native Texan demonstrated an understanding of how best to hit in the 2-hole with Bolton on base, finishing among the top three on the team in runs scored (44, T-1st), hits (61, 2nd), steals (26, 2nd) doubles (10, T-3rd) and walks (20, 3rd). He put together a 13-game hit streak later in the year before it evolved into the 20-game on-base streak.
An 18-game hit streak, Purdue's longest since 2011, highlighted Caskenette's debut season at Purdue. He also had a six-game RBI streak during his hot stretch. The Vancouver Island native batted a team-best .449 with runners in scoring position and collected 15 two-out RBI to solidify his place in the heart of the lineup. He was behind the plate for 21 of the Boilermakers' 24 Big Ten games, including 17 in a row during the heart of the season. Purdue won five of six weekend series from March 31 to May 7 with Caskenette serving as the backbone of the operation.
The Boilermakers open their season in Sugar Land, Texas, for the third year in a row, hosting Stony Brook for a four-game series at the home of the Houston Astros' Triple-A affiliate.
The Big Ten annually elects to release only the top six teams in the preseason coaches poll. Purdue's 40-player roster features 24 returnees and 16 true newcomers. The roster turnover coupled with finishing ninth last year as the first team out of the Big Ten Tournament's eight-team field somewhat predictably led to the Boilermakers not appearing in the preseason top six this year. Iowa is the preseason favorite. Maryland is the two-time defending champion.
PURDUE'S BIG TEN SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
Home: Iowa, Michigan State, Indiana, Illinois
Road: Ohio State, Rutgers, Northwestern, Michigan
Don't Play: Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State
BIG TEN PRESEASON POLL (TOP 6)
1.) Iowa
2.) Indiana
3.) Maryland
4.) Rutgers
5.) Nebraska
6.) Michigan
Bolton, Cornblum and Caskenette are Purdue's returning starters in left field, center field and catcher. Bolton (28) and Cornblum (26) combined for 56 stolen bases last season, ranking first and third in the conference individually. Caskenette led the team in home runs (5) and RBI (24) in Big Ten play, starting 37 of the Boilermakers' 53 games behind the plate overall.
While Purdue's lineup may have some new faces in it this season, the pitching staff returns nine of the 11 Boilermakers that took the mound in a Big Ten play a year ago. Weekend starters Kyle Iwinski and Jonathan Blackwell headline that group. Aaron Suval, Jackson Dannelley and Avery Cook all have experience closing games for Purdue. CJ Backer has returned from the injury that sidelined him for the final month of 2023.
As a member of the program since the fall of 2019, Bolton is the longest-tenured active Boilermaker and the team's all-time stolen base leader with 74 for his career. He's also the Big Ten's active career leader. A .438 career on-base percentage and 32 extra-base hits speaks to his versatility at the top of the lineup. The Chicago native was an All-Big Ten honoree in 2021.
Cornblum enters his final collegiate season, and second at Purdue, riding a 20-game on-base streak. He was of only two Boilermakers to start every game in 2023, rarely leaving the field once he took over as the starting center fielder in mid-March. The native Texan demonstrated an understanding of how best to hit in the 2-hole with Bolton on base, finishing among the top three on the team in runs scored (44, T-1st), hits (61, 2nd), steals (26, 2nd) doubles (10, T-3rd) and walks (20, 3rd). He put together a 13-game hit streak later in the year before it evolved into the 20-game on-base streak.
An 18-game hit streak, Purdue's longest since 2011, highlighted Caskenette's debut season at Purdue. He also had a six-game RBI streak during his hot stretch. The Vancouver Island native batted a team-best .449 with runners in scoring position and collected 15 two-out RBI to solidify his place in the heart of the lineup. He was behind the plate for 21 of the Boilermakers' 24 Big Ten games, including 17 in a row during the heart of the season. Purdue won five of six weekend series from March 31 to May 7 with Caskenette serving as the backbone of the operation.
The Boilermakers open their season in Sugar Land, Texas, for the third year in a row, hosting Stony Brook for a four-game series at the home of the Houston Astros' Triple-A affiliate.
The Big Ten annually elects to release only the top six teams in the preseason coaches poll. Purdue's 40-player roster features 24 returnees and 16 true newcomers. The roster turnover coupled with finishing ninth last year as the first team out of the Big Ten Tournament's eight-team field somewhat predictably led to the Boilermakers not appearing in the preseason top six this year. Iowa is the preseason favorite. Maryland is the two-time defending champion.
PURDUE'S BIG TEN SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
Home: Iowa, Michigan State, Indiana, Illinois
Road: Ohio State, Rutgers, Northwestern, Michigan
Don't Play: Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State
BIG TEN PRESEASON POLL (TOP 6)
1.) Iowa
2.) Indiana
3.) Maryland
4.) Rutgers
5.) Nebraska
6.) Michigan