WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Baseball’s annual preseason celebration, the First Pitch Dinner, is returns to the Ross-Ade Stadium Pavilion on the final day of January.
Saturday, Jan. 31 is the date of the event this year. Doors open at 6 p.m., with dinner served at 6:30 p.m. The program and honorees portion of the event follows dinner. Purdue Baseball’s Alumnus of the Year and Community Service Award recipients are annually announced at the First Pitch Dinner. Player introductions and remarks from head coach Greg Goff are also featured.
The cost to attend $75 per person or $600 per table. There is also an option of sponsoring a student-athlete's meal. The table option includes seven tickets and a student-athlete meal. The cost is also $75 to sponsor a student-athlete. Tickets and sponsorships can be purchased HERE.
This year’s featured speaker is Purdue alumnus Brandon Buck, who played for the Boilermakers from 1998-00 as an Academic All-Big Ten honoree. Buck is an author, motivational speaker and high school baseball coach. He’s the founder and CEO of Infinite Strengths, a leadership development company. He’s returned to campus multiple times over the last decade to share wisdom and leadership techniques with Purdue Baseball’s players and staff. He’s also worked with teams at Auburn, Missouri, Boise State and Idaho State. Buck is the author of Distracted by Success, which was published in May 2024.
Buck returned to coaching at the high school level this fall when he was hired as the varsity baseball head coach at Boise’s Timberline High School in September. Previously, he spent a decade as the varsity head coach at Mountain Pointe High School in Phoenix, leading MPHS to Arizona’s 5A Division I state title in 2011. He was a state Coach of the Year honoree and also a distinguished AP U.S. history teacher recognized for his work in the classroom.
The program’s Alumnus of the Year award is bestowed upon a degree-holding Boilermaker that has demonstrated outstanding loyalty towards and continued interest in supporting Purdue Athletics and Purdue baseball. The Community Service Award honors qualities such as sustained involvement, compassion and selflessness.
The First Pitch Dinner has grown in size since being introduced prior to the 2019 season. In 2023, it moved from Holloway Gymnasium to the Shively Club suite level of the Ross-Ade Stadium Pavilion. Past featured guest speakers have included big leaguers Kevin Plawecki, Josh Lindblom, Nick Wittgren, Clayton Richard and Ryan Thompson as well as former ABCA President/Kentucky head coach Keith Madison.
The Boilermakers have also earmarked the weekend of Feb. 6-7 for their preseason fan fest inside the Mollenkopf Athletic Center. The popular free event features skill stations and other indoor activities for children as well as autograph opportunities.
Purdue Baseball’s 8th Annual First Pitch Dinner
• Saturday, Jan. 31 at 6 p.m.
• Shively Club in the Ross-Ade Stadium Pavilion
• Cost: $75 Per Guest
Doors at 6 p.m., Dinner Begins at 6:30 p.m.
• Interact With & Dine Alongside Players & Coaches
• Buffet-Style Meal
• Cash Bar
• Alumnus of the Year & Community Service Awards Announced
• Featured Speaker: Purdue Alumnus Brandon Buck
• Coach Greg Goff Addresses the Crowd & Previews the Season
• Players & Staff Introductions
More Ticket Options
• Sponsor a Student-Athlete’s Meal: $75
• Purchase a Full Table: $600 – includes 7 meals & 1 sponsored student-athlete meal