Central Michigan University Athletics
Saturday, May 29
Toledo, OH
1 P.M.
Central Michigan University
at
Toledo
Coach Jordan Bischel has his CMU baseball team on the cusp of a second-consecutive MAC championship.
Photo by: Jack Reeber '23,M'25 - @jackreeber.raw
Championship Within Grasp As Chippewas Head To Toledo
5/27/2021 4:26:00 PM | Baseball
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Good pitching beats good hitting. It's a baseball axiom as old as the game itself.
That's the headline matchup this weekend for the Central Michigan baseball team as it looks to clinch its second-consecutive Mid-American Conference championship in a four-game series at Toledo.
The series is scheduled to get underway on Friday (3 p.m.), followed by a doubleheader on Saturday (noon), and the finale is set for Sunday (1 p.m.).
The Chippewas' magic number for clinching the league title is three; any combination of three CMU wins and/or Ball State losses gives the Chippewas the crown. CMU is 27-9 in league play, while the second-place Cardinals are 25-11.
Ball State is scheduled to close the season this weekend with four home games against Miami (Ohio).
The tie-breaker is won-loss record against the third-place team and, if that doesn't settle it, the tie-breaker moves on to record against the fourth-place. Toledo, at 21-15 in league play, is third entering the weekend, while Kent State and Western Michigan are tied for fourth at 20-16.
The Matchup
The series promises the classic matchup of good pitching vs. good hitting. CMU is at or near the top of the MAC in nearly every pitching category, including earned run average, first at 3.38; runs allowed, first with 184; and opponent batting average, second at .235.
Toledo ranks second in the league with a .290 team batting average; is first with a .481 slugging percentage; and tops the league, and is tied for 26th nationally, with 65 home runs. The Rockets have also struck out a league-high 499 times this season.
On the flip side, the Chippewas lead the MAC and the nation with 317 walks and also top the MAC in scoring with 373 runs, are third with a .287 batting average, and are first with a .423 on-base percentage.
Toledo pitching ranks 10th in the conference with a 6.79 team ERA.
The Rockets
Toledo is 23-29 but may be playing as well as any team in the MAC heading into the final weekend. The Rockets were 4-19 after 23 games and have won 19 of their last 29 starts. All 19 of those wins have come against MAC competition and they have dropped just seven conference games in that stretch.
Junior first baseman Chris Meyers is putting up MAC-Player-of-the-Year type numbers as he leads the MAC in batting average (.394), home runs (15), RBI (54), hits (67) and on-base percentage (.519).
Mason Sykes (8) is tied for fourth in the league in homers and Scott Mackiewicz (7) is tied for sixth.
The Chippewas
Junior Mario Camilletti continues to make his mark in his first season at CMU after transferring from Oakland.
The second baseman leads the nation with 58 walks, one shy of Zavier Warren's program record (2019). Camilletti, CMU's leadoff hitter, ranks first in the MAC in runs (56), is second in on-base percentage (.508), and third in doubles (16) and RBI (42).
CMU senior Zach Gilles ranks fifth in the conference with a .355 batting average, leads the league with 12 sacrifice bunts, and is second with seven triples and 18 stolen bases.
Taking a Walk
How often do the Chippewas draw walks? Four of the top five in that category in the MAC are Chippewas: Camilletti, Gilles (44), Justin Simpson (40) and Jakob Marsee (35), who is tied with Toledo's Meyers for fourth.
On the Mound
The Chippewas have gotten sterling starting pitching all season from Jordan Patty, Andrew Taylor, Cameron Brown and Garrett Navarra.
Taylor is 10-3 with a 1.33 ERA, ranking first in the MAC in both categories and third and fourth, respectively, in wins and ERA nationally. His 110 strikeouts are 15th best in the nation and second in the MAC.
Patty is second in the league with eight wins (against two losses) and third with a 2.11 ERA. Brown is ninth in the league with seven victories (against two losses) and is tied with Taylor for second in the conference with four complete games.
Navarra is 4-0, capably filling the role of Sunday starter and typically going four or five innings before turning the game over to the bullpen, which is headlined by Ian Leatherman (five saves) and Grant Frazer (four).
Telling about how effective and efficient the left-handed Navarra is are two numbers, both of which pop: He has a 3.25-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and his 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings.
Next?
If the Chippewas win the title, it will mark the first time since 1994-95 that they have captured back-to-back MAC titles (there was no championship awarded in the COVID-shortened 2020 season).
The NCAA Tournament Selection Show is scheduled for noon, Monday, May 31 (ESPN2).
That's the headline matchup this weekend for the Central Michigan baseball team as it looks to clinch its second-consecutive Mid-American Conference championship in a four-game series at Toledo.
The series is scheduled to get underway on Friday (3 p.m.), followed by a doubleheader on Saturday (noon), and the finale is set for Sunday (1 p.m.).
The Chippewas' magic number for clinching the league title is three; any combination of three CMU wins and/or Ball State losses gives the Chippewas the crown. CMU is 27-9 in league play, while the second-place Cardinals are 25-11.
Ball State is scheduled to close the season this weekend with four home games against Miami (Ohio).
The tie-breaker is won-loss record against the third-place team and, if that doesn't settle it, the tie-breaker moves on to record against the fourth-place. Toledo, at 21-15 in league play, is third entering the weekend, while Kent State and Western Michigan are tied for fourth at 20-16.
The Matchup
The series promises the classic matchup of good pitching vs. good hitting. CMU is at or near the top of the MAC in nearly every pitching category, including earned run average, first at 3.38; runs allowed, first with 184; and opponent batting average, second at .235.
Toledo ranks second in the league with a .290 team batting average; is first with a .481 slugging percentage; and tops the league, and is tied for 26th nationally, with 65 home runs. The Rockets have also struck out a league-high 499 times this season.
On the flip side, the Chippewas lead the MAC and the nation with 317 walks and also top the MAC in scoring with 373 runs, are third with a .287 batting average, and are first with a .423 on-base percentage.
Toledo pitching ranks 10th in the conference with a 6.79 team ERA.
The Rockets
Toledo is 23-29 but may be playing as well as any team in the MAC heading into the final weekend. The Rockets were 4-19 after 23 games and have won 19 of their last 29 starts. All 19 of those wins have come against MAC competition and they have dropped just seven conference games in that stretch.
Junior first baseman Chris Meyers is putting up MAC-Player-of-the-Year type numbers as he leads the MAC in batting average (.394), home runs (15), RBI (54), hits (67) and on-base percentage (.519).
Mason Sykes (8) is tied for fourth in the league in homers and Scott Mackiewicz (7) is tied for sixth.
The Chippewas
Junior Mario Camilletti continues to make his mark in his first season at CMU after transferring from Oakland.
The second baseman leads the nation with 58 walks, one shy of Zavier Warren's program record (2019). Camilletti, CMU's leadoff hitter, ranks first in the MAC in runs (56), is second in on-base percentage (.508), and third in doubles (16) and RBI (42).
CMU senior Zach Gilles ranks fifth in the conference with a .355 batting average, leads the league with 12 sacrifice bunts, and is second with seven triples and 18 stolen bases.
Taking a Walk
How often do the Chippewas draw walks? Four of the top five in that category in the MAC are Chippewas: Camilletti, Gilles (44), Justin Simpson (40) and Jakob Marsee (35), who is tied with Toledo's Meyers for fourth.
On the Mound
The Chippewas have gotten sterling starting pitching all season from Jordan Patty, Andrew Taylor, Cameron Brown and Garrett Navarra.
Taylor is 10-3 with a 1.33 ERA, ranking first in the MAC in both categories and third and fourth, respectively, in wins and ERA nationally. His 110 strikeouts are 15th best in the nation and second in the MAC.
Patty is second in the league with eight wins (against two losses) and third with a 2.11 ERA. Brown is ninth in the league with seven victories (against two losses) and is tied with Taylor for second in the conference with four complete games.
Navarra is 4-0, capably filling the role of Sunday starter and typically going four or five innings before turning the game over to the bullpen, which is headlined by Ian Leatherman (five saves) and Grant Frazer (four).
Telling about how effective and efficient the left-handed Navarra is are two numbers, both of which pop: He has a 3.25-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and his 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings.
Next?
If the Chippewas win the title, it will mark the first time since 1994-95 that they have captured back-to-back MAC titles (there was no championship awarded in the COVID-shortened 2020 season).
The NCAA Tournament Selection Show is scheduled for noon, Monday, May 31 (ESPN2).
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