The Indiana State baseball team closes out their six-game homestand this week, hosting the Butler Bulldogs on Tuesday and the SIU Edwardsville Cougars on Wednesday from Bob Warn Field at Sycamore Stadium. First pitch of both games is set for 6:00 p.m.

Both games can be seen live for free on GoSycamores.com through SycamoreVision, with just Tuesday's game available over the radio. Tuesday's game against Butler can be heard live on WIBQ 98.5 FM with Brian Fritz on the call.

Indiana State (17-13) enters the week on a five-game winning streak, including a series sweep over No. 30 Creighton last weekend.

Midweek Schedule
Tuesday: 6:00 p.m. – Terre Haute Boys & Girls Club members can receive two free tickets to Tuesday's game against Butler
Wednesday: 6:00 p.m. – ISU Fraternity / Sorority Night

Probable Indiana State Starting Pitchers
Tuesday: Greg Kuhlman (R-So. -- LHP -- 6-3 -- 180 -- West Des Moines, Iowa -- Valley HS)
Notes: Making his first start of the season ... fourth on the team with 12 appearances this season
2013 Season Stats: 1-0 record ... 6.20 ERA ... 0.2 IP, 1 SV, 0 H, 0 R, 1 DP vs. Creighton last Saturday
Wednesday: Tyler Fehringer (R-Sr. -- RHP -- 6-1 -- 220 -- Lincoln, Neb. -- Marshalltown CC)
Notes: Five starts and eight appearances in relief this season ... fifth on the team with 20 Ks
2013 Season Stats: 1-1 record ... 3.91 ERA ... 2.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 Ks vs. Creighton last Sunday

A Little History – Butler
Tuesday's game will be the 107th all-time meeting between Indiana State and Butler, with the Sycamores leading the series by a 69-36-1 margin. Indiana State has dominated the series recently, winning seven games in a row since 2004 and 28 of the last 30 matchups since 1979. Indiana State and Butler were set to play on May 9, 2012, but had to cancel their game due to scheduling issues. The teams last met in Terre Haute on March 23, 2011, a 15-3 victory for the Sycamores. Under fourth-year head coach Rick Heller, Indiana State is 2-0 against Butler.

Scouting The Bulldogs
Butler enters Tuesday's game at 17-15 on the season, sweeping a three-game series at Dayton last weekend to push their winning streak to four games. The Bulldogs are 14-9 away from Indianapolis this season, winning each of their last four games on the road as well. Senior Jimmy Risi leads the team at the plate, hitting .355 (44-for-124) with 17 doubles, six home runs and 29 RBIs. The Bulldogs are set to start senior LHP Kevin Lenkman (1-2, 8.65 ERA) on Tuesday.

Game-by-Game – Butler
Below is a quick look at the last 10 games in the series between Indiana State and Butler.

March 23,11 at Indiana State -- W, 15-3                    April 13, 2005 at Butler -- W, 7-5
April 6, 2010 at Butler -- W, 20-7                              March 24, 2004 at Indiana State -- W, 17-12
March 18, 2009 at Indiana State -- W, 23-3                Feb. 29, 2004 at Evansville, Ind. -- L, 3-10
April 5, 2007 at Butler -- W, 6-3                                May 8, 2002 at Indiana State -- L, 8-9
May 16, 2006 at Indiana State -- W, 7-0                     March 2, 2002 at Louisville, Ky. -- W, 9-4

A Little History -- SIU Edwardsville
Wednesday's game will be the ninth all-time meetings between Indiana State and SIU Edwardsville, a series that began back in 2008 that Indiana State leads 6-2. The Sycamores swept a pair of game from the Cougars last season, winning 10-2 in Terre Haute and 5-1 in Edwardsville. Indiana State is 4-0 at home against SIU Edwardsville, winning one game in 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Under fourth-year head coach Rick Heller, Indiana State is 5-2 against SIU Edwardsville.

Scouting The Cougars
SIU Edwardsville enters Wednesday's game at 8-22 on the season including a 6-12 mark in the Ohio Valley Conference. Following a weekend sweep at Belmont, the Cougars have dropped six consecutive games and are 2-14 away from home this season. Senior Joel Greatting leads the team at the plate, hitting .346 (36-for-104) with 22 runs scored. Junior Devin Caldwell tops the roster with eight home runs and 20 RBIs. SIUE has not announced a starting pitcher, but enters the game holding a 6.34 team ERA.

Game-by-Game – SIU Edwardsville
Below is a quick look at the eight games in the series between Indiana State and SIUE.

May 9, 2012 at SIUE -- W, 5-1                                  April 19, 2011 at SIUE -- L, 2-4
March 13, 2012 at Indiana State -- W, 10-2               May 11, 2010 at SIUE -- W, 7-5
May 10, 2011 at SIUE -- L, 9-10                               April 27, 2010 at Indiana State -- W, 6-5
April 26, 2011 at Indiana State -- W, 3-0                   April 8, 2008 at Indiana State -- W, 19-4

At Home Under Head Coach Rick Heller
Under head coach Rick Heller, Indiana State is 61-24 (.718) in home games since the start of the 2010 season. In MVC action, the Sycamores are 21-15 (.583) in Terre Haute. This season, Indiana State is 10-2 at home and 6-0 within the conference at Bob Warn Field.

Ort Named MVC Player Of The Week
Senior Robby Ort led the team to a perfect 4-0 week on the diamond and has been named the MVC Player of the Week as announced by the league office.

Ort went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs against Purdue as the Sycamores topped the Boilermakers for the second time in six days. The ISU senior tagged a three-run home run and his team-leading fourth triple of the season in Friday's series-opening 6-1 victory over the Bluejays. Ort picked up two hits, one RBI and one run scored in both of ISU's wins on Saturday and Sunday. For the week, Ort his .600 (9-for-15) at the plate, adding seven runs batted in, three runs scored and a pair of sacrifice flies. The Newburgh, Ind., native leads the team with 23 RBIs and 21 runs scored for the season, entering the week in fourth place on ISU's career RBI list with 180 runs batted in for his career.

Manaea Named To CBHOF National Pitcher Of The Year Watch List
Junior starting pitcher Sean Manaea was one of 41 pitchers from around the nation named to the National Pitcher of the Year Watch List by the College Baseball Hall of Fame.

Manaea is one of two representatives from the Missouri Valley Conference, as the ISU southpaw is joined on the prestigious list by Missouri State's Nick Petree. The CBHOF Pitcher of the Year award is college baseball's version of the Cy Young Award and is given annually to the nation's top collegiate pitcher. Previous winners include: Stephen Strasburg (2009), Alex Wimmers (2010), Trevor Bauer (2011) and Mark Appel (2012).

Manaea has posted a 5-2 record and a 1.21 ERA this season, fanning 63 batters in 52 innings on the mound while allowing just 33 hits, 17 walks and seven earned runs in eight starts. The ISU junior has struck out at least eight batters in six of his eight outings, including a season-high of 10 Ks in six shutout innings against College of Charleston on Feb. 22. The Wanatah, Ind., native struck out eight batters this past Saturday against #30 Creighton, passing Mitch Stetter (254 – 2000-03) for fifth place on ISU's career strikeout list. Manaea enters the week with 260 strikeouts for his career, 39 behind record holder Casey Whitten (299 – 1991-93).

Sycamores Sweep Nationally-Ranked Bluejays
The Sycamores took all three games from the Creighton Bluejays this past weekend, sweeping the team that entered the week ranking No. 30 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Poll. Indiana State hit .303 (30-for-99) and posted a 2.33 ERA over their three games against Creighton.

Nationally-Ranked Opponents
Indiana State is 4-1 against nationally-ranked opponents this season, sweeping three games from No. 30 Creighton and splitting a pair of games with No. 28 Mercer.

Back-to-Back Home Sweeps In MVC Play
Indiana State has played six games at home during Missouri Valley Conference play and posted back-to-back sweeps, taking all three games from Southern Illinois (March 22-24) and Creighton (April 12-14). The Sycamores have six more games at home during MVC play, coming against Evansville (May 3-5) and Bradley (16-18) later this season.

Indiana State Ends Tough Schedule Stretch At 6-5
The Sycamores ended March and began April with an 11-game stretch against four of the top teams in the Midwest, traveling to Missouri State, Purdue and Wichita State for seven straight games before hosting Purdue and Creighton. The Bears, Boilermakers and Shockers combined for 120 wins last season and won 66% of their games while Missouri State, Purdue and Creighton all joined Indiana State in the postseason in 2012. The Sycamores finished the 11-game stretch at 6-5 after their weekend sweep of Creighton.

All Nine Starters Post At Least One Hit Against Purdue
Led by senior Jordan Pearson's three hits, all nine position starters for Indiana State tallied at least one hit in ISU's 10-5 home victory over Purdue. The last time that the Sycamores saw all nine of their starters total at least one hit was on March 11 of last season in a 15-4 victory over UT Martin at Bob Warn Field.

4-1 Against The Big Ten Conference This Season
Indiana State completed a two-game series sweep of Purdue last Tuesday, moving the Sycamores to 4-1 against the Big Ten Conference this season with four out of those five games coming on the road. The Sycamores took two out of three games inside the Metrodome against Minnesota in mid-March before sweeping a home-and-home midweek series with the Boilermakers over the last two weeks. If Indiana State were inserted into the Big Ten standings, the Sycamores would have the best in winning percentage in the conference (4-1, .800).

Middle Of The Order
Redshirt senior Koby Kraemer, senior Robby Ort and sophomore Jacob Hayes hit 3-4-5 in the Indiana State batting order during Indiana State's 4-0 week, combining for eight multi-hit games, eight extra-base hits, 12 runs batted in and 10 runs scored. The trio combined to hit .468 (22-for-47) at the plate this past week.

Manaea Tabbed On Golden Spikes Award Watch List
Junior Sean Manaea was named to the Preseason Golden Spikes Award Watch List heading into the 2013 season, an award presented by USA Baseball at the end of the season to the top amateur baseball player in the country. Manaea is one of 50 student-athletes from around the nation to earn selection to the preseason list and is joined by Missouri State's Nick Petree in representing the Missouri Valley Conference.

Manaea Ranks 24th Nationally, Fifth In ISU History In Strikeouts
Junior Sean Manaea struck out eight batters last weekend against Creighton, continuing his climb up the career rankings at Indiana State. Manaea totaled 115 Ks in his sophomore season, ranking in a tie for third in school history for single-season strikeouts. The Sycamore southpaw enters the week with 63 strikeouts this season, good for a tie for 24th in the nation. Below is a quick look at the Top 10 in career strikeouts at Indiana State.

1. Casey Whitten (1991-93) – 299                             6. Mitch Stetter (2000-03) – 254
2. Mike Gardiner (1984-87) – 296                              7. Mike Farrell (1988-91) – 248
3. Brad Finken (1994-97) – 275                                 T8. John Howes (1982-86) – 217
4. Blaise Ilsley (1983-85) – 274                                 T8. Tom Browning (1993-96) – 217
5. Sean Manaea (2011-present) – 260                10. Paul Quizner (1983-86) – 214

Manaea, Moore Combine For Three MVC Pitcher Of The Week Awards
Junior Sean Manaea and senior Devin Moore have combined for three MVC Pitcher of the Week awards, highlighting a pitching staff that carries a 3.57 ERA this season. Manaea was selected on Feb. 22 following his six shutout innings with 10 strikeouts against College of Charleston and on March 18 after fanning nine batters in a six-hitter at Minnesota. Moore earned the award on March 25 following his two-hit shutout of Southern Illinois.

Manaea Named To Three Preseason All-America Teams
Junior Sean Manaea earned selection to a trio of Preseason All-America teams heading into the season, as Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and Perfect Game each selected the Indiana State southpaw as a First Team All-American. Below is a quick look at the last All-America selections for the Indiana State baseball team:

ABCA: OF Dan Olson, 1996                                       Collegiate Baseball: DH Todd Tatlock, 1995
Baseball America: SP Casey Whitten, 1993                 Sporting News: 3B Chad McDonald, 1990

Productive At The Plate: Part I
Senior Robby Ort enters the week with 180 career RBIs at the plate, ranking fourth in program history at Indiana State. Below is quick look at the Top 10 for RBIs in school history.

1. Boi Rodriguez (1985-87) – 200                              6. Mike Eberle (1984-87) – 174
2. Chad McDonald (1988-90) – 198                           7. Bob Zeihen (1985-88) – 159
3. Dan Frye (1989-92) – 186                                     8. Mike Lexa (1984-86) – 154
4. Robby Ort (2010-present) – 180                     9. Dan Olson (1994-96) – 153
5. John LaMar (1989-92) – 175                                 10. Kevin Egli (2000-03) – 151

Productive At The Plate: Part II
Senior Robby Ort has led the team in runs batted in following each of his first three seasons at Indiana State, totaling 157 RBIs in his freshman through junior seasons. The Newburgh, Ind., native has also increased his production in all three seasons, improving from 50 RBIs as a freshman to 53 RBIs as a sophomore to 54 RBIs as a junior. In 2012, Ort became the first Sycamore in program history to lead the team in runs batted in for three consecutive seasons. Ort enters the week with a team-leading 23 runs batted in.

Steady At Short
Junior Tyler Wampler has been a mainstay on defense for the Sycamores, starting 123 games at shortstop over his three seasons. Wampler has tallied 405 fielding assists (140 as a freshman in 2011, 184 as a sophomore in 2012, 81 in 2013) in his time at Indiana State, a total that puts the West Terre Haute, Ind., native on pace to break Dan Frye's school record of 541. Wampler enters the weekend with a career fielding percentage of .962 (24 errors in 140 games).

Off And Running
Sophomore Landon Curry led Indiana State with 16 stolen bases last season as a true freshman, ranking in a tie for sixth in the MVC overall. Curry became the first freshman since Bob Zeihen in 1985 to lead the Sycamores in steals as a rookie. The Uniondale, Ind., native is off to a fast start again in 2013, ranking third in the conference with 14 stolen bases this season. For his career, Curry is 30-for-36 in stolen base attempts.

Seven-Run Ninth At Missouri State
ISU's seven-run ninth inning in the series finale at Missouri State was ISU's most runs in a single inning since plating eight runs in the second inning at Bradley last season on April 15.

Good On Defense
Defense led the Sycamores to their series sweeps over Southern Illinois and Creighton, as Indiana State did not make an error in the field in their three-game set with the Salukis and just one error against the Bluejays. The last time that Indiana State did not make an error over a weekend series was during the 2010 season when ISU took two out of three games at home over Missouri State on April 30 through May 2.

Kraemer's Grand Slam Highlights Series Win At Minnesota
Redshirt senior Koby Kraemer hit a grand slam in the sixth inning inside the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, sending the Sycamores to a 9-4 win in the rubber match on Sunday, March 17. Indiana State earned a 2-1 victory on Friday night against the Golden Gophers as junior Sean Manaea pitched his first complete game with nine strikeouts.

Best Winning Percentage In The MVC Since 2009
Indiana State has posted 155 wins and a .608 winning percentage since the 2009 season, the best winning percentage in that span among teams in the MVC. ISU is second to Wichita State (165) in overall wins, but leads the way in winning percentage due to playing 24 fewer games.

Getting To The Seventh
Under head coach Rick Heller, ISU is 90-14 (.865) in games that they hold a lead heading into the seventh inning. When the Sycamores have trailed after the sixth inning, ISU is 18-57 (.240). This season, Indiana State is 13-0 when leading after six innings of play.

Against The Best
ISU is 8-8 against the RPI Top 100 this season, including series wins over Minnesota (82) and Creighton (90). Indiana State also holds wins over Mercer (19), Austin Peay (30) and College of Charleston (56). Last season, the Sycamores were 14-13 against the RPI Top 100.

Indiana State Ranks Second In The MVC With 45 Stolen Bases
Led by sophomore Landon Curry's 14 stolen bases, the Sycamores are second in the MVC behind Illinois State in the Missouri Valley Conference standings with 45 steals as a team this season. Indiana State finished second in the conference in 2010 with 105 swipes in head coach Rick Heller's first season at ISU, led by Ryan Strausborger's team-leading 41 steals.

Allowing Big Innings
Under head coach Rick Heller, the Sycamores are 80-25 (.762) when the team does not allow a three-run inning during a game. When Indiana State does allow their opponent to score at least three runs in one inning, Indiana State holds a 42-54 (.438) record.

Three Runs Or Less
The three-run plateau has been the breaking point for the Sycamores under head coach Rick Heller the last four seasons. When ISU has allowed three runs or less to their opponents, the team is 72-11 (.867) over the past four seasons. When opponents score four runs or more, ISU holds a 50-68 (.424) record.

Scoring First
The Sycamores scored the first run in 38 of their 60 games last season, tallying a 31-7 record when putting a run on the scoreboard first. ISU scored in the first inning in 25 of their games, going 22-3 last season when plating a run in the opening frame. That trend has continued into 2013, as Indiana State is 13-2 when scoring first and 6-1 when scoring in the opening inning.

Double-Digit Hits
ISU recorded at least 10 hits in a game 29 times last season, going 26-3 when posting double-digit hits. ISU's only losses when tallying 10 hits came in walk-off wins for their opponents. So far in 2013, ISU is 8-2 when posting 10 hits or more and 9-11 when going for nine hits or less.

Early Runs
The Sycamores dominated the early innings last season, outscoring their opponents 242-110 (+132) over the first five innings of their 60 games. In the first inning alone, ISU had a 37-run advantage, scoring 58 runs to their opposition's 21. In 2013, Indiana State has a nine-run advantage in the first five innings, leading 69-60, and has scored 13 first-inning runs.

All About Defense
The Sycamores rank 18th in the country in fielding percentage heading into the week, as the Sycamores check in with a .977 fielding percentage. Under head coach Rick Heller, Indiana State is 58-20 (.744) when they do not make an error in a game, including a 9-5 record this season. When the Sycamores have made a fielding miscue in Heller's four seasons, the team sits just above the .500 mark at 64-59.

Strong In The Field
Indiana State has ranked in the Top 35 in fielding percentage from 2010-12 under head coach Rick Heller, one of only nine teams in the nation to do so over each of the previous three seasons. Three of the nine from around the nation are from the Missouri Valley Conference, as Evansville and Creighton are also in the select group. CU (11th), ISU (18th) and UE (71st) are all in the Top 75 in fielding this season.

Indiana State Around The NCAA
The Sycamores are among the nation's best in several offensive and defensive categories. Below is a look at where Indiana State ranks around the NCAA entering the week:

Category                                   ISU Rank     ISU Total           NCAA Leader / Total
Sacrifice Flies                              T-15th            22                   Vanderbilt / 31
Fielding Percentage                        18th           .977                  Oregon / .988
Double Playes Per Game               T-28th           1.0                  Towson / 1.42
Stolen Bases Per Game                T-55th            1.5                 Wofford / 3.05
Strikeouts Per 9 IP                         64th            7.6                   Louisville / 9.5
Earned Run Average                      71st            3.57                 Arkansas / 1.72
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio                  77th            2.15          Cal State Fullerton / 5.08
Hits Allowed Per 9 IP                     77th              8.6                 Arkansas / 6.32

On To The Next One...
Indiana State opens a seven-game road swing this weekend, beginning with their final MVC road series on April 19-21 at Illinois State.