Indiana State Sycamores baseball University baseball program
Indiana State Sycamores Founded 1896; 129 years ago (1896 ) University Indiana State University Head coach Tracy Archuleta Conference Missouri Valley Location Terre Haute, Indiana Home stadium Bob Warn Field at Sycamore Stadium Nickname Sycamores Colors Royal blue and white[ 1] 1986 1986, 2023 1979, 1983, 1984, 1986, Missouri Valley Conference: Missouri Valley Conference:Indiana Collegiate Conference:
Indiana Intercollegiate Conference:
The Indiana State Sycamores baseball team is the NCAA Division I baseball program of Indiana State University , located in Terre Haute, Indiana . It is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference . The team last played in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship in 2024. Their first season was 1896. The Sycamores have had 12 All-Americans, 26 Major Leaguers, and more than 2,200 victories. The team's most successful season was in 1986, when the team appeared in the College World Series and finished with a record of 48–21. The Sycamores have appeared in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship in 1979, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1989, 1995, 2012, 2014, 2019, 2021, 2023, and 2024.
They appeared in the NAIA Baseball World Series in 1958 and won the NAIA "Midwest" District Championship in 1964. In 2013, the 1958 team was honored on the 55th Anniversary of their appearance at the NAIA Baseball World Series.[ 2]
Past coaches include John Wooden , Bob Warn , former ISU and MiLB'er Paul L. Wolf ,[ 3] Wally Marks and Mitch Hannahs . The Sycamores play their home games at Sycamore Stadium at Bob Warn Field (900).
Division I NCAA tournament results
The Sycamores have appeared in 13 NCAA Division I Baseball Championships . Their combined record is 16–26; they won the 1986 Mideast Regional and the 2023 Terre Haute Regional; they reached Regional Finals in 1989, 2019 and 2024.
Year
Result
Games
1979 Midwest Regional
0–2
1983 Mideast Regional
0–2
1984 Mideast Regional
1–2
1986 Mideast Regional 3–0
1986 College World Series 0–2
1987 Central Regional
1–2
1989 South Regional
2–2
1995 Midwest II Regional
1–2
2012 Eugene Regional
0–2
2014 Bloomington Regional
0–2
2019 Nashville Regional
2–2
2021 Nashville Regional
1–2
2023 Terre Haute Regional 3–0
2023 Fort Worth Super Regional
0–2
2024 Lexington Regional
2–2
Year
Player
Organization
2010
Ryan Strausborger, CF
Rawlings Gold Glove[ 4]
2023
Grant Magill, C
Rawlings Gold Glove[ 5]
Year
Player
Organization
1963
Harlan Lautenschlager, IF
NAIA
1985
John Howes, P
Baseball America
1979 Wallace Johnson, 2B CoSIDA NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarship
1981 Marty Martino, 2B CoSIDA Academic All-American
1986
Paul Frye, OF
Collegiate Baseball
1989
Mitch Hannahs , 2BABCA, Baseball America
1990
Chad McDonald, 3B
ABCA, Collegiate Baseball
1991
Mike Farrell, P/1B
Collegiate Baseball
1992
John LaMar, OF
ABCA, Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball
1993
Casey Whitten, P
ABCA, Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball
1995
Todd Tatlock, DH
ABCA, Collegiate Baseball, NCBWA
1996
Dan Olson, OF
ABCA, NCBWA
2014
Ryan Keaffaber, SP
Louisville Slugger
2016
Tyler Ward, SP
Louisville Slugger
2021
Geremy Guerrero, SP
ABCA, Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, D1Baseball.com, NCBWA
2022
Randal Diaz, 3B
Collegiate Baseball
2023
Connor Fenlong, SP
ABCA, Collegiate Baseball, D1Baseball.com, NCBWA
Most Valuable Player
Only players selected for the conference first team are displayed; for second team and honorable mention, please consult the Indiana State baseball media guide at www.gosycamores.com
Henry Smith, (P) – 1954
Henry Smith, (P) – 1955
Henry Smith, (P) – 1957
Parker Eaton, (P) – 1958
Gerald Jeffries, (2B) – 1958
Paul Edgerton, (C) – 1958
Bill Gilkey, (OF) – 1958
Jim Bates, (OF) – 1958
Joe Decker, (SS) – 1962
Gary Cunning ,[ 6] Paul Gries, (SS) – 1965
Larry Roesch, (2B) - 1965
Mike Harlan, (OF) – 1965
Randy Miller, (OF) – 1965
Paul Edgerton, (C) – 1965
Randy Miller, (OF) – 1966
Drew Thomas, (P) – 1966
Robert Warren, (P) – 1966
Alan Buell, (1B) – 1966
John Smith, (SS) – 1966
Mike Phillips, (3B) – 1966
Mike Harlan, (OF) – 1966
Steve Hollenbeck , C – 1966
Drew Thomas, (P) – 1967
Alan Buell, (1B) – 1967
Randy Miller, (2B)
Mike Harlan, (OF) – 1967
Mike Phillips, (3B) – 1967
Mike Lecklitner, (OF) – 1967
Steve Hollenbeck , (3B) – 1968Dave Lecklitner, (C) – 1968
Nick Petrycki, (SS) – 1968
Mike Russell, (OF) – 1968
Drew Thomas, (P) – 1968
Mike Phillips, (1B) – 1968
Bill Hayes , (C) – 1977Jay James, (3B) – 1977
Jeff Brisson, (OF) – 1977
Bill Hayes , (C) – 1978Greg Baker, (OF) – 1978
Preston Williams, (1B) – 1979
Wallace Johnson , (2B) – 1979Pete Piskol, (SS) – 1979
Greg Baker, (OF) – 1979
Mark Walberg, (P) – 1979
Pete Piskol, (SS) – 1979
Pat Dumochelle, (C) – 1980
Dave Browning, (DH) – 1980
Zane Smith , (P) – 1982Pete Piskol, (SS) – 1982
Mark Walberg, (OF) – 1982
Rob Baker, (OF) – 1983
Brian Dorsett , (C) – 1983Rod Zeratsky, (DH) – 1983
Tim Barrett , (P) – 1983Mike Coin, (1B) – 1984
Scott Mann, (OF) – 1984
Rod Zeratsky, (C) – 1984
Tony Collins, (DH) – 1984
Blaise Ilsley , (P) – 1984Boi Rodriguez, (3B) – 1985
Bob Zeihen, (OF) – 1985
Tony Collins, (DH) – 1985
Blaise Ilsley, (P) – 1985
Boi Rodriguez, (3B) – 1986
Paul Frye, (OF) – 1986
Mike Eberle, (C) – 1986
Mitch Hannahs , (2B) – 1987Dan Roman, (SS) – 1987
Mike Eberle, (C) – 1987
Jamie Allison, (OF) – 1987
Mitch Hannahs , (Util) – 1988Mitch Hannahs , (2B) – 1989Chad McDonald, (3B) – 1989
Kurt Olson, (UT) – 1989
Mike Farrell, (DH) – 1990
Dave Doster , (2B) – 1992Steve Ruckman, (3B) – 1992
John LaMar, (OF) – 1992
Stoney Burke, (C) – 1993
Demetrius Dowler, (OF) – 1993
Casey Whitten, (P) – 1993
Ric Johnson, (OF) – 1994
Jeff Leaman, (UT) – 1995
Todd Tatlock, (DH) – 1995
Ric Johnson, (OF) – 1995
Brad Finken, (P) – 1996
Dan Olson, (OF) – 1996
Rick Angell, (OF) – 1998
Tony Harden, (P) – 1998
Pete Hennecke, (IF) – 1998
Clint Barmes , (SS) – 2000Mitch Stetter , (P) – 2000Jason Frome, (OF) – 2001
Nevin Ashley , (C) – 2006Ryan Strausborger , 2B – 2008Ryan Strausborger , UT – 2009Brady Shoemaker, OF – 2009
Nick Ciolli, OF – 2009
Joe Rodriguez, (SP) – 2009
Ryan Strausborger , (OF) – 2010Jacob Petricka , (SP) – 2010Robby Ort, (OF) – 2011
Jeremy Lucas, (C) – 2012
Rob Ort, (OF) – 2012
Dakota Bacus, (SP) – 2012
Ryan Keaffaber, (RP) – 2014
Tyler Wampler, (SS) – 2014
Andy DeJesus, (2B) – 2016
Hunter Owen , (OF) – 2016Tony Rosselli, (OF) – 2017
Jake Means, (3B) – 2018
Tyler Grauer, (LHP) – 2019
Collin Liberatore, (RHP) – 2019
Jake Means, (3B) – 2019
Aaron Beck, (OF) – 2021
Connor Fenlong, (RP) – 2021
Geremy Guerrero, (SP) – 2021
Jordan Schaeffer, (SS) – 2021
Max Wright, (C) – 2021
Lane Miller, (SP) - 2023
Matt Jachec, (SP) - 2023
Geremy Guerrero – 2021
Connor Fenlong – 2023
Tyler Wampler – 2014
Jake Means – 2019
Grant Magill – 2023
Rich Angell – 1998
Clint Barmes – 2000Tim Brewer – 2005
Collin Liberatore – 2019
Aaron Beck – 2021
Career leaders
Batting average
Name
Average
Larry Bird * (1979)
.500
Todd Tatlock (1994–95)
.423
Wallace Johnson (1977–79)
.422
Rob Barker (1981–83)
.399
Pete Piskol (1978–82)
.396
Paul Frye (1984–86)
.383
Bird appeared in one game for the baseball team, going 1-for-2 with 2 RBI.[ 7]
Hits
Name
Hits
Bob Zeihen* (1985–88)
290
Mitch Hannahs (1986–89)
274
Steve Ruckman (1990–93)
257
Dan Roman (1984–87)
253
Pete Piskol (1978–82)
250
Bob Zeihen holds the National NCAA career record for triples (32)[ 8]
HRs
Name
HRs
Boi Rodriguez (1985–87)
48
Dan Frye (1989–92)
39
Mike Eberle (1984–87)
37
Tyler Thompson (1995–98)
32
Dan Olson (1994–96)
30
Wins
Name
Wins
Mike Gardiner (1984–87)
30
John Howes (1982–86)
29
Mike Farrell (1988–91)
27
Casey Whitten (1991–93)
27
Paul Quizner (1983–86)
25
Blaine Ilsley (1983–85)
25
Randy Keaffaber (1990–93)
25
Brad Finken (1994–97)
25
ERA
Name
ERA
Jim Ridenour (1977–78)
3.03
Casey Whitten (1991–93)
3.04
Dave Thomas (1977–78)
3.09
Blaise Ilsley (1983–85)
3.20
Jim Rasmussen (1977–78)
3.32
Strikeouts
Name
Strikeouts
Casey Whitten (1991–93)
299
Mike Gardiner (1983–86)
296
Brad Finken (1994–97)
275
Blake Ilsley (1983–85)
274
Mitch Stetter (2000–03)
254
Sycamores in MLB
While long-time baseball great Tommy John is an alumnus of Indiana State; he did not play baseball for the Sycamores as he attended classes around his professional baseball schedule. Future New York Yankees -great, Don Mattingly , declined his baseball scholarship from Coach Bob Warn after he was drafted by the New York Yankees .
Bill Hayes had 2 "cups-of-coffee" in the majors but would go on to a long career as a Minor League manager before beginning a 15-year coaching career with the San Francisco Giants, winning 3x World Series Championships (2010 , 2012 , 2014 ); in Dec 2014, he was named 1st-base coach for the Giants.[ 9] Ron Felling was a 2-year letterman for the Sycamores.
In addition, basketball legend Larry Bird appeared in two games for the Sycamores, in the spring of 1979, following the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
Indiana State has placed over 75 Sycamores in the Minors, of which 27 have reached the Major Leagues or Negro Major Leagues. They are by order of appearance:
Coaching leaders
Years
Coach (Alma Mater)
Wins
Losses
Ties
Pct.
Notes
1976–2006
Bob Warn (Southern Illinois)1,070
745
5
.598
1986 College World Series, 7 NCAA bids, 1979, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1995 Conference Titles
2014–2024
Mitch Hannahs (Indiana State)
355
214
1
.624
5 NCAA bids; 2023, 2024 Conference Titles
1938–1941, 1956–1967
Paul Wolf (Indiana State)
140
113
5
.552
1958 NAIA World Series, 4-time Coach of the Year, 1957, 1958, 1964, 1966 Conference Titles
2010–2013
Rick Heller (Upper Iowa)132
96
0
.583
2012 NCAA tournament, 2012 MVC Coach of the Year
1968–1975
Jim Rendel (Earlham, {Ind.})
129
141
0
.478
1929–1931, 1934–1937, 1942, 1946–1947, 1949–1955
Wally Marks (Chicago)108
81
2
.571
1930, 1946, 1948, 1949 Conference Titles
2007–2009
Lindsay Meggs (UCLA)77
79
0
.493
2009 Coach of the Year
1924–1928
Art Strum (Wisconsin-LaCrosse)
41
16
0
.719
1924 Conference Title
1918–1923
Birch Bayh (Indiana State) 40
13
1
.750
1919, 1920, 1921, 1923 Conference Titles
1913–1917
Alfred Westphal (unknown)
24
24
1
.500
1932–1933
Jack Hannah (unknown)
18
8
0
.692
1948
John Wooden (Purdue), (Indiana State)* 7
7
0
.500
1912
Bert Wiggins (unknown)
8
2
0
.800
1910
Jesse A. Wood (Indiana State)
7
4
0
.636
1896-1909; 1911; 1918; 1944
Others
50
59
0
.460
1896–present
All-time
2,189
1,595
15
.578
- John Wooden was a Graduate Student while he coached the baseball team
Coaching honors
Coach
Year(s)
Conf
Paul Wolf
1958, 1963, 1966, 1967
Indiana Collegiate[ 10]
Bob Warn
1979, 1983, 1984
Missouri Valley[ 11]
Lindsay Meggs
2009
Missouri Valley[ 11]
Rick Heller
2012
Missouri Valley
Mitch Hannahs
2023
Missouri Valley
1985 - Wallace Johnson (Player) - Indiana State University Hall of Fame [ 12]
1987 – Paul Wolf (Coach) – Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame[ 13]
1988 – Don Jennings (Player) – Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame[ 14]
1989 – Howard Sharpe (Player) – Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame[ 15]
1990 – Bob Warn (Coach) – Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame[ 16]
2000 – Bob Warn (Coach) – Iowa Western Hall of Fame[ 12]
2002 - Junius "Rainey" Bibbs (Player) - Indiana State University Hall of Fame[ 17]
2002 – 1986 Baseball Team (College World Series participant) – Indiana State University[ 18]
2002 – Bob Warn (Coach) – Indiana State University Hall of Fame[ 12]
2002 – Paul Gries (Player) – Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame[ 19]
2003 – Bob Warn (Coach) – American Baseball Coach's Association[ 12]
2007 – Brian Dorsett (Player) – Indiana State University Hall of Fame[ 20]
2008 – Brian Dorsett (Player) – Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame[ 21]
2011 – Junius "Rainey" Bibbs (Player) – Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame[ 22]
2021 - Sean Manaea (Player) – Indiana State University Hall of Fame[ 12]
2022 - Steve Ruckman[ 23] Frontier League Hall of Fame [ 24]
See also
References
^ "Athletic Communications" . GoSycamores.com . May 10, 2021. Retrieved March 11, 2024 .^ "1958 Baseball Sycamores Recognized - Indiana State University" . Indiana State University . 14 May 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2018 .^ "Paul Wolf Minor Leagues Statistics & History" .^ "Strausborger Earns Rawlings Gold Glove Award - Indiana State University" . Indiana State University . 24 June 2010. Retrieved 19 January 2018 .^ "Magill named 2023 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division I Gold Glove Winner" . 21 June 2023.^ "Gary Cunning Minor Leagues Statistics & History" . Baseball-Reference.com . Retrieved 19 January 2018 .^ Dana Hunsinger (May 4, 2015). "Larry Bird's baseball career: A lofty .500 batting average" . Indystar.com . Indianapolis Star. Retrieved December 8, 2016 . ^ "Division I Baseball Records Through 2014" (PDF) . NCAA.org . Archived from the original (PDF) on May 30, 2015.^ Haft, Chris (2014-06-30). "Hayes named Giants' first-base coach; Kelly to third" . MLB.com . Archived from the original on 2015-01-07. ^ Indiana State University Archives Home Archived June 3, 2010, at the Wayback Machine ^ a b "Baseball Records" (PDF) . Missouri Valley Conference . Retrieved 2024-10-01 .^ a b c d e "Bob Warn" . Indiana State University . Archived from the original on 2010-06-03.^ "Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame" . Archived from the original on August 3, 2010. Retrieved May 25, 2010 .^ "Inductees" . www.indbaseballhalloffame.org . Archived from the original on August 3, 2010.^ "Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame" . Archived from the original on August 3, 2010. Retrieved May 17, 2012 .^ "Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame" . Archived from the original on August 3, 2010. Retrieved May 24, 2010 .^ "Indiana State University Athletics Hall of Fame Class List" . Indiana State University . Retrieved 19 January 2018 .^ "Bibbs, Junius "Rainey" . Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame . Archived from the original on 2012-08-02.^ "Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame" . Archived from the original on August 3, 2010. Retrieved May 17, 2012 .^ "Five To Be Inducted Into 2008 Class Of Indiana State Athletic Hall Of Fame" . Indiana State Athletics . 2007-11-09. Archived from the original on 11 July 2011.^ "Inductees" . www.indbaseballhalloffame.org . Archived from the original on August 3, 2010.^ "Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame" . www.indbaseballhalloffame.org . Archived from the original on 2 August 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2022 .^ "Steve Ruckman Independent Leagues Statistics" . Baseball-Reference.com . Retrieved 2024-10-01 .^ "Sycamore alum Steve Ruckman named 2022 Frontier League Hall of Fame inductee" . 13 June 2022.
External links
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