BB: WIAC: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[BigPoppa]

Can somebody help me make sense of the WIAC this year? I just want one team to be consistent. One day a team is unbeatable and the next they are terrible.

I am speechless (which is tough for me to be) about the WIAC right now.

[badgerwarhawk]

Let me be the first to congratulate Whitewater on another tremendous regular season.  You guys battled through adversity from before the season all the way through and are still going to make the tourney.  I can't tell you how pissed I would be to find out that 8 of my teammates weren't playing especially after the success you guys had last year and you probably would've made the world series again this year with Munn, Donovan's, Stine, and a healthy Petrasko.  I know success is taken for granted some times but you guys overcame a lot this year. 

Thanks, it's nice of you to say that.  It's been a difficult season in many respects but the team has hung together and we'll still be playing next week.   The loss of players has hurt but you have to play with the guys you have and move forward.  There have been bumps in the road but for the most part we've done that.

I didn't mention it yesterday because the poster asked specifically about Petrasko but we've also lost Kenseth, our starting shortstop, for the remainder of the season due to an injury.   So it goes.  It's just been one of those years.

[cubs]

Sure seems like there have been more injuries to key players this year than in the past....  Without looking through all the boxscores, guys like Petrasko, Kenseth, Greg Gibson, and Brad Demmin have all missed significant time this year.  Hope this is just a "fluke" year and doesn't become the norm in terms of injuries.

[ShineTime]

Point also lost Kakwitch who could've done some special things this year if not injured.  He played in the beginning of the year and struggled but from what I've heard he was trying to play through a shoulder injury.

[biggio34]

WHO WANTS TO WIN THIS LEAGUE?
All three top teams have had a chance to run away and hide with it, seems nobody can put a consistent run together to put this away. What should make the WIAC and Regional interesting is the fact that NONE of them are very deep on the mound. All have a legit top 2 but the rest are inconsistent. Should be a good tourney. If Point gets home field it's OVER! They don't lose tourney's at Witter.

[cubs]

Well if Point goes and wins three out of four this weekend in Platteville, it's all their's!!! 

I believe the WIAC Tournamnet would be at University Field however, and not Witter Field.  The whole point of moving it was to get it "on-campus."

[OshDude]

Has anyone been following Greg Reinhard's stats this year in AAA? Amazing! Now that Samardzija is up with the big club, the relief pitcher line to Chicago may start behind Reinhard, who could be this year's Kevin Hart for the Cubs. Add Reinhard to JZ, Taschner and Wash, and we have about 1/3 of an MLB-quality staff from the WIAC.

[Brewers20]

Can somebody help me make sense of the WIAC this year? I just want one team to be consistent. One day a team is unbeatable and the next they are terrible.

I am speechless (which is tough for me to be) about the WIAC right now.

Sorry to say, but that's just how the WIAC is.  Anybody can beat anybody on any given day.  It's how the season is laid out, four 9 inning double headers in one weekend can sometimes really screw a team up.  I mean think about it, thats a s%&* ton of baseball over the course of two days, and then throw in a double header in the middle of the week, sometimes it gets to be too much for some guys.

As far as yesterday goes, I can say there is a better day to be a pointer.  They came out and showed that they do have the best pitching in the conference and that they can hit the ball a little bit too.  Shutting out a team twice that is hitting .340 as a team is pretty awesome.  Given the past success Point has had against Platteville who doesn't have much different of a team as last year, I can't see them losing more than one game down there.  BUT...with the way this year has gone so far you just never know. 

About Point possibly hosting the tourney at Witter field if they're the number 1 seed, I don't think it will happen, and I don't think the commissioner would allow it.  Playing at Witter has been a success for the pointers, but you're not going to turn down the opportunity to host the tournament at your home park..i don't think.  But, lets just say they did host it at Witter...how bad would that burn in the other coaches sides who absolutely hated the fact that it was at Witter and thought that is the only reason Point won the tournament 4 years in a row, because they were supposedly just like home games for us.  It's funny how the whole just like home games theory didn't work for Oshkosh when they hosted regionals, and they go 2 and out.  Thats just comical when you think about it. 

[Dagger]

Has anyone been following Greg Reinhard's stats this year in AAA? Amazing! Now that Samardzija is up with the big club, the relief pitcher line to Chicago may start behind Reinhard, who could be this year's Kevin Hart for the Cubs. Add Reinhard to JZ, Taschner and Wash, and we have about 1/3 of an MLB-quality staff from the WIAC.

yeah I have been watching his numbers all season thus far, if he can maintain what he has going you'd have to think he's a prime candidate for a mid-season "shake up the bullpen" move!  I think he's better than samardzja anyway...I think he will at least debut this year, if not stick around for a while! 

as for the witter field site, I don't think point would choose to go their if their own field was an option...although they havn't played well there this year compared to years past.  We couldn't host regionals because of the lack of lights and cages, not because we would rather play in rapids.  Plus the playing surface at witter is not very nice, and as bad as university field is I would rather play there! 

on a side note....
The really funny part for me when we won 4 straight tourneys at witter was all the talk about it being a small ball park and we were winning on cheap homeruns!  I heard that after almost every game from several people.  My first thoughts were always, "does the other team bat in a different stadium?"  I mean how foolish.  the fences don't move in when we would bat, we just had the guys that could lift a ball and drive it out from time to time.  Not to mention that the field was no smaller than WW where the wind blows straight out with hurricane force winds most of the time, on top of the fact that it's a small yard but you never hear anything about their park being too small.  Oh well...

[Bronko7]

You're correct in saying Witter's playing surface is rough. There is a ski-jump at third that you have to play correctly or wear it in the face! I have been there a couple times and never did I see the fence magiclly move back when Point wasn't hitting. The environment is great and the support is great, overall a good place to host any tournament.

[Dagger]

I'll go ahead and lay down my first shot at an All WIAC Team, but as we all know there are always surprises when it finally comes out for real.  I'm not sold on all of these so what are your thoughts?  Seems like a pretty down year this year when you look at offensive production numbers for guys around the league.

Berger UWO
Fanta LC
Richter UWSP
Jacobson PLT
Giebel ST
Archambeau UWSP
sebasta UWO
O'Connell ST
Cummings SUP
Spurney UWSP
Hiroskey UWO
Olson SUP
Gram LC
Gilbertson ST
Kuhlman WW
Hawkins PLT (I have a hard time doing that with his defense)

Zielke STP
Williams STP
Hooper WW
Dott WW
Saufley SUP

Pitcher of the year: zielke UWSP(most apperances, lowest era, lowest opponents BA....etc)
Player of the year: Berker UWO

[cubs]

As far as your pitchers, I think your list is pretty accurate, except that I think Saufley should be replaced by either Kannenberg or Lange.  Lange leads the WIAC in innings pitched, and is 2nd in strikeouts.  Kannenberg on the other hand has an ERA over a half run better than both of them, and is tied for third in the WIAC in wins.

As far as the Pitcher of the Year, Zielke is probably the leading candidate, however I wouldn't be surprised if it was a close vote.  Not because of numbers, but because there are some out there who feel the award should go to a starting pitcher.  (Kind of the same thoughts as the Position Player of the Year not going to a DH, but to a player that played the field.)

The two pre-season favorites, in Rubens and Dott, are likely out of the running, as pitchers on their own teams are having better seasons, in Hooper and Kannenberg.

[cubs]

Position player wise, I think there are a handful of "locks."
-Berger
-Fanta
-Richter
-Jacobson
-Gram
-Giebel

Then the remaining nine spots are up for grabs among about fifteen guys:
-Fadness
-Fosler
-Hiroskey
-Sebesta
-Surman (I would take him over Spurney, despite the lower BA as OB% nearly identical and better power numbers)
-Spurney
-Archambeau
-Stace
-Gilbertson
-O'Connell
-Kuhlman
-Olson
-Cummings
-Kannenberg (Should end up with enough at-bats to be eligible as both a position player and pitcher like Endl was a few years back.)

POY-I think Berger is again a "lock" as he leads the WIAC in batting average, hits, runs, and RBI's, and is near the top in HR's, total bases, and doubles.

**I bolded the nine guys I would place on the 1st Team**

[Dagger]

yeah I'm sure the pitcher of the year will be a close vote, and if berger isn't Position POY I will be absolutely shocked!  There's no way, unless he goes 0-the rest of the season and even then he should still get it. 

It's hard, and especially this year with the poor numbers across the board, to pick guys and the final team always throws at least one wrench into things that nobody saw coming.  I can't say that I would disagree with surman making it, the only thing working against him is his low average.  I just look at the numbers of the years past and can't believe the drop off.

[ShineTime]

Number are down because the pitching in the WIAC is the best it's been in the past 15 years.  Everyone's top 4 are dominant.