
Jack of Diamonds: Crowder Expected to Get Opening Day Start for Illinois
Illinois RHP Jack Crowder, one of the program’s most anticipated signees in 2021, hopes to put all his natural ability together for a final year of college baseball.
Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer
February 15, 2024
CHAMPAIGN — The last person to throw a pitch last season for Illinois may likely throw its first pitch in the 2024 campaign.
Senior right-hander Jack Crowder is likely to get the baseball first as the Illini look to rebound from its first under .500 season since 2017. And in a lot of ways, Crowder getting this opening game start for a 9 a.m. CST first pitch against Akron at Wake Forest’s David F. Couch Ballpark is fitting because the 6-foot-4 pitcher is looking to turn his results around as well.
In his last appearance at the Big Ten Tournament at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb., Crowder held Michigan to just one run over the final four innings while striking out five in a 55-pitch outing. He’ll be looking to find that level of success in Illinois’ first game of the 2024 season.