Local baseball fans have a new location to enjoy games this summer as the Northwest Indiana Oilmen of the Midwest Collegiate League play their first ever season at beautiful Oil City Stadium in Whiting. The MCL features eight teams for the 2012 season, four of which are brand new expansion squads. The Oilmen are off to a sizzling hot start, posting a record of 10-3 through the first 13 games. They have won seven of the first eight home games.
Oil City Stadium, located on 119th Street in downtown Whiting, was opened in 2011 and is also the home of Calumet College and Whiting High School baseball. The purpose of the league is to showcase potential baseball stars of the future while allowing collegiate players, mostly underclassmen, to stay active in the summer by competing in a wooden bat league. The Oilmen have taken the MCL by storm this season, holding the league’s best record and a three game lead in the South Division.
League commissioner Don Popravak owns the team along with co-owner Ron Kittle, who was the 1983 American League Rookie of the Year and spent 11 seasons in Major League Baseball, eight with the Chicago White Sox.
The Oilmen feature college ballplayers from a variety of levels starting with Division-I talent. The roster includes a slew of local players in addition to many guys from outside of the area. Utility infielder/outfielder Elliot Bajda is the hometown favorite after playing his high school ball for the Whiting Oilers. Bajda has impressed the Whiting fans through the first 13 games, posting a strong on-base percentage while leading the team in walks (10) and stolen bases (5). One of those stolen bases came on a straight steal of home, which is a baseball rarity.
Other Northwest Indiana natives include catcher Tyler Hanson (River Forest), infielder Craig Austgen (Lowell), infielder Cody Dykema (Lake Central), left-handed pitcher Josh Negele (Crown Point), catcher Kevin Franchetti (Andrean), relief pitcher Jim Hinkleman (Munster), first baseman John Livingston (Highland), pitcher Josh Stowe (Highland), pitcher Nik Mason (Highland) and pitcher Ryan Wilkinson (Munster).
First baseman John Loeffler is also a familiar name to region fans. He is playing his college ball at Valparaiso University, where he helped the Crusaders win the Horizon League title this year. On many nights, the Oilmen middle infield is comprised of a pair of Purdue rising stars in Bennett Oliver and Brandon Krieg. Left fielder Billy Miller has started the MCL campaign on a tear, hitting .413 with 12 RBIs. He also launched the first home run in Oilmen history in Joliet against the Illinois Lincolns on June 12.
The Oilmen have had a flair for the dramatic this season with a handful of come-from-behind victories including three walk-off wins in front of the home fans at Oil City Stadium. Miller delivered two game winners, while Bajda came up with the other walk-off hit. Miller’s first walk-off came on June 5 against Southland as he capped a four run ninth inning rally to give NWI a 5-4 win. Bajda’s two run single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth secured a 7-6 win over Illinois on June 8. The most recent ninth inning rally came on June 14 against the defending MCL Champion Will County CrackerJacks. The Oilmen scored two in the ninth to tie it before a Miller single completed a 4-3 win.
There are still plenty of chances to catch the Oilmen this season as NWI plays 20 home games between now and the end of the regular season on July 29. One of those games will be a special salute to the Armed Forces as the Oilmen scrimmage the US Military All-Stars on July 1 at 6:10.
Plenty of great promotions are lined up for the duration of the season, including weekly favorites Thirty Thursdays and Family Fridays. All Oilmen games are broadcast on the Oilmen Radio Network at www.nwioilmen.com, while select contests can be heard on 1230 AM WJOB.