One Last Weekend at The Hank ...

Senior Mike Porcaro, a member of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back in the saddle for his fourth and final season of blogging. Today is his fourth entry for the 2015 season.

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It’s kind of crazy that the last weekend of the season is upon us. Like every season, it’s gone by pretty fast. I think that is why you have to enjoy every moment and every opportunity you get to play this game because before you know it, it’s all over. That is the most important thing going into this final stretch. We have a weekend series against Oakland before we head to the conference tournament. We cannot afford to look ahead. We have to take it game by game if we want to accomplish one of our goals of winning the Horizon League Tournament. We can get a better seed in the tournament if we take care of business this weekend. We are all looking forward to Friday’s game at Miller Park, but it all starts today at The Hank. I hope all of you can make it out this weekend and watch us one final time, either at Miller Park or at The Hank!

I also want to add that this Saturday is Senior Day. Pretty unbelievable to think that it will be me and 13 other seniors getting recognized that day. I swear it was just yesterday I was hugging Cole Kraft and Chad Pierce as a freshman on their senior day. I’m sure there will be a lot of emotion that day as we play our last game at The Hank. To all the other seniors, we’ve been through quite a bit during our time here at Milwaukee. Some of us have even put a half-decade of work into this program! Lets enjoy this last little ride and create something special! Can’t wait to get out there this weekend and go to battle!

This weeks “Call to the Pen” features the man you have all been waiting to hear from. He has been an absolute stud all year long and a real treat to watch. Yes, I’m talking about Sam Koenig. This guy has been raking all year long and been one of the best in the COUNTRY! All of us have been fortunate to watch what Sam has been doing this year and I know he’s not done! It’s been a pleasure to be his teammate and he no doubt has our vote for POY!!!!!

Paco: You’ve been in an absolute zone this year. Has the ball just been a beach ball to you or what?

Sam: It’s been a beach ball for a while, but some days it looks like a golf ball (laughs).

Paco: You’ve hit A LOT of balls a long way this year. Is there one homer or one at bat that sticks out in your mind as most memorable?

Sam: Outside of the home run in the home game vs. Valpo when all of my family and friends were there I would say Grand Canyon just because it was my first home run of the year.

Paco: Like a lot of us, you’ve been here half a decade. What’s your favorite memory on the field, and favorite memory off the field?

Sam: On the field would have to be this past weekend when Varsh slammed a walk-off home run off of the scoreboard and the mob at home plate. Off the field would have to be taking Tell Taylor to school in mafia.

Paco: You live in a house that has eight baseball guys (Sam, Hammer, Thicke, Luke, Barwick, Tuttle, Quish, Solberg). If you guys got thrown into a ring, who would win a Royal Rumble?

Sam: Quish and Tuttle are out from the start. Then Rick (Solberg) and Barwick are out in the early rounds as well. I think it would come down to whomever lays a good punch between myself, Meeteer and Hammer. Thicke would be a no-show because he’s never home.

Paco: You come from a baseball family. Both of your brothers, Lucas and Taylor, played baseball. Who wins in a home run derby if all of you are in your prime?

Sam: My brother Lucas will think he has a shot, but I would come through in the clutch. If I lose it’s probably because of the BP pitcher (Lucas).

Quick Hits…

Favorite Food: Chipotle

Favorite Movie: The Campaign

Favorite Baseball Player: Miguel Cabrera

Pet Peeve: When the L screens aren’t lined up in BP

Vacation Spot: I want to go to Alaska

Celebrity Crush: Rachel McAdams

Song you’d want to perform on a karaoke stage: Your Man by Josh Turner, especially if the team is around.

Update From the Midway Point

Senior Mike Porcaro, a member of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back in the saddle for his fourth and final season of blogging. Today is his third entry for the 2015 season.

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We’ve reached the halfway point of our season and find ourselves at 17-11 overall and 6-8 in conference. Looking back, there are a lot of positives that we can build on as we go into the second half. So far we have swept an SEC team (Mizzou), beat a Big Ten team (#15 Iowa) and thrown a no-hitter to name a few things. We got off to the best start in program history, so there is no doubt about the talent this team has. We know we’ve let a lot of games get away from us and that is where we have to improve as we move into the second half.

The old saying goes “it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.” We can still gain ground in conference and have a lot of opportunities during mid-week games. It all starts tomorrow against Western Illinois and I can’t wait to get back on the field.

Now, onto our next ‘Call to the Pen’. This man is a member of the ‘Knuckleheads’ (our bullpen). He is a freshman from Plover, Wisconsin and is Frank Kaminsky’s lookalike, just about 9 inches shorter and not as good at basketball. Some days he dresses like Harry Styles from One Direction and other days he dresses like Rob Dyrdek. All jokes aside he has been a joy to have on the team and has a bright future ahead of him as a Panther.

Paco: Explain to me what was going through your head the first time you took the mound as a Panther?

Austin Schulfer: Well, I was kind of nervous, but I wasn’t extremely nervous. I kind of wanted to prove myself because it was an actual game.

Paco: How’s the transition been from high school to college ball?

Schulf: It’s not like crazy, but it’s obviously more competitive and the games mean a little more. The talent level is a lot better and every team is good one through nine in the batting order. It’s not hard to transition; it’s the same game, just different people.

Paco: What’s one of your favorite things about Milwaukee?

Schulf: I like how there is something new always going on whether it’s a concert, a game, festivals, etc. It’s way better than being in Point (laughs). It’s really boring there.

Paco: If you had to go on a cross-country roadtrip with three of our teammates, who would it be and why?

Schulf: You and Varsh, because you guys are a good time and I don’t think I’d get annoyed of you during the roadtrip. And then probably Tell because he’s a hoot.

Paco: Guys compare you to Frank Kaminsky, Rob Dyrdek, and Harry Styles in terms off the way you look and dress. Which one of those comparisons is your favorite?

Schulf: I like the Harry Styles and Frank Kaminsky combination because Harry is a good-looking brother but Frank Kaminsky is athletic looking. So, I’m a mixture between both.

Paco: Unfortunately, for all the Milwaukee ladies out there, you’re a taken man and your girlfriend, Elizabeth, actually goes to school here. What’s your guys ideal date night?

Schulf: Our spot is Solo’s Pizza on Oakland Avenue. We always get a large chicken bacon and ranch pizza with no tomatoes and I always get a coke and she always gets a water. (How adorable!)

Quick Hits…

Favorite food: Used to be cheese curds but I’ve had way too many from Palms that I can’t even stomach them anymore.

Favorite movie: For The Love of The Game

Favorite baseball player: Jeff Samardzija

Pet peeve: Hearing people chew food.

Vacation spot: Mexico

Celebrity crush: Young Jennifer Anniston from Friends (I agree!)

Song you’d want to perform on a karaoke stage: Best Day Ever by Mac Miller

Young Schulf Daddy

The Big Day is Finally Here

Senior Mike Porcaro, a member of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back in the saddle for his fourth and final season of blogging. Today is his second entry for the 2015 season.

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We are 1,890 miles away from Milwaukee, yet the bad weather still follows us. Sitting here in my hotel room with Derek Peake and we just found out our game against Aoyama University has been cancelled due to rain. Hopefully things will work out and we can play them tomorrow. Guys were definitely excited to play against a different culture and have a chance to represent the USA!

Just got word Mike Fiers is starting for the Crew on Wednesday. Peake and I pulled up some YouTube videos to get some scouting in. Just kidding, we are actually watching a SportsCenter episode for the third time this morning.

Been a pretty good trip so far. Taking the second doubleheader from Grand Canyon says a lot about our team. Friday night was a tough one. We all felt like we should of left the stadium that night with two wins. I was really proud of the team for coming back the next day with high spirits. Langley stepped up by giving us a great start in game three. The at bats were phenomenal and the result showed that. Game four is where we really turned the corner. It was nearly the same situation as the first two games and this time we finished!

Reussy gave us a great effort in his first start of the year. The bullpen was fantastic that game and all weekend! McShane made some quality extra effort plays! The biggest play of the night was one you wouldn’t be able to find in the boxscore. A Grand Canyon player ripped a ball in the left field gap that off the bat, everyone thought was a double. Everyone except Luke Meeteer! Skeeter went diving head first to cut the ball off from getting to the wall. He got up and fired a seed to McShane, who threw a laser right on the money to myself as I tagged the guy out at second. That play was huge because it prevented GCU from a chance at having a big inning. It’s safe to say we found ourselves a centerman in Luke Meeteer!

Shout out to all the family and friends who have made their way down to AZ! Our section was louder than GCU all weekend. Props to PANTHER BASEBALL NATION!

This week’s ‘Call to the Pen’ features quite possibly the most interesting man on the team, Tell Taylor. Tell is one of the hundred fifth-year seniors on the team and calls Burlington, WI home. Tell and I go way back to our sophomore year in high school. I still remember the first time we played catch at our high school field. Pretty crazy that seven years later we get the chance to finish our college careers together, along with Cody Peterson, who also went to Burlington. Tell came into UWM as a smooth-fielding shortstop. This year he has made the transition to first base where he easily is the most athletic first baseman in the nation, in my opinion.

Paco: Telly, if I told you in high school that you’d be playing first base your senior year of college, what would your response have been?

TT: I would have said you’ve been smoking something funny.

Paco: But seriously, how’s the new home over at one bagger?

TT: Well, it’s different getting accustomed to a different position. I don’t quite have the instincts for the position yet… I like to forget to be the cutoff man in big situations (laughs). But I’ll be more efficient as the year goes on. However, I am the best looking first baseman on both sides of the Mississippi.

Paco: You hit the first dinger of the year two weekends ago against Maine, how many bombs can we expect from you this year?

TT: One every other game or so. 30 on the low end, 40 on the high end.

Paco: For people that don’t know, you have three siblings (Ty, Trent, and Teagan). Who is the most athletic in the family? (Fun fact: Teagan will be a freshman on UWM’s volleyball team next fall!)

TT: Either Ty or me. I would say Ty because his strength index is higher than mine.

Paco: Got any ideas on what you’re going to say to the Brewer’s players when they get to first base? (Question submitted by Peake)

TT: That’s actually a great question. I’ll be checking for cups at first base. Be on the look out Gomez.

Paco: You’re a big basketball guy. Lets say you’re going to the K dome for a pick up game. What four guys are you taking from our team to play with and why?

TT: Koenig is coming because he has a close relation to Bronson (not really). King because he’s a competitor and he can stretch the defense with the three ball. Peake for the same reasons and he was a state champ. Both guys play good D. Peake can shoot from the parking lot. I want Langley because he has a strong shoe game. He’ll supply the team with shoes. I want anyone but Goodman. Overrated!

Paco: You’re stranded on an island and allowed to have one item. What item would that be?

TT: Fully loaded helicopter so I can get out.

Paco: What inspired you to pose like this for your senior photo (below)?

TT: I thought my modeling career was going to take off. That was my first passion.

Quick Hits…

Favorite food: Sweet potato
Favorite movie: American Sniper
Favorite baseball player: Was Jeter. Andrelton Simmons now.
Pet peeve: Inconsiderate Drivers
Vacation spot: Norway
Celebrity crush: I don’t really have one.
Song you’d want to perform on a karaoke stage: I Want It That Way by Backstreet Boys or Slow Motion by Juvenile.

2015: The Year of the (14) Seniors

Senior Mike Porcaro, a member of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back in the saddle for his fourth and final season of blogging. Today is his first entry for the 2015 season.

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Coming back with three wins after the first weekend feels pretty darn good. Obviously a little disappointed we dropped the last one, but anytime you come out of a gym and set the program record for the best start to a season, you got to feel pretty good about that. We had a ton of positives throughout the weekend. Our at-bats up and down the lineup were solid all weekend, and we got some quality pitching performances. Luke Meeteer was an absolute stallion all weekend, causing chaos on the basepaths. Him and Peake really set the table for us at the top of the order and made our offense go.

Lots of positives from our pitching staff as well. BK had a great start on Friday, which is absolutely crucial on opening day. I think this was a great starting point for our staff and they will only get better as the year goes on. For now, it’s back to the gym where we need to stay motivated and get better each day as we prepare for Louisville.

I want to do something a little different this year than in years past. Considering most of you reading this are probably the same ones watching our games, I want to focus less on the games and more about the guys and the fun we have as a team. I’ll do a little write up each week about the games, and at the end, I’ll interview a guy from the team each week. We’ll make a “call to the pen” each week so all of you can meet our team and get to know them.

First up in our ‘Call to the Pen’ series is leadoff man Luke “The Duke” Meeteer. Skeeter is in his fourth year with the squad out of Middleton, Wisconsin. He is a kinesiology major and future track athlete for Team U.S.A.

Paco: Skeeter, what is it like to be so fast?
LM: It’s cool I guess. I’ve always been faster than everyone else since I was little, so, it just feels normal.

Paco: Looking back at the weekend, what are your thoughts on the squad’s play?
LM: I thought we pitched very well and I thought our offense came together nice with some clutch two out hits.

Paco: If you were stranded on an island and could be with one teammate, who would it be and why?
LM: Sam Hammer. I’m not dying if I’m with Sam. Dude knows how to do every single thing. McShane is right up there too.

Paco: Let’s say you have an off day, and no baseball obligations. Describe your ideal day?
LM: Go to the Pancake House for breakfast. A touch football game with the guys and hang out with my family.

Paco: For people that don’t know, you could of played football at Wisconsin. What’s better, hitting a home run or scoring a touchdown?
LM: Scoring a touchdown is better because you score a lot more touchdowns than you hit home runs. (Mike Goetz nearby: “Because they dumbed down the bats and not the footballs.”)

Luke getting burnt for a TD back in high school. Looks like he made the right choice to play centerfield instead of defensive back.

Quick Hits…

Favorite food: Chipotle
Favorite movie: American Sniper
Favorite baseball player: Mike Trout
Pet peeve: Not doing dishes. (Justin Jaquish nearby, Luke’s roommate, “Coming right at me.”)
Vacation spot: Hawaii
Celebrity crush: Blake Lively
Song you’d want to perform on a karaoke stage: Roses by OutKast

It's May ... and we're Back

Juniors Mike Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his third season of blogging, while King gets his second crack at it. Today is their fourth entry for the 2014 season.

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Critical series this weekend down at UIC and we hope that all of you can make it and have some fun with us. This season has definitely been filled with a ton of challenges and adversity. With the weather not always cooperating (actually never), the cancellations, injuries, etc.

Even through all of that, we have been trying to stay positive and enjoy the opportunities thrown our way. One thing is for sure, our support system is second to none. I don’t think there is another team in the conference that travels as good as ours. Not only that, but they have the most fun together! So kudos to you parents and friends! Thanks for coming out all the time and cheering us on. Lets make this last month a great one, win some game and have FUN!

Haven’t wrote a blog in awhile so we gotta throw out some shout outs! Shout out to CP for throwing one of the best games in Panther history against Valpo! One hitter and getting national dap! That’s pretty cool! Big Solberg has been tearing covers off of baseballs! It’s gotta be all that cereal the man eats!

Last but not least, shout out to Tom King, AKA The Sheriff for being a loyal follower of the blog! Here he is below on duty arresting my dad haha. (Yes, they posed for this).

Paco Thoughts… No team plays clash of clans more than us! Brewers are for real believe it! How do we only have one more week of school? Where did the time go? Follow us on Twitter/Instagram @MKE_Baseball!

Here’s EK…

Well, the season is coming down to the end! This is the time of year where you see what your team can get through. As Mike mentioned we have been battling a lot with weather and injuries. This year we have only had three outdoor practices which only one of those has actually been at the Hank. It’s tough for a team to stay positive or energized when you’re caged indoors all year round.

Regardless of the situations we have to deal with this is when we need to be playing the best baseball. Our pitching is going to continue to get better each outing and the bats are going to keep finding barrels. These last couple weeks are going to be intense and filled with a lot of energy! We look forward to seeing you cheering us on as the season closes.

Mother Nature Wins Again

Juniors Mike Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his third season of blogging, while King gets his second crack at it. Today is their third entry for the 2014 season.

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Man, we thought the weather was bad last year! But don’t worry, this week we are scheduled to play four games. Hopefully the snow will go away and the temps will rise.

Anyways, last week was spring break, which allowed us to travel during the week to get in two games at Mizzou. We left Monday for Columbia and arrived to the hotel late that night. Many of the guys spent most of their time in the hotel at the pool table playing some billiards. There was a lot of down time in the hotel because we played at 6 both nights so thankfully we had something to keep us busy. To defeat boredom we turned to the “Odds game” where Tyler Hermann lost and had to belly flop into the pool. Check out the video below…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHNmtvh3LQI

If I were a belly flopin scorer, I would most definitely score that a 10! Perfect technique and he had excellent hang time on the jump.

Uni B’s cot was high quality in Mizzou!

We traveled to Youngstown on Thursday for what was supposed to be a weekend series. Trying to keep up with March Madness on a bus is not ideal, but with the technology these days we were able to catch some live action on our mobile devices.

After filling our bellies with Chipotle we headed to the hotel to watch the Panthers in the NCAA Tournament. It was pretty awesome watching those guys on TV and we want to congratulate them on the season they had and the run they made. The athletic department has been bringing in the championships all year and we look to continue that in the spring!

Stay positive nation and we will see you soon at the ballpark!

EK’s turn…

What a spring break that was!!! This season has been a real bummer lately, but I think it’s going to build up a lot of tension and give us a little extra fight when/if we ever get to actually play outside of the cages in the K Dome. As Paco mentioned there has been a lot of down time and bus rides and people are starting to get riled up! It’s hard to control 30+ guys on a bus for 30 hours in one week, but what can you do... It was getting to that point on the bus ride to Youngstown that everyone was so sick of sitting on a bus that people just erupted and let it loose!!! There were tunes being cranked from Koenig, people singing to music, shouting, who knows what all actually happened and who knows why at that moment everyone just decided to go nuts.

Being cooped up in a bus, I suppose, will do that and when we got to chipotle their soda machine was down so things just kept on rolling. You would think that after all this happening we would catch one break, but here at the U you just never know what you will wake up to! Everyone is all excited to finally get conference games in, start making some noise in the league, and show off the true talent that is built up waiting to explode… to find out that when we opened the blinds in our room it had been snowing all morning!

Considering everything that has happened this just added to the pile, and having to go practice in a gym at Youngstown was just the cherry on top. With that being said it’s still early and there is plenty to look forward to. Just make sure you have your GPS charged and ready along with extra clothes and blankets because who knows where we will be playing, how long we will be staying, or what the weather will be like! Again we appreciate all family and friends who continue to make the trips to support us and we can’t wait to get things rolling for good! Stay safe, Stay warm, and Cheer loud! PANTHER NATION

Here is a nice picture of 55 Tyler Thicke in the hotel room screaming after we found out the games for the weekend are canceled!

Becoming A Family In Florida

Juniors Mike Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his third season of blogging, while King gets his second crack at it. Today is their second entry for the 2014 season.

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Brrrrrrrrr ... Hope everyone is staying warm in this ridiculous weather. Unfortunately, the cold temps are preventing us from going down to Kansas State this weekend. Pretty bummed out about that because we were looking forward to playing a team that made it to the NCAA Super Regionals last year.

Anyways, this last weekend in Florida in 80-degree weather was a treat. I’m sure most of you know we took two out of four. Sure was nice to get the first wins of the season, but for the way we played it’s a shame we didn’t come home with at least three wins. We were just a few plays/hits away from sweeping the whole weekend. It’s frustrating but that’s how baseball goes.

There were tons of positives from this past weekend. We played a lot better baseball than the previous week in California. It all started on Friday when we had to play a doubleheader starting at 10:30 in the morning. It almost felt like travel ball back in the day when we were youngsters. Cody Peterson (AKA CP3, AKA Cobra Commander) made his first career start and did an excellent job. Congrats to him on his first victory as a Panther. After getting the first win of the season, we had some momentum heading into the next game against Ball State.

Unfortunately, our bats decided to take a nap after being up so early. We really missed an opportunity there because Brian Keller pitched a great game and our bats just couldn’t give him any run support. But I’ll tell you what; we are going to win a lot of games this year when BK pitches like he did.

That Friday night, most of us were completely exhausted after the early morning and playing two games in the hot, humid Florida weather. Most of us grabbed something to eat and chilled by the pool at our hotel.

The next day was an early start as well. We took on Kansas, a solid Big 12 opponent who hadn’t lost a game yet. The game was pretty normal until about half way through when I feel like our team took a huge step forward. I think it was the fourth or the fifth and Kansas took the lead on a homer. They started to chirp a little bit and that kind of got us fired up a bit. We came back that next inning and belted two home runs courtesy of Nick “The Unabomber” Unes and Ryan Solberg. We were fired up! It was without a doubt the most intense game we have played all season. We got punched in the mouth, but instead of lying down, we punched right back. I was proud of how our team battled and came together that game. We became a unit, and if we compete and battle like we did that game all year long, we are going to be very successful.

On Sunday against St. Bonaventure we had a little fun. We got a big lead, scored a lot of runs, and a lot of guys got to play. One of the highlights of the game was when first-year player Sam Kohnke almost got his first career at-bat. This dude was so excited in the dugout and on the on-deck circle.

I’m not sure who, but someone made an impressive move by placing a cup on his helmet (check pic below).

Konks made it all the way to the on-deck circle with the cup still on his head. Our dugout was doing it’s best to contain our laughter. I think he took one warm-up swing when he realized a cup was on his head. He turned around and said, “Thankfully, I could see my shadow.” Ahhh man good times, good times.

Check out this pic of first base coach/cross-fit guru/All-American Mike Goetz. He said he was sick of the Florida sun beating down on his neck. What a boss!

We can’t express how thankful we are for all of the family and friends that made the trip to Florida. It is unbelievable how you guys travel with us. We can’t thank you enough. Out of all the teams in Florida, we had the most people there supporting us. So awesome, you guys are amazing!! Our parents are the best. There were times during the trip where I thought they were having more fun together than us. This program is one big family, and this season is going to be a heck of time!

Look at all of those beautiful faces! And to make a note, that’s not even everyone that was there!!!

Freshman Mike Aiello catching some Z’s on the plane ride back. Looks pretty comfy. Photo courtesy of Ryan Solberg.

Paco Thoughts ... Braun is going to go off this year. That is all.

EK, your turn…

Well I think Paco really summed up the weekend there! Again parents, thank you guys so much for making the trip to Florida, it means a lot! I’m sure you guys were all really upset that you had to take off of work to hang out in the warm and watch some great baseball. As Mike mentioned, this was a very encouraging weekend for the team. After a rough start in California, to come out and play with that energy isn’t the easiest thing to do! Not only did the pitching step it up, but the bats are continually getting better. This team is really something special and there is a lot of potential on the field and even more waiting for their turn. It’s a bummer that we aren’t going to be able to play this weekend, but that’s not going to stop us from getting better. Being able to relax a little and take in the first two weekends may be that extra deep breath we need to really settle in.

Seeing that this might be the last typed blog we do as we transition into more of a video blog, I figured I’d take this opportunity to pick on a rook. The first victim of the year will be Adam (Ken doll, Justin Bieber, Pretty Boy) Reuss. Adam is a freshman pitcher from Gurnee, Ill., who attended Warren Township. I had the chance to room with Adam this past weekend in Florida and I tell you what ... I don’t think I have ever met a baseball player who spends more time getting his hair ready before a game than him.

All joking aside, Adam Reuss is going to be a key component to the pitching staff this year. He made a big impression on the coaching staff and returning players this fall and it has carried over in the winter and the beginning of this season. He had his first opportunity in California and pitched great. Although he only threw one inning, he faced three batters and got three easy outs. This is definitely going to be a young kid who is going to be placed in big games/situations and I think we all look forward to watching him on the mound.

Kicking It Off, 2014

Juniors Mike Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will once again be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his third season of blogging, while King gets his second crack at it. Today is their first entry for the 2014 season.

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Stay positive. The season is a long journey full of ups and downs. It’s important that we learn from this past weekend, work hard in practice this week and play better this weekend. We got to get better each time we take the field, and we have an opportunity to do that this weekend in Florida.

It’s funny, because right now as I type this, I’m watching the 30-for-30 film “Four Days In October” which is about the Boston Red Sox comeback against the Yankees in the 2004 ALCS. Perfect example why you always stay positive. The Red Sox lost three straight games to the Yankees and easily could of thrown in the towel. Instead, they took it one game at a time and grinded it out to make the best comeback in postseason history!

Is losing three games to start off the season disappointing? Yea, but there is so much season left. Baseball is a crazy game, as we all know. One day the game can have you feeling like you’ve figured it out and the next day can have you feeling like you just started tee-ball. The game humbles you in a hurry. We’re not going to let this hold us back. This team is going to be special, I’ll tell you that right now. I’m just looking forward to getting back to work and preparing ourselves for another tough test in Florida. It’s going to be a great opportunity against four quality teams.

Stay positive and keep believing Panther Nation!

Paco Thoughts ... I know it’s going to be a great season. Why? Because our first team meal was at Chipotle! Every day I shovel, I am reminded why I’ll be moving to Arizona or somewhere warm when I’m done with school. I think a lot of guys feel the same way after spending the weekend in the beautiful Cali weather ... Thanks to the parents and family members that made the trip to Cali, see you all in Florida!

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @MKE_Baseball!!!!

EK ...

Well it’s great to be back playing baseball at the U! As Paco mentioned, it’s early in the year and we need to stay positive! We’re using this last weekend in California as a learning curve. It was a great opportunity for returning guys to finally get back on the field, and even more important getting the new guys (the rooks) on the field to get a little understanding of the “next level.” Thank you to all the parents that made the trip and we look forward to seeing others coming to the games. Your support means a lot to us even when we may not always show it!!!

As I’m sure some of you can already imagine trying to have two coaches control 35 guys for an entire weekend gets out of hand. Trying to keep the emotions in check and generally keep your mind free can get hard at times (especially when the weekend doesn’t go as planned). This weekend, for instance, we flew into LAX and some of the older guys (vets) decided to play a little prank on freshman first baseman Blake Fleischman. We were all waiting for our bags to come out of the baggage claim when someone took his bag and hid it from him. Somewhat in a hurry to get to dinner and to the hotel before practice, we all were waiting outside for the bus to come. Blake on the other hand was frantically walking in the airport asking security and other airline workers if they have seen his bag - like they had any idea what it even looked like. This went on for a couple minutes until he finally came outside to hear we had his bag, and then off to dinner. All these pranks are just a little welcoming into the “U” and are never intended to hurt another player, unless they never say uncle!

Paco and I were thinking about trying to set up a video blog instead of these boring page and a half posts. An idea along the lines of a video you can re-watch of players getting interviewed, coaches getting interviewed, pranks getting played, indoor practices ... I think you get where I’m going. I think this would be a great way for you parents to really see what happens on and off the field, and maybe get a couple laughs. Feedback from you on this idea would be great! Again any parent who takes pictures at the games can feel free to email me an album at kinget@uwm.edu. It doesn’t have to be of just players it can be of the field places you saw on the trip etc.

Unexpected Endings

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their ninth and final entry for the 2013 season.

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It’s hard to believe that the season is over. It feels like yesterday we were just getting on the flight to head out for the season opener against New Mexico State. As I drove home yesterday, all that was going through my head was all the memories from the season. So many positive/funny memories. As I look back, I can’t help but smile about all the good times this team had. We went through so much together and became so close with one another. We became a family.

Obviously, the season didn’t end the way we wanted to. It’s disappointing, but at the same time we can’t hang our heads. We had a great season, and accomplished so many things. We had to deal with all the crappy weather, not playing a home game until the end of April, traveling thousands of miles for the first two-and-a-half months of the year, and practicing inside a basketball arena for pretty much the entire year. Despite all of the adversity this team faced, we rose to the occasion. That’s what makes me proud to be apart of this team and to be a Panther.

This year was special. We won the regular season title, went undefeated at The Hank, and went 3-0 against Big 10 teams. It’s so cool to be a part of that. This program has come so far. Just typing this gets me excited for the future. I know each and every one of us who is returning next year is anxious to step back on campus. We got a taste of success this year, but we are hungry for more. With the type of guys we have returning, I fully expect each and every one of us to come back in the fall better than when we left.

Man, I just can’t believe it’s over. You spend literally every day with your teammates for about nine months. You become used to seeing the same faces every day. In the blink of an eye, it’s over. It’s hard knowing the seniors are leaving and you’re going to be away from your teammates for a few months. It’s sad.

I love this city, I love this team, I love my teammates and I love being a Panther. I can’t wait to come back in the fall. I hope everyone has a great summer. A lot of us will be around the state playing baseball this summer. Hopefully we will see some of you at the park.

It’s been real Panther Nation. Until next time …

Paco

Just Another Bus Ride ...

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their eighth entry for the 2013 season.

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Top 5 Things To Do On The Bus

So, while we were driving up to Minnesota, I was bored out of my mind and thought it would be a good idea to make a list of the top five things to do on the bus. This is also a chance for ya’ll to get a glimpse of what it’s like to be on a long bus trip as a Panther.

#5: Attempt to do homework

Notice, I said attempt and not do. It is almost impossible to do your homework on the bus. First off, you’re driving, and the bumps the bus hits every two seconds get really annoying when trying to write notes or do math problems. Second, you have plenty of distractions to keep you from doing your homework. There is usually a movie on, you got your cell phone by your side, and you also have the company of your teammates. The thoughts going through your head on the ride there are always, “I’ll do my homework on the way back to Milwaukee”. But, then on the way back, after playing a game and being completely exhausted, the last thing you want to do is homework. Your brain is fried and your body just wants to rest. This usually leads to an early wake up call the next day to finish homework before class.

#4: Attempt to nap

Once again, I said attempt. If you’re a freshman or sophomore, chances are you are sharing a seat and sleeping is very hard. Even if you have your own seat, it’s hard to get comfortable on the bus. Some guys go with the 'lay-out on both seats and have your legs in the aisle' technique. That usually kills your back. Others will go with the 'sleep on the floor' trick. That might be the most effective way to nap. You got to have a pillow to nap. Headphones are important as well so you can block out the noise on the bus. Personally, I try to nap by lying on both seats with my feet up on the seat on the other side. Usually works until someone from the front of the bus decides to take a bathroom break and runs into your legs. Then you spend the rest of the time trying to fall back asleep. Rooks!

#3: Utilize the technology you have

This is probably one of the most common things done on the bus. Before the trip it is important to make sure your phone, laptop, iPod, iPad and whatever other technology you have is fully charged. Otherwise the trip will be much longer. Most guys will go through their Twitter, Facebook and Instagram feed every half hour. We are probably the most active people on social media during our bus trip because we have nothing else to do. Some guys will use their laptops or iPads to watch movies. Others will just listen to their iPods and think about life. Playing games on the phone is fun until you’re battery is low after two hours. Then you can’t even check your phone to use the map and see how far out we are. Once the phone dies, you go old school and look out the window and daydream.

#2: Watch the movie

We usually show about 2 or 3 movies on long trips, ones that are 9 or more hours. This is a pretty effective way to kill time. If you sit back and enjoy the movie, it saves battery life on your phone and makes the trip go faster. Comedy movies are definitely the best. There is usually at least one Will Ferrell movie on every trip. He’s a team favorite. When we don’t have a long trip and only show one movie, then you’re stuck trying to find another way to kill time.

#1: Play cards

This is by far the best thing to do on the bus. Bunko and euchre are the two most common card games played on the bus. Usually, there is a game of each going on at the same time. Six guys play bunko and four play euchre. I am a bunko guy. This is the first year I participated in playing bunko. It’s really fun and has made the road trips a lot faster. Playing cards is definitely a veteran move. Not a lot of young guys participate, but they’ll learn, as they get older it is the best way to make a road trip faster.

Well, we just got to Minneapolis. As my good friend Mike Goetz would say, this six hour drive was a lay up.

Time to go Gopher hunting.

Go Panthers! Paco

Hiatus over, the BLOG is back!

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their seventh entry for the 2013 season.

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It’s been a while. Sorry we haven’t blogged recently. We went on that like 10-day stretch without a game, so you guys haven’t really been missing anything. We were just in the Klotsche every day wondering if we will ever play at The Hank again!

But, we finally had some nice weather this past week and it was great to play in front of the home crowd. The game against Northwestern at Miller Park was really cool. Such a neat experience. So awesome to see people come out and support us and showing their passion for UWM baseball! You guys are awesome! It was also cool to rock some sick throwback unis! We had the privilege to meet some former Green Gulls! You could tell they were really excited to see us with the Green Gull uniforms on. It was great having them out there and playing in front of those guys!

WATCH the recap video HERE.

BIG THANKS to all the students that came out on Friday to support us against UIC. That was awesome to see you guys out there and it was so much fun playing in front of you guys. We hope you guys had fun and make it back out there later this year. Parents and friends, don’t think we forgot about you! You guys have been amazing this year! I love how this team is one big family!

Well, there sure were a lot of positives from this last week. Winning five games in five days after not playing for about 10 days isn’t bad and we are very pleased. It wasn’t easy and it isn’t going to get any easier so we need to continue to get better. We know we have to improve in a lot of areas if we want to accomplish our goals.

The schedule is about to get real busy coming up here. I believe we have 20 games in 22 days or something like that! That’s crazy but hey, we signed up to play baseball and I can’t wait to take the field! It’s going to go by fast and we don’t have many games at The Hank left! It’s important that we enjoy each day and stay in the moment!

Hope you all have a good week and enjoy the weather! Go Panthers!

Paco Thoughts… Pray for EK… Congrats to Sam Koenig on being Horizon League Hitter of the Week! A Chipotle burrito bowl is my favorite meal on the planet! Brightens my day every time! Jean Segura is going to be a heck of a shortstop in the league… I know my boy Mitch Ghelfi will agree with that statement!

Just Call it "Henry Aaron-Les Miller Park"

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their seventh entry for the 2013 season.

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First off, I hope everyone had a great Easter weekend and enjoyed their time with their families and friends.

Thank you to all the family and friends who made the trip to Chicago for our first “home” series of the year. You guys have been amazing all year traveling around with us and supporting us through the ups and downs. We can’t thank you enough. Thanks to all of you who have been taking photos of us throughout the year. While most of us won’t admit it, it’s fun to look at photos from the season so we really do appreciate it!

Even though the Hank wasn’t ready in time for our home opener, it was still nice to be able to put on the white unis for a three-game series. The weekend went well and I am very happy with the way we performed against a quality opponent in Valpo. They are one of the best teams at coming out and competing and we knew it was going to be a hard-fought series.

It all started with Jake Long’s performance on Friday. What he has done these past three weeks has been incredible. It is so cool to see a guy have success after working so hard to get to the point he’s at. Him going out there in game one of the series and setting the tone for the rest of the weekend has been huge for us.

I also want to recognize the effort Mitch Ghelfi gave us this weekend. He caught 27 innings in two days. He did a great job behind the dish. Doing that much squatting isn’t easy and doesn’t make it any easier to hit, but despite that he still swung the bat really well. Big time performance by him.

All in all, this weekend was a team effort; it always is and always will be. That’s the only way this team will succeed.

We’ve had a great start to the conference year but it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. We are going to continue to work hard and strive to get better every day. That’s the only way to do it.

“The road to being a champion is always under construction.”- Bo Porter

With that being said, lets get back to work.

Wind Chill of 23 Degrees? ... No Big Deal.

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their sixth entry for the 2013 season.

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Hats off to Panther Nation!! We had more fans the whole weekend than UIC in 30-degree weather on the road! You guys are the best! Thank you for traveling and sticking it out in the frigid temps.

Man, there are so many great things to talk about from this weekend, I’ll probably forget a few. I’ll start by saying what a phenomenal job by our pitching staff. Jake Long throws another complete gem and then Tass follows it up with another great start in game two! Incredible! First time we’ve had back-to-back shutouts since 2000. That’s awesome!

The bullpen had its best outing of the year this series. Thicke, EK, Quish, and Josh threw the ball great! Unbelievable job by Quish in game three. We were down 5-zip when he came in and he goes out and keeps us in the game. You might think to yourself, “Yea, whatever the pitchers threw strikes.” No, these guys threw all their pitches for strikes in mid 30-degree temps. Outstanding job by Bigler’s troops!

Oh, I almost forgot about the offense. The bats picked up right where they left off in Wright State. As hard as it is for pitchers to throw in cold weather, it might be just as hard, if not harder to hit in colder temps. But that didn’t stop our bats from hitting bombs! Drewpy did it again, going yahtzee on his birthday! That was one of the coolest things ever! Mitchy slick had an impressive game in game two. Five hits in five at bats with two doubles and his first collegiate home run. Have a day! And he hit the home run into the wind! But no wind can hold top shelf Ghelf in the yard! Sammy Koenig swung the bat real well all weekend, and hit a BOMB in game three!

Supposed to be at "The Hank" this week, but Mother Nature might not allow us to get out there! We’ve been on the road for a while now and are looking forward to playing a home series in front of our fans! We hope to see you all this weekend for a HUGE series against Valpo!

Paco thoughts… Props to Josh Uhen for picking Florida Gulf Coast to beat Georgetown… One week away from Opening Night in the MLB! Spring break felt more like winter break part two… As much as I dislike a lot of things about Chicago (the Cubs and Bears and 99 percent of their fans) I absolutely love the Chicago skyline!

Here’s my boy EK…

Well now that spring break is over it's back to hitting the books. As important as school is, it’s hard to stay focused in class when all we want to do is play ball. We are hotter than a pistol right now and that’s what makes it hard to want to do anything else. Our bats and pitching are unstoppable right now. We let the third game slip on Saturday, but we fought our way back to make it a close play at home to tie the game. Jake Long has been phenomenal, two weekends, back to back throwing a complete game! Then Saturday Tassi came in and threw a great game, and had the bullpen finish it off. One of the most encouraging parts of the weekend is seeing our bullpen coming in and throwing well. The past couple weekends the bullpen has struggled, but it is getting turned around. We still have small glitches to fix yet, but when we do we will be lights out.

I would like to give Drew (light tower power) Pearson a birthday shout out! Hitting another bomb this weekend was the icing on the cake. Great to see the true ROOK of the team swing the bat well.

Again I would like to thank the Panther Nation for making their way to Chicago to support us in the great weather, and hope to see you guys next weekend as we take on Valpo! GO PANTHERS!!!

What's on the Horizon?

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their fifth entry for the 2013 season.

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Sorry we’ve been out of the blog for the last two weeks. We got back from Evansville a day later than we normally would a few weeks ago and spent the next two days scrambling to get back on track in school. Before we knew it, we were back on a bus to Tennessee. This past week we were on our study grind preparing for mid-terms. STUDENT-athletes!!! But, we’re on spring break now and have some time to give ya an update on what’s going on.

Started our conference season this past weekend with a big series at Wright State. Played very well the majority of the weekend and came back to the Mil with a huge series win! It’s a great start to the conference season but, as always, we gotta keep getting better everyday.

The pitching was excellent this past weekend. Jake Long threw a gem for the second straight week in game one of the series. He had great pace and rhythm, threw strikes and let the defense work behind him. Just found out today he earned Horizon League Pitcher of the Week for his efforts! Congrats to Jake, definitely well deserved. The Tass master gave us a quality start and kept us in the game in game two but, unfortunately, our bats couldn’t give him any run support. Also found out this past week that Tass is a Major League Bowhunter! (check pic) What a stud!

Although it was a tough loss in game two, we had a quick turnaround the following day and still had the opportunity to win the series, which is always the weekend goal. And boy, did the team respond to the challenge. The bats were sizzling!! There should have been a fire extinguisher in our dugout to cool off our bats! We were just spinning balls all over the field. It all starts with Drewpy dropping bombs! Kid has light tower power!! Solberg was banging doubles off the wall! Meeteer was running around the bases like he was on the track team! Man, it was just a lot of fun that day. Nothing better than when your team is clicking on all cylinders. Schneider gave us a quality start as well. He really made some big pitches that limited Wright State from cutting into our lead. There were multiple times where there were runners on and it would be a 2-2 or 3-2 count and Schneids would throw a dirty changeup or breaking ball to get us out of the inning! Clutch pitches! Great to see!

The team decided to have a frat theme bus ride to Dayton this weekend. Most of you probably saw the pic already, but here it is if you haven’t seen it. It seems like we have started a tradition and will have a theme for every bus trip now! Stay tuned to see what theme will be next!!

We had a great showing from Panther nation down in Dayton this past weekend! Thank you to all the family and friends that came out and supported. It almost felt like a home game because you guys were louder than the Wright State fans! Thank you for sticking it out in the rain and cold to watch us! We love you guys!

Paco thoughts… Haven’t even looked at a bracket yet but I like Indiana and Duke a lot… I really wish the USA would have all their players play in the World Baseball Classic… The Imagine Dragons have some chill music check them out… Follow us on Twitter @UWM_Baseball

Ok, here’s EK, byeeeeeeeee

It’s good to be back on the blog grind again. The last couple of weeks were pretty crazy and the blog was put on the DL for a bit. Going into Wright State this past weekend was a series that set the tempo for conference play. Being the first conference series, it was huge to pull out 2 of 3 games against a top team in the Horizon League at their place. The overall weekend was encouraging and fun to watch. Our pitchers were going into deep innings and balls were getting spun left and right. There are still a couple of small adjustments that need to be made but they will come with time and practice. It’s going to be a calm week of practice not having to worry about school, but our focus will need to be higher as we head into one of our biggest rival UIC.

The weather for UIC is going to be incredible! The sun is going to be shining with a slight cloud or two and a high of 36 degrees on Friday and Saturday. With snow making its way to Chicago Tuesday and Wednesday, the conditions could be a little shaky, but we need to look past that. This weekend is going to be a big challenge and not something we can come into lightly. We will need to swing the bats and have our pitchers come out with great starts, but most importantly getting our bullpen an identity. Coming from the pitching staff, that is one of our main focuses. We haven’t been pitching to our ability and that is something that will need to be changed in order to win the close games.

I again would like to congratulate Jake Long on becoming Horizon League Pitcher of the Week! Jake had a little accident the night before his pitching performance. The night before Jake was listening to music with a set of beats earbuds in when he decided he was done he realized the piece was stuck in his ear. Getting all sorts of worried, Jake had trainer Chad and Cale Tassi pulling on his ear while trying to pull in out with a tweezers. I can’t imagine how funny that looked, but anyway long story short they didn’t get it out that so Jake had to sleep with part of his headphones in his ear to have to go see the Wright State doctor in the morning to get it pulled out.

I would also like to claim one thing before I end this blog and that’s calling Big Fly Pearson’s second homerun. He came into the dugout after hitting his first homerun and said, “I’m sitting dead-red on a first pitch slider next at bat and hit that ball out of here!!” Hearing that there was no question in making the call.

To wrap this up, I can’t wait to see you guys in the Windy City of Chicago and I would all prepare to (literally) freeze. We’re looking forward to a great weekend of baseball and can’t wait to win another series! GO PANTHERS!!

"Welcome to Miami"

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their fourth entry for the 2013 season.

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Well, that weekend didn’t go as we planned. Obviously. But, we gotta learn from it and move on. We learned a lot about our team this weekend and what it’s going to take to get to the next level.

The first two games we simply didn’t execute at all. In game one, another sluggish start killed us and we weren’t able to get anything going on the offensive side. Game two was similar. We started off kind of slow and were forced to come from behind again. To be honest though, our at bats were pretty good in game two, we just couldn’t get a two-out hit. Miami, on the other hand, was able to put innings together and get timely hits. That was the difference.

Game three we finally got out to a good start. EK did a great job of coming out and setting the tone on the mound. We were playing really solid ball for five innings. Executing pitches, playing small ball, making plays. But in the sixth, we gave up a big inning and that ended up killing us. That’s the one thing we really emphasize is limiting the big innings. We've got to avoid crooked numbers. One thing I am happy about though, is that we didn’t just fold at the end of the game down three runs. We battled against their closer and got the tying run to third base.

It’s time to get back in the gym and prepare for a cold weekend in Evansville. Got to find a way to get better this week.

That’s enough baseball talk and now I can tell you guys about what we did in Miami while we weren’t on the field. The weather was nothing short of perfect. Low 80’s and sunny pretty much all day, doesn’t get much better than that. The majority of us found a way to get down to South Beach and check out the Atlantic Ocean. A lot of us enjoyed getting burnt in our short time at the beach. That didn’t feel too good the rest of the weekend.

Doesn’t that beach look so much better than the white stuff we’re getting???

On Saturday, I checked out Marlins Park with the Peake’s and Koenig’s. We ended up taking a tour and got a behind the scenes look at the stadium, if you want to call it that. From the outside it felt more like a museum than a baseball stadium. On the inside, there is a lot of distractions, almost too much going on to be honest. I see why during the game much of the seats aren’t full. It’s because there is so many other things you can do during the game. There are all these bars, nightclubs and other attractions. There are TV’s everywhere you walk, so it’s not like you’re missing the game. They even had them in the bathrooms.

Once again, thanks to all the family and friends that came down. You guys travel well! Thanks to everyone back home who followed along. Stay with us!

Paco thoughts… One of the funniest moments of the trip was on Thursday night at Chipotle. We finished eating and were lingering around a palm tree debating whether we could climb up it or not. Yea, we have conversations like that. Then we realized a gazillion ants were on the ground getting all over our shoes. Guys freaked out and were running away. Then here comes Mitch Ghelfi and in a high-pitched voice he yells at the ants “Scram, get outta here!” Ok, I guess you had to be there but it was hilarious and gave us a good laugh. Another funny moment was during the game on Saturday night. In between the first inning we ran out onto the field to warm up. Pat Wilson, our first baseman, was approaching first base where, at the cut of the grass, he tripped and fell right on his face. SNIPER!!! I saw the whole thing and couldn’t help but laugh. The best part about it was the whole Miami dugout saw and gave it to Patty. They’re lucky they didn’t learn who KO Pat was… Sitting in between two strangers on a plane is really uncomfortable… It gets even more awkward when you have the flinch of your life while your taking a nap.

Here’s a photo from last weekend. Looks like Scotty forgot what team he coaches…

Time to catch up on homework, sleep, laundry and a bunch of other things before this day ends… Here’s EK...

As every week, I would like to start out by thanking all the family and friends who made the trip to Miami to support us. We really do appreciate all the support we get when weekends don’t go our way.

This weekend didn’t go as planned, but we learned a lot. We didn’t execute at-bats or pitches when we really needed too, which resulted in us losing games. One of the biggest things our team should have learned this weekend is how good we really are. Our ability and talent truly is there and we just need to find that inner edge to ourselves to allow us to make that extra-effort play. We have all the tools to compete with any team out there. With a little more practice and trust in our teammates, weekends will be a little more fun and exciting because we will come out winning the series.

This upcoming weekend is going to be a test to see how we can overcome some adversity. For one, we will be coming off of a series where we really didn’t play to our level, and then to go to Indiana where the weather isn’t going to be inviting. Evansville is going to be in the mid 30’s all weekend and that isn’t always the best, but it’s something we need to look past. Conference is slowly approaching and we need to be settled into our roles in order to succeed.

On a better note, it was great to get out of the cold and get into the nice warm sun. With the games being a little spread out, many of the guys got to experience the beach while other just stayed back and hung out by the pool. One of the greatest times of this weekend was the bus trip to Midway Airport in Chicago. Seeing that the entire team made the trip, we decided it be fun to have the freshmen go to the front of the bus and do interviews over the microphone. Each guy had to say their full name, where they are from and something interesting about themselves. But, after those were answered the floor was open. Questions were flying in every direction and there wasn’t ever a dull moment.

Personally my favorite of the trip was redshirt freshman Jonathan Nick and, for that, he fell victim to the first player introduction/embarrassment. Jon is a redshirt freshman right-handed pitcher who came from West Bend West High school. He wears number 29 on the field and, I tell you one thing, the kids got jokes. If you want to get a good laugh just hang around Long Jon Silver or JNip. Just a couple of nicknames we have assigned him. While Jon was upfront of the bus he calmly answered the questions honestly, but we all had something we wanted him to do. One Christmas Eve, Jon performed a "Single Ladies" dancing performance with his family so we had him do so on the bus.

If you would like to view his performance go to this URL … things start to get really interesting around the 1:00 minute mark: YOUTUBE LINK

Each week from now on, Paco and I will be selecting a player to sit down and ask a couple questions. Some interviews may be pretty interesting, so stay updated if you want to find some deep secrets.

To keep you updated on Mrs. Blohowiak I was talking to Greg on the progress this weekend and the news keeps getting better. For those who didn’t read the blog last week, she is in the hospital with TENS. She is slowly recovering and getting stronger each day. With high hopes there is a chance that she could leave the hospital sometime this week and return home. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers in hopes that she recovers fast and stays healthy. <3

Hope to see you all in Evansville and make sure to bring your winter gear. Go Panthers!

Who Needs Practice Outdoors?

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their third entry for the 2013 season.

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What a long weekend that was...

When it was all said and done, we spent roughly 23 hours at a baseball field in three days! But it was so much fun! Thank you to all the family and friends that made the haul to Las Cruces to cheer us on. It’s always great to see familiar faces on the road. Makes you feel at home a bit. Thanks to everyone back home who followed along online. We appreciate all the tweets you guys sent us. Your support is much appreciated.

As most of you know, if not all of you, we ended up splitting the four game series with the Aggies. I’m assuming most of you know what happened, so I’ll quick summarize the weekend.

It started early Thursday morning with a 6:30 a.m. flight to Phoenix, AZ. We left the Klotsche at 5 in the morning. I was never so excited to wake up that early in the morning, and I had no problem getting up. While at the airport, we ran into a little dilemma. The security line was backed up and moving at a slow pace. As 6:30 was approaching and the majority of us were still in the security line, some of us started to worry we were going to miss the flight. But, we found a way and made the flight just in the knick of time. Then we faced another obstacle once we all got past security. The flight was full and one of us was going to be left stranded in Milwaukee. The Southwest flight attendants asked if any of the passengers would be willing to give up their seat so we could have our whole squad. Thankfully, a generous lady gave up her seat so we didn’t have to leave anyone behind. Big shout out to her!

We landed in Phoenix and then made a short connecting flight to El Paso, Texas. We then bussed to Las Cruces. We stopped at a mall where we grabbed some grub and a few of us snagged some pretty sick hats from a store called Mr. Hats (see pic).

Later that day we practiced at New Mexico State’s field to get used to the lay of the land. Pretty big field, but the ball travels much better than it does back home thanks to the thin air. During this trip we faced all sorts of obstacles. Freshman Justin Langley made the rookie mistake of forgetting the baseballs back at the hotel. Who would of thought you need baseballs to practice? What a rook!

On Friday, we were like little kids on Christmas morning. The season was finally upon us! Game one didn’t go our way as we lost a tough one in extras, but we bounced back nicely in the nightcap as we blew them out 11-0. After the huge bounce back win we were feeling really good about ourselves and looked to carry that momentum into Saturday. We did just that in game three, winning in comeback fashion. Unfortunately, we lost game four and couldn’t complete our goal of winning the series.

Considering it was the first time we were outside since October, we have to be pretty encouraged with the way we played. The defense on Friday was great. Guys were making plays all over the field. The pitching was there as well. Holding that offense in that climate, to three runs in two games is impressive. Day two we weren’t as crisp on defense or on the mound. In game three, we didn’t make plays for Thicke and that put him in a tough situation and put us in a hole. But, we didn’t give in and chipped away at their lead and found a way to get a W.

Winning two games was nice, but each of us knows we should have won that series. We didn’t take advantage of some opportunities in game one and that ended up hurting us. We came out sluggish in game four and dug too big of a hole for ourselves. We have to clean that up.

Like I said though, there were a lot of positives throughout the weekend. The bats overall did a pretty good job. Did we strike out a little too much? Yea, probably and we’re going to have to improve on that, but balls were flying around the field all weekend. Especially Willy Fadness. Dude was dropping bombs and came up with a lot of clutch hits.

Trust me, we are only going to get better as the season goes on and this is a positive start. It’s time to get back in the gym, work hard and get ready for a big series in Miami. We’re not going down there just for the weather. We’re going down there to get W’s and win a series.

At some point this week we’ll release some video to show you some behind the scenes footage from this weekend. You’ll find it on our twitter.

Go Panthers!

Paco Thoughts… Happy Birthday to the living legend Cole Kraft who I’m sitting next to on this flight back to the Mil… To the girl in the stands who asked me if I’ve hit puberty while I was up to bat, the answer is yes I have. You obviously didn’t get a chance to check out my stache… Our parents are the best in the nation and we love having you guys on the road with us!

Here’s the King…

Well the last day of our endeavor in New Mexico didn’t go as planned. To start out we woke up just a pinch too early in the morning after a long past two days of playing. We were told we were going for a little ride before heading to the airport. Let me mention this was the first time we went on a secret getaway. Some of the guys were a little upset that they couldn’t sleep in, but once we arrived to the White Sand, eyes were surely opened. Whites Sands National Park is the world’s largest park that features sand dunes. I know, I know, you may be thinking 'what would a baseball team be doing at White Sands National Park?'

The answer is truly nothing, besides looking at sand, which was actually pretty cool. That was about all that was cool for the day.

As we departed from the sand box, we went through miles and miles of jack squat. So we taught the rookies on the squad a few of the games we play on the road, but that got old real fast. To all the parents out there reading, yes, most of the team actually worked on their homework.(student-athletes).

While pecking away at our homework, we realized that we had gotten off the straightest road in the country. As soon as we turn off the off ramp the bus had turn off as well. Rumor has it the bus was bored just like us so it decided to pull over, sorry terrible joke! So we realized that we are about three miles from the airport, we haven’t ate and we have a broken down bus. Magically, after a little time the bus cooled off and we were on our way. We made it to the airport with about a half hour to spare.

The team finally gets loaded into the warmest, fullest plane in the country. The good ole chief flying the bird realizes there happens to be a large fuel leak. So there we are on the warmest, fullest plane in the country with the largest fuel leak in the country. We all got off the plane. After an hour or so wait we were on our way. Excitement on and off the field.

Notable Events to the Weekend: A group of us purchasing large hats so the sun didn’t beat on us. Cappy being sniped after scoring a run. Justin Langley “No one nose” what he is doing. Mike Schneider threw a gem and a half. Great plays from AL, Paco, and Meeteer with an unreal full layout catch. We also said good bye to our athletic trainer, Will, as he moves his career to the Seattle Mariners minor league team. He will be truly missed.

Again I would like to say thank you to all the fans and supporters that came to New Mexico and cheered us on, and also to the people following online. We really appreciate all the support.

For some of you that may not know already former Panther player Greg Blohowiak’s mother is in the hospital with TENS. She is slowly recovering and making strides each and every day to get better. As a Panther family we should all keep his mother in our hearts and prayers for a fast and health recovery. <3

We have a tough week of practice ahead of us to prepare for Miami. We have to keep making strides and improvements in order to bring home more W’s. Hope to see you all at the U for some great baseball and warm weather.

Off to New Mexico...

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their second entry for the 2013 season.

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Que pasa nacion pantera? (Translation: What’s up Panther Nation?) I’m just brushing up on my Spanish before we head to New Mexico this week. They speak Spanish there right? I think they do.

What a great time it was at our Bowling Event! It’s a blast seeing all the family, friends and supporters come out and show how much they love the program. Your support does not go unnoticed and we can’t explain how much we appreciate it! Without you guys we are nothing! Thank you to all the sponsors and a huge shoutout to Krueger’s for allowing us to use their place for a day! Big ups to Flip for being the brains behind the event and making it another success!

There were some quality bowlers that showed up. I apologize for not knowing the name but in the first session a 298 game was rolled. In the second session, our very own head coach Scott Doffek was perfect heading into the 10th frame. After calmly getting strikes on his first two balls, Scotty folded under pressure missing right and finishing the game with a 296. Quality effort. He might have been thinking about the result instead of just sticking to the process, we’re going to have to discuss that this week with Scotty.

Alright, time to talk some baseball! Pretty crazy to think we are a few days away from the season opener. This past week I felt like we had great energy in practice. Without a doubt we made improvements from the first week of practice. It’s a great sign and we get to continue to improve as the year goes on. That right there is really the goal. To get better every day.

We hope all of you in some way can follow along while we are in New Mexico. I’m pretty sure Gametracker will be available and possibly some live feed. Just a reminder, we are playing two doubleheaders, one on Friday and one on Saturday. Games start at 3:05 central time both days.

I can’t wait to step on the field and go to battle with my brothers. There really is nothing better. This is going to be a fun ride, and it’s time to go out and represent Milwaukee baseball! Go Panthers!

Paco Thoughts… S/O to EK’s dad Tom for bowling despite battling some tendinitis…Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @UWM_Baseball… J.J. Redick to the Bucks? I wouldn’t mind… Big thank you to Will George, our athletic trainer for the last year and a half. New Mexico will be the last time he is with us. He got a job with the Mariner’s Rookie ball team and will be heading to Arizona after the series. Thank you Will for all the long hours you put in, all the massages, and all the ice bags made. Thank you for being a great trainer and a great friend. You will always be apart of the Panther family and we wish you the best of luck!

Here’s my boy EK…

Thank you again to all the family and friends who came out to support the Panthers at our annual bowling event. It was a lot of fun and it was great to have all the families interact before we start the season out.

Not only was there some great bowling going on, but there was some great athletic movements. To start out, I would like to give a personal gamer shout out to former Panther Paul Hoenecke for setting the new high score on the basketball shootout by making 93 points (31 baskets) in 60 seconds. That’s just being a gamer! The second athletic movement will be going out to Gunnar Eastman for bowling a great game left handed and get an incredible speed of 1.13 mph down the lane while knocking down 4 pins. The most athletic movement of day will definitely have to go to Brooks Bigler. He is young in the running’s, but after he fell into the table while eating popcorn he celebrated by pouring an ice cold green slushy all down his shirt and pants.

To restate what Paco was saying before, the last weeks have been some of our best practices we have had this year. It has been crisp and focused each and every day before we ship out to battle New Mexico. Although they are known for their fast infield and powerful bats, we have been preparing to slow them down in all ways. Whether it’s fielding balls for hours on end to dry pitching drills to repeat mechanics, the team is ready to get out of the dry, stuffy k-dome and get out on the field.

The team has come up with the great idea of growing manly mustaches. For some of the boys, dying the mustache will need to be a necessity, so redshirt sophomore pitcher Gunnar Eastman has already purchased some hair dye for a mustache-dying party on Tuesday night. Everyone and anyone is invited just bring your mustache and look for the location on the Panther twitter. I encourage all fans coming to New Mexico to have a mustache.

This is a very acceptable mustache. I hope to see you all in New Mexico! GO PANTHERS!!!!

Baseball is Back!!

Sophomores Michael Porcaro and Eric King, members of the Milwaukee baseball team, will be blogging all season long on the UWM website.

Porcaro is back for his second season of blogging, while King gets his first crack at it. Today is their first entry for the 2013 season.

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PANTHER NATION!!!!!!!! It’s your boy Paco back for another season of blogging. Man, it’s been way too long! I hope you guys haven’t missed me too much! I’ll tell ya one thing - I’ve missed writing these blogs every week and can’t wait to start writing for you guys every week!

Unfortunately, we do have some sad news to announce. This season we will be without the services of veteran blogger Greg Blohowiak. Blow was a part of this blog from the beginning and his insight will be missed!

But, there is some good news!! Redshirt sophomore Eric King will be joining the blog this year. You guys are going to love what EK brings to the table. I’m really excited he accepted the invitation to join the blog. I’ll let him introduce himself later.

I’m really excited for this season. And there’s a lot to be excited about! We had a really encouraging fall season. The intersquad games were close and competitive. I think that shows this team is balanced and has guys that are hungry to get on the field. The talent this team has is pretty impressive. I think the showing at our scout day in the fall proves that. Milwaukee baseball fans and Panther Nation should be encouraged about the direction this program is going.

This off-season has been much different than my first two years here. We really hit the weights hard with Captain Ron and his staff in the weight room. And we’re still going at it! This is going to pay off tremendously as the season goes on.

We started team practice this past Monday in the K-Dome. Things have been going well. With the season about two weeks away, it’s important for us to focus every minute we are in there practicing. Paying attention to detail is something we are really stressing. We don’t want to be average, we don’t want to just make a play, we want to practice perfection. Is perfection possible? Probably not, but there’s no reason our effort and focus shouldn’t be there every minute of every practice.

This year we have a lot in store for you guys. Not only will we be blogging, but we are going to do a lot of behind the scenes footage when we are traveling, so you can see what it’s like while we are on the road. We’ll do some player interviews as well.

We just got an instagram so make sure you go follow us @UWM_Baseball. Trust me, there’s going to be plenty of funny pics posted!

Remember to follow us on the tweeter @UWM_Baseball and hit that like button on Facebook!

Alright, that’s enough of me. Here’s The King…

Hey look here Jack, this year is going to be a humdinger! To start off, I would like to say welcome to all the new families and supporters of UWM. We look forward to seeing you at the always beautiful Henry Aaron Field (The Hank) cheering the panthers on.

A little something about myself before I begin… As Paco mentioned before I am a redshirt sophomore and part of the pitching staff. Most importantly, I have beautiful flowing hair and a very complementing mustache to go along with it. Coming off of an injured freshman year and a recovery sophomore year, I look forward to being a fully healthy addition this season. I’m very excited to be blogging this year and look forward to letting Panther Nation get to know more about how we are as a team behind the scenes and off the field. We have some great ideas in store for the blog to let the parents and fans of UWM see just how fun and exciting our lifestyle is.

Getting to the pitching staff now, we are a very young and talented group. With the incoming freshman and returning redshirts, it’s going to be exciting to see the roles and maturity of our pitching staff get better each weekend. For some, the fall was the beginning of a new career and picking up where they left off for others. First-Team All-League honors senior pitcher Cale Tassi is set to have another outstanding year. Being announced the Friday night starter, Tassi begins the year with high hopes of becoming one of the best pitchers in the Horizon League. Having a player like that on our staff sets a standard for all pitchers on our team, and that showed during the fall. With high intensity and competition during practice, we are getting ourselves prepared for the season opener in New Mexico. As I mentioned earlier, it will be a very exciting year not only for the pitching staff, but for a team as a whole.

This year we have a lot in store for you guys. Not only will we be blogging, but we are going to do a lot of behind the scenes footage. One thing I would like to do is show pictures of all the fields and trips we take. Knowing that I will not always be able to get the best of pictures, I am hoping that some of the parents on the team would be willing to take pictures and send them to me at kinget@uwm.edu. This way, fans and supporters of UWM will be able to enjoy the sights we get to see. Also each week we are going to be singling out a player or two to introduce them by interview and maybe release a little embarrassing information they don’t want others to know.

I’m looking forward to a fun and successful season and it will be great to see all the supporters of Panthers Baseball!