Welcome to Episode 91 of The Podcast About Division III Baseball. We begin (at 1:10) with a brief note about the strange career of Lakeland's Nathan Hemmerling before getting into the suddenly loaded Midwest Region. In order:
- ARC (at 3:00)
- Coe won a ton of games last year but lost in the conference tourney and were left out at-large; good thing they've still got two of the best two-way players in D-III
- Luther are the defending champs and have most of the squad coming back
- MIAC (at 11:54)
- Gustavus Adolphus had an excellent resume last year but were left out of the field; now they've got some key pieces to replace
- Saint John's has two super studs coming back and the best SOS in the conference
- Saint Mary's won the conference last year but are losing a huge chunk of their offense so we're not sure what to expect
- St. Scholastica comes in from the UMAC looking to get back to the postseason for the first time since 2017
- Bethel was solid in 2021 but could take a real step forward this year and make some noise atop this conference
- MWC (at 27:30)
- Illinois College has some big boppers but will need to prove it against better competition
- Beloit won a bunch of games last year and has several All-Region candidates returning
- WIAC (at 33:40)
- Whitewater is loaded once again on offense but has a ton of innings to replace
- La Crosse might be a legit contender but we don't know for sure because THEY DON'T HAVE A ROSTER UP (to be fair none of these WIAC teams do but it's most crucial for the Eagles)
- Stevens Point has slowly been building back up to a postseason contender and might be ready to compete if their pitching improves
- Oshkosh is Jordan's huge pick to click with the essentially the entire squad returning and some legit All-American candidates
- UMAC (at 50:35)
- Northwestern (MN) was one of the best stories of 2021 and have enough pieces back to go on another run this year
- CROWN STORM DARK HORSE ALERT
We conclude (at 1:00:25) with our player and pitcher of the year picks, and our teams to beat. Then we say goodbye.
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