CHAMPAIGN — Centennial product Collin DeDecker, who helped lead Parkland’s baseball team to the national title last season, will join current teammates Kevin Kiermaier and Nick Wittgren next school year at Purdue University.
DeDecker started 46 games at third base as a Cobras freshman and batted .354.

He wears Cubbie blue these days, but once upon a time, Randy Wells dreamed of wearing Illinois' orange and blue.

His brother, Forry, played baseball and football for the Illini from 1991 to '94, and the current Cubs right-hander was a regular on the UI campus.

This week: Lee Eilbracht's major leaguers

Jeff Huth's review and preview of all things Illinois

One-time Illini baseball recruit Casey Crosby is No. 2 in Baseball America's rankings of the top 10 prospects in the Detroit Tigers' minor league system.

News you can't leave work without:

Four players have made the 2010 Illini baseball roster as walk-ons after training with the team in the fall. The group includes right-handed pitcher Tanner Libby of Galesburg and outfielder Pat Sheehan of Springfield, who hit .353 and stole 22 bases for Springfield College in 2008.

Jeff Huth's review and preview of all things Illinois

News you can't leave work without:

Illinois baseball will play Missouri in Busch Stadium.