MILWAUKEE – After last week's schedule adjustment, the Milwaukee baseball team is set to open its long-awaited home schedule. The Panthers will welcome former league foe Butler to Franklin Field for a three-game series beginning Friday afternoon at 3:00 p.m.

The series marks Milwaukee's first home games of the 2026 season following an extended road stretch to open the year. It also represents the first meeting between the two programs in Milwaukee since 2012, renewing a matchup between former Horizon League opponents.
 
The weekend series with be available on audio stream with Scott Warras on the call for all the action. The streams will be available on the Varsity Network App (App Store / Google Play), and available at MKEPanthers.com/Watch. Links for live stats of the games are also available at MKEPanthers.com.

THE MATCHUPS & GAME LINKS
March 27-29 | Butler at Milwaukee | Franklin Field | Franklin Wis.
Friday at 3:00 p.m. | Saturday at 2:00 p.m. | Sunday at 1:00 p.m. | Audio Stream / Live Stats | Follow Along (on X)
 
LEADING OFF
» Milwaukee opened Horizon League play with a 2-1 weekend at Northern Kentucky but followed that up with an 0-3 showing at Wright State this past weekend.
» This past weekend at Nischwitz Stadium, the Panthers were led on offense by Dominic Kibler and Dylan O'Connell, who each had .300 on the week and connected on one home run apiece. Charlie Marion hit two home runs on Sunday, driving in four of his six runs in the series finale.
» On the mound, Gavin Theis led the starting staff with six innings pitched and a pair of strikeouts on Friday. Aiden Fishnick and Lucas Watson played key roles out of the bullpen, both tossing 2 2/3 innings. Matthew Mueller got the start on Sunday and threw 1 2/3 hitless innings, while fellow lefty Tyler Andrews pitched one inning over two outings.
» With the sudden departure of Purdue Fort Wayne, Milwaukee has two Horizon League bye weekends, including this one.  The Panthers have filled that void with former league foe Butler, which will travel to Milwaukee for the first time since a series from April 5-7, 2012, at Henry Aaron Field.
» Butler enters play this week at 5-19 overall and will host Toledo on Tuesday before heading the Franklin Field. The Bulldogs were just swept by Ohio State this past weekend, dropping games in Columbus by scores of 11-0, 13-3, and 14-4.
» After the visit to Milwaukee, Butler will open Big East play in Philadelphia against Villanova.
» Butler has not yet won a series yet this season but does boast a win over Big Ten member Illinois on Feb. 17.
» Milwaukee and Butler have played 93 times as Division I opponents, with Milwaukee winning 62 of those matchups; one game ended in a tie.
» The Panthers are on a five-game winning streak against Butler, winning the final game in Milwaukee on Apr. 7, 2012, sweeping a three-game set in Indianapolis from May 11-13, 2012, and adding a postseason win on May 24, 2012, in Chicago.
» In their most recent meeting, Milwaukee earned a 19-2 victory, collecting 27 hits, two shy of the program record. Jonathan Capasso had six hits in the win and remains the last Panther to accomplish the feat in a single game. Current assistant coach Mike Porcaro was 3-for-3 with two runs scored in that contest.

 QUICK LOOK AT BUTLER
Projected to finish eighth in the eight-team Big East Conference, Butler faces an uphill battle competing with the likes of UConn and Creighton, which were picked atop the league after splitting the first-place votes. Butler and Villanova were the only two teams without a player on the Preseason All-Big East team.

In his fourth season at the helm of the Bulldog baseball program, Blake Beemer is looking to get the Bulldogs headed in the right direction. He won 12 games in his first season, then 20 in year two, but Butler finished with just 15 wins last season.

The Bulldogs hit the portal for some of this year's top additions, bringing in Matthew Rhoades from NAIA member Concordia (Neb.), Gavin Gilmore from Division II Barton, Charlie Schebler from Akron, Danny Gavin from Division III Gustavus Adolphus, and Alex Christie from Division III Hanover by way of the College of Charleston.

On the mound, Butler added transfers Max Winders (Western Kentucky), Brock Buckley (NAIA member Indiana Wesleyan), Jack Hagen (Division III Whitewater), Logan Wiley (UMBC), and Zak White (Division II Point Loma).

Defensively, Butler is among the national leaders in double plays turned and is also in the top 30 nationally in hom runs this season. Rhoades leads the way with 15 home runs,  a total that also ranks among the national leaders. On the mound, Max Winders is tied for the national lead with five complete games and ranks near the top of the country in strikeout-to-walk ratio.

BUTLER – PLAYERS TO WATCH
Matthew Rhoades - .326 AVG, 1.323 OPS, 26 R, 30 H, 7 2B, 15 HR, 27 RBIs, .891 SLG%, .432 OB%
David Ayers - .318 AVG, 1.047 OPS, 19 R, 28 H, 7 2B, 1 3B, 7 HR, 25 RBIs, .659 SLG%., .388 OB%
Danny Gavin - .275 AVG, .763 OPS, 20 R, 25 H, 3 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 13 RBIs, .363 SLG%, .400 OB%

BUTLER – PITCHERS TO WATCH
Max Winders – 2-2, 30 1/3 IP, 5.04 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 33 K, .258 B/AVG
Brock Buckley – 0-5, 30 1/3 IP, 6.82 ERA, 1.78 WHIP, 29 K, .341 B/AVG
Jake Thomas – 0-3, 19 1/3 IP, 9.31 ERA, 1.81 WHIP, 11 K, .342 B/AVG

UP NEXT
Milwaukee continues its homestand Tuesday at Franklin Field with a non-conference matchup against another former Horizon League opponent, UIC. The Panthers resume Horizon League play next weekend at home against Youngstown State (April 2-4).

ON THESE DATES
March 27 – 9-9 Record; Streak: Won 2; Last Win: 2021 vs. Purdue Fort Wayne (5-2)
March 28 – 9-5 Record; Streak: Won 2; Last Win: 2025 vs. Northern Kentucky (13-3)
March 29 – 6-3 Record: Streak: Won 2; Last Win: 2025 vs. Northern Kentucky (11-8)

ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Before its home opener on March 27 against Butler, Milwaukee traveled a total of 8.076 miles, beginning Feb. 13 at LSU and continuing through a season-opening 22-game road stretch.

The Panthers opened with their longest trip, as Franklin Field to Alex Box Stadium spans 997 miles. The team's second trip, to Duke, covered 871 miles. The "closest" trip during the stretch came March 10 at Purdue.

HOME OPENERS
Milwaukee is 28-6 all-time in home openers and has won its last five dating back to 2021. The Panthers did not host a home game in 2020, and are 14-3 in their last 17 contested openers.

Milwaukee has opened its home schedule against Butler four times, going 3-1 in those matchups. The Panthers won in 2005 (7-6), 2006 (3-2), and 2011 (4-0), with the one loss coming in 2007 (5-2).

HOME COOKING
Over the last 21 seasons (2005-25), Milwaukee has taken "home field advantage" to another level, posting winning home records in all but two seasons (8-14 in 2022; 0-0 in 2020).

The Panthers went unbeaten at home in 2013 (13-0) and have posted three straight 12-7 home records (2023-25).

EXTRA-BASE HITS
Milwaukee has recorded at least one extra-base hit in all but two games this season. The exceptions were March 10 at Purdue and March 14 at Northern Kentucky.

Through games played on March 22, Oakland has gone just one game without an extr-base hits, followed by Northern Kentucky and Youngstown State (three each), and Wright State (four).

BASE ON BALLS
Through 22 games, Dominic Kibler has drawn 19 walks, leading the Horizon League and ranking just outside the top100 nationally.

Last season,  Tyler Bickers and Caden Headlee tied the single-season program record (46), previously set by Daulton Varsho in 2017. Kibler is slightly ahead of their pace, and is projected to reach 48 walks at his current rate.

COMEBACK WIN
Milwaukee erased an 8-0 first-inning deficit against Northern Kentucky on March 15, making it the second-largest comeback in the last 20 seasons (since 2007).

The largest came on April 15, 2015, when the Panthers trailed Chicago State 10-1 before outscoring the Cougars 14-1 the rest of the way, including an 11-run seventh inning, to win 15-11.

HIT BY A PITCHER
Sotaro Ishida recorded a double against Northern Kentucky on March 15, becoming the first pitcher to collect a hit in a game since Camden Kuhnke did so at Wright State on March 17, 2024.

SIX RBIs IN A GAME
On March 15, Dylan O'Connell recorded six RBIs against Northern Kentucky.

Last season, Tyler Bickers and Thomas Otto each had six-RBI games. The last seven-RBI performance came from Nate DeYoung in 2022. The program record is eight RBIs, achieved by Ross McCoy (2006) and Todd Ludwig (1999).

MULTI-HOME RUN GAME
Milwaukee has had back-to-back weekends with a player recordhing a multi-home run game, Joey Spence (March 13 at Northern Kentucky) and Charlie Marion (March 22 at Wright State).

Spence became the 72nd player in program history to accomplish the feat, with Marion becoming the 73rd.

The last player with multiple multi-homer games in a season was Nate DeYoung in 2022.

LONGEST GAMES SINCE 2004 (BY INNING)
Since 2004, Milwaukee has played seven games of 13+ innings of play and is 5-2 in those contests:
• March 20, 2016 at Illinois State – Win, 4-1 (18 Innings)
• March 15, 2026 at Northern Kentucky – Win, 16-10 (14 Innings)
• May 22, 2010 vs. Youngstown State – Win, 8-7 (14 Innings)
• May 21, 2008 vs. Cleveland State – Win, 10-7 (14 Innings, Horizon League Tournament)
• March 3, 2017 at Evansville – Win, 7-5 (13 Innings)
• May 16, 2024 vs. Wright State – Loss, 4-2 (13 Innings)
• May 15, 2008 vs. Youngstown State – Loss, 5-4 (13 Innings, Miller Park)

POWER RACE
Milwaukee has slugged 22 home runs this season as a team, led by Dylan O'Connell with five.

Breakdown by class:
• Seniors: 6 (Marion 3, Spence 2, Ross 1)
• Juniors: 9; (O'Connell 5, Kibler 3, Holmes 1)
• Sophomores: 7; (Hadley VI 4, Horn 2, Palkowski 1)
• Freshmen: 0

Milwaukee has had one grand slam this season. (Hadley VI, Feb. 21 at Duke).

FIRST DIVISION I HITS
Six Panthers have already recorded their first career hits at the Division I level, S
• Ryan Lemm, February 15 at LSU (Single)
• Max Glusick, February 15 at LSU (Single)
• Peter Visconti II, March 4 at Minnesota (Single)
• Connor Bozak, March 6 at Southeast Missouri (Single)
• Connor Harvie, March 10 at Purdue (Single)
• Sotaro Ishida, March 15 at Northern Kentucky (Double)

IN EXTRA INNINGS
Milwaukee is 1-0 in extra innings in 2026 (1-3 in 2025) and holds an 18-19-1 record in extra-inning games since 2015.

PRESEASON POLL
Milwaukee was picked second in the Horizon League preseason poll with 18 points. Wright State was selected first with 24 points and four first-place votes. Northern Kentucky, Youngstown State, and Oakland round out the league.

THE MAMMOTH VOID
Non-conference games added to offset the departure of Purdue Fort Wayne:
• March 13-15 – Southeast Missouri State at Wright State
• March 20-22 – Youngstown State at Georgetown
• March 27-29 – Butler at Milwaukee
• April 2-4 – Oakland (no opponent secured)
• April 10-12 – UNC Greensboro at Northern Kentucky
• April 17-19 – Indiana State at Wright State
• April 24-26 – Youngstown State at UIC
• May 1-3 – Milwaukee at UNLV
• May 8-10 – Oakland at Notre Dame
• May 14-16 – Northern Kentucky at USC Upstate

ON THE HORIZON
Northern Illinois will join the Horizon League on July 1, 2026, and become a full-time baseball member beginning with the 2027 season.