Notes, observations and other thoughts about baseball played at 32nd and Central...

The outfield trio of left fielder Ryan Jenkins, center fielder Nick Tampa and right fielder Luke Ulbert are making their case for the best-ever defensive unit in Morton College baseball history.

The trio's 2023 fielding percentage is .976 with only 5 errors in 212 chances. Ulbert has five assists and Tampa, four. Their fielding averages are .987 for Jenkins, .972 for Tampa and .968 for Ulbert.

Jenkins (.420 BA, 6 HR, 42 RBI, .554 OBA), Ulbert (.320, 8 HR, 43 RBI) and Tampa (.299 BA, 4 HR, 23 RBI) also are productive offensively. In addition, Jenkins had a 16-game consecutive hitting streak this season. He's also been hit by a pitch a team-leading 21 times, which is fourth nationally.

Century mark
Sophomore catcher Alex Brodie scored his 100th career run in game one of Saturday's Skyway split with Elgin.

His 63 runs scored this year puts him sixth nationally in NJCAA Division II. Brodie also is five RBI from 100 in two years at Morton College.

Brodie's two-year line at MC - .381 batting average, 103 runs scored, 122 hits, 23 doubles, 14 home runs and 95 RBI.

Triple-crown threat
Freshman first baseman Miguel Cantu is contending for the Region IV Triple Crown. He leads the region in batting average (.462), home runs (14) and RBI (71). Nationally, Cantu is second in RBI, sixth in slugging percentage (.885), tied for seventh in home runs and 11th in batting average.

The St. Rita product has 24 multi-hit games and a season-long 16-game hitting streak, which ended in game one of Saturday's doubleheader against Elgin.

Hitting metronome
Due to the circumstances surrounding COVID, sophomore third baseman Diego DaRin is getting to play four seasons at the junior college level.

During DaRin's three full seasons, he's been the model of consistency. Check out his line:
2023: 39 GP, 132 AB, 40 R, 53 H, 9 2B, 3 HR, 39 RBI
2022: 40 GP, 132 AB, 23 R, 55 H, 10 2B, 2 HR, 37 RBI
2021: 43 GP, 131 AB, 46 R, 46 H, 10 2B, 2 HR, 36 RBI

Best three-year run
Morton College's 10-9 game two win over Harper was the Panthers' 87th victory over the last three years, surpassing the previous best of 86 done from 1990 to '92. This season, Morton College has scored in double-figures 24 times.

National leaders
Morton College is among the top 10 nationally in eight different offensive categories.

The Panthers are:
2nd in RBI (412)
3rd in hits (487)
4th in team batting average (.372), slugging percentage (.599) and runs scored (447)
5th in on-base average (.480)
7th in doubles (105)
8th in home runs (58)

Pitching prowess
Ludovic Messier (4-1, 4.06 ERA) and Jeremy Fox (4-3, 3.38 ERA, 51 strikeouts in 42.2 innings) have given the Panthers a solid 1-2 punch capable of stacking up against any foe in Region IV. 

Tyler Kott (3-1, 2 saves) is solid out of the bullpen, while Silas Noe (6-2, 8.91 ERA, 36 strikeouts in 32.1 innings), Nick Humbracht (4-2, 11.64 ERA) and Noah Chase (3-1, 6.53 ERA) also have contributed.