The Region's Team Of Northwest Indiana

As the new season begins, it is time to welcome the new additions who will suit up for the black and gold. The Northwest Indiana Oilmen look to have another successful season in store, and it all begins this Wednesday night against the Lake County Corn Dogs at 7pm. After a winning record last season for the Oilmen, President and General Manager Don Popravak has the Oilmen ready to take on another prosperous season. The teams competing in the Northern League include the Griffith Generals, Northwest Indiana Oilmen, Indiana Panthers, Southland Vikings, Elkhart Miracle, and the Lake County Corn Dogs. After finishing last season with a 25-22 record, manager Adam Enright and the rest of the squad aim for their fourth championship since 2012. 

Now, let's take a look at the position players for the Oilmen. With the average age of the team being 18 years old, the Oilmen appear to be one of the youngest rosters in the Northern League. The Catchers for the Oilmen are Christopher Suchoski, Damon Brena, and Emmanuel Scott. All three of these players play JUCO ball in Iowa, and in Illinois. Suchoski, a rising sophomore for  Kankakee Community College, has recorded a 2.20 pop time and totaled a .345 OPB in his freshman season at Kankakee. Emmanuel Scott, the Chicago native comes into the summer as the most experienced catcher out of the bunch, and looks to improve his game this summer. Damon Brena comes into the Northern league as an incoming freshman for Southeastern Iowa, and positions himself to be ready for college baseball. Brena, has recorded a sub 2 second pop time, and brings a lot to the table in the Catchers unit. 

Next, let's look at the Infielders for the Oilmen. All six infielders for the black and gold will be suiting up for the first time in the Northern League, and will play an integral part in the success of the Oilmen this summer. The players are Alex Contreras, Colin Schmitke, Graham Mastros, Jayden Comia, Josh Colon, Randy Seymour, and Ryan Little. The Oilmen bring along four division 1 players in Randy Semour, Jayden Comia, Ryan Little, and Graham Mastros. All four of these players are incoming freshmen for their respective schools, and hope to get acclimated to division 1 speed by the end of the summer. Seymour will be attending Michigan State, Comia will be at Illinois University, Little will be playing for Florida A and M, and Mastros will be at Saint Louis University in the fall. The Oilmen bring on a quite talented roster, with no shortness of youth. Both Alex Contreras and Colin Schmitke play Juco ball, where Contreras totaled a .345 batting average his freshman year with the Marian Chargers. 

Finally, it is time to introduce the outfielders for the Northwest Indiana Oilmen. With a total of eight outfielders on the roster this season, there will be no shortness of depth on this year's team. The guys are Brek Baranoski, a rising sophomore for Spoon River College, Brendan O’Connor, a Junior for Clarke University, Brenden Stressler. This will be the first time in Oilmen history with two Brendans with differently spelled first names. Additionally, Ethan Rossi an incoming freshman for UIC looks to be a leader in this outfield, as well as Kevin Denty who is another incoming freshman for Valparaiso University. This year's outfield will have a healthy rotation of guys who can step up for one another, and it will make for a thrilling summer season. The rest of the outfielders include George Bilecki, a Northern League veteran who attends Lewis University, Isaiah White, another incoming freshman who will play for Highland Community college, and finally Nick Daugherty, who is another guy with previous Northern League experience who plays college baseball for Maryville University.