PEORIA, Ill. - Two of the best pitchers in Bradley Baseball history will be honored in a pregame ceremony prior to the series-opening game between the Braves and Dallas Baptist Thursday (6 p.m.) at O'Brien Field.
Wyman Carey, the star of Bradley's 1956 College World Series team, and current Bradley senior Joe Bircher will be recognized for their accomplishments just before the Braves take the field for their final series of the regular season.
In his three seasons at Bradley from 1955-57, Carey was a dominant presence on the mound while compiling a 24-4 (.857) career record with a 2.06 earned run average with 261 strikeouts. His 2.06 ERA remains the lowest mark in program history among pitchers to hurl at least 100 career innings and his strikeout total remained the school record until Bircher eclipsed the mark April 13 against Indiana State.
Carey was particularly dominant during his final two seasons on The Hilltop. The left-hander from Blue Island, Ill., was 11-2 with a 2.05 ERA during the 1956 College World Series season and set the school single-season strikeouts record by fanning 120 hitters in 113.0 innings. The strikeout total still stands as the single-season school record 55 seasons later.
In his final season at Bradley in 1957, Carey led the nation with a remarkable 0.37 ERA by allowing only three earned runs in 73.1 innings while posting an 8-1 record with 95 strikeouts. The school ERA record has not been threatened in the last 54 seasons and is believed to still rank among the top 10 single-season marks in NCAA Division I history (the NCAA record list is only seven deep with 0.35 ranking seventh). Carey was named a second-team All-American by the American Baseball Coaches Association in 1957.
A fellow left-hander from Omaha, Neb. (Roncalli Catholic H.S.), Bircher has pushed his school career strikeouts record to 291 while also setting the school career record for innings pitched (345.1). Bircher's 102 strikeouts this season equal the most by a Brave since Carey set the school record in 1956 and with at least two starts remaining, Bircher has a chance to challenge the mark.
Aided by his 7-2 record this season, Bircher's 21 career victories are tied for fourth in school history and are the most by a Brave since Doug Robertson set the record with his 30 wins from 1994-96. Bircher's 3.54 career earned run average is tied for the fourth-best in the metal bat era (since 1974) at Bradley and his 2.45 ERA this season is tied for the best by a Brave since former Major Leaguer Bryan Rekar completed the 1992 season with a 2.33 ERA.
Bircher will be trying to help Bradley (25-23-1) end a six-game slide when the Braves open their 3-game series against Dallas Baptist (37-16), a 2011 NCAA Super Regional qualifier. Following Thursday's 6 p.m. game, the teams will meet again Friday night at 6 o'clock then will wrap up the series with a 1 p.m. game Saturday. Bradley's eight seniors will be recognized in a pregame ceremony Saturday.
