ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies baseball team embarks on its final week of the regular season as it hosts Central Michigan in its final home game on Tuesday, followed by a series at Purdue Fort Wayne.
 
Oakland is set to face Central Michigan in its final home game of the regular season Tuesday (May 14), tentatively scheduled to be live on ESPN+, with first pitch set for 3:30 p.m. ET. The Golden Grizzlies will have one day of rest before it heads to Fort Wayne, Ind., for its final series of the regular season, with first pitch of game one set for Thursday (May 16) at 3:00 p.m.
 
The Golden Grizzlies (28-24, 16-11 HL) swept the Milwaukee Panthers in its final home regular season series of the year in three tightly-contested games. The Golden Grizzlies opened the series up with a 1-0 win, courtesy of an Ian Cleary sacrifice fly, followed by an 8-3 win and a 4-2 win to close things out. Brandon Decker led the way as the senior earned a save in game one and two-straight wins with 13 strikeouts, no wild pitches, only five hits with one earned in 7.2 innings pitched.
 
The Golden Grizzlies currently sit third in the Horizon League standings (16-11 HL) as Wright State leads the way with a 19-8 conference record, followed by Northern Kentucky with a 17-10 record. Wright State and Northern Kentucky are set to face off against each other with a three-game series this week to conclude the season.
 
As a team, Oakland hits at a .294 clip with a .894 OPS while its opponents have a .314 batting average and .958 OPS. Its opponents outhit the team with 56 more hits as the Golden Grizzlies have 517 with two less RBI at 382. The team has tallied 105 doubles, 24 triples and 54 home runs and ranks second in the NCAA with 150 stolen bases. The pitching core holds a 7.60 ERA as its opponents hold a 7.65 ERA as Oakland has totaled 343 strikeouts with 236 walks allowed.
 
Brandon Heidal leads the team with a .349 batting average and is one of players to have played in all 52 games this season. His 65 hits rank second on the team, two behind Reggie Bussey with 67, as Bussey has yet to go a game this season without finding the base pads at least once. With six doubles, three triples and five home runs, Carter Hain leads the team with 48 RBI with a .333 batting average off 43 hits. Freshman Trent Rice leads the team and is t-1st in the NCAA with 38 stolen bases.
 
On the mound, Decker leads the pitching core with a 5.06 ERA and leads the team with seven wins in 26 appearances and 12 starts. In 96.0 innings pitched, he also leads the team with 89 strikeouts and holds his opponents to a .253 batting average and has seven saves on the season.
 
SCOUTING THE CHIPPEWAS
The Central Michigan Chippewas (16-35, 7-20 MAC) enter Tuesday's matchup having lost eight of its last 10 games and have dropped its last six conference series. Since the Golden Grizzlies visited Mount Pleasant back in March, the Chippewas have gone 12-18 overall.
 
In the Golden Grizzlies 11-8 win over the Chippewas March 19, Oakland used 10 runs in its final three innings to take the win. Central Michigan held the lead, 4-1, heading into the seventh inning before two triples and a double brought in six runs, but the Chippewas closed the gap with a two-run double to make it a one-run game. Oakland rattled off four-straight runs for its 11 as Central Michigan attempted a comeback with a pair of runs in the ninth but couldn't complete the comeback as Oakland held on for the win.
 
This year's win marked the first Golden Grizzlies win against the Chippewas in 13 matchups, dating back to 2015, as Oakland is 6-29 against Central Michigan. On the Oakland Baseball Field, the Golden Grizzlies are 3-13 with its last win April 29, 2015, as the Golden Grizzlies took care of business, 5-3.
 
The Chippewas hold a .258 batting average and allow a .308 batting average as the team has nearly 100 less hits with 438. Central Michigan has 244 RBI off 82 doubles, 11 triples and 40 home runs as it has been struck out 459 times and has 97 stolen bases. The pitching squad holds a 7.53 ERA with a 4.67 opponent ERA as it has totaled 410 strikeouts with 247 walks.
 
Jacob Donahue leads the Chippewas with a .356 batting average off 67 hits, seven doubles, one triple and two home runs and has batted in 21 runs. Ely Stuart leads the team with 41 RBI and is tied for a team-lead with six home runs as he's one of two players who have played in all 51 games. Keegan Batka leads the starting pitching core with 12 starts in 15 appearances and has three wins and five losses for a 8.13 ERA. In 72.0 innings pitched, he's struck out a team-high 87 batters.
 
First pitch from the Oakland Baseball Field is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, May 14.
 
SCOUTING THE MASTODONS
The Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons (17-33, 10-17 HL) enter the season-finale series on a two-game losing streak and haven't won a league series since it beat Northern Kentucky, two games to one, in the beginning of April. Since then, the Mastodons have dropped five-straight series including a series loss against the Golden Grizzlies.
 
The Golden Grizzlies dropped the series opener (April 13) in game one of a doubleheader, 11-6, but rallied back to win, 8-3, followed by an 8-5 win to take the series. The Golden Grizzlies have won 12 of its last 13 games against the Mastodons and haven't dropped a game on the road since the 2021 season.
 
The Mastodons, as a team, hit at a .270 clip and allow its opponents to hit at a .331 clip. With 451 hits, the team has allowed 110 more as the team has totaled 89 doubles, seven triples and 39 home runs. Purdue Fort Wayne has totaled 268 RBI and has been struck out 409 times. On the mound, the team has totaled 306 strikeouts and 269 walks with an 8.50 ERA.
 
Jacob Walker leads the team with a .335 batting average, the only Mastodon with a .300 batting average or above, as he leads the team with 65 hits and has batted in 25 runs. Ben Higgins leads the team with 40 RBI and is one of three players to have played all 50 games this season. On the bump, Kevin Fee leads the pitching core with six wins and a 3.42 ERA and has five saves on the year. Amongst starters, Carter Sabol has started 13 games with a 6.29 ERA and a 4-6 record with a team-high 65 strikeouts.
 
First pitch from Mastodon Field is slated for 3:00 p.m. ET Thursday, May 16.