By Sean Duncan
Executive Director

Leading up to the start of the high school season, we will count down the top 75 preseason teams every day as part of our comprehensive season coverage: 

Team: Bradley-Bourbonnais
Preseason Rank: 34
2013 Record: 17-11
Conference: Southwest Suburban Red
IHSA Class: 4A
Head Coach: Kevin Arthur
Playoff Run: Lost in Regionals
2013 Final Rank: Not Ranked

Returning Starters: 8
Returning Pitchers: 3

TOP PLAYERS
Colin Holderman, RHP/1B, 2014 (Southern Illinois)
Cameron Powell, RHP/OF, 2014 (North Dakota)
Mike Mateja, RHP/INF, 2015
Alex Weigand, LHP, 2015
Philip Steward, RHP/OF, 2014
Matt Littrell, INF/RHP, 2014

X-FACTOR
Colin Holderman. In order to compete in the rugged Southwest Suburban Conference, you need a legitimate No. 1, and the Boilermakers have it in the 6-foot-5 right-hander. As a junior, Holderman went 5-3 with a 1.87 ERA while batting .506 at the plate.

NEWCOMER TO WATCH
Alex Weigand.The junior left-hander features  an 83-84 mph fastball to go along with a big breaking ball.

STAT RAT
Cameron Powell batted .364 with four homers while going 4-2 with a 2.33 ERA as a junior last year.

OUTLOOK
The Boilermakers are making their first-ever appearance in the preseason rankings since our inception in 2005. And it’s not a courtesy rank, either. Coach Kevin Arthur returns eight starters and three pitchers, headlined by Holderman and Powell, both Division I recruits. The pitching staff should also be bolstered by junior LHP Alex Weigand, who emerged at a PBR event in October as a top 50 prospect in the 2015 class. RHP/OF Philip Steward will look to build off a solid junior campaign in which he tossed two no-hitters and batted .400 at the plate.  Junior Mike Mateja (.418 BA, .554 OBP) is also a two-way factor.

BOTTOM LINE
The Boilermakers haven’t been much of a factor in the Southwest Suburban Conference in recent years, but that may soon change. While they certainly will have their hands full in conference, they have the talent to knock any team off.

Make sure you follow @PBRillinois on Twitter for complete Illinois high school baseball coverage throughout the season.

Season Countdown

+ Preseason Team Rankings

+ Updated Illinois 2014 Player Rankings

+ June Event Schedule