Baseball Game Preview: Lowell Red Devils vs. Kankakee Valley Kougars

Red Devils

Runs

05/22/26 vs Crown Point	4
05/21/26 @ Wheeler	2
05/19/26 @ Hobart	4
05/18/26 vs Hobart	12
05/16/26 @ La Porte	0
+ 23 more games

The Lowell Red Devils will challenge the Kankakee Valley Kougars at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Lowell is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.5 runs per game this season.

Crown Point hit Lowell with a seven-run first inning on Friday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Red Devils came up short against the Bulldogs, falling 13-4. The loss continues a trend for the Red Devils in their meetings with the Bulldogs: they've now lost nine in a row.

Lowell saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ryan Wellwerts, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one run and one double. Another was Brett Beardsley, who went 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI.

Meanwhile, Kankakee Valley lost 12-6 to Hebron on Saturday.

Will Chestnut put in work no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. What's more, he gave up only one walk, the fewest he's had since back in April. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base. He is becoming a predictor of Kankakee Valley's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 4-2 (and 7-14 when he doesn't).

Lowell's record is now 15-13. As for Kankakee Valley, their record now sits at 11-16.

Kankakee Valley's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Lowell hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .314. It's a different story for Kankakee Valley, though, as they've only averaged .235. Will they be able to contain Lowell's hitters?

Lowell beat Kankakee Valley 3-0 in their previous matchup two weeks ago. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Red Devils since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.