Baseball Game Preview: Mattoon Greenwave vs. Springfield Southeast Spartans

The Mattoon Greenwave will square off against the Springfield Southeast Spartans at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The last three games Mattoon has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.

Mattoon is probably headed into the matchup with a chip on their shoulder considering Marshall just ended the team's three-game winning streak on Wednesday. They wound up with the same score they had in their last game (2-1), but sadly the team found themselves on the wrong side of the score this time. The game marked their lowest-scoring contest so far this season.

Madden Johnson

Batters Struck Out

03/26/25 @ Marshall	8
03/20/25 vs Memphis University School	5
03/18/25 vs Pana	3
05/16/24 @ Rochester	4
05/09/24 @ St. Joseph-Ogden	0
+ 2 more games

Madden Johnson put in work no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out eight batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just two earned runs off two hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in April of 2024. He was also big at the plate, scoring a run and stealing three bases while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.

Johnson wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Joseph Stewart, who went 1-for-3 with one double. Derek Sharp also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.

Meanwhile, Springfield Southeast came up short against Rochester on Wednesday, falling 11-1. The loss continues a trend for the Spartans in their meetings with the Rockets: they've now lost four in a row.

Springfield Southeast now has a losing record of 2-3. As for Mattoon, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-2.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Mattoon has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Springfield Southeast struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.

Everything went Mattoon's way against Springfield Southeast when the teams last played back in March of 2024, as Mattoon made off with a 17-6 victory. Does Mattoon have another victory up their sleeve, or will Springfield Southeast turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.