UIC Baseball has enjoyed an unprecedented era of success over the last 21 seasons. Coinciding with the arrival of head coach Mike Dee in 1999, the accolades that the program has earned in that span have been on the rise ever since. The Flames have collected 13 Horizon League championships and made six NCAA Regional appearances in this era, most recently earning a trip to the NCAA Louisville Regional in 2019. UIC has produced 17 All-Region honorees, eight All-Americans and six freshmen All-Americans since 2002. The Flames have had the conference's Newcomer of the Year eight times, the Pitcher of the Year eight times (including the last three in a row), the Relief Pitcher of the Year six times (including the last four in a row) and the Player of the Year four times.
Over the past 21 seasons, a total of 109 players who have donned a UIC uniform have earned either First or Second Team All-Conference recognitions. Another 54 have been picked for the Horizon League’s All-Newcomer Team since 1999.
The Flames have won more than 600 games and average over 30 wins per season since 1999. In 2002, 2003 and 2017, UIC set a program single-season record with 39 victories. The bar has continued to rise and many more program records have fallen. In 2017, UIC set posted its lowest single-season ERA at 2.65 with a school-record 11 shutouts. The team’s fielding percentage that year, .984, was the best in the entire NCAA. In 2018, the Flames allowed 140 earned runs, the fewest ever, with 408 strikeouts by the pitching staff, a new high mark.
While each of those above numbers holds significance and is remarkable in its own way, perhaps that most substantial statistic associated with the program is 42. That is the number of Flames who have played for Dee and his staff at UIC and gone on to a career in professional baseball following their time in Chicago. Since 2014, 18 of those 42 players have begun their professional careers, and 14 of the 18 have been in the last three years.
Below is a list of UIC players who entered the ranks of professional baseball since 1999:
| Player |
Years at UIC |
Conference Championships |
First Professional Franchise |
| Steve Carlson |
1998-2001 |
2000 |
New York Yankees |
| Wes Gilliam |
1998-2002 |
2000, 2002 |
Arizona Diamondbacks |
| Kevin Ryan |
1999-2002 |
2000, 2002 |
San Diego Padres |
| Curtis Granderson |
2000-2002 |
2000, 2002 |
Detroit Tigers |
| Kevin Nelson |
2000-2003 |
2000, 2002, 2003 |
New York Yankees |
| Mike Hughes |
2000-2004 |
2000, 2002, 2003, 2004 |
Los Angeles Angels |
| David Haehnel |
2001-2004 |
2002, 2003, 2004 |
Baltimore Orioles |
| Nelson Gord |
2000-2004 |
2000, 2002, 2003, 2004 |
Schaumburg Flyers |
| Jordan Devoir |
2003-2004 |
2003, 2004 |
New York Yankees |
| Ryan Gehring |
2002-2004 |
2002, 2003, 2004 |
Minnesota Twins |
| Bryan Russo |
2002-2005 |
2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 |
Schaumburg Flyers |
| Charlie Hahn |
2001-2004 |
2002, 2003, 2004 |
Schaumburg Flyers |
| Justin Johnson |
2004-2006 |
2004, 2005, 2006 |
Baltimore Orioles |
| Zach Peterson |
2004-2007 |
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 |
Kansas City Royals |
| Ryan Zink |
2004-2007 |
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 |
New York Yankees |
| Mark Hallberg |
2005-06 |
2005, 2006 |
Arizona Diamondbacks |
| Kevin Coddington |
2008 |
2008 |
Cincinnati Reds |
| Derrick Miramontes |
2008-2009 |
2008, 2009 |
Southern Illinois Miners |
| Adam Worthington |
2006-2009 |
2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 |
Arizona Diamondbacks |
| Tony Altavilla |
2008-2009 |
2008, 2009 |
St. Paul Saints |
| Matt Serna |
2009-2011 |
2009, 2011 |
River City Rascals |
| Steve McGuiggan |
2008-2011 |
2008, 2009, 2011 |
Southern Illinois Miners |
| Jason Ganek |
2008-2011 |
2008, 2009, 2011 |
Southern Illinois Miners |
| Nathan Orf |
2009-2010 |
2009 |
Milwaukee Brewers |
| Tomas Michelson |
2012-14 |
|
Tampa Bay Rays |
| Ryan Hinchley |
2012-2015 |
2015 |
Chicago White Sox |
| Jeff Boehm |
2014-2015 |
2015 |
Los Angeles Angels |
| Trevor Lane |
2015-2016 |
2015 |
New York Yankees |
| Connor Ryan |
2015-17 |
2015, 2017 |
Cincinnati Reds |
| Rob Calabrese |
2015-17 |
2015, 2017 |
San Francisco Giants |
| Mickey McDonald |
2014-17 |
2015, 2017 |
Oakland Athletics |
| David Cronin |
2014-17 |
2015, 2017 |
Chicago White Sox |
| Jake Dahlberg |
2015-17 |
2015, 2017 |
St. Louis Cardinals |
| Cody Bohanek |
2014-17 |
2015, 2017 |
Houston Astros |
| Mitchell Schulewitz |
2014-17 |
2015, 2017 |
Kansas City Royals |
| Ricardo Ramirez |
2014-17 |
2015, 2017 |
Traverse City Beach Bums |
| Jack Andersen |
2013-17 |
2015, 2017 |
Windy City Thunderbolts |
| Ryan Campbell |
2017-18 |
2017 |
Cincinnati Reds |
| Charlie Cerny |
2016-18 |
2017 |
Oakland Athletics |
| Aaron Ackerman |
2018 |
|
Los Angeles Dodgers |
| Reid Birlingmair |
2016-18 |
2017 |
Oakland Athletics |
| Scott Ota |
2016-19 |
2017, 2019 |
New York Mets |
Two of the players above, Curtis Granderson and Nathan Orf, have reached the pinnacle of the profession and appeared at the Major League level. Granderson, currently of the Toronto Blue Jays, has been on an MLB roster since 2004. He is a three-time All-Star and has played in 10 World Series games. Orf, who played his first two collegiate seasons with the Flames, made his Major League Baseball debut with the Milwaukee Brewers in July 2018 following six seasons in Minor League Baseball.
UIC student-athletes have several distinct advantages when it comes to professional preparation. Simply put, the facilities are second-to-none. Granderson Stadium, which officially opened in 2014, features what can only be described as one of the best collegiate ballparks in the country. In the shadows of downtown, and with the Chicago skyline as the backdrop, Granderson Stadium features a total capacity of 1,784, with 1,284 fixed seats and space for 500 in the seating berms beyond left and right field. The venue also features a luxury suite, which can accommodate 40, and a press box and suite for media. In addition to the ballpark, a new training room and team room has been added as well as two outdoor, synthetic turf practice tunnels. It is the ideal setting for professional talent evaluators to get a great look at the Flames as they work during fall practice and the spring season.
Granderson Stadium is not only be home for Flames Baseball, but more importantly thousands of children throughout the city of Chicago. The venue hosts more than 38 little league organizations annually, providing for a safe and first-class experience to compete.
"Without UIC, I wouldn't be standing here today," said Granderson. "When given the opportunity to give back and help those that have helped me, this was one of the first ways we thought about doing it. We had done a few things in previous years and this won't be the last. We just want to continue to help out the next student-athlete that comes through UIC and also help spread to the community that UIC is here. This is going to be, hands down, one of the top facilities in all of baseball."
When the weather forces UIC inside, the Flames have ample space to continue training at a high level. Inside the Physical Education Building, UIC renovated the old gymnasium by transforming the venue into a multipurpose training facility. A turf baseball diamond now covers the 34,000 square feet of floor space that was once hardwood. A netting system is also installed which outlines the exterior of the room. The indoor facility also features batting tunnels and portable pitching mounds, all of which combine to create an atmosphere that fosters year-round preparation.
"This facility dramatically increases our ability to develop players on 365-day-a-year basis and really removes weather as a hindrance to that development," said Dee. "In addition, it also helps us prepare for the first five weeks of our season when typically we were only on a field when we played. We are very lucky to have this type of a facility at our disposal. Truth is I don't know of any other space in the country that is better and owned by a University."
With so many success stories coming through the UIC baseball program over the last 21 years, the question becomes: Who's Next?
