Baseball

Northwestern will get a wonderful view of the Chicago skyline Wednesday when the team heads to Curtis Granderson Stadium for a midweek matchup with UIC.

NU has defeated UIC four consecutive times dating back to 2012. However, the Wildcats are currently slumping with losses in five of their last six games.

During that stretch, NU averaged 3.8 runs per game in the last six games. After scoring 13 runs in the first 12 innings of last weekend’s series at Michigan State, the Cats were held to three runs in the final 15 innings.

For the most part, NU has gotten great production from the heart of its lineup this season.

Senior centerfielder Kyle Ruchim has been among the Big Ten’s better players, leading the conference in doubles and sitting second in slugging percentage. Senior catcher Scott Heelan and junior first baseman Zach Jones are also among the league leaders two-baggers.

Five NU players are hitting .286 or better.

UIC, which leads the Horizon League, is riding a hot streak. The Flames have won 10 of their last 12 games entering Tuesday’s game against Northern Illinois.

In those 12 games, the Flames have tossed three shutouts, and an opponent has scored more than four runs just once. UIC’s bullpen has been dominant during that stretch with a 2.27 ERA and a .239 opponent batting average.

Wednesday’s first pitch is slated for 6 p.m.

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Twitter: @Jesse_Kramer