Mon, May 31, 2021
FightingIllini.com | @IlliniBaseball
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois DH Justin Janas won the 2021 Big Ten regular season batting title with an average of .391 this season. Janas also led the conference with an on-base percentage of .506.
“I didn’t really think about it much during the season,” said Janas. “After our last game, one of my teammates actually came up to me and said something about it. It’s really exciting. I put a lot of work in during the offseason to get in shape and be prepared for the season. It’s awesome to see my hard work pay off.”
Janas finished the year hitting .391/.506/.449 (54-for-138), with six doubles, a triple, 28 RBI and 32 runs scored. His .391 batting average ranked 29th in the country and his 54 hits were a team best.
“Justin did a great job during the offseason to work extremely hard to change his body,” said head coach Dan Hartleb. “He showed a great maturity at a young age to develop his swing. For him to hit with a consistency in the middle of the lineup his first year in the Big Ten is an unbelievable accomplishment. His season is one of the best a hitter has had in Illinois history. I’m extremely proud of him and look forward to him being back in the lineup in 2022.”
Illinois has had the Big Ten regular season batting champion the last three full seasons. INF Grant Van Scoy won the 2019 Big Ten regular season batting title when he posted a .347 average and INF Bren Spillane won in 2018 after hitting .389 during his National Player of the Year campaign.
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