Milene will play Division I baseball at Eastern Michigan
Jul. 25—Logan Milene has always dreamed of playing Division I baseball and his goal will come true.
The 20-year-old Milene has committed to Eastern Michigan University after playing two standout seasons of junior college baseball.
"They were very interested in me and I wanted to play baseball in the north so I picked them," Milene said.
The left-handed hitting Milene is a 6-foot, 205-pound outfielder/catcher. He said he is comfortable at either position and he could see time at both at Eastern Michigan.
Milene also had a Division I offer from Arkansas State. Eastern Michigan will pay his full tuition.
"It was an offer I couldn't turn down," he said.
Eastern Michigan is a member of the Mid-American Conference and is located in Ypsilanti, Mich. Ypsilanti is just eight miles from Ann Arbor and 35 miles from Detroit.
"It will be awesome," Milene said. "I think it's a good opportunity, anytime you get to play Division I baseball. I'll be playing in the MAC, playing against good teams."
Eastern Michigan also occasionally plays non-conference games against Michigan and Michigan State of the Big Ten Conference. The Eagles were 22-34 during the 2022 season, 16-24 in the MAC.
Milene was a two-year starter at North Iowa Area Community College. At NIACC, he had career marks of a .311 batting average, .360 on-base percentage, 16 home runs, 20 doubles, 74 RBIs and 110 hits. He hit nine home runs and drove in 47 runs this spring.
"Hitting the baseball is my No. 1 strength, I believe," he said.
Milene picked Eastern Michigan even though he didn't take a tour of the campus.
"We've had a few NIACC guys go there the past couple of years so my (NIACC) coaches know the (Eastern Michigan) coaching staff pretty well," he said. "So they set me up with them."
He has two years of eligibility left at the Division I level, but he could play a third season at Division II or III, if he desires. He had also been getting recruited by Minnesota State, Mankato and Winona State, a pair of area Division II schools.
Milene, a Century grad, has been playing amateur baseball for the Rochester Royals for the past several summers. He also had a week-long contract with the Rochester Honkers of the Northwoods League last summer. He is part of a Royals team this season that is currently ranked No. 1 in the state in Class B.
He is the son of Jeff Milene, a 1988 Mayo High School grad who was drafted as a catcher by the Minnesota Twins and played three seasons of minor-league ball. Jeff Milene is the owner of Rochester Batting Cages, where Logan has spent a lot of time working on his baseball skills over the years.
