Tag: Jack Roberts

Mammoth-Sized Shoes to Fill: NESCAC West Preview

Amherst College Mammoths

Head Coach: J.P. Pyne, 1st Season

Projected NESCAC Record: 8-4

Key Losses:

OF Ariel Kenney (.362, 4 HRs, 25 RBI)

IF Harry Roberson (.302, 27 RBI, 38 H)

IF Max Steinhorn (.365, 1 HR, 20 RBI)

LHP Sam Schneider (59.2 IP, 4-2, 2.56 ERA)

Coach Hamm (9 years, 221-113 record)

Key Returners:

OF Joseph Palmo ’21 (.314, 43 H, 15 RBI)

C Severino Simeone ’20 (.243, 2 HR, 17 RBI, 11 runners caught stealing)

IF Nick Nardone (.280, 2 HR, 25 RBI)

RHP Andrew Ferrero (57.0 IP, 4-3, 2.21 ERA)

Biggest Series: Home vs. Middlebury, April 19th-20th

Realistically, this division is 3 teams—Amherst, Wesleyan, and Middlebury—competing for 2 playoff spots. Amherst should have the talent and experience to handle Williams and Hamilton relatively easily (I like that Amherst gets Williams early in the year before a young Ephs team
gets to figure it all out), and whoever comes out on top in their series vs. Wesleyan, it won’t be a sweep. If Amherst can win this series vs. Midd, either 2-1 or 3-0, they should be a lock for the postseason.

Everything Else

Despite being the reigning NESCAC champions, the Mammoths unfortunately have more questions than answers coming into this season. Losing three all-league players and the ace of your rotation will always bring some uncertainty, Amherst had to conduct a coaching search as well this summer. J.P Pyne takes over the program from Clark University after previous HC of nine years Brian Hamm departed for the same position at Eastern Connecticut State. While players undoubtedly win games, it will be interesting to see what kind of effect is felt with a first-year head coach. Joseph Palmo ’21 has already begun to fill the void that first team all-leaguer Ariel Kenney left behind in the outfield, garnering the most recent NESCAC Player of the Week award. If 3B Nick Nardone ’20 and C Seve Simeone ’20 can do the same for Harry Roberson and Max Steinhorn in the infield, Amherst will have a chance to repeat as champions.

Wesleyan University Cardinals

Head Coach: Mark Woodworth, 18th Season

Projected NESCAC Record: 8-4

Key Losses:

OF Matt Jeye (.347, 1 HR, 36 RBI)

Key Returners:

OF Alex Cappitelli ’20 (.367, 2 HR, 34 RBI)

OF Danny Rose ‘20 (.361, 17 XBH, 24 RBI)

LHP Kelvin Sosa ’21 (46.2 IP, 3.09 ERA, 9.5 K/9)

LHP Mike McCaffrey (53.0 IP, 5.60 ERA, 9.7 K/9)

Biggest Series: Away @ Amherst, March 29th-30th

While I think Wesleyan is the best team in this division on paper, that isn’t where the games are played. McCaffrey and Sosa’s pitching performances (see below) in the opening series against a Little Three rival will tell Cardinal fans just how much confidence they can have in this team. While it is obviously a matchup between the top teams in the division and has playoff ramifications, it is more so just a great opportunity to see if the talent in Middletown will come to play this year.

Everything Else

Kelvin Sosa needs to improve in order to give the Cardinals a chance this year

Wesleyan certainly seems to be the favorite in this division this year. They return 78.4% of their innings pitched from last year’s staff, as well as some of their top guys in the field, namely junior outfielders Alex Cappitelli and Danny Rose. But this team’s season rests on the shoulders of lefties Mike McCaffrey ’19 and Kelvin Sosa ’21. McCaffrey never came close to finding his form last year, someone who many thought had a chance to be the Pitcher of the Year in the NESCAC. The reason for that is because we have all seen McCaffrey has the stuff to dominate in this league, evidenced by his league leading 57 strikeouts. But he also led the league in walks, with 48. In fact, McCaffrey was joined by the aforementioned Kelvin Sosa (4th-26) near the top of the walks leaderboard. If their top pitchers can throw strikes, they’ll win the division going away. But if their early season results are any indicator (55 Ks to 51 BB), it’s going to be a grind.

Middlebury College Panthers

Head Coach: Mike Leonard, 3rd Season

Projected NESCAC Record: 6-6

Key Losses:

P Robert Erickson (48.2 IP, 3-3, 3.51 ERA)

Key Returners:

RHP Colby Morris ’19 (64.1 IP, 5-4, 1.68 ERA)

IF Justin Han ’20 (.369 AVG, .528 OBP, 22 SB)

IF Brooks Carroll ’20 (.963 FP, 7 2B, 17 RBI)

IF Hayden Smith ’20 (.364, 36 H, 22 RBI)

Biggest Series: Away @ Williams, April 12th-13th

Anyone who has played in this league or followed it, in any sport, knows the importance of winning games against teams you’re better than. The regular season is always decided by the top teams matching up against each other, but you cannot handicap yourself by losing to lesser opponents. Middlebury closes the season with series’ at Amherst and home to Wesleyan, but they cannot come into those games at 3-3 or probably even 4-2. They need to win this series against Williams, and probably win it handily.

Everything Else

The Panthers took another step towards becoming a NESCAC contender, coming just short in a last gasp run at the NESCAC playoffs. They return the reigning Pitcher of Year in righty Colby Morris ’19, and a stacked infield. In order to take the next step up they need to find a way to score some runs, namely in the power department. They were 4th in the league in runs last season but only 7th with just 9 home runs. They are clearly great at hitting for contact and hitting for average, but they need some more star power if they are to steal a few games when the bats go cold or when they run into a good pitcher.

Williams College Ephs

Head Coach: Bill Barrale, 12th Season

Projected NESCAC Record: 6-6

Key Losses:

IF Jack Roberts (.287, 1 HR, 21 RBI)

C Adam Dulsky (.313, 1 HR, 16 RBI)

Key Returners:

OF Mike Stamas ’20 (.321, 1 HR, 13 RBI)

LHP John Lamont ’20 (40.0 IP, 4-1, 1.80 ERA) –in 2017

IF Kellen Hatheway ’19 (.228, 2 HR, 11 RBI)

Biggest Series: Home vs. Amherst April 5th-6th

Not only because it’s one of the biggest rivalries in all of collegiate athletics, but this series will be huge for the Ephs as it is their opener in divisional play. I think this is going to be a year of ups and downs for Williams, a young and unproven team riding the momentum of a long season. If they get smoked in three games, they might not recover the rest of the way, but if they are competitive in every game and even manage to take 1 or 2 off of their archrivals, it could boost their confidence for the rest of the season.

Everything Else

2018 was nothing but bad luck for the Ephs. Star pitcher Johnny Lamont ’20 missed his entire sophomore campaign, decimating an already bare cabinet of arms in Williamstown. Freshman IF Erik Pappas had been a bright spot in the lineup, hitting .415 before going down with a season ending injury after 15 games. There is certainly talent on this roster, however. IF Kellen Hatheway ’19 didn’t have the junior season he was hoping to after terrific freshman and sophomore years, but absolutely has First-Team potential. This team is probably still a year or two away, but if they can stay healthy this year, there should be some bright spots and building blocks.

Hamilton College Continentals

Head Coach: Tim Byrnes, 12th Season

Projected NESCAC Record: 2-10

Key Losses:

None

Key Returners:

IF Matt Zaffino ’21 (.359, 3 HR, 22 RBI)

IF Jarrett Lee ’21 (.305, 29 H, 13 RBI

Biggest Series: Home vs. Williams, April 26th-27th

Matt Zaffino is looking to make the jump to “star” status in his second season

Hamilton plays Middlebury, Wesleyan, and Amherst in that order before their divisional finale vs. Williams. Quite frankly, 2 or more wins out of those 9 would be a win for the Continentals. Their performance against their next most equal division opponent in Williams to close out the season will, rightly or wrongly, determine how Hamilton should feel about their season.

Everything Else

Hamilton are in a peculiar spot this season. They went 4-8 at the bottom of the NESCAC West but they return just about everyone. However, you’ll notice there are only two names listed as “key” returners. They return everyone, but those returners were not amongst the league’s top producers, save for Rookie of the Year Matt Zaffino, who has Player of the Year talent. This might be a good team this year, but they have Amherst, Wesleyan, and Middlebury on their schedule. Their record is going to reflect that.

Next Year Starts Now: Way Too Early 2019 NESCAC Baseball Power Rankings

2019 NESCAC Baseball Preseason Power Rankings:

After it was all said and done, Amherst showed everyone why you can’t count them out. Facing elimination against Middlebury, Amherst won some close ballgames to survive and advance, combining clutch pitching and hitting all the way to a NESCAC title. As the Harry Roberson and Max Steinhorn era comes to a close at Amherst, it was nice from a personal perspective that these guys won it all. With those guys leaving, however, it is tough to think that Amherst will be in the same position next year. While coaches Brian Hamm and John Casey will never put out a losing team onto the field, a product of superior coaching, recruiting, and pedigree, they have a tough task to replace their best hitters. Casey arguably has a harder task, needing to replace the meat of his lineup, but will likely have some hot shot recruits coming in to fill that void. As these guys graduate and move on to the real world, teams filled with underclassmen will start to rise. Middlebury, and Wesleyan of the west division were filled with strong underclassmen, while Trinity looks to be the most promising out of the East.

1). Wesleyan:

With sometimes inconsistent hitting, Wesleyan’s NESCAC success will rely on the control and success of their pitching staff.

Wesleyan had to play a perfect game against Tufts to stay alive in the tournament and they revealed some weaknesses in their pitching staff as a result. Despite some stellar offensive numbers (.298 team AVG), the Cards struggled against quality pitching down the stretch. At times they looked overmatched in the NESCAC tournament, seeing their true advantage of starting pitching fail to execute when it counted. Mike McCaffrey and Kelvin Sosa, two of the most talented pitchers in the league, went 5.1 innings, allowing 11 runs and 13 BBs in the NESCAC tournament, leading to an early exit. They have the offensive depth and starting pitching to go a long way, but they need to compete better in big games and show that their bullpen can keep the score close if their starters don’t got deep into outings. The Cards are young, though and just might have the talent to go all the way. Alex Capitelli, Danny Rose, Kelvin Sosa, and Mike McCaffrey are just a few of the names the Cardinals are returning.

2). Middlebury:

Colin Waters is a wild card for 2019, putting up solid numbers as a sophomore and coming on only at the end of this year. Not playing football could turn him into one of NESCAC’s best arms.

Middlebury came close to making the playoffs, but a weak start to the season made any road to the postseason a long shot if not impossible. Getting swept by Wesleyan in one of the early serieses gave Midd absolutely no momentum and a 2-4 record at the halfway point. The squad stopped underachieving around three-quarters into the year, but by then, it was too late. They were hampered all year by injuries too as highly touted recruit Michael Farinelli and starting pitcher Spencer Shores both went down with Tommy John surgery after the preseason. Shores, a hard throwing righty with jerky mechanics and a wipeout slider, saw tons of success at the beginning of 2017 and if he can get healthy, the Panthers should have a formidable pitching staff. Anchoring that pitching staff is Colby Morris, one of the NESCAC’s top arms and Colin Waters who really came on at the end of the year, dominating Union in a 5-3 victory and shutting down Amherst in relief. 1B Kevin Woodring (1st Team All-NESCAC Nose Tackle for the football team) went down with a knee injury against Williams and did not return the rest of the way, and has the potential to lead the league in HR. They also have the NESCAC defensive POY, Brooks Carroll at SS, First-Team All-NESCAC 2B Justin Han, and a breakout hitter in Hayden Smith. The ceiling is high for this team, but as always the question will be: Will they put it all together?

3). Trinity:

Trinity has solid starting pitching and their offensive is anchored by the powerful Koperniak.

Trinity must be kicking themselves after such a heartbreaking change of events at the end of the regular season. The Bantams started off the season so strong, winning the series against Tufts and Bowdoin and sweeping Colby, setting themselves up for an early playoff clinch with a 7-2 record. With Tufts underachieving, Bates not hitting, and the rest of the east not playing well all together, it seemed like a playoff spot for Trin was locked up. Losing three tight games in a row to Bates, however, killed the Bantams season. The potential returns, though: no weekend starter for Trin was a senior, so they’ll be back. Alex Shafer dominated all year and is in the conversation for pitcher of the year, Erik Mohl had a down year but could return to his All-NESCAC form. C Alex Rodriguez needs to step up though, seeing his stellar freshman numbers collapse in his sophomore campaign. Hopefully a second stint in the NECBL will help him find that talent once again. Matt Koperniak broke out and garnered both All-NESCAC and All-Region honors and will be their on field leader in 2019. With their new field, good coaching, and likely some talented recruits coming in, the Bantams will be an exciting team to watch come next spring.

4). Tufts:

Tufts didn’t surprise anybody by winning the East division regular season title, proving our preseason rankings correct. Although they made it to the tournament, they lacked pitching dominance like they have enjoyed in their previous eras, seeing their #2 and #3 starters combine for a paltry 4.05 K/9. Despite sub-3.00 ERAs from both of these players, Brent Greeley and Spencer Langdon, their strikeout numbers reveal that they can’t generate swings and misses and rely on good defense and a bad BABIP (batting average on balls in play) from opponents. Well, it might not get much better, as their corner infielders Tommy O’Hara and Nick Falkson graduated. Their seniors represented a 4x First Team All-NESCAC honoree in 3B Tommy O’Hara, the 2018 NESCAC POY Malcolm Nachmanoff, and the 2017 NESCAC POY Nick Falkson which is tough for even the legendary coach John Casey to replace. RJ Hall will lead the staff to a number of wins, but they might not have the offense to dominate like they usually do. One thing to count on is that they will lead the league in hit by pitches by about 50.

5). Williams: 

Williams had a tough season without their ace Johnny Lamont. He’s an elite pitcher, although even he wouldn’t have been able to solve all of the Ephs’ pitching problems. Williams simply lacked ‘stuff’ on the mound this year and their offense wasn’t deep enough to make up for it. Kyle Dean will likely move back to the bullpen next year where he saw success as a freshman, and Lamont should help balance out the staff. Jack Bohen will need to be more consistent for his team to have a chance to win NESCAC weekend games. Kellen Hatheway and Jack Roberts had talent sure enough, but got off to slow starts and never got back to the All-NESCAC level that they were at in the past. Hatheway will surely figure it out (unless he gets an internship this summer) and is still an elite DIII defender, with arguably the most range in the conference. Losing is never fun, and the Ephs’ playoff drought is getting longer and longer, so they will assuredly come back next year with a new sense of energy especially with their ace returning.

6). Amherst:

Nick Nardone is one of the lone powerful bats remaining in Amherst’s lineup.

What a run it was for the Amherst Mammoths. They won 5 straight to head to the New York Regional, and while they exited after a quick 0-2 performance, they lost both games by one run, competing and showing that they deserved to be there. Ultimately their offensive depth was an issue as Max Steinhorn, Ariel Kenney, and Harry Roberson were far more dangerous than their other hitters, but they had the best all around team in the conference. Their pitching, both starting and relief, performed when they needed it to, and some unlikely offensive heroes stepped up in big spots. Bolstering the lineup in 2019 will be first year standout Joseph Palmo, whose wide batting stance is surprisingly balance and consistent, offering a contact heavy and line drive approach. He, along with Severino Simeone and Nick Nardone, should lead the Mammoth team who desperately needs to retool after losing some of their program’s all time best players. Andrew Ferrero finally pitched up to his potential too, and with Zach and Davis Brown, they could easily keep most of their NESCAC opponents at bay to compete for another title.

7). Bates:

Bates, underwhelming in most statistical categories, somehow got into the playoffs again. I don’t know what’s in the water up in Lewiston, but once you make the playoffs, nobody could care less about your stats. What it came down to was doing what Middlebury couldn’t–winning with their season on the line and coming from behind to take tight ballgames. A .237 team average is one of the worst in the ‘Cac, but the Bobcats beat out other teams with better team averages to see their season continue. What was especially huge was how they saw a future ace emerge as Nolan Collins threw the ball extremely well in tight spots. The sophomore posted a 2.75 ERA, and was the go to pitcher for Bobcats in must win games, knocking off Tufts in their final series to clinch a trip to Hartford. No hitter posted above a .267 average with most hitters barely hitting their weight though and that is a recurring issue. It will be tough for the Bobcats to get in again with that hitting, but Zach Avila was a breakout player who could see continued success in the NESCAC along with second year starting catcher and All-NESCAC honoree Jack Arend. I counted them out before, so it’s hard to predict what they’ll do next year. All I have to say is it ain’t over until all 12 games are played.

8). Bowdoin:

Bowdoin either needs to have a stellar recruiting class coming in or Lopez needs to be the ace that the Polar Bears were missing in 2018.

The Bowdoin Polar Bears’ end of year record was solid at 7-5, but they lost out on a playoff bid in tiebreaking fashion to Bates. I’m sure that they want to get revenge on Bates for making the playoffs two years in a row, seeing their season end exceptionally early. Like in the west, Bowdoin has a lot of young guys in All-NESCAC honoree Eric Mah and Connor Lee who led the team in hitting. Those two will put up another good year at the plate in 2019, as the team will be bolstered by all around athlete Brandon Lopez. Lopez started off the season terribly and looked as if his velocity dropped from previous years, but turned it around back to back gems against Colby (not a huge confidence booster) and Southern Maine. The game against Southern Maine really gives the Polar Bears some momentum moving forward as the ranked Huskies dominated all the other NESCAC teams they played (Bates, Colby, Amherst). Brett Osterholtz and Colby Lewis will need to step up to make the starting staff more formidable, but if they do, look for Bowdoin to compete for a playoff bid again next year.

9). Hamilton:

Hamilton Baseball’s 2021 class showed a lot of potential, leading to an exciting offseason for the young program.

Hamilton, as usual, is competitive at times with the league’s best but also finds a way to come up short. The West division is no cake walk with perennial winners Wesleyan and Amherst, but Hamilton showed to both teams that they should be respected. They won the series against Wesleyan and took one game from Amherst after losing the first two in heartbreaking fashion. The team is young, and didn’t return too many starters, putting out a product much better than most expected. Matt Zaffino raked all year, garnering the NESCAC Rookie of the Year honors—ending the season with a .359 average. If they can figure it out in close games, Hamilton could potentially make the playoffs next year. They need to keep games close to give the ball to their lights out closer Ian Nish, and have to improve on their defense and offensive execution.

10). Colby

Colby had a tough year and there’s no way around that with a 1-11 NESCAC season. It doesn’t look like it’ll get much better next year either. The Mules’ best hitter and my former classmate Matt Treveloni is graduating (congrats, Trev), and the east is far more variable than the West. Tufts is always a good team, however they didn’t dominate like they have in the past few years and aren’t likely to improve without their three best hitters. The other teams in the East–Bates, Bowdoin, and Trinity are likely to improve though, and the Mules will have a tough task ahead of them without any cake-walk serieses. If pitchers throw strikes for the Mules next year (and they find a new starting pitching staff or it Taimu Ito returns to this 2017 form), they could be 4-8 in conference, but to be better, they’ll need to find some more offense.

It was a great year. Teams that seem to always get the job done, Amherst and Tufts, made it to the finals and two great coached teams playing each other is every baseball fan’s dream. In the end, Amherst proved to everyone why the game always requires twenty-seven outs, cranking out stellar performances in must win games like it was easy. The highlight of the regular season was the way that the East division came down to a three team tiebreaker, showing that no matter how many games are played, everything still seems to come down to the wire. Thank you to all the players and coaches that make the season so enjoyable! See you next spring.

-Andrew

 

 

Divisions Keep Them Separate, But How Do They Stack Up? Baseball Midseason Power Rankings

Right In The Thick of Things: Power Rankings Week 5

I have a love/hate relationship with NESCAC baseball. On one hand, I hate the way the divisions and playoff systems work but love the way it emphasizes head-to-head matchups. As an athlete myself, I hate how fast the spring season goes for these teams that have been preparing together since they stepped on campus in the fall yet I love how quickly these teams are forced to get into the mix. So with that being said, it’s hard to believe that it’s the second week of April and there are two huge weekends of NESCAC divisional play remaining. The season is in full swing, and with it comes some Power Rankings.

  1. Wesleyan 

The only undefeated team in the conference, and although overall records don’t matter in baseball the same way they do in other NESCAC sports, the holder of the best overall record at 13-6, are the Wesleyan Cardinals. Wesleyan started their league campaign off with a 3-game sweep of defending conference finalist Middlebury. The most impressive part of their weekend was how they showcased a variety of ways they can beat you. Mike McCaffrey has begun to prove our preseason hype correct throwing 6 no-hit innings with 10 Ks, combining with Pat Clare for their first no-hitter since 1981. The duo outpitched Middlebury’s Colby Morris (never heard of him) in a 1-0 win to start the series, and then the bats followed it up with two shootout wins in which they put up double digit runs in each game. OF Alex Cappitelli ’20 continued his solid sophomore campaign by leading the team with 4 RBIs on the weekend, but the real story so far for Wesleyan has been their depth through the order. The Cards have 7 guys in their lineup hitting above .300, which is why it should come as no surprise that they lead the NESCAC in hitting with a .305 average. They will definitely be the better team when they travel to New York this weekend for a series with Hamilton and should see their West Division grow larger after a strong start.

  1. Amherst

Amherst followed up their two game sweep of Hamilton with a series win on the road against archrival Williams, putting them at a strong 4-1 in the West Division. The Mammoths are second in the league with a .299 team batting average and lead the league as a pitching staff with a collective 4.18 ERA. They’re more than likely kicking themselves for letting Williams steal Game 2 late, but the Purple and White are in great shape. They do have the toughest schedule remaining in the West with Wesleyan and Middlebury looming, 5 of those 6 games being on the road as well. OF Ariel Kenney ’18 is firmly at the front of the POY conversation with his .431 AVG, to go along with 2 HRs and 10 RBI. 3B Nick Nardone ’19 is also looking to enter that race (.322, 2 HRs, 15 RBI), and the best part for Amherst might be that SS Harry Roberson ’18 (.228 AVG, 16 RBI), has really yet to get going. There might not be a team in the league better equipped for a 3 game series.

  1. Trinity

If you’re the Bantams you definitely have every right to feel slighted with a spot at 3 in these rankings, but I think Amherst’s consistency/every team statistic available gives them the edge. Trinity has opened the season just as they had hoped, taking 2 out of 3 from both Tufts and Bowdoin. In my East Division preview I wrote that the key to Trin’s season would be keeping the poor starting pitching performances to a minimum, but they have yet to do that in the way they would’ve hoped. While they are 3rd in the league with a 4.38 ERA, it is games like their 15-8 loss to Bowdoin that could keep them from reaching the heights they are hoping to find. They caught Bowdoin P Brandon Lopez ’19 on an off night (3.0 IP, 4 R, 5 BB), but P Erik Mohl ’19 couldn’t get out of the 2nd inning (1.2 IP, 8 H, 7 R) and the Polar Bears blitzed the Trinity bullpen for eight runs in the 7th inning alone. This team can flat out rake, but we are yet to see them clicking on all cylinders like they are capable of. Tufts, like the good team they are, were able to hold them to 13 runs over 3 games, but they were able to climb up to 21 over 3 against Bowdoin. They have the firepower, and perhaps more importantly, the strength of schedule—having already seen off Tufts and Bowdoin—to take the East Division and contend for the NESCAC.

  1. Tufts

They lost 2 out of 3 games to a good Trinity team, but that is certainly not a cause for concern. RJ Hall, Brent Greeley, and Spencer Langdon combined to throw 19 IP and allow 3 runs, erasing any doubt over the turnover in the bullpen this year. They were a 5 spot in the 7th inning in Game 2 away from winning the series and climbing higher on these rankings, but this is still a really good team and the class of the NESCAC. IF Tommy O’Hara ’18 (.358 AVG, 2 HR, 15 RBI) has looked every bit the first-teamer he was last year and is certainly right in the mix for POY. The Jumbos are getting their usual mix of contributions all over the order, but if there was one place they would like to see improvement it would be in IF Nick Falkson ‘18’s batting average. The reigning league Player of the Year is showing off his usual power so far this year, to the tune of 4 HRs and 22 RBI, but his average sits at just .258., a far cry from his .373 last year. He has already doubled his big flies, but the contact has not been there quite yet. Look for that to change soon. The story of the year in Somerville, however, is the play of P Brent Greeley ’20. The sophomore has been absolutely lights out, boasting a 4-0 line with a 1.29 ERA (second in the league) in 28.0 IP. His 3.54 K/9 obviously is not indicative of overpowering stuff and time will tell if this is just a hot streak, but the fact that they have a top of the line starter is huge for them going forward. As they showed against Trinity, they have starting pitching that can go deep in games, and deep in the season.

For Midd to figure it out, Colin Waters ’19 and the rest of the pitching staff are going to have come to play versus Amherst

  1. Middlebury

I think there’s a pretty clear top 4 in the NESCAC right now, and spots 5-7 are a toss up, but I’m going to give Midd the nod here on account of strength of schedule, close games, and the fact that this is Middlebury on NbN that we’re talking about. They got swept by Wesleyan but if Colby Morris ’20 pitches like that (6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 8 K) for the rest of the year they’re not going to get swept at all (or if they don’t get no-hit). They took 2 out of 3 against a struggling Williams team in California, and although they managed to hang 20 in one of those wins, it did come against the worst pitching staff in the league, so the jury is still out on that one. The 0-3 weekend against Wesleyan makes it a really uphill battle to return the playoffs, especially with Amherst still on the schedule. Their other rather glaring problem is that they haven’t really been good at anything, hitting .252 (9th in the league) and holding the 8th best ERA at 5.57. They need some guys to really start carrying the team if they’re not going to collectively produce. Morris has shown number 1 stuff, and sophomore infielders Hayden Smith (.365 AVG, 9 RBI) and Justin Han (.344 AVG, 14 RBI) could be the catalysts offensively for the Panthers, but it’s quickly turned into do or die time.

  1. Bowdoin

Bowdoin and Bates each find themselves at 3-3 but Bowdoin took 2 out of 3 from the Bobcats, so that made this decision easy. The Polar Bears have ridden P Max Vogel-Freedman ’19 and P Brandon Lopez ’19 to a playoff spot if the season ended today, but unfortunately it doesn’t, and they still have to face Tufts. Bowdoin has utilized the long ball to its benefit with 6 different guys combining to hit 8 homers on the year. I would also like to use this time to throw a shoutout to 1B Sawyer Billings ’18 whose 2-26 with 2 HRs stat line is eerily reminiscent to my Little League production—thanks for bringing me back to the good ole days, Sawyer. Anyways, with Vogel-Freedman and Lopez pitching like they are, they should feel good about their ability to compete. If they can steal 1 or even 2 from Tufts, and then take 2 out of 3 from Colby, that would put them at either 7-5 or 6-6 in the division. Is that going to be good enough to make the playoffs?

  1. Bates

The other 3-3 team in the East are going to need some help and putting this team at 7 feels wrong but someone has to do it. The reality is that this team has taken no strides forward at the plate, and it’s going to be pretty hard (read: near impossible) to make the playoffs hitting .217 as a team. Zach Avila is the only guy hitting above .300 (.316) but none of his 12 hits have been extra base hits. Dan Trulli ’19 (.265, 2 HR, 16 RBI) is their biggest weapon at the plate, but he’s either going to need to do a lot more than what he’s doing now if he’s not going to get any help. Can Connor Russell and Justin Foley make up for it on the mound? Russell has shown he can pitch as good as any arm in the league for a day, but he’s going to have to consistently do it the rest of the way home. The reality is that with 6 games remaining, 3 each against Tufts and Trinity, the Bobcats probably didn’t do enough with their first 6 to stay in the hunt. Perhaps they can play spoiler.

  1. Colby

Colby was able to snag one off of Bates to avoid being swept in their opening weekend, getting a nice pitching performance from first-year LHP Paul Ariola (7 IP, 1 R, 6K). Colby’s biggest problem has been injuries to their pitching staff. Like, all of it. Ariola ’21 leads the team in innings pitched with just 16.1. The guys we expected to take a jump up this year are either hurt or aren’t producing. There’s really no guessing which three guys Coach Plummer will roll out to the mound on a given weekend right now, but it is yet to fully go off the rails for Colby, in large part due to the play of senior OF Matt Treveloni, who has been nothing shy of white hot. Treveloni leads the league with a .440 average to go along with 1 HR and 14 RBI. Colby is still young and has a lot of arms, and while injuries stink, it should give a lot of those young guys chances to prove themselves on the mound.

  1. Williams

It’s safe to say this season has not gone as planned for the Ephs. John Lamont and Sean Hager ’20 vanished seemingly overnight, Lamont to injury, and Hager to transferring, and what remained was a pitching staff with a comfortably league worst 7.37 ERA. Their pitchers just don’t have the stuff, as evidenced by the fact that they’ve struck out 35 less batters than the next closest NESCAC team. Their attempt to convert Kyle Dean ’20 from a reliever, a role in which he had great success last year (26.0 IP, 1.38 ERA, 9.35 K/9) has not worked out, and they are desperately seeking guys to fill their rotation. The bright spots for this team have been the young guys, particularly the freshmen. Sophomore OF Mike Stamas (.375 AVG, 24 H, 1 HR, 7 RBI) has taken the jump up in second year production, but 2021s OF Erik Mini (.265, 2 HR, 7 RBI), IF Eric Pappas (.415, 17 H) and RHP George Carroll (24.1 IP, 3.70 ERA, starter of both NESCAC wins) have been what Eph fans should be most excited about. This team is also actually quite solid at the plate (.279, 4th in the NESCAC). If they can find a couple of pitchers that can join Carroll and get past the 2nd inning, and veterans like INFs Kellen Hathaway ’19 and Jack Roberts ’18 can lead this team at the top of the order, they could win some games. But they still have Wesleyan left on their schedule, and if that 7.37 ERA doesn’t drop quicker than Bitcoin their season will be ending shortly.

Zaffino and the Continentals have nowhere to go but up.

  1. Hamilton

There was some competition with Williams for this coveted spot but it goes to the Continentals because they are the only NESCAC team without a league win. Like I said with some previous teams, some of these rankings are harsh, and as the person writing them can attest, they’re not easy to do either, especially when strength of schedule is such a factor. Hamilton will turn it around and win some games going forward, although looking ahead to Wesleyan and Middlebury (and Williams) isn’t ideal, but they’ve got talent. INF Matt Zaffino has just about locked up ROY in the second week of April, putting up as good of a first season as the league has seen in a while, hitting .429 (T2), 3 HR (2nd), and 18 RBI (5th). The kids have been the story for this team, as Zaffino’s first year classmates INF Jarrett Lee (.370, 20 H, 8 RBI) and INF Matt Cappelletti (.295, 2 HR, 8 RBI) have joined in on the production party. They have yet to find consistent top end pitching, but hopefully that will come. This is going to come across as a cop out (it is a cop out) but Hamilton won’t finish 10th in the last Power Rankings, I feel pretty certain about that.

What is an Internship? NESCAC Baseball Summerball Recap

Editor’s Note: Here’s to all of the NESCAC baseball players who didn’t come here to play school. Heading into the baseball season, we wanted to give an update on which players played in competitive summer leagues and the standouts from each league from nearly all of the teams (Sorry, Colby Mules, we literally found no information on your players in summerball, so I guess you did go there to play school). We would also like to welcome a new writer, Max Stamler of the Middlebury D1 Alpine Ski Team, to our writing team.

As Baseball season nears its time to continue to make predictions for the upcoming season. We have already previewed NBN’s preseason choices for player and pitcher of the year but we also wanted to highlight some big-time summer-ball seasons that players from all around the ‘cac had. They will be looking to continue their success from the summer season to having big time impacts for their squads this spring.

Wesleyan LHP Mike McCaffrey

Wesleyan’s Mike McCaffrey earned an All-Star selection in the FCBL.

McCaffrey played this summer for the Brocton Rox of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL). He appeared in 8 games and posted a 2-2 record with a 1.46 ERA. This performance earned him a spot in the FCBL All-Star game stacked with mostly Division 1 players. McCaffrey’s success pitching this past summer in a highly competitive league should give him the confidence he needs to make that next step in this seasons NESCAC play as he looks to lead Wesleyan into the playoffs in a strong West division.

Trinity C Alex Rodriguez

The reigning NESCAC Co-Rookie of the year turned in a strong summer league season in the NECBL, one of the top leagues in the nation. Rodriguez batted .342, had a slugging percentage of .465 and knocked in 23 runs on his way to leading the Valley Blue Sox to the NECBL title, the first ever for the franchise. After breaking out in his first season, he looks to lead a Bantam team to home field advantage in their new stadium for the NESCAC playoffs after they narrowly missed the postseason in 2017.

Hamilton C Craig Sandford

Another NESCAC catcher with a successful summer season was Craig Sandford of Hamilton, playing for the Sherrill Silversmiths of the New York Collegiate Baseball League (NYCBL). Sandford appeared in 30 games hitting .354 with 12 RBI’s and 3 homeruns while earning a spot in the All-Star game. Sandford should see the bulk of the playing time and be a leader for a Continental team that is rebuilding following the loss of the majority of their starting lineups.

Williams 2B Jack Roberts

Roberts played for his hometown Martha’s Vineyard Sharks of the FCBL this past summer and the his team was definitely happy he chose to stay home. Roberts appeared in 47 games, hitting .374 with 28 RBI’s and 3 home runs. He was perhaps the biggest NESCAC contributor over the summer, and his 65 hits and 174 AB’s were both team highs. Not surprisingly, Roberts performance was rewarded with a selection in the All-Star game alongside many Division 1 players. He was statistically the best player on a team loaded with guys from Vanderbilt, UConn, Kansas, and Notre Dame and will be the cornerstone for the Ephs along with SS Kellen Hatheway.

Bates LHP Connor Russell

One of Bates only players to participate in summer ball, Russell started 5 games for the Seacoast Mavericks in the FCBL wining 1 of those appearances with a 4.15 ERA. He played this past summer alongside Middlebury RHPs Conor Himstead and Colby Morris and might just face them in the playoffs again in 2018. Russell and the Bobcats are already off to a tough start this season, going 0-6 during their trip to California and need to get their bats hot to compete. Russell is more of a pitch to contact, veteran style pitcher and will find a way to get outs this year no matter the level of offensive support he gets.

Tufts 1B/3B Nick Falkson

Falkson appeared in 43 games for the North Shore Navigators of the FCBL at 3B hitting .273 with 19 RBI’s. He also drew 21 walks over the summer which ranked third on the team. Falkson returns to a Tuft’s team looking to defend the NESCAC title and make a run deep into NCAA tournament in his final year as a Jumbo. After playing 3B this summer, the Jumbos might have a competition at the hot corner as senior 3B Tommy O’Hara has started there for three straight years but saw limited time there over the summer for the Brockton Rox.

Tufts’ Nick Falkson looks to improve on his 2017 POY season after a strong summer in the FCBL.

Amherst SS Harry Roberson

Roberson joined the Nashua Silver Knights of the FCBL partway through the summer after a brief stint in the famed Cape Cod League and proved to be a key contributor in their lineup for the second half of the summer. In 30 games, Roberson hit .308 with 7 doubles and 17 RBI’s. In the last 9 games of the year, Roberson hit just below .500 as the Silver Knights won 6 of their last 9 to win the FCBL championship. Roberson looks to keep this form heading into his final collegiate season and has an outside shot to keep playing after college.

Middlebury CF Sam Graf

Unlike many of his NESCAC peers, Graf traveled outside of the Northeast for his summer season where he played for the Suffolk Fightin’ Crabs of the new short season Virginia Beach Collegiate League. Graf slugged .520 and had 23 RBI’s, both of which ranked him in the top 5 in the league and earned him a spot in the All-Star Game. Graf, coming off a semester in Chile swinging sticks instead of bats (for more information on his semester check out https://cbscout.net/2018/02/18/the-journey-colby-morris-sam-graf/), looks to lead a Middlebury squad into the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2006.

Bowdoin RHP/OF Jack Wilhoite

Wilhoite led the North Shore Storm of the North Shore Baseball League (NSBL) into the playoffs over the past summer hitting .304 with 14 RBI’s in 19 games while also pitching in 4 games. In just 12 innings pitched, Wilhoite struck out an impressive 16 batters. The Polar Bear’s dynamic player looks to have a bigger impact this spring after just throwing 10.1 innings in 2017. He did strike out 22 hitters last season though, so he is the favorite to close games this year.

 

 

 

The End Is Nigh: Power Rankings 4/27

Before we start these rankings, I just need to call everyone’s attention to Rory’s profile on the Tufts website.

“Listen to music” is a very original tradition! Rory is quirky like that

Pretty bold claim to call yourself the “lead writer” of a blog when you haven’t written anything since basketball season, but hey, that’s just, like, my opinion man. Anyway, there are several crucial series for playoff standing in this final weekend, so let’s see where each team stands.

Tufts

Don’t worry Jumbos fans, you’re not in danger of losing your number one spot. But it is time for us to talk about Tufts’ inability to sweep a series. Despite being pretty undisputedly the best team in the league for this entire season, in each of their league series they have dropped a game, including to weaker teams like Bowdoin and Colby. I know that seems like a champagne problem (plenty of teams in the league would kill to take two out of three in every series,) but Tufts is simply too good to be dropping games to Bowdoin. Let’s delve deeper into Tufts’ losses. Obviously, none of them have come in games started by ace starter Speros Varinos ‘17, who is 7-0. RJ Hall has two of those losses Tim Superko ‘17 has one. Both of those starters have ERA above 3.4, with Superko sitting at a pedestrian 4.23. Tufts seems to have some problems in terms of depth in the starting rotation. This will not be a problem in the regular season, but in the playoffs it might manifest itself in an ugly way.

Bates

Bates’ Cinderella carriage hit a classic New England pothole last weekend against Trinity, as the Bobcats dropped two out three games. One of the reasons that Bates’ 7 game league winning streak was remarkable is that they were doing it in spite of a relatively impotent offense. Bates only hits .246 for the season, and in league play that number drops to .234. Obviously, Bates’s pitching has been making up for lack of offense so far this year. Bates’ ERA in league play is 2.25, which is nearly a full run better than Tufts (a distant second at 3.21.) Connor Speed ‘18 is the ace of the staff, with a 2.52 ERA in 35 innings. But his 1-3 record reveals the problem that Bates saw exposed against Trinity. If the pitching falters for even a moment, the offense cannot back them up. They have a three game series against Tufts coming up this weekend– that’s a must watch, by the way– and then a four game series against WIlliams. These are two of the best offenses in the league, and if they can get to the Bates staff, Bates could close the league  season in the opposite way from how they started.

Middlebury

At the three and four spots we have two teams who have been steadily climbing in the standings over the last couple weeks in the Panthers and the (newly minted) Mammoths. Middlebury gets the edge because they took two of three from Amherst earlier this season. This has been a magical season for the Panthers, a program that was in desperate need of some energy. In fact Middlebury (who has clinched a playoff berth and is one Amherst loss this weekend away from the number one overall seed in the West) is the hottest team in either conference as they are riding a seven game winning streak in league play. Offensively, Middlebury relies heaviily on the senior duo of Ryan Rizzo ‘17 and Jason Lock ‘17. With a .375 OBP and 14 steals, Rizzo is a classic leadoff hitter, and Lock is adept at knocking him in (27 RBI on the year.) Sophomore Sam Graf ‘19 and Justin Han ‘20 have also put up terrific offensive seasons and keep the future bright for the Panthers.

Amherst

Harry Roberson ’18 is an anchor in the infield for the Mammoths (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)

Amherst might be the next hottest team in the league. They have won four in a row overall and 5 of their last six in league play. Like Middlebury, Amherst is a potent offense. They have six players with on base percentages over .400, and with league RBI leader Yanni Thanopoulos ‘17 in the middle of the order, that is a dangerous proposition for opponents. But Amherst’s hot streak has been primarily due to the improvement of their pitching. They have a bonafide ace in Jackson Volle ‘17 (5-0, 1.71 ERA) but their team ERA has improved from 5.21 overall to 3.63 in league play. Amherst’s offense was always good, but now that their pitching is catching up, they are extremely dangerous.

Wesleyan

I would imagine that at the beginning of the year, Wesleyan envisioned being a little higher in these rankings than fifth. But they simply have not hit well enough to win the close games that NESCAC play often brings about. In their sweep at the hands of Middlebury last weekend, they only scored nine runs in the whole series, despite several good scoring chances. Outside of Matt Jeye ‘18, the Cardinals don’t have much in the way of power (their slugging percentage in league play is an abysmal .290.) This means that each run they give up feels like a disaster, as they will have to scratch and claw to get it back. Wesleyan has a chance this weekend to get back in the mix with a three game set against Amherst, but they’ll need a couple big hits to do so.

Williams

Williams is another team who should be somewhat disappointed to be down here at this point in the season. The Ephs have a trio of stud freshman pitchers in John Lamont ‘20, Sean Hager ‘20 and Kyle Dean ‘20 who have combined for an 8-3 record with a 2.33 ERA. They also have a possible POY in Kellen Hatheway ‘19 (.392 AVG, 1.079 OPS) and have two other excellent hitters in Jack Cloud ‘17 and Jack Roberts ‘18. And yet, here they are at 4-5 in NESCAC play, and that’s including taking three out of four from Colby last weekend. It has been their pitching that has faltered in conference play (their .303 batting average against is second worst in the league.) However, they have a three game set against Hamilton coming up. Williams should be thinking sweep there, and if they get it done, they would be at the mercy of Wesleyan sweeping Amherst to make the tournament.

Bowdoin

The Polar Bears had a pretty impressive performance against a far superior Tufts teams, grabbing a win and coming within a run of taking another. And they have a three game set against a weaker Colby team. They should be smelling sweep against the Mules, and they have the starting pitchers to do it. There may not be a player in the league who can impact a game like Brandon Lopez ‘19. Lopez is Bowdoin’s best starter at 3-1 with a 2.05 ERA, and he is also their best hitter, stroking the ball at a .342 clip with a .962 OPS. Lopez can change a game, and series on both sides of the ball. Bowdoin has two other solid starters in Max Vogel-Freedman ‘18 (2.90 ERA) and Colby Lewis ‘20 (3-2, 3.55 ERA.) If Bowdoin can somehow manage to sneak into the playoffs, this trio of starters could make them very dangerous. But they have to sweep Colby first.

Trinity

The Bantams recovered from a rough start in league play by taking two of three against East-leading Bates last weekend. They did it with pitching, holding the Bobcats (who aren’t exactly a dynamic offense, but still) to just two runs over the final two games. They have a top heavy lineup led by Alex Rodriguez ‘20 (.362 BA) and Brendan Pierce ‘18 (4 HR.) Senior Nick Dibenedetto rounds out the threats in the lineup with a .348 AVG and 24 RBI. However Trinity doesn’t get a lot of offense from the rest of their lineup, meaning that any wins they get where that trio doesn’t carry them have to be well pitched games. Against Bates, they had two of those. We will see if they get the chance in the postseason to have more.

Colby

Colby honestly just does not have the talent to win NESCAC games, but they have shown the heart to compete. Their offense lacks punch (only three home runs on the year) and their pitching has been generally horrific with a 6.23 overall ERA. However, they have grabbed two wins against superior teams (Wesleyan and Trinity,) and all three of their losses to Williams were by one run. Colby has been playing for little other than pride for some time now, and their heart as a team has shown through the losses.

Hamilton

The Continentals may be the team who has underachieved most in league play. Despite being near the top in overall offensive stats, in NESCAC games every one of their team numbers is near the bottom They have a solid pitching duo in Finlay O’Hara ‘17 and Dan DePaoli ‘18, and on paper have an excellent lineup. But they seem to have jacked up their stats a bit against a weak non-conference schedule and have been unprepared for the jump to better competition. They have a series against Williams that matters for nothing but pride. It is a good chance to honor their seniors and leave a good aftertaste in an otherwise disappointing year.

Ranking the Individual Team MVP’s Thus Far

Mike Odenwaelder '16 has thrived in his junior year. (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)
Mike Odenwaelder ’16 has thrived in his junior year. (Courtesy of Amherst Athletics)

When I started to put together the Power Rankings for this week, I realized something important. Not much has really changed. While we still don’t know how things are going to shake out in the East, so far things have played out predictably and we have a good idea on how good each team is. So I decided to switch things up and go back and figure out who the MVP for each team was. Then once I had those settled, I went back in and ranked each player in order of performance so far this year. Just for kicks, I put the team’s Power Ranking from two weeks ago next to it just to give you an idea of how they match up.

10. Catcher Max Araya ’16 (.317/.442/.349): Middlebury (Team Rank: 10): Admit it, you were expecting Dylan Sinnickson ’15 in this spot. However, Sinnickson has come back to earth after that earth-shattering start. He hasn’t hit a home run since Middlebury’s third game of the year and has an OBP of .286 in NESCAC games. Araya, meanwhile, has continued his year-to-year improvement and stepped into full-time catching duties with great success. Offensively, Araya leads the Panthers with 11 bases on balls (and no one else is particularly close) and generally puts the ball in play with authority. The one thing lacking from his offensive game is a bit more pop, as he has just two extra base hits on the year. But Araya really gets the nod here for his work behind the dish, where has has emerged as one of the league’s best defensive backstops.

9. Shortstop Jack Roberts ’17 (.386/.429/.542, 0 HR, 19 RBI): Williams (Team Rank: 7): As a group the Williams’ offense has taken a step back from a year ago, but that has not stopped Roberts from cementing himself as one of the better players in the league. He rarely walks, but that isn’t his role as the three hitter. Roberts fits the mold of the team’s best athlete playing shortstop given his speed has allowed him to steal five bags and propelled him to four triples, tied for the league lead. His production has slipped ever so slightly in conference, but not by an alarming amount.

8. Right Fielder Nate Pajka ’15 (.353/.434/.659, 4 HR, 15 RBI): Bates (Team Rank: 5): The fact that Pajka is ranked eighth in this list is an indication of the quality of players that are to follow. After all, Pajka is fourth in the league in slugging percentage and has 14 doubles, the most in the league. In the Bobcats’ five conference games he is getting on base at a .458 clip. There isn’t really a good knock on his play either. The only reason others are above him is that they are just a smidgeon better in a couple of areas. A hit here and there really is the difference. Pajka can hold his hat on being one of the most improved players on this list; oh and that his team has a good shot at making the playoffs.

7. Starting Pitcher Sean Meekins ’15 (2-1, 1.91 ERA, 10.36 K/9, 33.0 IP): Trinity (Team Rank: 8): Yes, we are proud of our own Nothing but NESCAC contributor, but don’t accuse us of any type of bias. I think the sub-2.00 ERA speaks for itself after all. He is striking out gobs of hitters and still working late into games, a somewhat rare and valuable combination. He had been struggling a little in his previous couple of starts before getting back on track and throwing that gem on Saturday against Bowdoin. A year ago Meekins was an average starter in what amounted to an average rotation, but in 2015 Meekins, and the staff as a whole, has raised their level of play.

6. Starting Pitcher/First Basman Soren Hanson ’16 (.326/.380/.565 and 4-0, 1.78 ERA): Colby (Team Rank: 4): Hanson get serious consideration merely for his work on the bump, and when you add in his hitting contributions it is clear how important he is to Colby. Like another pitcher we will see in a bit, all three of his team’s NESCAC wins have come in Hanson’s starts. He is hitting only .263 in conference, but he is also second in RBI over that stretch so his timely hitting makes up for it somewhat. Why don’t we see more two-way players in the NESCAC? I’m not really sure, but Hanson is the best one going this year.

5. Pitcher Sam Elias ’15 (5-0, 3 Saves, 1.94 ERA, 41.2 IP, 9.94 K/9): Wesleyan (Team Rank: 1): One of several seniors to raise his game in his final season, Elias has been pulling double duty for Wesleyan as both a starter and reliever. A year ago he started only one game but was still a big part of the Cardinals success appearing in 19 games and throwing more than 40 innings. This year he has been the best pitcher on Wesleyan, which is saying something considering Gavin Pittore ’16 and Peter Rantz ’16 have ERA’s right at 2.20. Elias, like all the other Wesleyan pitchers, certainly benefits from Wesleyan having the best defense in the league, but don’t let that diminish his accomplishments. That Elias is only fifth but Wesleyan is clearly the best team in the league to this point is just another representation of the depth the Cardinals possess.

4. Center Fielder Joe Jensen ’15 (.419/.470/.568, 1 HR, 10 RBI): Hamilton (Team Rank: 9): Jensen was the original inspiration for this list because he is the player with the most obvious disparity between his team and his own personal performance. Not that there aren’t others playing very well for Hamilton this season, but as a group the Continentals have not been able to take a step forward. Jensen has not delivered on the power that we thought would come this season after he hit a home run in his first game of the year. But he has continued to run wild on the basepaths with 14 steals which is sort of incredible when you consider that everybody knows he is going to run. Though he has come back down a little recently, Jensen is still having his finest season yet as a senior.

3. Tufts: Catcher Bryan Egan ’15 (.402/.510/.573, 2 HR, 36 RBI: Tufts (Team Rank: 3): When I was putting this list together, this was the one that I had the hardest time slotting in. Ultimately Egan landed higher than I thought he ever would. At first I thought Tommy O’Hara ’18 was a clear choice for MVP for Tufts, but then I looked again at the conference stats for Tufts and noticed that Egan had an incredible .571 AVG. Also, did I mention that Egan is a catcher who wasn’t even a starter a year ago. Even though he has not thrown many runners out, he deserves some credit for shepherding the Tufts’ staff. At the end of the day, Egan has hit his best in the games that matter the most which is why he ended up so high on this list.

2. Starting Pitcher Henry Van Zant ’15 (5-1, 1.26 ERA, 37 K, 43.0 IP): Bowdoin (Team Rank: 6): We saw a big year coming for Van Zant, but we didn’t see this type of dominance on the horizon. He leads the league in ERA, and that number gets even better when you isolate for just NESCAC games where he has an 0.82 ERA. All three of Bowdoin’s conference wins have come in games that he has started, and you can chalk up their 1-0 non-conference win over Wesleyan to his complete game shutout, too. Van Zant looks poised to follow in the steps of his older brother, Oliver Van Zant ’13 and win NESCAC Pitcher of the Year honors.

1. Center Fielder Mike Odenwaelder ’16 (.444/.521/.697, 5 HR, 23 RBI, 8 SB): Amherst Team Rank: 2): You probably saw this one coming from the beginning. Nobody else in the NESCAC has the combination of size, power, speed and whatever else it is that makes some baseball players so good. Odenwaelder is both tied for the league lead in homers and leads the league in OBP, pretty decent for a guy who has eight steals to boot. Now consider the fact that I spent 30 seconds considering putting Harry Roberson ’18 in this slot instead of Odenwaelder. Gives you an idea of the type of year that the freshman is having. Odenwaelder is a special player who you don’t see very often come through the NESCAC.

You Come at the King, You Best Not Miss: Weekend Preview 3/3/15

Williams and Wesleyan will play all three of their games at Andrus Field. (Courtesy of Wikipedia)
Williams and Wesleyan will play all three of their games at Andrus Field. (Courtesy of Wikipedia)

After the slight miscarriage that was opening weekend in the NESCAC, we actually get a full slate of weekend series, though there are still some more cosmetic changes because of the weather. But still, it’s baseball! For real! Alas, no games in Maine yet. One can only dream.

With Tufts having the weekend off, the remaining four East Division teams are tangling in series that will start the process of figuring out where exactly where each of them stands relative to each other.

The biggest series is out west with Williams taking on Wesleyan. The Ephs swept Middlebury to once again at least appear to have a shot at challenging Amherst or Wesleyan for the second playoff spot. A year ago with the Ephs at 4-2 in league after taking one game from Amherst, the Cardinals put their foot down and swept Williams to take control of the West and end the playoff chances for the Ephs. This year, Williams is hoping for at least one win against the Cardinals. However, beating this Wesleyan team is one tall task.

Three to Watch

1. Shortstop Guy Davidson ’16 (Wesleyan): We love two sport athletes, and Davidson is one of the many at Wesleyan right now. However, not many athletes boast squash and baseball as their two sports. After spending the winter as the number one for the squash team, he has transitioned seamlessly to baseball. In his junior year he has elevated his game to another level at shortstop. A year after hitting only .273 with one homer, Davidson has mashed three home runs on his way to a team high .415 BA. Davidson combines with Andrew Yin ’15 to make one of the best double-play combos in the NESCAC.

2. Starting Pitcher Scott Goldberg ’15 (Colby): Colby fans should not be too concerned at all with his 6.23 ERA. He dominated in his first two starts in Florida before having one very bad start. I put more stock into his 5 inning, 10 strikeout start against Hamilton than his 3 inning, 8 earned runs one against Castleton State. He is striking out a ton of hitters so far too which is good news. Goldberg should get the ball this afternoon in the NESCAC season opener against the Bantams. Last year against Trinity he didn’t make it through five innings, but Colby got the win in his start.

3. Left fielder Yanni Thanopoulos ’17 (Amherst): The sophomore is building on a very productive freshman year that saw him get on-base at .375 clip and steal 13 bases. Now after hitting only one extra base hit in 2014, Thanopoulos has two home runs and six extra-base hits total to date. On Wednesday in Amherst’s tuneup game against Bates, he went 2-4 and stole two bags to confirm that he is still very much a threat on the base paths. Mike Odenwaelder ’16 is going to continue to steal the headlines, but Thanopoulos has proven that there are two very capable outfielders with four syllable last names in the Jeffs outfield.

Predictions

Middlebury (0-9, 0-3) at Amherst (7-6, 0-0). Games played at Auburn High

Friday 7:00 PM: Eric Truss ’15 vs. John Cook ’15. Saturday 3:00 PM: Cooper Byrne ’15 vs. Keenan Szulik ’16. Robert Erickson ’18 vs. Jackson Volle ’17.

Not too much to say here. Hard to pick in favor of the Panthers until we see them win a game. Truss against Cook is a clear mismatch in the first game, but in the other two the Panthers will have a shot. Dylan Sinnickson ’15 is a game decision for this one. Amherst has looked a little shaky so far, and their 10-9 win over Bates wasn’t too reassuring. They committed four errors (three by their middle infielders) to allow five unearned runs to score. They can overcome those types of errors against Middlebury.

Amherst sweeps series.

Colby (9-3, 0-0) at Trinity (8-5, 0-0)

Friday 3:00 PM: Scott Goldberg ’15 vs. Sean Meekins ’15. Saturday 12:00 PM: Greg Ladd ’15 vs. Jed Robinson ’16. Saturday 2:30 PM: TBD vs. Chris Speer ’17

Two teams who we have not heard too much from to this point are certainly feeling that they have a chance at the playoffs in the East. The rotation for the Bantams has been amazing with the four pitchers with the most innings pitched all having an ERA below 1.00. The bullpen has been much more of an adventure which has held the Bantams back a little bit. Meekins and Robinson have matured into a very good duo. For the Mules, Goldberg and Ladd are missing their running mate Soren Hanson ’16 who was injured earlier in the year.

The weakness of both teams is their offense so expect a low scoring series. In the end, the loss of Hanson for Colby swings things just enough for the Bantams who will win their first NESCAC series since 2013.

Trinity wins two of three

Bates (5-5, 0-0) at Bowdoin (6-10, 1-2): Games played at Franklin Pierce.

Sunday 1:00 PM: TBD vs. Henry Van Zant ’15. Sunday 3:30 PM: TBD vs. Harry Ridge ’16

The final game of this series is being postponed for later which might benefit Bates in the short run but Bowdoin in the long run. The Bates staff is still very unsettled with a bunch of arms still clamoring for innings. Expect a lot of different pitchers to throw multiple innings as manager Mike Leonard will not allow the Bowdoin hitters to see pitchers multiple times. In the long run, Van Zant can now start two of the games in this series for Bowdoin depending on when the final game is rescheduled for.

Winning at least one game is a must for Bowdoin to stay near .500 in conference. Bates must be itching to play this weekend after only playing four games since February 21. These are two very familiar foes who have to travel to an unfamiliar locale in Franklin Pierce.

Teams split the doubleheader

Series of the Weekend: Williams (6-5, 3-0) at Wesleyan (9-4, 0-0)

Friday 4:00 PM: Thomas Murphy ’15 vs. Nick Cooney ’15. Saturday 1:00 PM: Luke Rodino ’17 vs. Gavin Pittore ’16. Saturday 3:30 PM Dan Smith ’16 vs. Sam Elias ’15.

All three games will be played in Middletown because there is still some snow in Williamstown, but the change of venue is not a big one as the Saturday doubleheader was already planned for historic Andrus Field.

A good deal of players for Wesleyan have yet to hit their stride. Neither Cooney nor Pittore boast a spectacular ERA, but some of that is because of the caliber of teams they pitched against earlier in the year. Meanwhile Donnie Cimino ’15 has not looked like his usual self in his first baseball action since breaking his jaw last summer. He should get back on track as he gets more at-bats. That a good deal of Wesleyan stars are not playing great but the team is still playing well is not a surprise given the depth of talent. Remember too that a good deal of this team played some high level baseball this summer in the Cape Cod league and beyond.

Williams feels confident after managing to sweep Middlebury, but they needed a walk-off win in the first game to make it happen. As mentioned in our season preview, the Eph hitters were shut down against Wesleyan in 2014. A repeat of that spells doom for them. While Jack Roberts ’17 is smoking the ball, Jack Cloud ’17 and Luke Pierce ’15 are both mired in slumps that are keeping the Williams offense from working on all cylinders.

Something tells me that Wesleyan is ready to show the NESCAC just how good they are going to be this weekend. The Ephs will play well, but their best chance of winning is Murphy throwing a gem on Friday. Against a lineup as deep as Wesleyan’s that is very difficult.

Wesleyan sweeps series

Balance Necessary for Ephs: Williams Baseball Season Preview

Williams starts the season today in Arizona. (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)
Williams starts the season today in Arizona. (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)

2014 Record: 13-16 (7-5, Third in NESCAC East), missed NESCAC playoffs

Starters Returning: 8 (6 Position Players, 2 Starting Pitchers)

Projected Lineup: (Stats are from 2014)

SS Jack Roberts ’17 (.302/.342/.368, 1 HR, 19 RBI)
2B Beau Horan ’16 (.163/.260/.209, 0 HR, 5 RBI
LF Luke Pierce ’15 (.312/.371/.440, 1 HR, 22 RBI)
CF Jack Cloud ’17 (.402/.463/.526, 0 HR, 22 RBI)
C Phil McGovern ’15 (.276/.325/.362, 0 HR, 17 RBI)
1B Nate Michalski ’17 (.230/.293/.311, 0 HR, 16 RBI)
RF David Rosas ’16 (.306/.342/.333, 0 HR, 5 RBI)
3B Adam Regensburg ’18
DH Kirby Neuner ’15 (.222/.467/.333, 0 HR, 2 RBI)

RHP Thomas Murphy ’15 (5-2, 3.77 ERA, 5.23 K/9, 43.0 IP)
RHP Luke Rodino ’17 (0-2, 5.63 ERA, 5.62 K/9, 24.0 IP)
RHP Daniel Smith ’16 (1-2, 9.98 ERA, 10.57 K/9, 15.1 IP)

Offensive Overview:

The unquestioned strength of the Ephs a year ago was their hitting. They were first overall in the NESCAC in OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage). They will certainly miss Matt Kastner ’14 and Thomas Stephens ’14, but with guys like Jack Cloud ’17 and Luke Pierce ’15 back, they will once again be very good. Cloud hit .402 as a freshman, and it will be exciting to see what he can do as a sophomore. Fellow sophomore Jack Roberts ’17 cooled off in conference, but he still hit over .300. A lot of spots are still very much in the air near the bottom of the lineup. Adam Regensburg ’18 will open at third base, but he can also play outfield so he might move around some this season. The core guys at the top have a shot at making this a scary offense once again.

Defensive Overview:

The Ephs defense was just about average in 2014. Their 49 errors, second least in the NESCAC a year ago, is a little misleading because they only played 29 games. For comparisons sake, Tufts played 43 games and made 52 errors. Roberts is moving from second base and replacing departed senior Kastner at shortstop. He had only four errors a year ago, but obviously shortstop is a much harder position to handle. Pierce did not have a single error last year, and he and Cloud will make a nice outfield duo. Phil McGovern ’15 brings experience at the catcher position.

Pitching Overview:

Pitching was unquestionably the major weakness for the Ephs a year ago, but they were actually better than their league worst 6.46 ERA would suggest. If you look only at conference games, the staff had a 3.95 ERA which was a middle of the pack mark. They will miss Steve Marino ’14, but Thomas Murphy ’15 has a chance to be a legitimate ace at the top of the rotation. He started five of their twelve NESCAC games and had a 2.84 ERA while also pitching three complete games. Behind him, Luke Rodino ’17 was solid his freshman year, and the sophomore should improve. Daniel Smith ’16 will get the first chance at the final weekend starting spot. His 9.98 ERA in 15.1 IP is obviously scary, but a 10.57 K/9 ratio indicates that he has the stuff to be a much better pitcher. As a group cutting down on the number of walks will be a key. That is sure to be a focus for new assistant coach, Tanner McIntrye,

Storylines to Watch:

1. In what direction is the program moving?

From 2006-2010, the Ephs finished first or tied for first in the NESCAC West every single year. In the four seasons since then, they have returned to the playoffs only once when they snuck in at 7-5 in the 2012 season. The emergence of Wesleyan and strength of Amherst has made the West a much tougher division, but there is certainly room for Williams to make some noise still. Manager Bill Barrale has been at the helm for eight seasons, and his first four were much more successful than his last four. Last season was a step in the right direction finishing above .500 in conference, and this season must continue that momentum.

2. Do they solve elite pitching?

While the offense was phenomenal for the most part last year, they scuffled against Amherst and Wesleyan. In those six games, the Ephs scored only 3.3 runs per game. In being swept by Wesleyan they managed only five runs in three games. For some reason their bats went cold for those games which was the worst possible time for them. Murphy should give the Ephs a good shot in the two games he pitches against Wesleyan and Amherst, and if the bats come alive then the Ephs can start thinking about breaking into the playoffs.

3. Is Daniel Smith ’16  the answer?

Finding a third consistent starter is huge for NESCAC teams. Teams usually throw their ace on Friday and keep their lesser starters for the Saturday doubleheader. At the very least having a third starter who can go five innings and keep you in the game before turning things over the bullpen is a necessity. As said above, Smith’s ERA from last year should come way down because of his ability to strikeout hitters. How far down it comes depends on whether he can keep the ball on the ground. A few other pitchers like Arnie Capute ’16 and Eddie Kelly ’15 could also end up starting in the rotation, but Williams would really like Smith to establish himself on their trip to Arizona.

Biggest Series: April 10-11 against Amherst

No question about this one. Not only is this a meeting of the arch-rivals, but a series win would be huge for Williams’ playoff hopes. While Wesleyan is a juggernaut, Amherst is an extremely talented but more vulnerable team. A year ago Williams won one of the three games. The Ephs play Wesleyan the weekend before, but this is the one that really matters.

Don’t Mess with the Bobcats: Stock Report 12/8

Alumni Gymnasium with the student section at the far end. (Courtesy of Bates Athletics
Alumni Gymnasium with the student section at the far end. (Courtesy of Bates Athletics)

From the outside Alumni Gym does not look much. Once you get inside you realize that it actually is not big at all. That lack of size is, of course, the greatest strength of Bates’ home court. Only a few hundred people can fit into the gym which gives it a high school atmosphere. Classic old wooden stands extend back on both sides only eight rows deeps. On the far end of the gym behind one of the baskets enough space is available for 100 people to sit: a ready made fan section for Bates fanatics.

Thursday night I traveled to Bates along with nine friends to see our favorite team Bowdoin take on a surging Bates team. Last year a similar group traveled to Lewiston in February and watched Bowdoin dismantle a Bates team that was in the midst of a late season collapse. That game was during Bates’ winter break so most of the students were home for the game.

The atmosphere on Thursday night was completely different however. By the time the national anthem began, the student section was about three quarters full, and by the opening tip the gym was louder than most NESCAC gyms. Many other students littered the rest of the stands as well making empty seats a rare commodity. The first Bates basket brought a cascade of roars from under the basket that did not let up much causing some visible discomfort from the visiting Polar Bears.

After a back and forth first half, Bates busted open the game part way through the second. Bates was on offense going towards the student section in the second half, and the students had no problem letting Bowdoin hear it every time a Bates player made a basket. Two consecutive dunks put Bates up big and forced a Bowdoin timeout that could barely be heard over a rocking crowd.

Bates has been the most impressive team of the season thus far. While their 1-9 conference record still casts a shadow of doubt over them, that shadow keeps receding every game Bates plays. The NESCAC is far from Division 1 where students live and die by how their basketball team does, but Bates has staked their claim definitively as having the best home-court advantage in the NESCAC. One date to circle for certain on your calendars is January 9th when Bates opens up conference play against 7-0 Middelbury at 7 PM in Alumni Gym.

Stock Up

Guard Jaquann Starks ’16 (Trinity): So much NESCAC offensive success is based on the point guard’s play, and different teams require their point guards to approach the game distinctly. Starks is primarily asked to score in his role for the Bantams and leads the team with 15.1 points per game. His shooting percentages are 35.1/44.0/80.6 (in order of field goal/three point/free throw). Starks has struggled to shoot the ball well closer to the basket in large part because there is no spacing when he goes into the lane since he is the primary three point threat for Trinity. That lack of offensive weapons does not appear to be going away, but that does not mean Trinity is not a threat this season in the NESCAC. With Starks providing much of the offense recently, the Bantams have put together a four game winning streak since falling to 2-2.

Forward Marcus Delpeche ’17 (Bates): The Bobcats proved that they are for real not simply because they beat Colby and Bowdoin, but also how they did it. Last year Marcus played fewer than 17 minutes per game while serving as the backup for his brother Malcolm. This season Coach Jon Furbush has become comfortable with playing the two twins at the same time, and it has yielded great results thus far. Marcus is the third leading scorer for Bates with 10.7 points per game. Many of those points are off of offensive rebounds because opponents do not have power forwards capable of keeping him off of the boards. 49% of his rebounds have been offensive rebounds. Having Marcus and Malcolm playing big minutes together makes Bates capable of matching up against the likes of Amherst and Trinity in conference play.

Forward Hunter Merryman ’15 (Middlebury): If 2014 is “the year of the skilled forward” as Pete Lindholm asserts, then Merryman is the one most often forgotten about. After all, Merryman is not even the best forward on his team. Yet he still is having an All-NESCAC caliber season. He is averaging 17.1 points per game, most of which is because he is making an outrageous 56.4% of his three pointers. Logic tells us Merryman is unlikely to have morphed into an automatic shot maker, but is rather enjoying an extended hot streak that should end soon. Even when he slows down Merryman will continue to be a very good player, albeit not the second coming of Dirk Nowitzki.

Stock Down

Guard Bryan Hurley ’15 (Bowdoin): Last week was a terrible one for Bowdoin overall going 0-3 with the defeat assured well before the final buzzer sounded. A lot of things went wrong for the Polar Bears, but the sudden ineffectiveness of Hurley was one of the principle problems. The point guard averaged only 4.3 points per game in the three contests. Even more worryingly he  saw his assist:turnover ratio plummet. In Bowdoin’s first four games (all wins) he had a 3.5 assist:turnover ratio but managed only a 1.1 ratio in his last three games. Without Hurley making plays, Bowdoin’s offense fell stagnant for crucial parts of the second half, and their opponents were able to pull away. Hurley and the other members of the Bowdoin senior class have to return to form quickly in order to turn things around.

Amherst and Middlebury

The Jeffs and Panthers both remain undefeated, but they both have shown real weaknesses so far. For Amherst, the problem is putting all the pieces of their talented roster together into something that works as a basketball team. We have said it before, but the Jeffs simply do not look like your normal Division 3 team since they trot out two athletic 6’8″ players, two 6’5″ wings, and a 6’2″ point guard. That hasn’t kept them from having some close calls in games. Though the final score against Emerson indicated a blowout, the Jeffs held only a one point lead halfway through the second half. A huge steal from Johnny McCarthy ’18 off an inbounds pass helped spark a major run that put the game out of reach, but it took Amherst a while to put away an Emerson team that was overmatched in terms of height.

Meanwhile Middlebury escaped their first loss of the season by the skin of their teeth, coming back from seven points down in the final minute against Skidmore to win in regulation. The win would not have been possible without five missed free throws from Skidmore in the last minute. Middlebury for now lacks any type of inside presence because Matt Daley ’16 is still out of commission, and they still seem to fluctuate wildly in their level of play. Somewhat surprisingly, Joey Kizel’s ’14 absence has not been felt as much as the lack of center Jack Roberts ’14.

Both teams love to play at a high pace and thrive on their talent in the open court. However, when teams are able to slow down games then they run into trouble. The schedule of course works in the favor of both these teams as they will have a lot of practice time over winter break to help smooth out some of their issues before they jump into conference play.

NESCAC Summer Baseball Wrap-Up

The summer baseball season wrapped up a couple of weeks ago so forgive us for our tardiness. Back in mid-June we let you know where some NESCAC stars were playing. We officially close the 2014 baseball season with a look back at how some of those and other NESCAC stars managed this summer. And if you didn’t get out to a summer league game and you live in New England, consider yourself missing out. Between the CCBL, NECBL, and FCBL, New England has the best and most college baseball in the country.

Cape Cod Baseball League

Nick Cooney ’15, Wesleyan, Falmouth Commodores

Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics
Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics

The Cape Cod Baseball League is filled with Division One players and MLB draft picks, so it is hard for a NESCAC player to get consistent playing time, but Cooney managed to carve out a role on the Commodores. He started two games at the beginning of the year including a good six inning, two earned run performance against the Chatham A’s. After that he was converted to reliever and he finished the season with 19 innings pitched. Cooney struggled with his command yielding 11 walks, but he still managed a 4.26 ERA which is impressive given the competition.

Gavin Pittore ’16, Wesleyan, Harwich Mariners

Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics
Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics

The only other player who managed to get a healthy amount of playing time in the Cape League was Cooney’s teammate Pittore. The Harwich Mariners used Pittore in a long reliever role. He often threw multiple innings including on June 19 against the Chatham A’s when Pittore threw two scoreless innings and collected the win. His 6.09 ERA is greatly inflated by a later appearance against the A’s when Pittore allowed eight runs in one inning. Still Pittore had a great summer fulfilling a lifelong dream, including playing with one of his oldest friends.

A few others saw cups of coffee in the Cape League including Wesleyan teammates Guy Davidson ’16 and Donnie Cimino ’15. Bowdoin’s Henry Van Zant ’15 also pitched a few innings for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox.

New England College Baseball League

Nick Miceli ’17, Wesleyan, Vermont Mountaineers

Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics
Courtesy of Wesleyan Athletics

The NESCAC champion Cardinals had the most impressive assortment of players throughout the leagues, and Miceli was one of the few NESCAC players in the NECBL. Miceli caught on with the Mountaineers later in the summer making his first appearance on July 19. After allowing two runs in his first relief appearance, he threw 8.2 scoreless innings in his final three appearances. The Mountaineers had a good season making the NECBL playoffs before losing to Sanford in the semi-finals.

 

Tim Superko ’17, Tufts, New Bedford Red Sox

Courtesy of Tufts Athletics
Courtesy of Tufts Athletics

Superko had a tough summer as a starter. He started seven games, but averaged less than four innings per start while posting a 7.39 ERA. His biggest problem was that he was incapable of drawing consistent swings and misses garnering only 17 strikeouts. Superko’s control sometimes betrayed him as he let up 20 walks. One bright spot from the summer came in a start against Danbury.  Superko threw six scoreless innings before he took the hard luck loss when he allowed a run in the bottom of the seventh. While he did struggle this summer, Superko was also pitching in a very good league at a young age. He will be back even better next year.

Futures League

Mike Odenwaelder ’16, Amherst, Torrington Titans

Courtesy of Amherst Athletics
Courtesy of Amherst Athletics

Nobody in the NESCAC had a better summer than Odenwaelder. He absolutely crushed the ball. He posted a slashline of .370/.422/.586 on his way to winning batting title and MVP honors for the Futures League. He stole 20 bases while being caught only twice. He hit two two homers in one game and had no errors in the outfield all summer. The one thing Odenwaelder didn’t do was pitch for the Titans. Odenwaelder looks like he could somehow improve on his monster 2014 NESCAC season next year.

 

Nate Pajka ’15, Bates, Worcester Bravehearts

Courtesy of Bates Athletics
Courtesy of Bates Athletics

Pajka got off to a hot start before posting a line very similar to the one he did during the NESCAC season. Of course his .255 average this summer came against better competition than the average NESCAC pitcher. The most important thing was that Pajka got a ton of at bats (153) which should help him as he gets ready for next season. Most of Pajka’s 12 steals came in the first half of the season as his bat slowed down a little as the summer went along. Still a very successful summer for a player who will have to be a big part of the Bates offense in 2015.

 

Jack Roberts ’17 and Jack Cloud ’17, Williams, Martha’s Vineyard Sharks

Jack Roberts Courtesy of Williams Athletics
Jack Roberts
Courtesy of Williams Athletics

Jack Cloud Courtesy of Williams Athletics
Jack Cloud
Courtesy of Williams Athletics

Roberts spent the summer playing for his hometown team on the Vineyard and enjoyed a steady summer. He managed to get consistent at-bats, but only managed a .252 average with only five walks. After slumping down to .229, Roberts used three straight muli-hit games to get his average back up into the .250 range. Cloud saw his playing time dwindle as the summer went along making his last appearance on July 17, but he hit .260 for the summer as well as walking 11 times to have an OBP of .387.

Mekae Hyde ’15, Bates, Old Orchard Raging Tide

Courtesy of Bates Athletics
Courtesy of Bates Athletics

The positives for Hyde this summer is that he was the starting catcher and got a lot of at-bats and had a respectable .346 OBP. The negative is that his batting average was only .232. Still he can live with that because of the five home runs he also hit. Hyde had one of his best games August 3rd against the Dirt Dawgs when he went 3-4 with a homer and three RBIs. Hyde saw his power come in bunches as he hit three homers in seven games and then two in back to back games but none others.

 

Soren Hanson ’16, Colby, Martha’s Vineyard Sharks

Courtesy of Colby Athletics
Courtesy of Colby Athletics

It took a little bit of time for Hanson to get going, but once he did this summer, he turned into one of the best pitchers in the Futures League. Hanson started the season as a reliever before starting seven games in the second half of the season. He finished the season with a 2.07 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 52 innings. He also had three scoreless starts of six or more innings. Hanson had some troubles at the beginning of the NESCAC season in 2014 as well but finished the year strong and looks primed for a great 2015.

 

Andrew David ’16, Tufts, Brockton Rox

Courtesy of Tufts Athletics
Courtesy of Tufts Athletics

David threw the fifth most amount of innings in the Futures League, but he finished with a somewhat average 3.92 ERA. His success came from barely walking anyone as he allowed only four walks over the entire season. Teams did hit him pretty hard however as he allowed seven or more hits in each of his final five starts. David was somewhat of an afterthought for Tufts in 2014 because of all the talent in their staff. His summer performance shows a capable pitcher, but one who relies heavily on the defense behind him because he doesn’t strike too many batters out.

Rob DiFranco ’16, Bates, North Shore Navigators

Courtesy of Bates Athletics
Courtesy of Bates Athletics

This was an exceptional summer for the Bates reliever. He put up a miniscule 0.82 ERA  over 32.2 innings of relief. His K:BB ratio of 8.3:1 was exceptional, and DiFranco finished with eight saves for the Navigators. DiFranco was the best pitcher for the North Shore squad and flashed the ability to go more than one inning several times. With the loss of several starters, DiFranco might be pushed into starting duty next spring for Bates. If he is not a starter, then he will be a lethal weapon out of the bullpen.

 

Kyle Slinger ’15, Tufts, Worcester Bravehearts

Courtesy of Tufts Athletics
Courtesy of Tufts Athletics

This summer was pretty much a continuation of Slinger’s impressive NESCAC season but with a few more hiccups. Despite those, he finished the season with a 2.55 ERA over eight starts and had a good 6.2:1 K:BB ratio. His best start of the summer was an eight inning outing against the Torrington Titans when Slinger allowed only one run on two hits. The run came in the first inning and after that Slinger fired seven innings of perfect ball. His 0.92 WHIP shows his ERA was no lie, and the southpaw should have another great season in 2014.

Atlantic College Baseball League

Joe Jensen ’15, Hamilton, Trenton Generals

Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics
Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics

One of the few NESCAC players to play on a team outside of New England, Jensen spent the summer in New Jersey. He could not match the gaudy stats he put up in the NESCAC, but still hit for a .269 average and made the ACBL all-star game. His play also fell off somewhat as the season went along as he had .380 OBP at points of the summer before a late season slide. His 13 steals for the season were also below the ludicrous rate he puts up in the NESCAC, but was still the fifth best amount in the league.

 

A few more NESCAC players saw a little bit of time in the Futures League and beyond but we ran out of space to feature those guys. If we missed anyone important please leave it in the comments and we will make sure to remedy our mistakes.

That does it for us in 2014 for baseball coverage. Stay warm this fall and winter and be ready for when the NESCAC returns in the spring.