April 2018 – Page 2 – Nothing But NESCAC

If You Build It, Recruits Will Come; NESCAC Baseball Field Power Rankings

If You Build It, Recruits Will Come: NESCAC Baseball Field Power Rankings

It’s time for another unorthodox power ranking. Who doesn’t like controversy, right? The NESCAC is home to some very nice baseball fields and some not so nice ones, but we’re starting to see a new wrinkle when it comes to judging a team’s field: artificial turf. These days more and more schools are installing some very impressive turf facilities, so that puts competing schools in a tough position. It’ll be interesting to see which school is next on the list, because Colby, Hamilton, and Trinity have started the movement towards the artificial surface. I’m all for “purity of the game” or whatever skeptics say, but when it’s still snowing in April you start to care less about what you’re playing on and more about actually playing. Anyways, let’s take a look at the finest diamonds across the NESCAC:

Work to do…

Bowdoin

Pickard Diamond

What you see is what you get with Pickard Diamond. Nothing exciting, just a traditional grass baseball field with average, run of the mill wood dugouts. Like their football field, it’s a bit inaccessible, meaning that only the most dedicated fans make it out to games. For the fans that do, you better bring chairs with you, because there isn’t any place to sit. On a nice day this ballpark can look as good as any with its beautiful surrounding scenery, but sadly those nice days are numbered when you’re located in Maine. I can’t imagine the Polar Bears rely on their field as a recruiting tool.

Middlebury

Forbes Field

Midd is known for pouring money into top notch, state of the art athletic facilities such as their beautiful indoor turf facility. Their baseball field must not have made the budget because it’s definitely not on par with everything else they have to offer. Not to say that the field itself is exceptionally poor, but like Bowdoin, it’s pretty much your average diamond. It doesn’t help that the field is a bit of a walk from the gym and from the rest of campus, making it a bit inconvenient to access. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Panthers were the next team to go turf in order to keep up with the rest of the league.

Bates

Leahey Field

The Bobcats boast another remarkably average field. The fact that it’s grass is becoming increasingly frustrating as the Maine weather delays the season even more while peer schools get under way. What it has going for it is a nice central location that naturally yields decent crowds of people stopping by on their way from place to place. Having no seating behind home plate is a tough look, but the seating up each foul line does a good enough job for fans. If you’re lucky, the aroma from chicken nugget day at Commons will waft across the street, only enhancing the ballpark experience.

Not bad…

Williams

Bobby Coombs Field

There’s something about Bobby Coombs field that feels right. It feels like New England baseball. It’s almost as if they used this park to model every other baseball park in the region. This goes both ways, however, because you sort of expect Williams to blow you away. There are plenty of fields out there of similar quality, so I thought the Ephs would do better. I don’t want to knock them too hard though – this is a well taken care of playing surface with solid dugouts and a nice surrounding area. Playing a game at Williams feels like the truest form of baseball – sunny skies, Rainbow flip flops, and EDM echoing across campus.

Tufts

Huskins Field

Tufts has another very respectable, grass field. The solid fence as opposed to chain link makes the field seem enclosed, giving it more of a big time feel. Saturdays can be a lot of fun for Jumbo fans when their beloved lacrosse team has game just outside the left field fence during a home game for the baseball team. Those days things can get really loud on campus, only aided by the train that rolls past right field from time to time – a unique quirk that can only be found in Medford.

Wesleyan

Dresser Diamond at Andrus Field

I think this one might cause the most controversy of any on the list. Dresser Diamond is average at best and they don’t even have dugouts. Or a real backstop. Not a great look. What they do have is the oldest continuously used field in the United States, and an AMAZING location. You can’t go anywhere on campus without walking by Andrus Field, and as a result the Cardinals actually lead the nation in attendance*. The school’s Gothic architecture adds a beautiful backdrop, and there are tons of great viewing spots for fans. Watch out for people on Foss Hill because it’s known to get packed, especially if you’re tasked with playing Wesleyan on Zonker Harris Day.

*They must count literally anyone in the vicinity as a spectator because there’s no way Wesleyan has the highest attendance in the country.

Editor’s Note: I get it, Wesleyan’s field is the oldest baseball field in the nation and can’t be modified. But no dugouts? Really? It’s not a fun place to play when it’s freezing and windy on an early April afternoon.

Amherst

Memorial Field

This is about as nice a grass field as they come. Memorial Field is incredibly well kept with a terrific playing surface. The brick backstop and dugouts go perfectly with their campus, and the hill along the left field line is a great spot for fans. This is one of the most beautiful fields in the conference. At this point it’s only a question of whether the Mammoths decide to follow the movement and get artificial turf, or keep their already gorgeous field. Perhaps it’s time for a change in Western Mass since Amherst hasn’t appeared in the NCAA Tournament since they were known as the now-forbidden Lord Jeffs.

Real contenders…

Colby

Coombs Field

Obviously the three schools with turf fields are going to make up the top three on this list, so let’s break it down. Colby’s turf facility is very nice – enough so that the NESCAC decided to host last year’s conference tournament there. Unfortunately, this is a tournament they’ve never appeared in, so hopefully the field draws enough interest to turn the ship around in Waterville. Really the only reason that they fall below Hamilton is that their turf is a year older with an extra year’s worth of wear and tear. Overall, an excellent field.

Hamilton

Loop Road Baseball Complex

Hamilton’s got another beautiful turf facility, only in its second year of use. Again, this complex really isn’t much different from Colby’s; it’s simply one year newer. I appreciate when schools match the dugout architecture with their school, so I think the Continentals made the right choice here. My guess is that being in New York puts you out of contention to host the tournament for a conference that has “New England” in the title, but you never know because this is a beautiful ballpark.

Trinity

Murren Family Field/DiBenedetto Stadium

What a shocker. The Bantams have the nicest baseball field in the ‘CAC. This should go nicely alongside the nicest football field in the ‘CAC. Not only is Murren Family Field at DiBenedetto Stadium the best in the conference, this is one of the nicest collegiate ball parks in New England regardless of division. The stadium seating looking out at the Hartford skyline is a remarkable backdrop for a brand new, pristine turf field. The logo in center field is a really cool touch and having “NESCAC” painted along each foul line is a ridiculously classy move. This is the picture perfect site for the NESCAC tournament, and I can’t see anyone getting a nicer field than the one in West Hartford for a very long time.

Benches Are Clearing; Baseball Weekend Preview?

It’s been a great start to the MLB season. The Red Sox are unbelievable, dominating the Yankees on the field and in a Fenway Park WWE fight. Baseball brawls are essential to the baseball identity. In no other sport do you have an individual with a wooden weapon or people hauling in from the other end of the playing field. In this edition of my weekend update, I’m going to compare two teams, one from the east and another from the west, to see who would hypothetically win in a bench clearing brawl. While we know this isn’t as informative as a normal weekend preview, the weather brought all of the games into question (Midd v. Amherst was moved to May 4th and 5th), so we wanted to mix it up in the wake of some angry behavior in MLB games (Red Sox vs. Yankees; Padres vs. Rockies).

Let’s start out with the east:

The Colby Mules wouldn’t be your first guess on a team who would be interested to brawl. Mainers are such down to earth, empathetic people. But let’s not forget about the swagger the Mules possess.

2017 Colby Baseball Team

The first attribute that the Mules possess that could give them an edge in any fight is their roster pictures–particularly their facial hair. These guys are scary. Cameron Garfield looks like Billy the Kid on his way to rob a train in the Wild West. Let’s just say the next time I’m on the T, I’m not sitting anywhere near Garfield. He would probably whip out a weapon, and ask me how much gold I have. He’s clearly reached his peak as a freshman in the facial hair department; I don’t see how he could one up his roster picture. In all seriousness, Colby has a big weekend coming up. Their pitching has been solid with a 3.96 ERA in conference. Their hitting, on the other hand, isn’t helping out the pitching staff. A .228 average in conference won’t win any ball games, no matter who’s on the bump.

Another guy’s facial hair that has evolved over the years is junior pitcher Will Cohen. I’m not giving him airtime because he’s a former teammate and friend, but I actually respect his facial hair. It’s well trimmed, which is a major improvement from his freshman year photo. Unlike Garfield’s roster picture, Cohen’s freshman year picture makes me slightly nauseous (the picture can’t be found, the college took it down due to complaints). Cohen came into Colby as a freshman, and contributed to the cause. He pitched five scoreless innings in 2015 against the potent Tufts Jumbo offense. He hasn’t really been the same since. As a pitcher who relies on masterful control, he hasn’t been able to locate quite the same as before.

The Mules dropped two out of three against Bates last weekend, which is concerning because the Mules clearly have the talent advantage. Trinity won’t be an easier opponent to face this weekend, but if the Mules can right the ship by taking two out of three, they’ll find themselves in the playoff hunt. Right now, they just need to figure it out at the plate.

If not, I definitely think they can intimidate opponents in a bench clearing brawl. Cohen and Garfield will lead the charge in the fight.

The West:

Wesleyan 2017 Baseball Team

I have to pick Wesleyan. I’ve only seen Wesleyan’s games live, so I don’t pretend to have a feel for the entire NESCAC’s character. However, the Birds definitely have the swagger right now with a 3-0 conference record that could help them win a fight. Let’s see why:

We have to start off with Ryan Earle and Chase Pratt. These guys are thick and bulky. I’m sure they could put up thirty plus reps of two plates on the bench, and be pictured chopping wood on the cover of a Carhartt magazine with husky jackets and their yellow labs. These guys are also mashing at the plate. As big guys, they’re incredibly short to the ball which allows them to barrel up inside fastballs. They use the whole field, which shows how well they’re seeing and timing up the baseball. Both are hitting well in the .300’s with low strikeout numbers. That says a lot for big, powerful guys. These bash bros are like Chad and JT advocating for southern California house parties: they have swagger, confidence, and are the power of the Wesleyan lineup. But of course, two guys can’t beat twenty other guys in the fight. Kevin Walek, Wesleyan’s shortstop, is their version of Baker Mayfield on the diamond. He wears a red bandanna, and blares Straight Outta Compton as his walkup song. He hits towards the bottom of the lineup, but has been an important piece towards Wesleyan’s success. He hit .600 last weekend against Middlebury, and plays stellar defense shortstop.

Wesleyan dominated Middlebury last weekend in all aspects of the game; it was quite obvious as a spectator that Wesleyan had the emotional edge. Any foul ball to the backstop was corralled by Nick ‘Val’ Valicenti. Obviously, there’s no stat in the book that illustrates hustle. Val’s not an everyday player, but his hustle on each foul ball is indicative and is a microcosm of the Wesleyan baseball team: they’re gritty.

This grit is apparent in close games. In game one against Middlebury, they edged out a win by scoring their only run on a walk. They fought and clawed for that win, which gave them the momentum for the rest of the series.

In a non-league game on Wednesday, freshman pitcher and #4 on NBN best roster pictures took a line drive straight to the dome. The play stopped, and the whole squad was genuinely concerned for Reddy. Taking line drives to the head builds character that helps in a bench clearing brawl.

Kidding aside, Wesleyan needs to bring that same character, energy, and swag into their games against Hamilton this weekend. If they keep an emotional edge, given their superior talent, the Continentals will be on their heels all weekend.

Wesleyan’s temper getting tested in 2015

In conclusion, if Cameron Garfield and Will Cohen came toe to toe with Ryan Earle and Chase Pratt in a bar, I would be intimidated by the rocking facial hair of the Mules. However, the Mules would run away when the clean version of Straight Outta Compton came on, and 160 pound Kevin Walek from Minnesota walked out with his bandana on. Yeah, sportsmanship is cool and all, but who doesn’t love watching a good fight?

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.

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.

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.

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 3^rd 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 2^nd inning (1.2 IP, 8 H, 7 R) and the Polar Bears blitzed the Trinity bullpen for eight runs in the 7^th 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.

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 7^th 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

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 (9^th in the league) and holding the 8^th 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.

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?

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.

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.

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, 4^th in the NESCAC). If they can find a couple of pitchers that can join Carroll and get past the 2^nd 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.

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 (2^nd), and 18 RBI (5^th). 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 10^th in the last Power Rankings, I feel pretty certain about that.

Pitching is the Catalyst: NESCAC Baseball Stock Report Week 3

Stock Up:

Messing with Hitters

This weekend Wesleyan Freshman Klevin Sosa a.k.a. the lefty Johnny Cueto of the ‘CAC, showed us that he means business. Sosa pitched an absolute gem of a game against reigning runner-ups Middlebury to give the Cardinals a win in the second game of their series sweep. Sosa tossed 6 ⅔ dominant innings to stifle the Panthers, racking up 11Ks and only allowing 2 walks and 2 hits for no runs. With a season ERA of 1.16 and a K/9 of nearly 12, Sosa is not only making a case for a NESCAC Rookie of the Year spot, but maybe a First Team bid as well if he keeps this going through conference play. His keys to success are his changes in timing, slidestepping, double-leg kicking, holding at the bottom, and generally messing with hitters. He has some of the same flair as Johnny Cueto and Marcus Stroman, and was able to pitch like them last weekend:

Preseason Awards List Accuracy

If you thought Sosa’s performance was good, then you missed the real gem. LHP Mike McCaffrey ’19 didn’t just quiet Middlebury bats, he silenced them, combining for a no-no with Pat Clare. I would like to personally thank Mike for starting to live up to my prediction (https://nothingbutnescac.com/?p=5845) that he will be this year’s West Division Cy Young. His rocky starts in non-conference matchups did have me worried and his 4.28 ERA is still not where it needs to be, but clearly McCaffrey knows how to get hot when it counts. I would also like to offer my condolences to my editor and friend, RHP Colby Morris ‘19 (Middlebury), who pitched a CG loss for the Panthers against McCaffrey’s Cardinals. With the way that Midd was hitting in Game 1 they may as well have let Colby have a shot at hitting McCaffrey. But as anyone who has seen Colby hit knows, he probably would have fared just as well as his teammates.

McCaffrey was three outs a way from a CG no-no. A combined no hitter isn’t too bad though.

Amherst’s Weightlifting Program

The upperclassmen duo of Nick Nardone and Ariel Kenney wreaked havoc on the ERA of Williams’ pitchers this weekend. Both Nardone and Kenney managed to hit doubles in every single game of their 2-1 series win against the Ephs. Combined, these two hit .500/.577/.773 on the weekend powering the Mammoths to 11-9 and 16-4 wins along with a tight 5-4 loss. On the season Nardone now has a very respectable .876 OPS and Kenney boasts a ridiculous .431 BA. Halfway through conference play it’s looking like Amherst could be contending with West Division rival Wesleyan for the top spot in the NESCAC. These two clubs will face off for their final in-conference series later this month in what could turn out to be a NESCAC Championship preview. For now, the Mammoths will be traveling to Vermont next weekend to take on a staggering Panther team, which could lead to further inflation of these already noteworthy stats for Kenney and Nardone.

Bates Pitching

Holding another team to only 5 runs in a series is usually unheard of in NESCAC baseball, but the boys on the mound for the Bobcats were able to pull it off this past weekend. Starting off the series for Bates was LHP Connor Russell ‘18 who shut down rival Colby College on their own turf, going the distance in a complete game shutout. Although he didn’t need it, Russell was aided with copious run support in an 11-0 blowout. Bates took that momentum into Game 2 in which, RHP Nolan Collins ‘20, went 7 strong innings, only surrendering 1 run to the Mules. LHP Jake Shapiro ‘18 then came in for the Bobcats and finished off Game 2, not allowing a run in his 2 innings of relief. Although Bates did lose Game 3, they still got a scoreless 3 ⅓ IP of relief on a combined effort by Alex Simon ‘19, Miles Michaud ‘20 and Jake Shapiro ‘18. After a fairly ugly preseason, I’m sure that the Bobcats are fired up to see that things are starting to click on the mound. Although Colby doesn’t appear to be the strongest competition in the NESCAC, teams have to take every conference win that they can in order to contend for a playoff spot. In a conference of hitters, finding a way to get it done on the mound is invaluable.

Stock Down:

William’s Starting Pitching

When you struggle to make it to the second inning on the mound, you’re gonna have a bad time. In their series against Amherst, Williams’ starters RHP Kyle Dean ‘20 and LHP Charlie Carpenter ‘20 combined to go 0-2, only lasting 1 ⅔ IP, and amassing 13 ER on 8 hits, 6 walks and 3 Ks. Now I’m sure everyone has heard of the sophomore slump, but a combined 70.2 ERA and 8.40 WHIP for the two hurlers is a little more harsh than most could even imagine. I’m just going to go ahead and say that Dean is not going to win the Reliever of the Year award, I’m man enough to admit when I’m wrong, and wow was I wrong with that one. A consolation prize goes to RHP George Carroll ‘21, who went 6 ⅔ IP and allowed 3 ER in the Eph’s lone 5-4 win. Thanks to Carroll, Williams starter’s ERA drops to 17.3 for the weekend, not great but, hey, it’s something. Williams will face both Trinity and Bates next week in a pair of battles between East and West in which they will look to bounce back from their performance against Amherst. To end on some words of encouragement for the Eph’s staff, there is nowhere to go but up, probably.

There have been plenty of runners for Williams C Alex Panstares to worry about with the state of their starting pitching.

Midd’s Playoff Hopes

As the Panthers returned east, leaving sunny SoCal, their hopes to make their way back to the NESCAC championship went south. In the NESCAC, in which you only have 12 conference games, being swept could be a death sentence for your playoff hopes. Too little, too late was the story of the weekend for the Panther lineup. Middlebury’s offense was held scoreless by Wesleyan for the first 13 innings of the series, not scoring until the 7th inning of Game 2. Maybe the reason that Midd couldn’t get their bats going is that morale was low from the get-go. At no point in any of the three games was Middlebury in the lead. This is probably due to the fact that in the first 5 innings of each game Wesleyan outscored Midd 18-4, aka too little. Although the Panthers were able to turn it around later in the game, outscoring Wesleyan 10-5 from the 6th inning on, it was, you guessed it, too late. Baseball is a game of momentum and there was none to be found for Middlebury this weekend and it showed in the box scores. A team ERA of 9.41 and team batting average of .195 is not going to get the Panthers where they need to be. Middlebury’s series next weekend against Amherst will be make or break for their season. A sweep will put them ahead of the Mammoths in the standings and back in contention for a playoff spot but in order for the Panthers to make that happen they will need their bats to get going much much earlier.

Colby’s Infield

Lack of production is the nice way of describing Colby’s infield this weekend against Bates. As a group they went a combined 6-43 (.140 BA), left 11 runners on base, grounded into 3 double plays and got caught stealing on 2 of 3 attempts. An argument could be made that as a group they did more harm than good offensively. In the NESCAC a successful team needs to find production up and down the lineup and that was certainly not the case for the Mules in their NESCAC opener. Without a 10-30 (.333 BA) effort from Colby’s outfield the series could have been even uglier than it already was. The contrast between the Mules’ infield and outfield certainly explains why they’re currently last in the CAC with 1 ⅔ runs scored per conference game. The upsides for the Mules are two-fold; the fact that they were able to steal an away win in their final game against Bates could provide some momentum rolling into next weekend’s contest against a Trinity squad who currently leads the Eastern Division. Secondly, Senior Captain Matt Treveloni still paces the team with a .442 BA (2nd in the NESCAC), .674 SLG (3rd), 1.163 OPS (4th) and 2 3B (3rd). While Treveloni makes a strong case for First Team, as of now it still seems as if Colby won’t realize the dream of reaching their 1st ever NESCAC playoffs.

Swagger Wins Rings: NESCAC Baseball Roster Pic Power Rankings

NESCAC Baseball Roster Pic Power Rankings

As we all know, sports come down to much more than stats and analytics. In baseball especially, teams are more and more reliant these days on metrics and all sorts of things their computers tell them. Well, today we’re telling the story untold. Being a college baseball player really boils down to one thing: your roster pic. People can go any direction with their roster pic and it really is important. The message you choose to send is a big deal and it says a lot about you. Take a look at Middlebury skier Pate Campbell’s photo for instance:

This is a big time roster pic. I feel like I’ve known Pate Campbell my entire life after seeing this picture, and that right there is exactly the point. It’s a good thing this article focuses on just baseball players, because Campbell’s might possibly be the greatest roster pic I’ve ever seen. Naturally, we had to figure out which players had the best pictures across the league because that tells us more than stats ever could. After sifting through literally every single picture of every player on every team, one player was selected from each squad with the most outrageous pic, then ranked 1-10. This ranking is absolutely open for discussion because personal preference really affects the way each picture is perceived.

10. Justin Olson ’21 (Trinity)

Trinity is the only team besides Hamilton who takes their pictures without the team hat on, and I have to say it really paid off here. We’re fortunate enough to get a great look at a terrific head of properly coiffed, searing red hair. What happens if you combine that with an inviting smile and dreamy eyes? Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Justin Olson.

9. Ian Kinney ’18 (Tufts)

This one isn’t anything too crazy, but Kinney gives us a nice beard, a cheesy mustache, and a psycho stare that tells us he’s a relief pitcher before the program even has to. If you really want to dig deep, you’ll see that Kinney has added the beard to his repertoire since last year’s picture, which I must say is a great touch.

8. Sam Schneider ’18 (Amherst)

Schneider’s pic is interesting because my guess is that most people wouldn’t have even put him as high as 8. Well that goofy smile and teen wolf hair poking out from his shirt makes me think otherwise. I don’t like that Amherst wears purple hats with a purple background in their pictures though. It’s just too much purple.

7. Arlyn Lopez ’21 (Hamilton)

I liked Ian Kinney’s psycho stare, but I like Arlyn Lopez’s hardo stare even more. As a freshman you really have to go one of two ways: intimidating or completely goofy. Evidently, Lopez chose the former and we’re blessed to see this work of art. The chin piece is trimmed nicely and he looks ready to go. Well done.

6. Gray Goolsby ’20 (Middlebury)

The only reason Goolsby finds his way this high up the list is because of how long it took to figure out if he actually has a mustache or not. I think he does. This roster pic doesn’t tell us much about Gray Goolsby, but there’s a subtlety in his eyes that makes me think there’s something soft underneath that tough exterior that he may not be letting on. Also, that kind of grit reminds me of Lt. Aldo Raine which tells us all that he means business.

5. Connor Speed ’18 (Bates)

The crazy eyes. The mustache not quite connecting to the beard. The blank stare. Each of these help leave a bread crumb trail of insanity. Once you see the unorthodox, pseudo-submarine delivery that Speed offers, the picture is complete. This kid was born to be a pitcher and a pitcher he is – with a killer roster pic.

4. David Redfield ’21 (Wesleyan)

Wow. Here’s a guy that I would pay to see without his hat on. That kind of luscious, red hair is once in a generation. The fact that it covers almost the entire back of his neck while still providing a subtle curl is almost majestic. His stern look offers a nice contrast to the flowing locks, making this a nearly perfect effort at a freshman roster pic. The best part: His last name is Redfield! Talk about an electric nickname, Red.

3. Brandon Lopez ’19 (Bowdoin)

This pic oozes swagger almost as much as Lopez’s presence on the field. The facial hair that almost isn’t there but kind of sort of is perfectly complements the popped chains and bat on his shoulder. You can tell just from the picture that he isn’t here to mess around. Lopez nailed it with this one.

2. Adam Regensburg ’18 (Williams)

Sadly there weren’t very many killer mustaches to choose from. Luckily, Regensburg crushes this one out of the park. I’m a huge fan of the mustache with the 5 o’clock shadow look, so this hits home a bit. This is another guy who has undergone some serious changes since his earlier days – see his freshman football roster pic for some legitimate progress.

1. Cameron Garfield ’21 and Jackson Ward ’19 (Colby)

There was just no way to pick one winner from these two gems. Garfield’s working man beard reflects on his background from notoriously blue-collar Phillips Andover Academy. This confusing yet powerful facial hair is bold, but he pulls it off in a way I’ve certainly never seen before. Props to him. Then we have Ward whose ‘stache alone would’ve earned him a top 10 spot on this list. Throw in the lacrosse flow and hilarious smirk and he makes his way to the top.

Make or Break in Week Two: NESCAC Baseball Weekend Preview

NESCAC baseball is full steam ahead, despite what this weather is telling us. This past weekend we got to smell the sweet fresh cut grass, the ear ringing BBCOR aluminum bats, and baseballs snapping leather. NESCAC baseball, as always, is giving us upset alerts. Tufts, the most dominant team in 2017, has already dropped two conference games, just one off of last season’s total. On the filp side, as expected, Amherst is off to a hot start. Most teams, however, are in the middle of the pack only a week in. This second weekend is crucial for those teams who want to distance themselves from average. Here’s the weekend preview:

Bowdoin @ Trinity:

I wrote to the NESCAC universe in my season preview that Trinity is a team to take very seriously. I said that they potentially figured out how to optimize their pitching. Taking two out of three games over Tufts isn’t just good; it’s remarkable. Tufts is like the 2014 and 2015 Wesleyan teams: they were dominant the past two seasons. The ‘Bos graduated quality starting pitching, and it showed. The mark of a good ball club is winning close games. Trin took both games by three runs or less. The Bantams simply didn’t have the run support in the game they lost. I normally pick out a player that was the difference maker; however, there’s one team stat that illustrates how talented the Bantams are: they rank first in the conference in walks. Walks increase pitch count, make fielders lose focus, and put unneeded stress on the pen. If the Bantams can keep drawing walks, they’re going to be tough to stop.

Bowdoin is also 2-1 in conference. They took two games against Bates this past weekend. Wins are wins in the end, but Bates is no Tufts. Brandon Lopez is a jack of all trades for the Polar Bears. He’s both a pitcher and utility player. He has a .250 average so far and a 4.41 ERA. These are solid stats, but they’re nowhere near Lopez’s potential. He’s a freak athlete, both football and baseball, and played a major role for the Polar Bears last year. He’s a crucial piece if the Polar Bears want to make a playoff run. They’re first in the league in stolen bases, which is a dynamic aspect to the team. Lopez can fly. If he gets on base more, the team will be even more scary on the bases.

Series prediction: Bowdoin 1, Trinity 2

Colby @ Bates:

I’ll be blunt here. Both teams probably won’t make the playoffs. Even though the season is early, I don’t either team has the depth to beat the elite of the NESCAC. I do have a bias towards Colby. Two of my high school teammates, Matt Treveloni and Will Cohen, are Mules. Trev is already on track to be in the discussion of NESCAC player of the year and is hitting .469 with 11 RBIs–leading the team by far (a figure that should fall back to earth against better competition). Trev’s the key player for the Mules as a leader in the lineup, and a guy with scary range in the outfield. Cohen has pitched decently so far. He will need to pick if the Mules want to make a deep run this season.

Bates is picking up where they left off last season: without much momentum. Bates still isn’t hitting. They are only hitting .201. They’ve only scored nine runs in three games. That’s simply not enough in NESCAC baseball. Bates needs to figure at the plate if they want to have a record over .500. The pitching has been decent and Connor Russell is their ace with a 3.95 ERA but even he hasn’t been blowing guys away. It has to be frustrating for him without any support from their lineup.

Series Prediction: Colby 2, Bates 1

Williams lacks pitching, but range in the infield and lots of backpicks from C Alex Panstares ’19 might keep them in a ballgame or two. (Photo courtesy of David Goldstein)

Amherst vs Williams

The Amherst vs Williams rivalry is one of the most storied rivalries in college. Both schools are on opposite poles, however. Amherst is on the rise. Coach Hamm has figured it out once again. Amherst can mash. They’re first in the league in homers and second RBIs. Ariel Kenney is hitting .400 with two homers on the season. Harry Roberson was one player that I said would be Amherst’s best hitter. Kenney is absolutely crushing right now, and looks like he won’t slow down. The pitching staff is doing its job too as Andrew Ferrero holds a 0.96 ERA. That’s insane in his significant sample size of over 18 innings, but he was used out of the pen last weekend rather than as a starter. Amherst is strong top down without any glaring weaknesses.

Williams was lucky to go 1-2 last weekend against Middlebury. Midd’s a strong team, and Williams appears to be weak in multiple areas. The greatest area of concern for the Ephs is starting pitching. They have no depth. The team has a 7.21 ERA, which isn’t great to put it lightly. George Carroll has a 2.81 ERA which looks great on the surface, but he has zero strikeouts in 16 innings, showing that his numbers likely are not sustainable. That tells me that he doesn’t have an electric fastball. That’s a real shame because the Ephs’ lineup is solid. They’re hitting .271 as a team, but with a 7.21 ERA, that’s not nearly high enough to compensate for a lack of quality pitching. Williams has a long way to go, so if they pick up at most one win against Amherst, that’s a win.

Series Prediction: Amherst 3, Williams 0

Middlebury @ Wesleyan

This is my series of the week. Wesleyan has shown that they’re an all around solid team. Kelvin Sosa, a freshman pitcher, has a Kershaw like delivery that doesn’t allow hitters to consistently time up their stride. He doesn’t throw hard necessarily, but his southpaw late movement is really strong. He has a 1.62 ERA with 20 k’s on the season so far. To put it bluntly, he’s nasty. Jonny Corning is showing that he’s an elite player. I personally think he has all five tools. He’s not physically imposing, but he has pop. Look for him to be on the all conference team this year or in the years to come.

While Wesleyan has a young lefty arm up in their rotation, Middlebury’s Will Oppenheim ’21 is making a name for himself, too. (Photo courtesy of David Goldstein)

Midd comes into the series with some regrets. They should’ve taken all three games against Williams last weekend. Colby Morris, my editor, is going to be key in this series. Wes can hit, and Colby can pitch. Colby isn’t making me write this about him, which is going to be made clear in the next few sentences. He has to face a deep Wesleyan lineup. Even though the Cards’ strength is obviously 1-4 in the lineup, 1-9 will not give up easily. You rarely see three pitch strikeouts against the Cards. They string together quality at bats game in and game out. I’m not saying Colby will get shelled, but he can’t try to work around guys like Ryan Earle and Chase Pratt. He has to get out of three innings below sixty pitches. If Colby has a few early innings less than ten pitches, Middlebury will win the opener, and probably the series. Game one holds all the momentum.

If Wesleyan wins game one, I don’t think Middlebury can win the next two with Olmstead or Sosa on the bump for the cards

Series Prediction: Wesleyan 3, Middlebury 0

What can we expect from Wesleyan? NESCAC Baseball Week 2 Stock Report

NESCAC Baseball Week Two Stock Report:

Stock Up

Tanner Fulkerson (Wesleyan)

Fulkerson has had a monstrous start to his second season with the Cardinals, batting .393 with 1 home run and a conference leading 24 RBI’s in just 16 games. Fulkerson has had at least 4 RBI’s in three games so far this year as he leads a Wesleyan team averaging over 8 runs per game into their first NESCAC contests this weekend against Middlebury. While Wesleyan’s spring break strength of schedule wasn’t incredibly strong, Fulkerson will have a chance to prove he is the real deal against a strong Middlebury pitching staff.

Brent Greeley (Tufts)

Another sophomore with a great start to the year, Greeley has a 1.29 ERA in 21 innings pitched. Greeley boasts a 3-0 record in those four appearances, while his only no-decision came last weekend against Trinity after he pitched 5 scoreless innings before getting pulled. Tufts is off from NESCAC play this weekend so look for Greeley to have another strong start against a non-conference team in preparation for an April 13/14 showdown at Bowdoin.

Colby Morris (Middlebury)

While I hate to put NBN head editor on this list, he deserves a spot. Morris has had the best start to the season of his career at Middlebury as he has pitched 28.2 innings with 22 strikeouts and a 1.88 ERA, which are all good for top-4 rankings in the league. This weekend series against Tanner Fulkerson and Wesleyan should be a good one as we will see which one of these guys can come out on top. The Midd/Wesleyan matchup features this showdown between arguably the best pitcher and hitter so far in the season.

Stock Down

Williams Pitching

The Williams pitching staff had a tough spring break trip posting a team ERA of 7.21 going into their second weekend of NESCAC play. In non-conference games over spring break, Williams gave up at least 7 runs in nine different games before getting rocked for 20 runs by Middlebury in their NESCAC opener. Williams was hoping Kyle Dean, a freshmen standout from last year, would be able to lead an extremely young rotation. Unfortunately, he has not had the start to the year he was hoping for despite his hard fastball due to a lack of stamina and offspeed repertoire. Williams’ top four most utilized pitchers so far this season are all freshmen and sophomores so hopefully with more and more experience throughout the season they will be able to turn it around.

Mike McCaffrey (Wesleyan)

McCaffrey was NBN’s preseason pick for the West Cy Young award and while it is still early in the season, McCaffrey is going to need to step it up if he wants live up to the hype (that we created). He currently has a 5.48 ERA but has given up 27 hits in just 21.1 total innings pitched. In his last two starts he has given up 10 earned runs in just 11 innings against Carleton and Endicott. The season is extremely young but this is not the momentum that McCaffrey wanted to build going into Wesleyan’s NESCAC opener. One bright side is that McCaffrey leads the conference in strikeouts so hopefully he can use that as something to build on as the season progresses.

NESCAC Spring Break Trips

NESCAC teams travelled all over the country in search of warm weather and while it is important to note that playing against teams that have 10+ games under their belts is difficult, the NESCAC on a whole didn’t do itself any favors in overall rankings. NESCAC teams posted an overall record of 46-61. As a conference that is known for being one of the strongest for Division III baseball, posting a sub-.500 overall record will not bode well for teams hoping to get an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament later in the year. None of the NESCAC teams are ranked or received votes in the latest poll which is unusual. As we mentioned in the spring break recap article, Tufts usually walks through their games in Virginia with wins, so to see no teams threatening for an at large bid right now is a bit disappointing.

The Snow is Starting to Thaw: NESCAC Baseball Spring Break Recap

Editor’s Note: All of the NESCAC spring break trips are now over and conference play has started for eight of 10 teams. While it might be easy to predict some weekend results, others become muddled after looking at teams’ overall records. Depending on the region of spring break trips (Florida, Arizona, the Mid-Atlantic, or California) there are vastly different strengths of schedules, leading to either inflated or deflated stats. Generally, California has the strongest teams, while all of the other regions have extremely weak competition. For a more in depth look at strength of schedule, check out this site which provides a ranking and strength of schedule assessment for ever D3 baseball team in the country: http://www.boydsworld.com/baseball/isr/d3_isr.html.

Amherst:

Trip Location: Florida

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Weak

Despite a stretch of losses in the middle, Amherst (9-5, 2-0) came out of their preseason contests boasting a respectable 7-5 record. While their offense did its job, hitting .279 as a team and scoring 5.9 runs per game, their pitching is really what carried their success. Andrew Ferrero ‘19 has been the Mammoths’ best pitcher so far, only allowing 2 runs in 18.2 IP on the young season, however, mostly out of the bullpen. Also impressive was Zach Horwitz ‘20 who holds a 1.64 ERA after 11 innings on the bump. Offensively, Amherst was led by Ariel Kenney ‘18 who hit .364 and had a sky-high OPS of 1.157 as a result of two home runs on their trip down south. The Mammoths have set a solid tone for their club for the rest of the season and if key pieces like Harry Roberson ‘18 start to find a groove, Amherst could be title contenders.

Bates:

Trip Location: California

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Strong

Bates (4-9, 1-2) started out their 2018 campaign slowly, dropping six straight games in California. Although they started off on a bad note, both for themselves and for the NESCAC, the Bobcats were able to pick themselves up a little bit once they got back to the East Coast, taking 3 of their next 4 games. A 3-7 record going into NESCAC play is nothing to brag about, but maybe Bates can use some of their recent success to jumpstart them in conference play. With a team ERA of 6.12 and team batting average of .195 going into the opening weekend, there weren’t a whole lot of individuals who stood out as noteworthy after their early trip to SoCal. One bright spot may be Dan Trulli ‘19 who hit .262 over their 10 games and dropped Bates’ only bomb all preseason long. While Bates did play poorly, they traveled to California on February 18th, just three days after official practices started, so we will give them a break here as they couldn’t have been adequately prepared to compete.

Bowdoin:

Spring Break Location: Florida

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Medium

Bowdoin (8-7, 2-1) exits their preseason going an average 6-6. While they had a few lopsided victories (10-1 and 10-2 over Keuka), they also had lopsided losses (16-3 against #3 Rowan). Bowdoin really came into their own over their last 6 games, going 5-1 and holding opposing offenses to only 2.5 runs per game. While their staff as a whole has a very unimpressive ERA of 5.82, Seamus Keenan ‘20 sets the pace for the Polar Bears with a 1.42 ERA and 13K through his first 12 ⅔ IP. The offense has been led by Joe Gentile ‘18 and Jack Wilhoite ‘19 who are each hitting .405 and .406, respectively. While Bowdoin does have 4 guys hitting over .340, nobody in the rest of their lineup is able to crack .260, creating a stark contrast between the middle of their order and the rest. Bowdoin’s keys to success this season will be to lower that team ERA, and get everyone involved up and down the lineup.

Colby:

Spring Break Location: Florida

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Weak

After a huge 13-4 victory over Keuka on opening day, the Mules (2-8, 0-0) have looked stagnant. Going 1-6 since that win is not the look that Colby needed going into NESCAC play. Their only other win after Keuka comes against Waterville rival Thomas College, which is not a particularly impressive win to say the least. Captain Matt Treveloni ‘18 has had a stand out spring so far hitting .440, with the majority of his knocks being for extra bases. Will Phillips ‘20 has also been lighting it up for the Mules at the plate hitting .444. On the other side of the equation, Colby has been giving up an average of 6.6 runs per game, and the offense can’t keep pace with that so far. One success the Mules have had on the mound so far has been Frank Driscoll ‘21, who allowed no earned runs and recorded 8 Ks in the first start of his college career, earning the win over Thomas. The clear problem the Mules have right now is not their ability to put runs on the board, but rather keep them off of it. As their younger pitchers gain more experience, perhaps the Mules can take an opportunity to climb in the standings from their last place finish in 2017.

Hamilton:

Spring Break Location: Florida

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Weak

Hamilton’s (6-9, 0-2) preseason has been an absolute rollercoaster ride. Dropping their first 7 contests, the Continental’s trajectory seemed to be on a crash course for disaster. That is until their bats caught fire and proceeded to win them their next 6 games in a row. Talk about getting hot at the right time, Hamilton is coming into conference play riding a huge wave of momentum, even though they couldn’t finish out a game against Amherst on opening weekend. A large chunk of their success so far has come from freshman duo Jarrett Lee ‘21 and Matt Zaffino ‘21 who both look to be in the early running for NESCAC Rookie of the Year. Zaffino’s 10 extra base hits, three big flys, .405 AVG. and absurd .892 SLG% pace the Continentals through this past weekend. Hamilton’s freshman heavy lineup continues with Gavin Schaefer-Hood ‘21 who leads the Continentals with 16 ⅓ IP saw his 3.77 ERA balloon to 6.06 after a rough outing against Amherst. While Hamilton would not appear to be in the running for a NESCAC crown this season, I would expect them to find a lot more success this season than last with lots of help from their newfound fountain of youth.

Andrew Corcoran ’18 and the Panthers take big swings and will try to continue their suddenly hot offensive streak into Middletown this weekend.

Middlebury:

Spring Break Location: California

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Strong

While Midd (6-9, 2-1) boasts a weak 4-8 non-conference record, their strength of schedule may be to blame. Unlike their competitors who venture down to Florida or Arizona for the duration of their spring break games, Midd throws themselves right into the fire. They played in both Georgia and Southern California to face quality competition on their turf. The Panther’s 3-3 record on their SoCal trip in comparison to Bates’ 0-6 shows the caliber of players that Middlebury has. While their offense has been lackluster, hitting .223 as a team before playing Williams, Justin Han ‘20 has been a diamond in the rough hitting .347 with 12 RBI for the Panthers. On the mound, NBN editor and Middlebury ace Colby Morris ‘19 has been getting the job done, already amassing 28 ⅔ IP on the young season and maintaining a stellar 2.08 ERA befoer facing Williams, which ismuch improved from his first two seasons. While Midd is slated to be a major contender for the NESCAC championship this spring, it is still clear that they have issues that need addressing both offensively and defensively in order to compete at the level they are expected to.

Trinity:

Spring Break Location: South Carolina

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Medium

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Trinity’s (6-8, 2-1) spring so far has been quite below-average. Their 2-4 record in South Carolina screams “meh” and the fact that they have already had 5 home games, a luxury most all NESCAC teams have not enjoyed, hasn’t seemed to serve them too well. With a vital series win against Tufts, the Bantams showed that they put themselves in a good position, however, to outplay the Jumbos. One guy who has been getting it done for the Bantams has been Matt Koperniak ‘20 who leads Trinity in AVG (.404) and extra base hits (6). On the bump, Trinity’s starting rotation has been fantastic. Their top 3 arms Erik Mohl ‘19, Alex Shafer ‘20, and Justin Olson ‘21 have each started at least 2 games and still maintain sub 3 ERAs. This makes Trinity’s problems all to clear, their offense in which nobody buy Koperniak is hitting over .300 and their bullpen which has been blowing games that their starters are setting up for them quite nicely. Although their preseason wasn’t too promising, it looks as if their starting pitching could carry the Bantams to the playoffs due to a down year in pitching for the rest of the conference.

Tufts:

Spring Break Location: Virginia

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Weak

Unsurprisingly, Tufts (7-6, 1-2) is one of the only NESCAC teams to exit spring break with a winning record at 6-4. The Jumbos can flat out rake, with a team AVG of .301 and scoring 11.1 runs per game exiting spring break. The blue and brown machine seems unstoppable, but their stats are not all that they appear to be. During their classic trip to Virginia, they played an unchallenging schedule, looking to leave ranked like in 2016 and 2017. Their 6-4 record, while respectable, is an illusion. They usually exit VA with at most one loss and showed that their pitching staff is much weaker than any could’ve imagined. While RJ Hall and Brent Greeley are off to hot starts with sub-3 ERAs, Tufts lacks the bullpen depth to dominate the NESCAC. As a result, their team ERA is an abysmal 5.85. and they failed to take home a series win against Trinity who didn’t even make the NESCAC playoffs in 2017. Malcolm Nachmanoff ‘18 , Nick Falkson ‘18, and John Moschella ‘19 bolster a strong lineup that should continually allow the Jumbos to compete, even if not at their usual dominant level. Tufts, as always, is favored to win it all this year but they will not be able to do it without some vast improvement in their pen. That being said, I am looking forward to some weekend slugfests between the Jumbos and their NESCAC opponents that could very well result in some football-esque scores.

Wesleyan:

Spring Break Location: Arizona

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Weak

The Cardinals (10-6, 0-0) can be crowned spring training champs of the NESCAC despite a weak strength of schedule. A dominant 9-4 performance shows that Wesleyan is firing on all cylinders to start of the 2018 season. With a team batting average of .314, everyone is eating for the Cardinals. They have an incredible 7 starters hitting over .300 and Chase Pratt’s ‘20 statline of 412/.553/.735 is scary good but down from.520/.618/.920 before last weekend, showing that the Tucson fields aided his bat. Tanner Fulkerson ‘20 has started his season red hot too, hitting .393 with a conference leading 24 RBI. There are almost too many names to mention for Wesleyan so let’s just say that Ryan Earle ‘19, Alex Cappitelli ‘20 and Matt Jeye ‘18 also rake. Although when it comes to pitching, Wesleyan looks like any other NESCAC team with their 5.53 team ERA. Mike McCaffrey ‘19 has had a solid showing so far as the Cardinal ace, with a 3.86 ERA and 12.12 K/9 before a rough start against a great Endicott team which inflated his numbers. His strikeouts are impressive but 27 hits in 21.1 innings and a current 5.48 ERA isn’t dominant. When it comes to offense, I recommend that Wesleyan doesn’t change a thing. On the bump there are certainly problems to be resolved. Nevertheless, McCaffrey, Alec Olmstead, and Kelvin Sosa make up a solid rotation lots of Ks and lots of BBs. The impressive showing the Cardinals put up in Arizona shows that, perhaps, they can go deep into the playoff race this year, but they will likely fall significantly back to earth in the Northeast.

Williams:

Spring Break Location: California

Strength of Schedule Assessment: Strong

All I can say about the Ephs (2-10, 1-2) preseason so far is yikes. If a 1-8 non-conference record isn’t enough to sound an alarm, maybe the fact that they had a 10 game losing streak before beating Midd 5-3 in game three of their opening series. Although they were able to pick up a win on opening day against historically bad Cal Tech, I’m not convinced that Williams’ 1-8 record in SoCal is too much better than Bates’ 0-6. To be fair to the Ephs, they have had several close losses, losing 5-4 to La Verne, 2-1 to Whittier and once again 9-8 to Whittier. It is clear that Williams is missing just some little pieces to turn themselves from a 1-8 club into a NESCAC contender. One piece that has been working for them is Erik Mini ‘21 who starts off his college career hitting .306 with a .611 SLG% and team leading 2 HR. On the mound there is not much to mention for Williams with their team ERA at 7.21. Williams needs to treat their preseason like MLB Spring Training and ignore the numbers. Their series in California against Midd was their first real test of the season and they showed that their pitching is a huge issue. They allowed 29 runs in three games to Midd (20 in game one), and unless they figure something else out, they won’t be able to win 2/3 games in any NESCAC series.