Tag: David Redfield

The Long Game; Stock Report 4/26

This weekend of NESCAC baseball has a lot in store for us. The East division will be settled this weekend – Tufts and Trinity face off in Hartford to help determine if Bates still has a shot at the postseason, while the Bobcats will battle to stave off elimination. The West is still wide open. Every team is still in it. Wes will play Midd in a big series this weekend. Williams will play Hamilton, too. There’s a lot still up in the air, which makes it an exciting weekend of baseball. Given these conditions, I believe there are a few undervalued and overvalued teams and players. Here’s my stock report for 4/26.

Long: John Casey

Warren Buffett has always been into value investments. He would invest in companies like Coca Cola and Geico early on because he believed these were quality, undervalued blue chip companies that would outperform expectations. It’s easy to jump on an equity when it has already shown immense growth, but hard to invest when it has hit rock bottom, and every investor says it will always go down. Well, I want to long Coach John Casey of Tufts. If I were Buffett, I would’ve invested in Casey in the early ‘90’s before his reign of terror on the NESCAC. I believe that Tufts, directly based off of the way they’re playing now, will continue to grow and dominate. Walking around their facility, I can see why they win so much: their culture is different. Baseball isn’t really just a sport for them. It’s not academics 1, baseball 2 at Tufts. It’s academics 1 and baseball 1. It’s almost like they’re running a D1 program among the NESCACs. Casey has implemented a system that produces game changing players like Ed Bernstein (check out his senior ERA) and Malcolm Nachmanoff just to name a few. These guys dominate the game, and make baseball really fun to watch. Tufts is playing Trin this weekend, which will be a good preview of a playoff series for sure. I have full faith that Casey will find a way to get it done. Trinity is talented, but Tufts has been there and done that multiple times. Trinity hasn’t been on the big stage as much. Let’s see who comes out on top.

Short: Wesleyan

It pains me to say this because Wesleyan is my team; however, I must stay impartial and follow my fundamental analysis. Middlebury will win the series against West this weekend. I am not saying this because I believe Wes is weak. The Cardinals still boast a powerful lineup with Danny Rose ’19, Andrew Keith ’19, and Andrew Kauf ’20. Leadoff man Alex Capitelli ’20 is hitting below .300 this year, which makes it seem like the world is blowing up. Capitelli is one of the most consistent players in the league. The man is still playing solid baseball, but not quite up to par with his season last year. My problem with Wes isn’t necessarily their lineup (albeit they miss a guy like Matt Jeye dearly in the middle). The Cardinals pitching has been pretty brutal this year. Forget about starting pitching for a second, Wesleyan’s main problem from last year was finding a guy to share the burden of a late inning with Pat Clare ’19. Clare is great for one or two innings. Like any reliever, he gets figured out when he stays later in games. I don’t think Coach Woodworth has found that really reliable number two reliever yet, which is crucial in the late innings further on in the season. The starting pitching has been mediocre as well. Sosa and McCaffrey don’t look the same as last year. Sosa’s funky delivery and solid repertoire of pitches still makes him a force. I am not entirely sure what’s going on with Mike McCaffrey ’19. He hasn’t pitched nearly as well as last season. Wesleyan’s talent has to be up there with any NESCAC team, but I feel like it’s not being utilized to its full potential yet. This weekend against Midd is really make or break for the Cardinals. I had high hopes coming into the season for Joe Mescall ’21 and David Redfield ’21, who are two quality relievers. Redfield had an unbelievable summer season, and Mescall has brought his usual swagger to the mound. These are two guys who I believe, if utilized correctly, will help the pen enormously. Redfield has been sidelined by injury, so his health has a direct effect on Wesleyan’s season. Going on the road to Midd won’t be easy. If the Cardinals can string together at least two wins, I see them having a playoff shot. Pitching may hamper them, though.

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.