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The coaches who mentioned never participating in the 'D-1 NCAA tournament' were on the previous regime actually, from when I played 2000-2004.  Obviously, we all knew about the success in the 60's and 70's, as every time we went to practice you could see the accomplishments listed on that brown board as you entered the complex. The unfortunate thing if we make the NCAA tournament this year will be that the media outlets will probably be reporting it as our first NCAA appearance, since it will be the first with the official D-1 title.

That's not true at all. Jetz wasn't around while you were playing, so he couldn't have heard that statement then. He's referring to this year's coaches.

And, I've known the coaches who were coaching then for over 25 years, they never said that. I'm curious as to which coach you believe said that? Not Twenge, and certainly not Tim Holmes. I never heard Olson say that. The prior regime had a very close relationship to both Bauers. They went out of their way to respect the accomplishments of Em's teams.

Technically that may be correct as the distinction between D1 etc is a fairly recent change.  However, to say Valpo has never competed for a National Championship at the highest level before, demeans the accomplishments of teams from many years ago. For example, in 1963 the record books show we competed in the University Division Championship and played Illinois and then Notre Dame.  In 1967 we played Ohio State and Western Michigan and in 1968 we played Minnesota and Ohio State in those tournaments.  I somehow doubt that those teams would want to acknowledge that in those years they weren't competing at the highest level--call it D1 or what ever. My point is not to nitpick but rather to acknowledge our history of accomplishment and how great it would be to RETURN, not advance for the very first time.

Thank you. DI, DII, etc. didn't exist prior to this. So, yes, the coaches are correct, but it is a technicality. And, it's my ONLY complaint about the current coaches. I'm not sure whether it's intentional or not, but they act like Valpo baseball started with Woodson's hiring. I know plenty of baseball alumni who have been given the "cold shoulder" by this staff. It's insulting, and demeans all the efforts from some of us who played long ago. Frankly, they shouldn't be giving out the #8, either. It was retired for Em Bauer years ago, and he gave Coach Twenge specific permission to wear it. After Twenge left, the number should have been removed from the rotation.

This year's team's accomplishments are fantastic. They stand on their own. But they shouldn't be tarnished by an attempt to lower past accomplishments. A "return" to Regional play will be just as exciting to me as if it were the first.

You never see the mercy rule in NCAA baseball.  We beat several teams by much more than 10, and just use it to give playing time to those that don't otherwise see much game action.

Incorrect. The mercy rule is decided on before the game. For years, Chicago State would use the mercy rule because they had 12 on their roster. Other times the mercy rule was used on spring trips because of the number of games scheduled per day on each field. Never is strong word that should only rarely be used.

And, bbtds, I appreciate your passion, but there is huge talent disparity in women's softball. It has nothing to do with the gender of the athlete. When a game is on TV (necessary to promote and grow the sport) a 10 run game drives viewers away. And at the regional level, 10 run games (or worse) are entirely possible. Again, if the teams don't like it, do something about it. Regionals aren't about "everyone gets playing time."

Apparently some are afraid that Valpo will get mercied or the discussion would have never come up. I, for one, think they stand a very reasonable chance of pulling some upsets. Louisville should have been beaten by ND in the Big East championship game. The mercy rule's application should be a moot discussion.

That is a traditional rule. I think it's time to break the tradition. It could lead to a couple of dramatic finishes and really how much time is saved in not playing 2 innings or less. Like the players wearing skirts in women's softball it's time to change a traditional rule.

Disagree. A lot. The mercy rule is a good thing. It can save significant time when there is a huge variance in talent level, which occurs often during Regional play. Not only does it save time, it eliminates the risk of some girl getting hurt in a 15-run game. Offense isn't very plentiful in the NCAA tournament. There aren't 13-11 games in the NCAA tournament, so if one team is up 8 after 5, it's pretty much a done deal. If a team can't deal with that, then don't fall behind so much so early.

And, by the way, the suspension of the mercy rule at the World Series isn't automatic. I've seen games ended via the mercy rule at the WS before, and it was a good thing.

This has been rumored for a while, but is now official.  Butler will leave for the Atlantic 10 Conference in 2013-14 in all sports.  Bad news for the Horizon League.  For baseball, it means only five current member schools.  You must have six for your conference to get an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.  We need to go shopping or move to a new neighborhood...

Don't be surprised if some of the Summit League schools apply to join. IPFW would fit in geographically, and it would significantly reduce their travel expenses. Plus, I believe ORU is leaving the Summit, so IPFW would be motivated to leave themselves. Oakland might also want to join.

I didn't say anything about his arm health, as I was just stating in general that he/we don't need to change anything regarding him.  Regardless of his velocity, speed is not his game.  He doesn't strike many people out, and barely walks anyone.  He is a 'pitch to contact' pitcher.  Therefore, it was not 'absurd' for me to throw the stat out. 

The original question was related to limiting his innings so that he is ready for the HL tournament. That's a health-related question, not a question of whether he strikes people out or not. "Pitch to contact" pitchers get hurt too, and go through "dead arm" periods. If someone needs to be shut down, or have innings limited, that is because their arm needs recovery time, not because of their style of pitching. Your answer related to style of pitching, and, in that vein, is most assuredly not absurd. You would have a valid point if the discussion was style of pitching. But the original question related to arm health, and in that arena, your answer is irrelevant.

A warning sign:  Deetjen's velocity was down from the get-go yesterday.  He's locating well but has a  lot of innings on that arm.  The hits that he did give up were on the fastball.  Do we need to cut down on his innings in May to ready him for the HL tourney? 

A one-time dip, especially from a pitcher that doesn't overpower to begin with, is something to note but not get concerned about. Velocities commonly fluctuate throughout a season, and it was cold. So his velocity may have been down due to that. Most hits off every pitcher are off the fastball, because it's the most commonly thrown pitch. Any pitcher whose off-speed pitches get torched becomes a reliever. What type of hits was he giving up? Were they hit harder than usual? If yes, then maybe it bears watching. But, I'd watch his next two starts before getting overly concerned.

As an aside, nobody looks at strikeout to walk ratios to evaluate arm health. It's a stat that is cumulative over the season, and provides little indication of how the arm is feeling now. It's an absurd stat to throw out when discussing the health and feeling of pitcher's arm 3/4 of the way through the season.

What is really encouraging, is that over a weekend with poor weather, the bats came alive. With the pitching they have, if they continue hitting, they can play with anyone.

Valpo sweeps Butler! great weekend.

I'll second that! They are really rounding into shape nicely. The pitching has been consistently good, and if warmer weather ever gets here and the bats get going, I like their chances. It's too hard to win 3-2 games consistently in tournaments, so they need the bats to get going.

In general, Valpo had several key calls go against them from last night's crew.  I know they were less than happy with the umping after the game.

It's that way every time you go to ISU. They get awful umps, and always have. Although, Bob Warn did get ejected on one of my doubles there. Hit right on the line, ump called it fair, and Warn went ballistic. Ump refused to change his call and threw him out. The ISU fans had some interesting things to say about that...

Not underestimating.  We have the talent and ability to win the league.  I know the guys at Wright State.  Don't know much about UIC, but we can play with them I'm sure.  We just don't have the right pieces in place yet.  It will happen.

You misinterpret my post. I was commenting on the prior post that said we've played better competition out of conference than we will in conference. Other than Arkansas, we'll see teams in conference just as good as the teams we've seen so far. I never said we couldn't compete in the Horizon - as you said, we've lost some games we should have won. But to say that Campbell is better than Wright State, Milwaukee, or UIC is underestimating the level of competition we'll face in conference.

Also, we've never won a Horizon league championship in baseball. Until we do, we shouldn't go around proclaiming we're as good as those that have. Some people talk it, others do it. Baseball is a long season, and strange things happen. That doesn't mean this team can't do it. They have the pitching, but their hitting is not good, and, frankly, hasn't been good for a few years. I fear they don't get the attention they need while some are reffing ACC and SEC basketball. If their hitting comes around, they could absolutely win the conference.

An ESPN writer actually talked about Valpo baseball?  What article was this?  The quality of baseball in the HL is alright, though the Mid-Con was traditionally ranked higher up until the last few seasons (RPI-wise anyways).  The main reason was that ORU was always in the Top 25 each year, greatly increasing the conference's ranking.  I would put them at about the same level now, but definitely not in the top half of leagues unfortunately.

ESPN's college baseball writer. You'll have to search for it (I can't post a link). And, frankly, the Mid-Con's RPI ranking was almost due solely to Oral Roberts. The conferences, as a whole, never compared. The Horizon has been a much stronger baseball conference for a long time.

Playing a tough schedule should help baseball.There is probably not a team in the Horizon as good as anyone Valpo has played so far. Last I looked no one had a winning record in baseball.Conference should be ripe for the pickings.

Sorry, but Wright State and UIC are as good as Campbell. You're vastly underestimating the quality of Horizon League baseball. As most others do, including a certain ESPN writer who called Valpo an "also ran."

Let's try this and see if it works...here's a link to my Google+ album with pix from Wake Forest.  I'm new to this so we'll see if it actually functions.  Please comment here if you're able to view the album.  Some interesting points:  note Wake's field is all turf--the only dirt is at the pitcher's mound.  Also, the there is a picture of some of the guys wearing "Wild 36" warmup shirts.  The entire team wears these occasionally in memory of Shaun Wild, brother of pitcher Kevin Wild, who died this past February in Chicago.  Hope this gives you a feel for two of the games on this trip.  GO VALPO!

Thanks for the pictures - they are great! Appreciate a little better connection to the players.

The road trip is getting long.  I have been with the team the entire time, and they won't know how to act once they are on their home field.  I look for one win to build on here in the Carolinas.  We are talented enough to be .500 by the end of this trip, and I still believe that it can happen.  Let's go VALPO!

Welcome to northern baseball. Every team in the North experiences the same thing. No sport encounters a grind like baseball. MSU's coach talked about it before their season started (it's one reason the Big Ten is toying with going to a summer schedule). Fortunately, the mild winter should mean a better spring experience once they do get back home. But, it's northern Indiana, so no guarantees there.

The old Valpo brown jersey was a similar color, but with a large VU in gold/yellow near the heart on the front of the jersey, with huge gold/yellow numbers on the back.

If it was v-neck, and the VU interlocking, that jersey would have been from the late 80s/very early 90s. It replaced a thick, almost wool, brown jersey that was suana-like it was so hot. Coach Twenge loved big numbers on the back. Not sure why. That is old-school.

And, I hope Coach Twenge spoke highly of Tim Holmes, he was your pitching coach when you arrived on campus and for most of your career.

do you have a son or know the kid with the old school brown Valpo jersey at the Saturday game?  Cool shirt

Wish you had a picture of the jersey. Not sure what you mean by "old school." Coach Twenge actually brought back the brown jerseys in the late 80s. He used brown throughout his tenure. Even after the basketball team went to black and yellow, the baseball team wasn't permitted to use black jerseys. Then, when Coach Woodson started, the team was allowed to use black. The coach prior to Twenge used red, white, and blue as the colors (there wasn't an enforced color scheme at that time). The hats were a dark blue, with a red VU on the front. Can't recall what colors Coach Bauer used.
About the only nit I can pick with Coach Woodson is that he and his staff give the impression that Valpo baseball started in 2007. That's probably not accurate, but several of players my generation are largely ignored. That's too bad, because there were several good players even when the records weren't what everyone wanted.

I don't have a son, but saw that kid as well  .  Those old school brown jerseys are so ugly, that they are kind of cool lol.  The JV we used to have wore the brown jerseys.  I don't believe we have a JV anymore from the looks of the roster.

The NCAA roster limit includes members of any JV team. That's why you're seeing varsity rosters the size they are, and why there is no "JV" team.

Interesting note on the team's travel schedule...I see we're doing "out and backs" -- (no hotels) -- to the UIC series and also no hotel planned for the Horizon League Championships which are also in Chicago. Valpotx, do you recall this as standard? Any issues with playing games while traveling to downtown Chicago and back three days in a row? Also, out and backs to Indiana State and Western Michigan. Get used to the bus, boys!!

This is standard in college baseball. The trips to Indiana State, Chicago, IU, Purdue, Notre Dame, Western Mich, and even CMU are "out and backs" as you refer to them. Mid-week games are one day trips to limit the number of classes missed. They save money too, as Valpotx mentions, but the prime reason is to limit missed classes.
Most college teams treat games this way, with hotel stays limited to weekend series or distance travel where commuting is not an option. Trips to UIC have been day trips for the history of the program. Chicago is an hour away from campus, and sleeping in their own beds should be a greater benefit to the players than staying in a hotel and saving 30 minutes on the bus.