Baseball @ Carolinas/Spring Trip

[jetz]

I thought we'd just use this thread through the 14th for the entirety of the Spring trip.  March 3rd @ Gardner-Webb is over, and we lost 2-1.  Very frustrating day.  GW has a nice facility (two years old) and had a couple of hundred show up for the game.  We were confident after Arkansas, and GW's 6-3 record coming in was bolstered by three wins over a bad Maryland Eastern Shore team.  We were clearly better in my opinion in every phase.  Deetjen threw a complete game and gave up two in the fifth I believe.  We scratched one across in the seventh and left runners on base.  We stranded guys all day and, just like the Saturday Ark game, couldn't get the big two out hit.  We didn't get many leadoff guys on, though their pitching was just average.  When we got a shot, we could not capitalize.  Pretty much a downer--this was our game to win.   

Valpo will have to learn to win these type of games if they want to move up to a new level.  The team needs to develop that killer instinct on this trip--we need to expect to win!  We were more talented and should be one game over .500 now and building.  Let's see how they come out tomorrow against Wofford. 

Stars today:  #9 hole hitter Mark Johnson turned a single into a hustling double and scored our run.  He's quick in a lineup that desperately needs speed.  We did not steal a base again today.

Deetjen:  8 IP/ 7H/ 2ER.  Third quality start with disappointing result. 

That's really about it.  Scoby made a couple nice plays in right.  Lets get 'em tomorrow!   

[valpotx]

Thanks for the update again.  I saw the loss on the website, and it looks like our pitching is a big strength this year.  I stopped by the VU baseball field today, and I like the improvements made since I graduated.  Definitely would be nice to have a little more in the way of stands, similar to softball.  Then again, we need to get more fans for that to happen 

[jetz]

Quick catch up:  We won a good game yesterday at Wofford.  Great little school with a good baseball program.  1500 kids and they have awesome facilities.  The baseball field was great and we came back from a four run deficit to win in the 11th.  Manning went 4-5.  Hagel moved out to left and made a diving, game saving web gem catch in the 9th to send it to extras.  Good win against a good team.  Their freshman closer (Eck) was a big kid who went four innings (!!) before taking the loss.  He was in the low 90s.  We were now 4-4 on the year.

SC Upstate:  We came out with no energy.  Gave up four in the first.  Mahar started and was decent, giving up only one legit hit.  The other three hits were all plays we could have made.  A poor effort led to a tirade from Coach Woodson.  That sparked a two run second for us, but we could get no more.  Upstate is a very good team and we probably would lose 6 of 10 against them if we played them that much.  Tyler Weddington got his first collegiate start at catcher and did a decent job.  Ben Mahar has been lights out but was shaky today.  Rob Rabakozi and Zack Walsh also made their college debuts on the mound.  Rabakozi throws hard and had a strikeout but gave up a run.  Walsh is mid 80s but struck out two with no runs allowed.  Others still in the pen waiting for their chance...we have some arms.  Bobby Martin had the two RBIs with a single in the second.  He also had the big hit in the 11th yesterday, driving in two.  And he's doing it with a bad shoulder as a DH.  We are now 4-5 going into two with Wake Forest over the next two days.

The weather here has been a challenge, but at least it's not snowing.  Cold with wind up to 30 mph.  It's supposed to get better tomorrow--55 degrees and lighter winds.  Wormington has not thrown since Arkansas but I think will soon--just a little tightness in the arm but should be OK...Let's see if we can take down the Deacons.  GO VALPO!!

[valpotx]

Definitely a difficult trip to go to the Carolinas, as even the smaller schools you haven't heard of can play.  This is true of a lot of smaller Southern schools: Dallas Baptist, Houston Baptist, Stetson, Mercer, etc.

[jetz]

Wake was disappointing to not get a split.  We played even with them in game two but could absolutely not hit when it counted.  Even when we did hit it solid--which was fairly often--we hit it right at one of their guys.  It just seemed like it was not meant to be for the Crusaders.  Great job by Wormington again in game two.  7 IP/ 6 H/ 0 ER/ 2 runs allowed.  No run support for the third straight time for Worm.  I would consider him and Deetjen co-aces.  They both can throw in big situations, and this will do us nothing but good once the conference begins.

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!

[Valpo1b]

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.

[jetz]

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!

https://plus.google.com/photos/107694216823525506352/albums/5717656483217234785

[vuweathernerd]

not a bad looking facility they've got there. cool pics.

[valpotx]

Yep, the unfortunate side of Northern baseball is the weather, and usual bad record when coming back home after 20 or so games.  The closer we can be to .500, the more amazing our season will be!  I think we are primed for a breakout season and HL conference win!

[VULB#62]

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!

https://plus.google.com/photos/107694216823525506352/albums/5717656483217234785

................. and all that with 4400 undergrads.

[FWalum]

Wake Forest is the university we should be emulating.  Fantastic academics(top 25 in the country), one of the most beautiful campuses, an endowment of just over 1 billion dollars and all that, as VULB#62 said, with an undergraduate enrollment of 4,657.  The daughter you see on the left went to Wake for undergrad and got her doctorate at George Washington. I really wanted her to go to VU and was very surprised that VU did not offer her any more assistance than Wake offered despite her stellar high school performance.  She visited VU a number of times, mostly in the late fall or winter months, but unfortunately when to Wake over spring break when the magnolias and other flowers were in bloom.  That was all it took and the rest is history.  I loved her time there, it has become a place close to my heart.

P.S. The link to the pictures worked great.  Did you get to see any of the rest of campus?

[Valpo1b]

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.

[jetz]

Well this was a tough series.  Just finished game 3 at Campbell--which by the way is no Wake Forest.  We stay an hour away from the Campbell campus, and now I know why.  The field is decent, but, wow, the crowd and the town is like a Mississippi Little League game complete with helicopter parents.  The dads were still coaching their sons in the batter's box--and the kids were listening!  Anyway...

Deetjen gave us a good start in game one.  Two bad plays--one in the field and one on the basepaths--cost us a 4-2 lead and sent the game to extras.  Miller came in to pitch and did fine until their stud jacked the first pitch he saw for a walkoff solo shot.  We lose 6-5. 

Game two saw another quality start as Kevin Wild went seven, giving up five hits and two runs.  We had the bases loaded in the seventh and didn't take advantage, leaving us tied at two.  Freshman Zack Walsh threw a good eighth--no damage.  In the ninth Walsh got the first two hitters with a backwards K and a ground ball.  The next hitter hit a weak grounder to third, we booted it and he reached first.  A base hit made it first and third, and the next guy hit a chopper up the middle that was gloved by Vavra, but too tough a play on the force at second and the runner from third scored. We lost 3-2 in the ninth. 

Game three wasn't pretty.  Six runs through the first two and we were in a deep hole.  Several Valpo players had issues with the strike zone--justified in most cases--and Woodson went out to the mound in the seventh to get run.  He was successful.  We tacked on a couple to make it a 7-3 final, and won the last seven innings, but it was over after the first two.  We need a win badly.  It's been a long string with a lack of big hits, and we're wasting some good pitching.  Critical E's have bitten us the past few games as well.  Overall, we're not far away, but sooner or later a baseball team has to put it together and do whatever it takes to win a game.  We have to do that soon--I do not want the team on a downer going into Butler weekend.  By the way, that is really the last series on this trip--we do not go home in between.  The switch needs to be thrown before we hit Indy.  Hoping for better results Monday at Winthrop...   

[valpotx]

I knew this trip would be tough, but had hoped we would take the series from Campbell.  Too bad, but we will learn!

[Valpo1b]

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."

[valpotx]

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.

[jetz]

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.

[Valpo1b]

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.

[Valpo1b]

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.

[valpotx]

I still say that these non-conference games are much better competition than the HL provides.  Yes, WSU and UIC are decent teams, but they would still be losing to these same teams that we are losing to.  They can get a game out of a 3 game set against some good competition, but they won't be sweeping or winning 2 of 3 from some of these same teams.

[jetz]

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.

I agree with all above.  I looked through the games we've played so far, and literally five of the losses could have gone our way.  They didn't, and that's our fault.  But a break here or there and we're close to .500 on the year.  Some things to consider:  Andy Burns and Spencer Mahoney will bolster our infield play.  Burns has been declared ineligible for the year because he was two academic credits short when he transferred and that was not caught by anybody in time to fix it--big mistake in my opinion.  We'll have to wait for 2013 to see him.  Mahoney played at Murray, tweaked his knee and is out a few weeks.  He has a good glove and will be back.  Need to find a place for Vavra, Bain and Mahoney in the infield when he does--all are middle infielders.  Elliot Martin started the season solid at third.  He flashed the glove and made good throws.  He still can, but lately you get the "I hope he makes the play" feeling when it goes to third rather than the confident "that's an out" feeling you'd like to have. 

Have to find some power.  In the last few games we dinked the ball around.  I don't know how you fix this, but we need to.

We play today at Winthrop, and one win is all it will take for these guys to get mentally right again.  Chemistry is still good, but losing will eventually erode at that should it continue.  It's a big game today...

[vubballfan]

The Valpo baseball team's current strength of schedule is 13th and an RPI of 87 (with a 4-10 record). Only UIC (who is 4-9, and had a series at home this past weekend) has slightly better SOS (10th) and RPI (57th) with the rest of the conference teams NOT EVEN CLOSE in either category. The competition the team has faced is legit (and not just Ark.) and I would argue definitley better than Horizon League. Pitching is ALWAYS ahead of hitting at this point in the season, due to many factors -- weather, long spring break road trip for position players playing everyday, etc. Hitting came around last year by mid-season and it will again, hopefully by this weekend.

Valpo baseball has become a contender in the league -- true, not a HL champion yet, but certainly has earned the respect to be talked about when discussing who can contend for the league title. One of the next 2 years we have a very good chance to see the championship come to Valpo.

[valpotx]

Thank you for providing numbers that back up my assertions  .  I also believe that we will be consistently competing for an NCAA bid in the HL, whereas it was pretty much impossible for us in the Mid-Con with the teams ORU had.  ORU has lost some conference games post-university scandal, but when I was playing (and before/after for a few years), they were only losing 1-2 conference games each season.

[covufan]

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.

Since you have more than 5 posts, you should be able to post a link.  Give it a try...

[jetz]

Rumor has it that Butler is looking into a move to the Atlantic 10.  If they leave, the Horizon League will be left with five baseball schools.  A conference must have six teams to get an autobid to the NCAA tournament.  Better start shopping some schools...