Baseball Troubles

[IAA Fan]

We have a slugging percentage of .422 averaging 5.96 PPG, yet we have only won 1 game. Our team ERA is 9.9 ....UGGGHH.

[Wick250]

Patience.  The new guy will need three years to recruit a legitimate DI pitching staff.

[YSUGO]

I think there were a few injuries to the pitching staff before the season and he said starting pitching was pretty thin

[IAA Fan]

Does anyone know what happened to Craig Antush? He always seemed to do very well with our pitchers.

[go guins]

I think there were a few injuries to the pitching staff before the season and he said starting pitching was pretty thin

giving up 1+ runs per inning is at the very least "thin"!

[ytownchief22]

Pitching stinks. Gave up 23 runs to Morehead... Yikes.

[ValleyTalk]

Pitching stinks. Gave up 23 runs to Morehead... Yikes.

[IAA Fan]

Well I thought we had a very positive weekend.

Friday we beat Kent (who was #24 at the time). Now both teams were saving themselves for big weekend series, so it is hard to say, but the game was very well managed, we hit and played team defense.

The 1st-game again WSU was very close, we made a base running error & it went into extra innings and we fell apart. Game two we were never really in it. We took game 3, again on offense.

Now this is college so the reliance on offense has to be expected, but I like the way that we are playing. If we can stay at the level that would take 2 of 3 from the HL's #1 team and defeat a ranked opponent, we are heading in the right direction.

[OleYSUfan]

!AA - it's pitching, pitching and more pitching. We have a couple of decent pitchers, but it takes more than a couple good outings. We had Andrew Kendrick step up in hitting with 13 homers in 84 at bats. That's phenomenal!

The ladies have good hitters, but good pitching by UIC totally dominated YSU girls with only 1 run in 3 games. Our batters were just swiping at the ball hoping for a hit. Again pitching is the magic that solidifies good college baseball and softball. 

YSU has good hitters and defense is adequate, but pitching is so-so. 

[Wick250]

Bertolini has won more league games than I thought he would.  And there are two teams worse than us who we have not played yet.  More wins are probable.  I am pleased with the job he is doing. 

I hope that Bertolini does what Pelini is doing and what Calhoun has stated that he wants to do.  Recruit Tressel's "State of Youngstown."  Five years ago there were four DI baseball programs in NE Ohio; today there are two.  Logically, we should be much better than the mess the program was in on the day that Bertolini took the job.

[IAA Fan]

Good posts OleFan and Wick. I know that I am repeating myself, but in the case of pitching is still think it is at least in part, the loss of Antush. He was volunteering the last couple of years, so I know we were going to lose him. I think every one of his pitching recruits the last few years he was here, pitched at the next level, at least for a while.

There are kids that want to play DI ball, but going to the right program is crucial. In this case the HS recruit that is smart enough to play college baseball is looking for an education more-so than a chance to play pro ...so this is why some of those DIII schools in Cleveland recruit very well in baseball ... academics.

I think we do a good job recruiting locally Wick. With Kent so close, there is no reason we cannot have a very good team on a regular basis and really we almost have to or we will face the same fate as CSU. The thing about Cleveland State is that they had those D-III powerhouses close bye. They are going to hurt CSU much more than they hurt YSU. They do not even impact Kent much at all, except maybe at the bottom of the roster, as Kent recruits at the national level in baseball. I would like to see our program be the same way and I believe it can.