Baseball 2005 Outlook - Guilford College
Guilford College Baseball 2005 Season Outlook
An old coaching adage says "One of the best things about freshmen is that they become sophomores." Guilford baseball boss Gene Baker could express a similar sentiment as he starts his eighth season in the Quakers' dugout. In 2003, Baker's relatively inexperienced team went 20-19 and missed the six-team Old Dominion Athletic Conference Tournament with a 6-12 mark. The club featured 11 freshmen, six newcomers to the starting lineup and three new starting pitchers.
Baker believes last year's experience will help the 18 letter winners returning improve on 2004 and rejoin the ODAC elite in a bid for the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs. Seven starting hitters and six hurlers who appeared in at least 10 games last season are back in 2005. If the Quakers' pitching improves and the offense at least maintains its 8.0 runs per game average (35th in NCAA Division III), expect more wins for the Guilford nine.
Here's a preview of the team by position:
Outfield: For the first time in Baker's tenure, Guilford will not have an established center fielder batting leadoff. From William Rochelle '98 to Steve Danis '02 to A.J. McCauley '04, the top of the lineup has been a reliable source of speed, hits and defense. McCauley graduated in May as the Quakers' career leader in batting average, hits, runs and stolen bases. Redshirt-freshman Fred Parent had the early-season lead over rookie Mike Braverman and junior Jeff Ebert for the starting center fielder's job, although the speedy Ebert could provide some late-inning defense when not in the lineup.
While McCauley is playing professional baseball in Sweden, senior Josh Miller and junior Jeff Arzonico return to the lineup in left and right field, respectively. Miller enjoyed a breakout season as a junior, batting a career-high .414 and earning all-state and Second Team All-ODAC honors. The Quakers' top hitter and team Most Valuable Player, Miller posted the fifth-highest average in school history and ranked among the league leaders in batting average, hits and stolen bases. Arzonico inherited the right-fielder's job and handled the role well in his second college season. He hit a career-high .315 and ranked 10th among Division III's toughest players to strike out in 2004.
Braverman and Ebert provide depth in the outfield. Ebert, who sat out the 2004 season with injuries, has good speed on the basepaths. Sophomore Chad Boone, who started 29 games at second base last year, worked out in the outfield last fall and joins sweet-swinging classmate Brian Burton as potential outfield contributors.
Infield: If Boone remains at second base, the entire Quakers' starting infield from 2004 returns in tact. The infielders helped Guilford post the fourth-best team fielding percentage (.952) in school history and gobbled up the bulk of last year's 447 assists, the Quakers' second-best all-time total. Expect Boone to find a spot in the lineup after batting .322 as a rookie with a team-high two triples and four sacrifice flies.