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re: Baseball
Posted on 3/28/26 at 5:08 am to UltimateHog
Posted on 3/28/26 at 5:08 am to UltimateHog
I’ve said this on another board, but I’m sensing that DVH doesn’t really like this squad judging from several of his comments in pressers this year. Juxtapose that against last year’s team, who he praised constantly throughout the season for being coachable and closeknit.
What we’re seeing feels like a combination of poor roster construction and a team that doesn’t seem to be taking to coaching (reading the tea leaves). And unlike 2023 and 2024 when we were bad offensively (with automatic outs like John Bolton, Parker Rowland, and Ty Wilmsmeyer in the lineup), we don’t have an elite defense or pitching staff this year to pick them up and carry us.
Our SEC hitting stats are pretty bad, and the top half of the order has quietly struggled against SEC pitching. Kozeal is hitting .192, Robinett is hitting .160, Kuhio is hitting .095, and Stewart is hitting .080 in conference games.
Our starters’ ERA in conference is bad. Gaeckle’s is 5.25, Dietz is 5.56, and Fisher is 7.71.
What we’re seeing feels like a combination of poor roster construction and a team that doesn’t seem to be taking to coaching (reading the tea leaves). And unlike 2023 and 2024 when we were bad offensively (with automatic outs like John Bolton, Parker Rowland, and Ty Wilmsmeyer in the lineup), we don’t have an elite defense or pitching staff this year to pick them up and carry us.
Our SEC hitting stats are pretty bad, and the top half of the order has quietly struggled against SEC pitching. Kozeal is hitting .192, Robinett is hitting .160, Kuhio is hitting .095, and Stewart is hitting .080 in conference games.
Our starters’ ERA in conference is bad. Gaeckle’s is 5.25, Dietz is 5.56, and Fisher is 7.71.
2
Posted on 3/28/26 at 6:46 am to Feral
quote:
I've said this on another board, but I’m sensing that DVH doesn’t really like this squad judging from several of his comments in pressers this year.
He owns it and continues to think Gaeckle is a starter, year two.
I'm the biggest DVH supporter, but damn, hate to see him go out like this.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 7:21 am to ArHog
I love Gaeckle, but he’s not a starter. Last year (and sadly this year, too) proved that he’s *much* better and more comfortable coming out of the pen than starting.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 9:56 am to Feral
quote:Thought the exact same thing. He's talked repeatedly about guys having to learn "how we do things", which leads me to believe leadership on the team isn't very strong or effective. Which sucks because that falls on guys like Kozeal and Helfrick and I love those guys. He's talked in the past about liking to step back and let the team leaders set the tone, but I'm not sure he can afford to do that this year.
I’ve said this on another board, but I’m sensing that DVH doesn’t really like this squad judging from several of his comments in pressers this year.
Beyond that, I just think they whiffed on some talent evals this offseason. Outside of Ruiz and more recently Niu with some shreds of life from Stewart, the new guys have been pedestrian. Couple that with Aloy falling off a cliff and Robinett showing why it took him so long to get on the field in the first place and this doesn't look like it's going to be a pretty season even with the favorable schedule. We desperately needed Gaeckle to step up and be an ace and it's just not happening.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 10:24 am to Drewbie
I was high on Pompey coming into the season due to his numbers at Tech, but it’s become obvious that he’s a guess hitter who has a lot of swing and miss. He can crush it when he barrels one up, but that’s too infrequent for the number of strikeouts.
Pinning our hopes on Brumbaugh (and him being a complete failure as a freshman) at shortstop also put us into a hole on the left side of the infield. I certainly didn’t expect him to be the second coming of Aloy, but I also expected him to be better than John Bolton.
Pinning our hopes on Brumbaugh (and him being a complete failure as a freshman) at shortstop also put us into a hole on the left side of the infield. I certainly didn’t expect him to be the second coming of Aloy, but I also expected him to be better than John Bolton.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 12:11 pm to Feral
I'll say it again, more questions than answers for a top 5 SEC coaching staff.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 12:40 pm to Poker_hog
Posted on 3/28/26 at 4:16 pm to Hogwarts
Posted on 3/28/26 at 4:19 pm to ArHog
This team's floor is not higher than missing the tournament completely. Our RPI is already abysmal and if we keep playing like this, it's going to stay that way.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 4:29 pm to Drewbie
It's not 2016 bad but absolutely inexcusable for a HOF coach.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 4:36 pm to ArHog
RPI is 58 now. Arkansas State is 31.
Posted on 3/28/26 at 4:45 pm to Drewbie
Aloy sucks so bench him, oh wait Rutenbar sucks as well
Posted on 3/28/26 at 8:18 pm to ArHog
Based on what’s been shown on the field so far this year this will probably be the second worst team after 2016 in the Van Horn career
Posted on 3/29/26 at 11:05 am to Hogwarts
Even DVH is lost
ETA:
Can we never bring back that Bama looking script A again, thanks
This post was edited on 3/29/26 at 11:07 am
Posted on 3/29/26 at 1:01 pm to Csmims
quote:
Based on what’s been shown on the field so far this year this will probably be the second worst team after 2016 in the Van Horn career
Looking like it. The top 5 ranking shows how flawed the preseason rankings are.
We had terrible offenses in 2023 and 2024 when we were trotting out guys like Diggs, John Bolton, Parker Rowland, and Ty Wilmsmeyer regularly. Even in the Omaha year of 2022 the offense struggled most of the season (Turner was our only .300 hitter) until catching a groove in the postseason. The difference was that we had elite pitching and defense to carry us.
This year we’re simply a mediocre team in all 3 phases. Pitching is mid (though arguably our strength), defense is mid because we’re having to play several guys out of position, and offense is horrendous.
Posted on 3/29/26 at 5:31 pm to Feral
I have a bad feeling this team is going to bottom out.
Heading into April with an RPI of 63.
Heading into April with an RPI of 63.
This post was edited on 3/29/26 at 5:34 pm
Posted on 3/29/26 at 6:24 pm to Csmims
quote:
Based on what’s been shown on the field so far this year this will probably be the second worst team after 2016 in the Van Horn career
You really do not expect to see this in year 24.
Posted on 3/29/26 at 6:34 pm to ArHog
quote:
Even DVH is lost
Yeah we blow
quote:
never bring back that Bama looking script A again,
Agreed
Posted on 3/29/26 at 7:48 pm to DaleDenton
quote:
You really do not expect to see this in year 24.
Posted on 3/30/26 at 7:52 am to Porker Face
1. The Norm unis were a cool tribute but looked TERRIBLE and we played equally terrible in them.
2. It says a lot about how frustrating this team must be to bench Aloy in the midst of a big nothingburger at home against Florida.
3. I can't put my finger on it exactly but something about this particular team feels "off". Maybe it's chemistry or something... on paper they should be better.... feels like a long month coming up....
2. It says a lot about how frustrating this team must be to bench Aloy in the midst of a big nothingburger at home against Florida.
3. I can't put my finger on it exactly but something about this particular team feels "off". Maybe it's chemistry or something... on paper they should be better.... feels like a long month coming up....
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