By Chris O’Grady
After convincing wins in the first two games of the NCAA Regional last spring, the University of Louisville baseball team was in an excellent position to advance to an NCAA Super Regional for the second consecutive year, after amassing a school record of 50 wins.
But it was not meant to be. An upstart University of Vanderbilt team beat the Cardinals twice – the second a 3-2 extra inning affair – leaving the Cards searching for answers as to what might have been.
“You have to go through a mourning period,” said head coach Dan McDonnell. “It should hurt. And that’s where this program is at. From the players to the administration to the fans, there are high expectations.”
As is usual in college baseball, the Cards were hit heavy by the draft, losing seven players – including co-captains Jeff Arnold and Adam Duvall. Top home run hitters Phil Wunderlich and Andrew Clark, along with pitchers Thomas Royse and Dean Kiekhefer, were also lost to the major league draft.
“In college baseball, younger guys generally have to play a larger role than in other sports, due to the draft,” said McDonnell. “We had seven juniors drafted. So this year you’ll see a lot of the growth period happen between the lines.”
The team will look a lot younger, something junior shortstop/second baseman Ryan Wright said might not be a terrible thing.
“Obviously, the biggest question on everybody’s mind is how we’re going to replace those guys, especially offensively,” said Wright. “We have just as much as talent as we’ve had in any other year. We’re just a little younger.”
Wright will be expected carry the offense that lost all but three starters. Wright hit .366 as a sophomore for the Cards, hitting much of the season in the four hole. He also hit 16 home runs and led the team with 80 RBIs. But the junior star said he doesn’t feel pressured into single-handedly lifting the team this spring.
“I don’t feel too much pressure to perform,” said Wright. “I’ve been able to learn from great hitters like Chris Dominguez. There’s no need to feel pressure when you’re prepared.”
The team began fall workouts on Sept. 7. McDonnell said the youth of the team, especially the 13 freshmen, led the coaching staff to favor more scrimmages, so as to teach in game-like situations.
“The fall really allows you to teach the system to these guys,” said McDonnell. “You get to have the guys out there competing. And we try not to over-coach, just let them go out there and see what they know. And, for most of them, that’s not much.”
McDonnell said he lets the core of older players do the correcting during the scrimmage. Afterward, the coach addresses corrections he saw. Senior outfielder Drew Haynes, one of only four seniors on this year’s team, said there has been some adjustment to the leadership role. He sees the importance of teaching the younger players.
“The last three years I’ve always had guys above me that would be the vocal leaders,” said Haynes. “But we realize how much these guys need to step up. And we’ve got to get them in a position for success, whether that means pulling them aside or whatever.”
Wright considers fall the most important part of the season, mostly for its ability to get new guys adjusted to the program.
“It’s absolutely the most important time of year for us,” said Wright. “There are lots of new guys that we need to see. And there are no down years in this program. They’ve got to come ready to play.”
Haynes agreed, citing the need for development of team cohesion, especially with so many new faces.
“It’s really good for us fundamentally, but also just for chemistry,” said Haynes. “We get to spend a lot of time together and play a lot of baseball.”
But McDonnell appeared confident and pleased with what he had seen, both from his returners and freshmen alike.
“Ryan Wright has gotten better each and every year,” said McDonnell. “And you always know what you’re going to get from Ijames, Haynes and Holland. And it’s been a big fall for a lot of sophomores and for freshmen as well.”
Despite the losses last season, the team remains confident this spring will be no such rebuilding year. The Cards feel they can respond to last season’s critical loss and the loss of so many players to the draft.
“This is a new team with a new personality,” said McDonnell. “We’re crafting our own identity while trying to accomplish the same goals.”
