This team keeps proving me wrong

[GhostOfJackie]

I love this baseball program and it means the world to me and others in my family. I'll stamp that right on my *** if I had to prove my loyalty to this program, which some of you hopefully understand.

Throughout the season I've made a few sunshine pumper posts about how "this team will be playing well at the right time", and "this team will slide into a regional don't you worry", and "better learn history fockers", etc. I keep telling myself this team will turn it around, at some point this team will click, and I thought this weekend would prove that with a sweep. I give up.... it's not going to happen. This team is not a typical historic type of State team that can find a way to win at all costs. I've enjoyed watching this team hit home runs this season but they don't have what it takes to drag balls across the ground. It's surprising and disappointing but this team is done. We are not going to "slide into a regional" in Atlanta or Hattiesburg. I was wrong.......

Sad, but I'm just going to enjoy the remainder of the season with no emotional attachment. We're still the big swinging dick at the cracker factory, but this year isn't the year. M over S will be back and we will always have the best fans in college baseball. We just failed to reload this season.


I love you all,
GOJ

 

[Dawgbite]

Yep. Pretty spot on.

 

[GhostOfJackie]

I’ll spend the remainder of this season enjoying us play, and pounding the narrative of “even in our down years we are still a better program than Ole Miss will ever be”.

They know it’s true

 

[aTotal360]

Wait till football season...

 

[Dawgbite]

I'm going to Hoover and watch this bunch make another team's message board melt down.

 

[GhostOfJackie]

I hope you’re right. I just don’t see it.

 

[Dawgtruc]

they don't have what it takes to drag balls across the ground.

We're still the big swinging dick

LoL

 

[onewoof]

We sweep UTenn. You heard it here first.

 

[Cooterpoot]

Won't lose a game the rest of the season now

 

[cowbell88]

The “it” factor hasn’t developed. Must develop by this weekend.

 

[thekimmer]

I tend to agree. So what happened?...

I love this baseball program and it means the world to me and others in my family. I'll stamp that right on my *** if I had to prove my loyalty to this program, which some of you hopefully understand.

Throughout the season I've made a few sunshine pumper posts about how "this team will be playing well at the right time", and "this team will slide into a regional don't you worry", and "better learn history fockers", etc. I keep telling myself this team will turn it around, at some point this team will click, and I thought this weekend would prove that with a sweep. I give up.... it's not going to happen. This team is not a typical historic type of State team that can find a way to win at all costs. I've enjoyed watching this team hit home runs this season but they don't have what it takes to drag balls across the ground. It's surprising and disappointing but this team is done. We are not going to "slide into a regional" in Atlanta or Hattiesburg. I was wrong.......

Sad, but I'm just going to enjoy the remainder of the season with no emotional attachment. We're still the big swinging dick at the cracker factory, but this year isn't the year. M over S will be back and we will always have the best fans in college baseball. We just failed to reload this season.


I love you all,
GOJ

I am sure Chris Lemonis and crew have already been contemplating this because their continued employment depends on figuring this out and correcting it. This season is perhaps the most disappointing one I have ever experienced. This is not the worst by a long shot but the differential between the outcome vs expectations this season is monumental. Plus it sucked all of the wind out of what should have been a continuation of our NC celebration.

Now to what happened. Certainly the pitching issues are much easier to understand given the double whammy of draft losses and the injury bug. The hitting issues are really a gut punch that are harder to understand because we brought back so many position players from a NC team. Looking at the stats our team BA is actually a few points higher right now than what we finished with last year. The big difference though is in HR. We are already at 83 HR in 45 games and only hit 75 last season in 68 games. Doubles are projecting to be way down though. We have hitting starting pitching and especially sucked in situational hitting with runners on base. Is it as simple as we are to fixated on swinging for the fences that we can't hit a line drive or hard ground ball through the infield with RISP?

 

[PirateDawg]

I have felt the same way. The dynamics are completely different for this team than teams in the past. We always had someone step up and be the leader but I haven't seen anyone take on that role. Jake Mangum, Rowdey Jordan, Tanner Allen were all great team leaders that "stepped up" and got their teams going. Name someone on this team that has done that. I think we have several players that could take on the role like Yeager, Cumbest, James or Hancock.

 

[PartTimeGenius]

It seems we lack some of this:

 

[CochiseCowbell]

Latin Americans or Anger?

 

[PartTimeGenius]

YES

 

[dog12]

Is it as simple as we are to fixated on swinging for the fences that we can't hit a line drive or hard ground ball through the infield with RISP?

Yes.

To win baseball games, we MUST get hits with runners on base. That is how runs are scored and baseball games are won.

Timely hits . . . how many of those did we get last season?

How many timely hits have we gotten this season?

In my opinion, that's the biggest difference-maker between last season and this season.

 

[60sdog]

Yes.

To win baseball games, we MUST get hits with runners on base. That is how runs are scored and baseball games are won.

Timely hits . . . how many of those did we get last season?

How many timely hits have we gotten this season?

In my opinion, that's the biggest difference-maker between last season and this season.

You nailed this completely. When you combine lack of character at the plate in critical situations, with a tattered pitching staff, you've got what we see now.

 

[Dawgbite]

It’s not any one single thing. We didn’t realize what we lost from last year. Clutch hitting, pitching, but mostly leadership. We all spent too much time basking in the Championship, fans, coaches, and players. A championship program acts like it’s been there before, we didn’t act like we had been there before because we hadn’t. The players that we all expected to step up and carry this team didn’t take that next step. Last year they were supporting the leaders, the leaders left and these guys are still playing a supporting role. The injuries were the straw that broke the camels back. Up until then we still had a chance to turn this season into something special. Not making a regional may be just the cold splash of water that this program needs. Next years team will be hungry, mark it down. They will come out with a chip on their shoulder instead of someone patting their back telling them how great they are.

 

[xxxWalkTheDawg]

Latin Americans or Anger?

A couple of Luis’ and maybe a Tito for good measure.

 

[maroonmania]

Yes.

To win baseball games, we MUST get hits with runners on base. That is how runs are scored and baseball games are won.

Timely hits . . . how many of those did we get last season?

How many timely hits have we gotten this season?

In my opinion, that's the biggest difference-maker between last season and this season.

And we must also NOT continue to give out free baserunners to our opponents at a record pace. It seems almost every player we walk or hit with a pitch ends up scoring. I'm amazed at how many games we have outhit our opponent yet lose the game. And it always boils down to our inability to hit with runners in scoring position combined with the free baserunners we give to our opponents that always seem to find a way to score.

 

[GhostOfJackie]

I have felt the same way. The dynamics are completely different for this team than teams in the past. We always had someone step up and be the leader but I haven't seen anyone take on that role. Jake Mangum, Rowdey Jordan, Tanner Allen were all great team leaders that "stepped up" and got their teams going. Name someone on this team that has done that. I think we have several players that could take on the role like Yeager, Cumbest, James or Hancock.

Also surprising to me, is that we did not have a dominant starter step up on the mound this year. I can think all the way back a decade and most every single year we had a dominant Friday or Saturday starter. I'm talking dominant starters with names like Stratton, Bednar, Hudson, Graveman, Sexton, Pilkington, Small, etc. Just think of how much starting talent we have had on the mound that was not there this season. I kept thinking (assuming) we would have a dominant guy step up, but it didn't happen.

 

[DirtyDog]

Who's Next Year's Starters?

The combination of the lack of timely hitting and inconsistent pitching has really hurt this team (beyond losing Simms and Simmons of course). An issue that concerns me is that I don't see potential for next year's starting pitching. Normally we have a dominant Friday guy (Simms this year), a good Saturday guy, and a work-in-progress Sunday starter with a couple of up-and-coming mid-week starters. I just don't see any true starting pitchers in the que unless Jack Walker emerges at some point. Who we got coming up that can start? I think we have to go to the portal, but what do we find?

 

[kired]

Also surprising to me, is that we did not have a dominant starter step up on the mound this year. I can think all the way back a decade and most every single year we had a dominant Friday or Saturday starter. I'm talking dominant starters with names like Stratton, Bednar, Hudson, Graveman, Sexton, Pilkington, Small, etc. Just think of how much starting talent we have had on the mound that was not there this season. I kept thinking (assuming) we would have a dominant guy step up, but it didn't happen.

Unfortunately that guy is coaching 1B.

I blame this season mostly on our pitching. Everyone keeps complaining about leadership, can't get runs home, etc. The 2022 team has a higher average with runners on base, in scoring position, with 2 outs, and bases loaded. As a whole, this is a better hitting and fielding team than 2021. We don't have the best hitter in the SEC - we can't expect to have that guy every year. But we've got a solid group of hitters. 7 of 9 starters are hitting over .275, and 4 are over .300. Last year we had 5 over .275 and 3 over .300

But pitching... ERA is way up, batting average is way up, no closer, practically no saves, no shutouts - we have given up at least 1 run every single game. We give up a ton of doubles and HRs, meaning hitters are nailing us. Take our offense with TA and Rowdy from 2021, combined with our 2022 pitching - we don't make it to Omaha. Hell, we may not beat Campbell. Remember we needed a long outing from Sims to shut them down. Does anyone think this year's bullpen could protect a 6-5 lead for 3 innings?

 

[blacklistedbully]

Also surprising to me, is that we did not have a dominant starter step up on the mound this year. I can think all the way back a decade and most every single year we had a dominant Friday or Saturday starter. I'm talking dominant starters with names like Stratton, Bednar, Hudson, Graveman, Sexton, Pilkington, Small, etc. Just think of how much starting talent we have had on the mound that was not there this season. I kept thinking (assuming) we would have a dominant guy step up, but it didn't happen.

That was going to be Landon Simms. Can't understate how big of a problem that became. We may get to the point where the difference between making a regional and not making it is a handful of games we more likely would have won with Simms on the mound.