After being on the verge of finishing with winning records the past few years, Plymouth State Baseball is looking for all the pieces to come together in 2007. The Panthers have 17 players returning, while seven new players will round out their twenty-four man roster. When they do hit the field this spring on March 17th in Florida they will be, “Offensively and defensively better than last year,” said head coach Dennis McManus.
After finishing 15-24 last season, Plymouth State does have reasons to be optimistic. Their leading hitter from last year, Josh Labossiere, returns to lineup, hopefully building upon his .338 batting average from last season. Labossiere also led the team with 13 stolen bases, 90 total bases, and a slugging percentage of .584. Labossiere will be joined in the outfield by senior Steve Campo and junior newcomer Adam White. Campo hit .328 last season with 28 RBI, and a slugging percentage of .431. White brings good speed and defense to the team, while his bat is still unproven at this level.
In the infield, senior captain Dylan Mullin looks to steer the ship from shortstop, while sophomore second baseman Josh Roberti returns to keep the double-play combo in tact. Senior Jamie Aceto will hold down first base, while sophomore Jay Kleponis will likely get the start at the other corner. Both bring quality defense and consistent bats to the lineup. First-year players Steve Picco and Jared LeClaire will see time at third base and shortstop respectively as they both bring solid defense to the table. They too will need to prove themselves at the plate where they have no experience at the collegiate level. Sophomore Marc McGinnis will also see time at first base, catcher and outfield as a very good defensive utility man. He’ll look for more experience at the plate this season as well, whereas he only had thirteen at-bats in his first year.
Plymouth looks to be very strong behind the plate in this year. Junior captain John Pogorzelski, junior Brandon Hodge, and senior transfer Chris Carpenter will round out the top of he lineup for the Panthers. “Pogo,” as he’s called by his teammates, brings great defense and leadership to the club, while Hodge, solid defensively as well, also provides a power threat. Carpenter, a transfer from UMass Lowell, brings with him great power at the plate and very solid defense behind it. The opportunity to keep these players fresh should be a great asset for Plymouth State in 2007. They will also hopefully help guide the one real question mark for the Panthers this spring.
Pitching will undoubtedly be the biggest question for Plymouth in their 2007 campaign. “Our pitchers’ ability to be consistent and keep us in games is the key,” said McManus. While the starting rotation has yet to be determined, Plymouth does bring back quality arms with senior Tim Conway, juniors Justin Flanagan, Ryan Lavelle, and ace Chip Hale. Sophomores include Nick Jowders, Chris Welch, Joe Brayton, Adam Neshe, Taylor Ketchum, Nick Englert, and Ryan Hannon. The team must deal with the loss of one of their best arms from last year as Jim VanGyzen will not return this season. VanGyzen was the Panthers’ only pitcher who had an ERA below 4.00 last year. Ketchum and Brayton are two players who will look to expand their roles in 2007. They only started three games combined last season, but this year at least one of them could look to fit into the starting rotation. These two arms seem to be key for the Panthers, who desperately need to make up for the production that VanGyzen took with him.
Sophomore newcomer Adam Neshe will give PSU a new lefty arm this season. His inexperience at this level can no doubt be questioned, but his strong fastball and quality out pitches don’t need to be. Plus, he’s a southpaw. It looks as if Flanagan and Jowders could both look to jump into the starting rotation, while Lavelle, Welch, Englert, and Hannon will most likely look to provide consistent relief this spring. For McManus, and assistant coaches Guy Kenneson, Dave Anderson, and Scott Hodson, the next couple weeks will provide answers to current question marks.
The Panthers will need to get off to a better start this season when they make their annual trip down to Fort Myers, Florida to play in the Gene Cusie Classic. The Gene Cusie Classic, held in Florida every spring is a great opportunity for teams to get off to a running start. As in the case of Plymouth, it’s also very beneficial because there is still a foot of snow on the baseball field. Teams who must deal with snow prolonging their chance to get outside can benefit from this trip greatly. Last year, Plymouth did not perform the way they would’ve liked, as they won three games and lost seven down in Florida. They will have the chance to redeem themselves this year with doubleheaders against the likes of St. Lawrence University, Fredonia State, Kalamazoo, Trinity, and Amherst University. These games are undeniably important to Plymouth as they have the chance to develop a winning attitude early, while also proving things will be different this year than from those in the recent past.
The health of ace Chip Hale is something that McManus has been monitoring closely. Hale has seen limited live work, while he focuses on getting back to full strength. The importance of Hale cannot be underestimated by any means. In 2006, he led the Panthers in innings pitched, games started, complete games, wins and strikeouts. If the pitching is going to get the job done this season for PSU, it will no doubt begin, and maybe end, on the right arm of Chip Hale.
There is no question that the 2007 Plymouth State Baseball team will be ready to go when they board the plane for Florida at 7:00 in the morning on March 16. The real question will be whether or not all the pieces that are in place, can fit together to make a cohesive, winning ball club. Campo holds the optimistic view of others around the program this year, “Offense, defense, and pitching are all there, there is no doubt we have the talent. It’s up to us now.” Plymouth will play a doubleheader against St. Lawrence University on March 17th, followed by another double-dip against Fredonia State on the 18th. Fans won’t have to wait long to see whether this year’s group will live up to hype, or be just another team on the verge.