Hello from beneath 4 feet of snow in the Northeast and unfortunately a lot more snow in forecast in the coming days!
My name is Ray Ricker and I am in my fourth season as Associate Head Baseball Coach at Division II Post University in Waterbury, Connecticut. The Post University Eagles compete in the C.A.C.C. (Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference) which unlike many colleges in the country, we don’t have to worry about the new bats this year, because our conference only swings wood. Our guys really like swinging the wood, our pitchers love throwing to them, and the game is played the way it is supposed to be played with a crack of the bat and not a ping.
I hope to fill you in on what is going on with our program both on and off the field this season, hopefully some highlights and without question the comedic antics of our team.
Over the past two summers I have been fortunate to be the Manager for the New Bedford Bay Sox in the New England Collegiate Baseball League while this summer I will be managing closer to home for a new entry in the N.E.C.B.L. the Mystic Schooners. There is no doubt why the league is widely considered one of the best summer leagues in the country. The N.E.C.B.L. is the only amateur league that Stephen Strasburg played in.
I have been lucky enough to have coached numerous players that were drafted and sign professional contracts off of those teams and some players are projected to go in the first round of the draft this year.
Like many teams on the East Coast we have been getting hammered with snow storm after snow storm which is making it impossible for us to go outside and are forced to stay inside. We have been very fortunate to be working out at some great facilities that will get us prepared for our first game that is only 24 days away versus a very talent Molloy College team down in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The team hasn’t reached the cabin fever level yet, but these guys are ready to get out of our gym and compete versus somebody wearing a different jersey then our own.
We are coming into the 2011 season with high expectations on our shoulders, after last season saw the Eagles reach the C.A.C.C. Championship game falling in a winner take all trip to the Northeast Regional. The program lost several key players, but this year we have a great blend of returners and very talented new comers. The guys have been working their tails off to make sure we are ready compete every pitch of every game and make it back to that Championship Final but with a different outcome. It is an exciting time here at Post University in our baseball program.
Thanks for taking the time out and checking out my blog. I’ll be doing this every week here at College Baseball Daily; I might be doing it more often if this snow doesn’t leave so we can play some ball games in the Northeast this season. You can also follow me on Twitter @CoachRix8.
-Ray Ricker
Coach Ricker will be providing weekly blogs throughout the 2011 season as the Eagles go throughout the season.
