Hello Everyone,
Well, last weekend did not go as planned for the Rhody Rams as we were swept in Tallahassee by #9 Florida State. That being said, we once again have a chance to prove we can hang with big time programs as we head to #8 Ole Miss for a weekend series and then travel to #5 Mississippi State for two mid-week games.
In baseball, you have to have a short memory. And as a team, we have to learn from our mistakes and make sure we continue to perfect our craft if we want to compete at the level we know we can. A quick turnaround and a 10-day road trip will hopefully give us a chance to settle in and start playing quality baseball.
Not all was negative on opening weekend, though. We received two quality starts on Saturday and Sunday from senior Sean Furney and junior Liam O’Sullivan. Seeing those guys go out and truly compete gave our team great energy and put us in a position to win both of those games. All that was left to do was finish – and unfortunately we were unable to do that – but down the stretch our team is completely confident that our bullpen can compete with anybody.
On the offensive side, we struggled to get a big knock when we needed it. Hopefully, over the course of this road trip, our hitters can settle and play with the confidence that is needed to succeed in big spots.
Connor Foreman – a freshman from Washington – came off the bench and earned a base knock in his first career at bat in a tight spot on Sunday afternoon. He now claims that, “It happened so fast that I don’t even remember, it was awesome!” That moment put a smile on the faces of all the “veterans” on our team. We all know the feeling of that first knock, and for him to get it in his first at-bat, against a quality program like Florida State – that was pretty special.
Lastly, I would like to give a shout-out to a long-time friend and former conference rival at UMass, Tom Conley. He will make his coaching debut this weekend for the Bryant Bulldogs. TC played his entire career – from little league to college – with a passion that has been pretty inspiring to me. I am very excited for him to begin a new career as a coach. Something tells me he’s going to be a great one.
Until Next Time,
Mike Le Bel
