The Binghamton University baseball team is far from perfect. Losing a major league-quality starting pitcher, losing a reliable closer and putting in pitchers who generally don’t start in weekend games would be a trying experience for any team.

But boy, the Bearcats can hit.

This Bearcat squad has the potential to be one of the best offenses we’ve seen in a while. The lineup has experienced almost no losses from last year to this year, and that means more than just bringing back quality hitters. Having everyone spend a full year together means developing chemistry — a trait that may not matter much on a losing team, but one that can mean taking the next step from a good club to a great one.

You also can’t underestimate the importance of last year’s NCAA tournament games and their lone tourney win, the program’s first ever. The guys know what it takes to get there. A team’s first time making a run like that is about excitement and energy; a repeat is about maturity and experience.

Binghamton head coach Tim Sinicki said that the quality of this offense goes beyond runs scored or batting average or RBI. “They go up there and the numbers that you see statistically are great,” he said. “The core guys for us, the guys that we knew we can count on, they’re putting up numbers that we saw, but they’re also having quality at-bats along with that.” The thing that makes a veteran team like this so special is that the players have learned to be patient, to take pitches in order to work the pitcher and let teammates see more pitches.

So far, junior Peter Bregartner and sophomore Dave Ciocchi have been the offensive leaders — a little surprising from Bregartner, who is hitting .444 with a team-high nine RBI and two home runs in three fewer games than the rest of the team, but not so surprising from America East Rookie of the Year Ciocchi.

The important thing to note, though, is the play of juniors Henry Dunn and Corey Taylor. Dunn was hampered last year by injuries after a redshirt season, but in his freshman year was named to the All-Rookie team and All-Conference second team. Now supposedly healthy, he is hitting .313 with six RBIs, a team-high nine runs, a triple and two stolen bases. If Dunn can stay healthy all year, his presence near the top of the lineup changes the entire nature of the lineup.

Meanwhile Taylor, the team’s breakout offensive star alongside Ciocchi, is hitting just .273 with six RBIs and one home run, but that was what the team expected going into the year. Not only is the team playing quality opponents, but Taylor isn’t taking those teams by surprise anymore. They have two years’ worth of scouting reports and know they have to be careful with him. Sinicki said going into the year that Taylor would get fewer pitches to hit so he’d have to contribute in more ways, and that’s what we’ve seen. Taylor is the team leader in walks and stolen bases.

The offense is going to be good, but no offense alone can carry a team. Junior left-hander James Giulietti has more than lived up to his role as team ace so far with his 1.10 ERA, but the rest of the young pitching staff still needs to take major strides. It’s a lot to ask freshmen and sophomores to take on the major roles they are being asked to take, but if the Bearcats are going to take advantage of the talent and experience they have on offense, these guys will absolutely have to do their part.