Despite being picked to finish fifth in the America East (AE) this season, the Binghamton baseball team is sticking to its ultimate goal: competing for a conference championship.
The team comes off of a 2015 season that ended in a late season skid, and BU missed the playoffs for the first time since 2006. The conference has changed the rules this season, with each of the six eligible teams advancing to the conference playoff tournament, where previously only four teams had qualified. However, the Bearcats still have their eyes on one of the first two seeds.
“I think that over the last 10 years, we’ve done a pretty good job at establishing what the standard is for our program and it’s no secret that last year, we fell below that standard,” Binghamton head coach Tim Sinicki said. “We did not perform well. I don’t think that it was because we didn’t have good enough players or because we didn’t prepare well enough. I just think that we didn’t play as well as we were capable of playing.”
The team will be without outfielders Jake Thomas and Zach Blanden, who graduated last May. Thomas was drafted in the 27th round of the 2015 MLB amateur draft by the Toronto Blue Jays.
“When you lose guys like Jake Thomas and Zach Blanden — those guys were four-year starters — those are some big holes to fill,” Sinicki said. “But collectively (as a group), I think that the depth that we have in our lineup … is maybe as good as it’s been in a while.”
The Bearcats will switch their defensive alignment this season, placing junior infielder Brendan Skidmore at first base instead of shortstop, while sliding sophomore CJ Krowiak to the outfield full-time. Sinicki hopes that the changes solidify both BU’s offense and defense.
“CJ is as athletic a young man we could have in this program and playing the outfield will allow him to showcase his athleticism,” Sinicki said. “We’ve had a good history with center fielders in this program and with CJ out there … we won’t miss a beat in that regard.”
According to Sinicki, seniors Reed Gamache and David Schanz will play second and third base, respectively. Sinicki also says that sophomore infielder Paul Rufo will man shortstop while sophomore Chris McGee will start in right field. The rest of the lineup is up in the air, as Sinicki will use non-conference games to piece together the best possible combination.
“That’s what these games are for,” Sinicki said. “But at the same time, we want to go down and compete, be in ballgames as long as we can and try to put together enough wins in our non-conference schedule to feel good about our team as we head into conference play.”
Binghamton is set to open its season this weekend on the road in a four-game series with Houston Baptist, who claimed the Southland Conference title last season. The Bearcats will play the first two games on Friday, with the second pair of games on Saturday.
“We’ve done a pretty good job to challenge our guys and try to face competition that will prepare us for the America East schedule,” Sinicki said. “We have a pretty good idea on paper right now [about our lineup] but going out there and getting a chance to play 16 non-conference games in the first four weekends will help us plan out the rest of the year.”
According to Sinicki, senior Mike Bunal will pitch game one on Friday and senior Rob Hardy will get the ball for game two. The Bearcats will finish the series on Saturday as redshirt junior Jake Cryts will be on the mound for game three and freshman Nick Gallagher will pitch the finale.
“Our guys are anxious to get back at it this year,” Sinicki said. “Part of it is to erase the memory of last year and part of it, maybe, is to prove some people wrong that maybe we haven’t slipped a bit, and we’re still going to be in the mix for a conference championship.”
BU is scheduled to open its series against Houston Baptist on Friday at noon from Husky Field in Houston, Texas.