Baseball Preview

The spring season is upon us, and the baseball team is gearing up for what will hopefully be another chapter in the UB athletic turnaround this season. The team includes nine freshmen who should get spot duty for the most part, and provide the Bulls with some much needed depth as they get ready for 2002.

With spring break pushed back this year, the Bulls will not be able to go on any extended trips south, much to the chagrin of the sun-seeking boys of summer. Buffalo will, however, be able to go on a few more trips this year, although none for any lengthy duration.

UB Head Coach Bill Breene is not concerned about his team's lack of time on the road that could have been used to build team chemistry.

"We recruit five or six new guys each year, and they just kind of fit in. We're a year-round program, so they're together all the time," Breene said. "From the time the school starts to the time that baseball season is over . [the new guys] just kind of mesh in with the guys that have been around . and the bullets fly for real on March 1."

UB will not be on "the road" as much in 2002, thanks to the renovation of the Amherst Pepsi Center Field. The team's home games will be played at the newly renovated field at the Pepsi Center across from North Campus this season. In 2001, home games were played at Dunn Tire Park in downtown Buffalo, Dwyer Stadium in Batavia, N.Y., and the field at the Pepsi Center.

New additions to Amherst Pepsi Center Field include an inning-by-inning scoreboard, dugouts, and a screen to protect vehicles from foul balls.

Here is a look at the 2002 Bulls by position:

Coaching

Breene returns for his fourth year as head coach, and will be joined by Dave Borsuk (pitching coach) and Ron Torgalski (hitting and fielding coach).

There is also a new face on the coaching staff for the Bulls this year in former player Kevin Brown. He will be a positional coach and will aid Buffalo in a volunteer, part-time capacity.

Pitching

The pitching staff is considerably deeper than last year, with the return of some injured players and the addition of newcomers that may be used in a relief capacity. With the depth of pitching, there is plenty of healthy competition expected during the non-conference portion of the schedule, as the pitchers will be vying for a spot in the starting rotation.

Senior right-hander Brendan Dunford is likely to have a sure spot in the rotation. The return of senior right-hander Anthony Puccia from off-season surgery could also have a big impact on the quality of the Bulls' pitching.

Catching

The Bulls are solid at catcher with junior Brandon DiCesare, who had a .984 fielding percentage last year, starting again this season. DiCesare was fourth on last year's team in batting average, and started all 42 games in which he appeared.

Freshman Dave Amaro and sophomore Fran Coudriet will back up DiCesare.

Infield

Buffalo will likely start three juniors and a senior in the infield. The experience each player gathered from last season should go a long way to improving the fielding this season.

Juniors Kevin Nesteruck (shortstop) and Adrian Daniels (second base) will start up the middle for the Bulls. Bryan Sanchez will be at third base and senior Corey Blair will start at first.

"They've been in game situations, they should be ready to go. So having experience there will help, and we've got freshmen at every position backing them up, and I think they're quality freshmen," said Torgalski.

Outfield

Probable starters in the outfield are senior Eric Huber and junior Tim Sova. The other outfield spot is there for the taking, but freshman John Boom looks to be the leading candidate as of right now, as Breene was very pleased with his work in the fall.

Boom is from London, Ontario and must first adjust to the level of play in Division I college baseball in order to win the starting spot.

Hitting

Eric Huber broke the Buffalo single-season hit record last year. The lefty has good bat control and is a threat to take the ball deep on every pitch.

Sanchez has the single-season and career home run record under his belt, and also led the team in home runs last season with 12. The Bulls will be counting on him to provide some much needed power at the plate and some timely hitting with runners in scoring position.

Breene expects Sova, the leadoff hitter, to also have a big impact at the plate for the Bulls.

"He gets hit by pitches, he walks, he does anything to get on base," Breene said. "He's a guy that you hate to play against, he doesn't overwhelm you with any of his skills, he's just always on base . he's always making his plays."

Outlook

The Bulls lost nine games by one run last year, and will look to reverse their fortunes for the upcoming campaign. They lost two of those games to LeMoyne - a strong program - in the bottom of the last inning, and almost split their season series with eventual MAC champion Kent State.

"You look back and you say, 'We're there, we're close.' Nobody really overpowered us last year. I guess that was the most positive thing that came from last year," Breene said. "We played Florida International, we had the MAC schedule . we were positive about what we saw, and what we had the potential to do this year."

"We've stayed the course with our young guys, and now they're juniors, we are fortunate enough to have those couple of fifth-year seniors, but it's primarily a junior team. Those kids have been playing all the time, they know we have confidence in them and they just have to go out and play. I know we've got players that are as good as anyone we're going to face."

With the new talent, another year of experience, and the number of close games the Bulls had last year, they seem poised to make strides this season, similar to what the football and men's basketball teams have been able to do this past year.

Upcoming

The Bulls travel to Hattiesburg, Miss. this upcoming weekend where they will open their season on the road against Southern Mississippi on March 1.