On a sunny Saturday afternoon tailor-made for a ballgame, seniors Paul Snieder and Geoff Rowan packed up their bags. With a 4-0 loss to Saint Louis, Northwestern’s whirlwind season came to a close and subsequently, Snieder and Rowan, two of the team’s most prolific sluggers, had seen their last days in purple and white. It’s almost picturesque, enough to inspire the lyrics of some vaguely nostalgic country ballad, but a little frustrating too.
It should have been better than this.
There’s no denying it: At 18-36, the Wildcats had a rough year. Snieder and Rowan serve as reminders of what could have been, as NU’s record did not reflect its raw talent. This was a team that brought back six Big Ten honorees from 2011. But, of course, baseball is largely a game of intangibles and for one reason or another, things just didn’t quite click at Rocky Miller Park.
Still, the ‘Cats showed flashes of brilliance in 2012 and fans shouldn’t be hanging their heads too low. With a few strong performances from upperclassmen, next season could shape up to be considerably better.
High Points
The ‘Cats won two games apiece against Big Ten opponents Michigan and Nebraska, including a 6-5, 11-inning thriller in Ann Arbor on April 21. Northwestern averaged nearly six runs a game in March’s six-game RussMatt Central Florida Invitational, blanking Iowa 3-0 on March 24 and taking a 4-3 nail-biter from Indiana on May 11.
Snieder reached base in 18 consecutive games from Feb. 18 to March 20, homered twice in a three-game series against U.I.C. and notched a school-best 18th career save with two shutout innings against Chicago State on April 24.
Junior Zach Morton seemed to be all over the field this season, averaging a respectable .297 at the plate while tossing a 3.46 ERA in 13 starts on the hill. In a truly memorable performance, Morton knocked in two hits while posting nine shutout innings against Western Michigan on March 2. Later that month, he struck out eight Hawkeyes in seven innings.
Through April, Rowan’s average extended past .330. The catcher quickly built a reputation around the conference for his laser arm behind the plate and was placed on the watch list for the Johnny Bench Award, a prestigious honor given to the nation’s top backstop. The Naperville native finished at .291 and drove in 17 runs.
Jack Havey found some pop in his bat this year, tying for team leader in home runs with five. The junior infielder hit a game-tying dinger against Iowa on March 23 and knocked in three runs against Milwaukee at famous Miller Park.
Despite finishing at 2-7, senior righty Francis Brooke tossed a 2.51 ERA. Brooke thrived against conference opponents, throwing a complete game against Ohio State, striking out seven batters vs. Nebraska and nine vs. Illinois and allowing just one run against Michigan. Northwestern finished fourth in the conference in team ERA.
Low Points
At 18-36, not everything went according to plan for head coach Paul Stevens. The ‘Cats dropped three straight in February against Cal State Northridge and lost seven consecutive contests against No. 19 Purdue, St. Xavier and Minnesota. The Northwestern offense sputtered down the stretch, culminating in a paltry 1.86 runs per game in May action.
The Wildcats finished 2-10 in their final 12 games. The team hit a combined .253, good for second-to-last in the conference and fell to the Big Ten cellar in overall runs scored, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, doubles and triples.
Northwestern was 6-18 in conference and just 4-15 on the road. Some of the most lopsided losses of the year included a 14-6 beatdown against U.I.C., 7-0 against Purdue, 6-0 in Minnesota and 7-1 at Columbus. The pitching staff stabilized as the season went on, but struggled mightily at first with a 7.33 team ERA in February.
No starters topped .300, 35 RBI or a .450 slugging percentage. The ‘Cats failed to hit a home run in 45 of their 54 games, and were 0-30 when trailing after the eighth inning.
Where do we stand for 2013?
It’s hard to believe the ‘Cats won’t improve upon their .333 winning percentage next year. The loss of a few key seniors will hurt, but Morton, Nick Linne and Kyle Ruchim should anchor the offense. The pitching staff worked wonders this season and, barring any setbacks, Northwestern’s batting lineup will eventually catch up.
Last in the Big Ten undoubtedly hurts. But from here, there’s nowhere to look but up.