We’re two weeks into the Ivy League baseball season with intra-division play beginning this weekend. So what do we know so far?
1. Dartmouth Definitely Looking Like the Favorite
The Big Green’s conference record remains as flawless as it was when Dartmouth started Ivy play, with eight wins in eight tries and 10 straight victories overall for head coach Bob Whalen’s squad. How is the Big Green getting it done? A combination of otherworldly offense and stellar starting pitching.
Dartmouth hitters are absolutely abusing Ivy pitching so far—only two regulars in Dartmouth’s lineup are hitting below .300. Of course, you don’t need everyone hitting .300 or better if you have someone at almost .600 anyway. That would be Nick Santomauro, whose .548 average in 31 at-bats is far and away the best mark in the league for starters. And that comes with four home runs, 10 RBIs, and an absurd 1.708 OPS. Toss in Johnathon Santopadre’s .407 average and the seven home runs split between Ray Allen and Jim Wren, and it adds up to a team batting average of .364 and 17 home runs in eight games.
Dartmouth’s hurlers aren’t far behind, with three of the Big Green’s four regular starters boasting ERAs under 4.50. It’s no surprise to see Robert Young, younger brother of former Dartmouth ace Russell Young, leading the way with a 3.21 mark and 12 strikeouts in two starts. Cole Sulser and rookie Kyle Hendricks have also impressed.
2. Rookie of the Year Race Heats Up
Hendricks is also on notice as one of the league’s top first-year players, picking up an Ivy League Pitcher of the Week award after a seven-inning complete-game shutout of Columbia in his first conference start. But Hendricks isn’t alone in the conversation about top Ivy rookies. Big Green teammate Joe Sclafani has been stellar as Dartmouth’s leadoff hitter, racking up a .343 average to go along with a .410 OBP in his first collegiate season.
Other rookies of note include Harvard’s Jeff Reynolds, who has been a powerful weapon off of the bench for the Crimson, while Eric Schultz has a sterling 1.93 ERA in 14 innings out of the bullpen for Yale. For Columbia, freshman Jon Eisen has stepped into the void at second base left by the departure of 2008 Ivy League Player of the Year Henry Perkins, hitting .301 with 15 RBIs and eight steals.
3. Columbia Outfield Soldiers On After Losses
With Noah Cooper lost to graduation and Jason Banos out for the year after a leg injury in the offseason, Columbia’s outfield situation looked grim heading into 2009. With defending Ivy League Rookie of the Year Nick Cox locked in as the center fielder, head coach Brett Boretti has been rotating a trio of underclassmen at the outfield corner spots. Bobby O’Brien, Billy Rumpke, and Anthony Potter have all seen time in left and right field, with O’Brien in particular shining offensively. The sophomore from Fairfield, Conn., who saw limited playing time in 2008, leads the Lions with a .366 average in 16 games and eight starts, and had a career-best five RBIs in a 12-11 loss to Brown last weekend.
4. Bracey Stepping in for Graduated Starters
Perhaps the biggest question facing the Lions going into 2009 was how they would make up the innings pitched by Perkins, John Baumann, and Bill Purdy last year. Joe Scarlata and Geoff Whitaker were slotted in as the first and second starters, but it remained to be seen how Dan Bracey, primarily a reliever in 2008, would respond to becoming a full-time starter. So far, so good for Bracey, who threw eight outstanding innings against Harvard in his Ivy opener but stumbled against the Bulldogs the next week. The biggest reason for Bracey’s success? Dramatically improved control, with the sophomore walking only seven batters in 31 innings—a walk-per-nine-innings (BB/9) ratio of 2.03. That’s a far cry from last year’s dreadful 31 walks in 39.2 innings, a BB/9 of over seven.