Its been thirteen years of mostly craptastic baseball
by TerryD (2019-06-19 14:55:46)
Edited on 2019-06-19 15:01:17

In reply to: Come On  posted by NDIrishBB

Post Reply Return to Jake's Field

One NCAA Tournament appearance in all of that time (2015, unless my old age causes me to forget others).

Have you seen the near empty, lifeless stands at Eck on TV?

Have you watched ND get beat by every MAC team it played this season?

ND baseball, once a top program, has been left to die on the vine.

My comment was meant to be hyperbole, but not by a lot....

2015
by NDIrishBB  (2019-06-19 15:35:56)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

I was on the 2015 team and even that year the seats were empty (so need need to watch on TV???). Did fans show up in 2015 when we finished 17-13 (T-2nd overall) in the ACC and only lost a single midweek game. Nope. It's a process and "dropping the program" doesn't solve a single one of your issues.
Like I said, hyperbole
by TerryD  (2019-06-19 16:01:53)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

Do you think hiring a new coach alone will change the trajectory of ND baseball?

I don't.

ND got pretty good crowds until 2006. Then, the program went into the crapper. It is still there.

Regarding the Eck, do you rate it higher than 13th out of 14 ACC venues?

I have to watch home games on TV, since I live in Baton Rouge.

But, I drove 7 hours every year to watch ND play in San Antonio, so I saw you there in 2015.
Hiring a coach is a start
by NDIrishBB  (2019-06-19 16:10:08)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

It's hard to put money into a program that isn't winning. I agree that you need to invest in the program on the front-end to aid in winning, but they have actually done that to an extent. Turf field in 2014, Padded walls in 2017, $2M team room in 2018, occasionally taking a charter to an away series. So they are slowly putting some money into the program and they continue to make strides, but again, it is difficult to do that for a program that isn't winning. And I think if you can invest in one single thing, it is putting $ towards the coaching staff. I don't think you would see giant crowds at a Michigan baseball game. And back 10 years ago, they didn't have the greatest facilities either. However, they have continued to build various pieces of their program, and most importantly, they started by investing in a head coach who has done an unbelievable job there.
Agree, money needs to go into coaching
by TerryD  (2019-06-19 16:19:14)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

If ND just hires a coach on the cheap, the program will continue to wallow in its mire.

Forgive the hyperbole, I am just a frustrated fan who has watched or listened to every ND baseball game since 1997, lives and dies with the baseball team and has been dismayed by the downward trajectory of the program since 2006.
Agreed
by NDIrishBB  (2019-06-19 16:28:20)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

No need to apologize. No one is happy when the team isn't succeeding. I can tell you that no one directly involved with the program is happy about it either. Everyone deserves better, especially the fans. You continuing to be a fan and sticking with it through these rough years is much appreciated. Although a former player, I am now a fan as well and hoping to see things turned around!