Carleton baseball ready to strike back

Carleton’s men’s baseball team is looking to return to the diamond this fall in what is expected to be a year of substantial improvement, according to the team.

Under head coach Andre Robidoux, the Ravens finished with an 8-12 record last year in Canadian Collegiate Baseball Association (CCBA) play. The Ravens’ streak of three consecutive appearances at CCBA Nationals was halted as the team was forced to watch the play-downs from the bleachers.

“We lost some of our big guys and a bunch of our key hitters last year,” Robidoux said. “Veteran guys like [catcher/outfielder] Evan Hammond and Steve Renaud at short [stop]. You can’t really replace them.”

The Ravens also lost right-handed starting pitcher Brendan Saville to a torn meniscus right before playoffs, leaving the team without a crucial member. Saville will return to the Ravens as a member of Robidoux’s coaching staff.

Despite the Ravens’ misfortune last year, the returning coaches and players said they feel confident about the 2015 season.

“Last year we were a younger team. With more experience we will have a stronger core of players,” said junior pitcher Braden McGinnis, who will play a leadership role on the team.

“Baseball is a game of going out on the field and executing the game day-by-day. I feel that our group will be able to take out past experiences and use them to become a better team,” McGinnis said.

McGinnis is one of 10 current and former Carleton ballplayers who are playing out the off-season on the National Capital Baseball League’s Bytown Battalion.

Junior right-handed pitcher Tom Peake said he thinks the summer experience and camaraderie gained in the NCBL will be valuable for the upcoming fall.

Peake’s 2014 performance on the mound was among the Ravens’ bright spots last year. Peake pitched a no-hitter against their rivals, the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees.

“Naturally for myself the no-hitter game stands out as memorable;
that was an awesome game and an awesome feeling,” Peake said. “Standout games to me would be the ones where everything would just come together. One that sticks out for me would be against Concordia, where we won eight or nine nothing. It was nice seeing our whole team reach its full potential like that.”

While Robidoux said he certainly knows which players will be missing on his 2015 lineup cards, the new players to be added remain a mystery. The finalized roster remains up in the air until early September open tryouts are completed.

Among those who have left the nest are former top pitcher nominee Wil McIntyre, first baseman Drew McCormick, and speedy outfielder Jordan Bails, who was an Australian exchange student.

Returning players Peake and McGinnis said they are looking forward to donning Carleton colours and caps yet again after successful off-season training and playing. McGinnis said he has packed on 32 pounds of muscle to strengthen his pitching.

“Last year we missed the cut and now we have something to prove . . . that we belong there,” said Peake of his team’s attitude. “We have the talent and the coaching to do it. That’s what you can expect from your Ravens this year.”

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