"Touching Base" is a column by Penn State baseball head coach Robbie Wine. Wine recently completed his second season leading the Nittany Lions.
[To read entries from the 2005 season, click here.]
May 24, 2006
Our season is over. It came down to the last game of the regular season. We just couldn?t get it done. I felt we had many opportunities in the final series to score some runs in tough situations but we didn?t come through with the big hit. It was the story of the season. We had 18 one-run games that could have turned the season around for us, especially in conference play. We can?t put any blame on any one aspect of the game. We had great pitching at times, great hitting at times and great fielding at times. We didn?t make the key pitch, get the key hit or make the clutch fielding gem when we needed.
That trend continued at Ohio State. We dropped three to the Buckeyes at their place. It was a good experience for our returning players to play under pressure in games like that and in that kind of environment. As for the seniors, I wish we could have gone out on a more positive note but I still believe we had many fun and memorable moments for them to reflect on.
We have had our end of season meetings with our players. We?ll wait to see what happens with the Major League draft in June. Most of our players will be out playing summer ball around the country. We are continuing our recruiting efforts to shore up some holes we need to fill on our roster and are getting ready for next fall. We are hoping the teams in the Big Ten tournament do well and wish them luck. We need some of those teams to earn national respect and compete throughout the post season.
I want to thank everyone for their interest and support this year. We are looking forward to next season and the move to Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. It will be an exciting year for Penn State Baseball.
May 15, 2006
Here it is a dreary Monday morning and it seems fitting for the way the team feels after a tough emotional weekend. We just couldn?t seem to get our offense going. We are down in the dumps today but the good thing is we have a chance to get back out on the field to play Villanova Tuesday and get back on track for our last Big Ten series at Ohio State.
Since my last entry we have gone through finals week here at Penn State and traveled to Purdue for a four game set Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Our practices were hit and miss as it was impossible to get the whole team together at one time. This week was focused on finals and optional workouts. We did a pretty good job of getting our work in though. The long bus trip following finals week showed up in our first two games, as we dropped both of them. We finished strong to take the next two and came home on a positive note.
The next weekend versus Michigan was not only important for our league standings but for a few other reasons. These would be the last games ever played on Beaver Field and the last home games for eight of our seniors. We opened the weekend by dropping our opener to Michigan. We came out flat and Michigan pitching shut us down. Following the game we had our banquet for the team. It was fun getting everyone together away from the field as we honored all our graduating seniors. Saturday the same continued in the first game, another loss. We rebounded in the second game in big fashion winning and scoring 13 runs. Our bats woke up and we were looking forward to a big game on Sunday. We didn?t get it done.
Even though we dropped three this past weekend we are still in the hunt for a Big Ten tourney berth. If we take care of business this weekend at Ohio State we should be OK. Let?s hope we get some help from others in the league.
We look forward to the challenge ahead of us. We need to focus on what is ahead of us and not dwell on what could have or what should have happened earlier in the year. We have an opportunity ahead of us and we need to take advantage of that opportunity. Wish us luck.
May 2, 2006
Another split! We still cannot figure out those two seven-inning games on Saturdays. Frustration is not the word to explain our feelings. Once again we played well in all four games but did not get the job done. Going 2-2 every weekend is not going to win us a Big Ten regular season championship. We want more and feel we are capable of more. The fact is we aren?t getting it done.
Friday?s game was a well played baseball game. Alan Stidfole did what he has been doing all year and gave us a chance to win. Matt Ogrodnik came in and did the job to get his second save of the year. Another Friday win in dramatic fashion. More gray hairs!
Saturday?s doubleheader was another story. We went extra innings again. Eleven innings worth of exciting baseball which included close plays, controversy and some hard-nosed baseball. We came up short. It was probably the most frustrating game I have ever been involved with, both as a player and a coach. I was proud of the fight and determination our guys displayed. They deserved better. Following the completion of game one my biggest concern was how do we regroup and put the first game behind us.
Game two starts 30 minutes later, the frustration and anxiety continued. Seth Whitehill took the mound and gave us a chance to win but our offense was pressing and trying to do too much. We were over aggressive and chased many pitches out of the strike zone through out the game.
Prior to batting practice on Sunday in a brief team meeting we talked about Saturday and all the events that took place. We talked about controlling the things we are able to and to stay with in ourselves. Play our game and don?t let distractions that arise during the course of a game take away from what we do best. We played a great game on Sunday to close out the series. Craig Clark pitched a complete game gem and was in control the whole game. Our defense played great and the patience of our hitters was back.
This team continues to impress me with the way they handle themselves day to day. I see growth and maturity after every game. As tough as this season has been to date they are still focused on the Big Ten standings and post season play. We are a bunch of fighters that play together and are not out of any game until the last out is recorded. It?s the kind of make up and team chemistry of a team that I am proud to coach.
April 27, 2006
This past weekend at Northwestern was a good sign of things to come. Although we only walked away from the series with a 2-2 record I thought our team played well. Game one and game four we came out and took care of business offensively. Games two and three both became pitching duels that we fell short on. I was impressed with our starting pitching all weekend, especially their competitiveness.
The whole team seems to be taking care of business and enjoying the game. They are taking all the instruction, coaching and experiences, good and bad, during the last couple of months and translating it into good fundamental baseball. Practices are short, energetic and efficient. We hit on many fundamentals in a short period of time. We have drilled so much throughout the year, it has become instinct and they seem to be trusting their abilities.
We are looking forward to this weekend against Indiana. We want to be on the field. It is nice to play at home and we are expecting some nice baseball weather. We hope everyone has a chance to come see us play. This team is exciting to watch even though they may be giving the coaches gray hairs. The can be considered the ?cardiac kids?, regarding the last couple weeks of extra inning games and games being decided in last at bats.
This is our final week of classes with finals next week. Our guys are doing well even with all of the travel and time spent on baseball this spring. If they take their competitiveness and strong finishes into their finals they will do well. Thank you to all the professors, instructors and the Morgan Academic Center for all of your cooperation and help with our guys this spring. It has been a success.
April 17, 2006
I told everyone this would be an exciting team to watch but I didn?t think it would be a series that would include three extra-inning games and a come-from-behind win in the ninth. This weekend gave the coaching staff a few more gray hairs to add to the many we have already had from this season.
I was excited to see the way our team continued to battle even when things didn?t go our way. We never gave up and showed the fight we have been looking for all year. It doesn?t mean we played great baseball but we competed. We have a lot of work to do with our bullpen. That doesn?t mean we are giving up on them. We just need to regroup and try to improve on our mistakes. Our starting pitching has done well and our offense is coming around.
If the effort and fight continues we should be fine. We have had some highs but also some lows this season. Through it all we continue to get better. These guys continue to show me a strong desire to succeed and won?t let anything get in their way. We are not happy walking away with a split of a four game series. We don?t dwell in the past and have already started to think about and prepare for the Big Ten leaders, Northwestern, this weekend.
The weather is warming up as are the bats. We are showing signs of putting it all together: pitching, hitting and defense. That?s what it will take to win this thing. The players continue to believe in themselves. To me, believing in themselves and their abilities is the most important aspect of getting over the hump to become a championship team.
April 10, 2006
We finally had the opportunity to play a mid-week game against our in-state rival Pitt. It was still considered a road game as we played it at the Washington Wild Things? stadium in Washington, Pa. It sure didn?t have the same atmosphere as our game versus Pitt last year in Altoona. It was a long trip for any Penn State fan to make on a very cold night. We came out on top in extra innings with a 7-4 victory. As important as the win was we needed the game on Wednesday to get back out on the field for more at bats and innings for our pitchers. The win in extra innings was a good confidence boost for us. Seth Whitehill continued to pitch well and showed us he is ready for a chance to help us out in conference play.
The win on Wednesday was what we needed prior to our first home game and series versus Iowa. It was nice being able to have a light practice on Thursday before Friday?s home opener. Iowa gave us trouble last year at their place and did the same this year. They are a team that plays hard. They make the routine plays and don?t do things to hurt themselves. We gave them some opportunities and they took advantage of them. We were not happy with the way we played and the frustration of trying to do too much hurt us. On the good side of things we fell behind in game four on Sunday and could have rolled over but we didn?t. We fought back and won with a combination of patience, key hits and determination. I was proud to see that in this bunch of guys.
I am not one to dwell on the past. We can?t take those games back. I do believe we will learn from them and continue to improve. We are a work in progress and we still believe in ourselves and our abilities. It is very important for us to concentrate on the things we can control and focus on playing the game the way we are capable of playing it and not trying to do too much.
We will practice on Tuesday followed by a home game on Wednesday. The weather looks good and it sure is nice playing at home in front of our own fans. This weekend we host Michigan State in another important four-game set. We hope you have a chance to come see us play.
April 5, 2006
Going into the first weekend of conference play we felt pretty good about our preseason preparation. We were excited to test ourselves against one on the more successful teams year after year in the Big Ten. We have a sense of confidence and excitement to begin our run in the Big Ten.
Our trip began as usual with the three-hour bus trip to Pittsburgh for our flight to Minneapolis. It was a good feeling knowing we have faced some very good competition this spring and that we were ready for conference play. The weather wasn?t a factor and didn?t enter our minds as we were playing indoors in the Metrodome. Some say it is a great disadvantage for visiting teams but we had no reservations about it because of all our hours of practice in Holuba this spring. We were ready.
Getting a split from Minnesota was not something we wanted. We wanted and planned on taking three or four games. We played well in games one and two, winning both but we seemed to run out of gas for games three and four. My question is why? I pay attention to how other teams handle the long weekends of four games in three days and how they platoon certain players to keep them strong. That is something we need to pay more attention to. This is a long season and keeping everyone involved is the key. Our starting pitching was good once again. Our bullpen will get better the deeper we get into conference play, especially when we can play mid-week baseball to stay sharp for the following weekend.
So many things run through your mind on how to improve on the past weekend. Who needs extra batting practice, use of the bullpen, do we platoon more at certain positions or do we need to rest a guy here or there? When we stop making adjustments that is when we stop getting better. We believe we have just scraped the surface. As for right now a split with Minnesota, at Minnesota, we will accept but only because we can?t do anything about it. We have to improve week to week and we have to take 3 and 4 games from our opponents to reach our goals in conference play.
For now we have a tough mid-week game with in-state rival Pittsburgh to deal with. They will be gunning for us as we will be them. We both played conference last weekend and must be ready for conference play this weekend. We host Iowa this weekend and look forward to playing in front of many friendly faces for the first time this season. We hope everyone has a chance to come see us play against a quality Big Ten opponent.
March 29, 2006
Our trip to play Arizona State University was our last pre-conference trip and a very important one. We needed to play well and compete against one of the elite programs and teams in the country. It was a test to see where we stand after a grueling spring schedule. Although we did not come out on top in the three games this team continues to show heart and determination every inning of every game. We pushed ASU to the limit in a tough environment to play in as a visiting team. The losses were tough to take for all of us, especially for me because I put these guys into this situation. They are playing like champions in my eyes.
We continue to improve and are learning what it takes to be a championship team. We are learning that what seems to be small mistakes can turn into a run against top teams in the country. Things like allowing a runner to move to second by missing a cut off or not getting a bunt down or dropping a pop up and allowing the hitter a second chance. We tested our mental toughness this spring and came out on top. We remain positive and confident we will get it done in conference and continue to improve as the season progresses.
Our overall game has improved week by week and we are excited about visiting Minnesota and the start of conference play. We know it will be tough and have to play good baseball to win in the Big Ten and that many of the teams are as determined as us. This a new season for us and compared to last year we are far ahead experience wise than last year. We are still somewhat young but all the experience gained this spring has toughened us and force fed our young players with top notch competition.
I have great confidence in these guys and remain proud of them regarding their work ethic, determination and tough hard play day in and day out. We have been through a lot this spring and developed a toughness I believe it will take to compete in the Big Ten. I have learned more this year about the obstacles facing us in early season baseball. As for now, our season begins Friday in Minnesota at 6:30pm CST. I hope everyone has a chance to follow us on the radio broadcast this weekend, followed by our games versus Pitt on Wednesday, in Washington, Pa., and our first home games against Iowa, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We will be an exciting team to watch / listen to.
March 21, 2006
I felt this past weekend was a very important three game set for Penn State Baseball. We needed to go down to South Carolina and make a statement. We didn?t! Once again it was our all-around play. We didn?t get it done. We had our chances to put Furman away several times, yet we allowed them to stay close and eventually gave up the big inning that would eventually cost us. Looking back, two innings, one in game two and one in game three, cost us from going 3-0 to 1-2 on the trip.
Needless to say I was not happy with our performance. The team was not happy with its performance. We are better than what we showed. Our goals are still to win the Big Ten. We believe we are a team that can do this. It is time to step up and perform like it. In scheduling the point was to test and challenge our abilities early and prepare us for conference. We have been challenged in many ways. Travel has been tough. We have played double headers, late games followed by early games, etc? It will pay off later in the season for us.
These are the facts. We need to get better, overcome these obstacles and find ways to win games. It?s time to relax and let our talents and instincts take over. Stop pressing in tough pressure situations and enjoy them. It is tough for me to see these guys going through what I have been through as a college, professional and major league player and coach. It happens every year and at all levels. It is not out of the ordinary for any team. We will come out of it and learn from our struggles to become a better, stronger TEAM.
This coming weekend will be another true test for our team. Finally we will play a normal three-game set. Playing night games the first two games should help us recuperate from a long travel night. Arizona State has been playing well of late and seems to be turning it on and getting over their early season troubles. It will be another test for the Nittany Lions who are anxious to go west and find out how we measure up against one of the nation?s best teams prior to beginning conference March 31 vs. Minnesota.
March 16, 2006
Our spring trip didn?t go as well as we had planned. That doesn?t mean we didn?t grow as a team though. We battled through playing on travel days, eight games in eight days, a late night extra-inning game followed by an early morning doubleheader, and beautiful Florida weather.
I was happy with the intensity we played with every game. We lost a couple of tough games and came out the next day and competed. Consistent play is what will win in the Big Ten. Our conditioning and endurance was tested. As for the sun and nice weather we couldn?t have asked for a better week.
Recapping the week and our performance, we didn?t win every game as we intended but I somehow find a way to find the many bright spots with this team. We played well as did every team we played. We just didn?t seem to make that key pitch, defensive play, get that clutch two-out hit or we made a base running error at the worst time. It is not for lack of effort. If anything we are pressing too much. As we play and continue into our season I am confident we will relax in these situations better and start to develop confidence in ourselves and our teammates. Sometimes players have a sense that they need to do everything on their own and if they don?t get the job done they feel like they let the team down.
Traveling together and spending so much time together is so important to team chemistry. Together, we experienced many successes and failures. We are enduring long bus trips, plane flights, layovers, sun burns, doubleheaders, late games followed by early games and through it all we are getting better and enjoying the ride. Through the tough times, we are riding the storm out and building character along the way.
This weekend we have another tough opponent in Furman University. They have wins over Coastal Carolina, West Virginia and Miami (OH) as well as others. It is important we play well in Greenville, S.C. this weekend. Our backs are not against the wall by any means, however, we need to continue to get better. Following our weekend series we are scheduled to open at home against Bucknell on Wednesday, 3/22/06. We hope the weather holds up for that one. It is always nice to play at home.
February 28, 2006
Following the weekend trip to New Orleans and our three games versus Tulane we had our normal Monday getting in the weight room for one of two, in-season lifts per week. My main concern was the team?s attitude and how it would react to a tough weekend. The atmosphere was upbeat and positive. We had two good practices Tuesday and Wednesday and were ready to hit the road for another test with three games in Greenville, N.C. to play the host school East Carolina, Friday night, followed by an early game Saturday against North Carolina State and another morning contest Sunday against West Virginia.
Friday night?s game really took it out of us. We made some mistakes early in the game that cost us. We seemed hesitant for the first three or four innings and didn?t play like we were capable of. After we got into the flow of the game, we played good solid baseball. A close play at the plate that went against us late in the game and our errors early cost us a one-run game.
Saturday morning came fast. We had batting practice in the cages at 7:50 a.m. North Carolina State is another top program and we faced its number one starter. Our guys showed heart and played a good game. We came up one run short again. Close isn?t good enough and we are not satisfied. Sunday became a very important game for us.
Our game Sunday morning was as frustrating as they come. We couldn?t get those clutch hits. Fundamental, situational hitting was bad. We have some guys pressing at the plate with runners in scoring position. We are not relaxing and trusting our abilities in those pressure situations. It will come as we play and continue to be put in those same situations. It was a case of early-season baseball frustrations. A tough lose in the tenth made for a very quiet bus trip home.
Our pitching was great just as we thought we had. As the warm weather comes and we get more games under our belt our defense will continue to get better. Offensively we have faced some very good pitching and as time goes by we will hit and hit in the clutch.
We are a work in progress and don?t enjoy losing at all but I believe in this team. More important, the players on the team believe in themselves. I put them in this situation with the tough early season road schedule. We knew it wasn?t going to be easy. We understand and enjoy the challenges and will continue to improve. At this point in the season we are not intimidated by anyone and the team character is starting to emerge.
We will prepare this week for our spring trip to Florida, with hopefully warm weather and eight games in eight days. Being able to get on the field and play every day is what we need. Not playing midweek baseball early season slows the progress of northern schools. Spring trips are very important. We are looking forward to this coming week and can?t wait for the next game.
February 22, 2006
The final week of practices went as well as can be expected. We tried to keep the guys from looking ahead to the start of the season and focusing more on one day at a time. This time of year is so hard for players and coaches. We see schools around the country playing games already, hearing scores and realizing it is baseball season. Yet we were indoors anticipating our trip to New Orleans to face a quality team. We were like kids on Christmas waiting to wake up on Christmas morning to see what Santa has brought for us.
We needed outside competition in a bad way. Scrimmaging indoors, drills and hitting in cages had gotten old. We needed to go on the road and see where we stand. We needed game experience to take the next step in finding out what we are made of and to grow as a team.
Our trip to New Orleans was a humbling experience in many aspects. It was a long day of travel of which many of our players experienced for the first time. A few of our guys had a chance to visit with some people who had not been to their homes since Hurricane Katrina devastated their city. Our hotel was filled to capacity with Red Cross volunteers with many stories for our guys about how bad things are in the city. Seeing all the Penn State blue and white we were wearing, a couple of Penn State Alumni helping in the relief effort introduced themselves and shared their experiences. We wish them well.
Our three games versus Tulane didn?t go as expected. I sensed a lot of nervous, over-anxious players. It was understandable though. The mistakes we made were magnified because of the caliber of the team we faced. I was happy with the way the team competed in game one and battled until the end. The next two games, I felt we didn?t leave it all on the field.
I believe we learned from this weekend and saw a level of play we need to get to. We knew this three-game set was going to be a struggle and we will learn from it and become a better team. This team has resilience and they have responded well and can?t wait to get on the field again this weekend. All 25 players that traveled this past weekend played and hopefully the anxiety of their first at-bat and their first inning pitched is behind them and they can relax and let their talents take over.
We have already gone to work in practice to correct some of the mistakes we made over the weekend to prepare for another road test at East Carolina. We play East Carolina Friday night at 5pm, North Carolina State on Saturday at 10am and West Virginia, Sunday at 10am. We are looking forward to getting back out on the field. We are still working out the kinks with our radio broadcasts. We have some conflicts with other sports in their championship portion of their seasons. All of our games are scheduled to be on the internet for all to follow our progress.
February 6, 2006
Ten days, eight practices until we leave for Tulane, our opening series. We are progressing as scheduled. We are pleased with the progress of our team. They have been working hard and have shown a tremendous work ethic and desire to improve. Sometimes it is hard to stay motivated this time of year. You find yourself looking ahead to getting outside and facing competition other than your teammates. They have done a great job taking things one day at a time and are really working on getting better every day.
We were able to scrimmage this past weekend and get some live at-bats and face live hitters. Overall we are excited about our pitching staff. They are a good mix of competitors and are developing confidence each practice. This weekend showed some weaknesses and gave us points to concentrate on this week in practice. Our hitters are further along than they think. We put some good swings on some balls and had some good at-bats. Several of our key players are looking like they are ready to go.
Our defense has been playing great. They are working together and trusting each other?s abilities. It is important that the pitchers feel our defense will pick them up and that they don?t have to go out and strike everyone out.
We remain healthy, other than some soreness that is normal this time of year. We are continuing to push our guys and they are responding. We are also having a lot of fun in the process. This is a great bunch of guys who are fun to coach. Give us another eight days of practice and we will be ready to go. Each player?s role for the start of the season is being defined. It is exciting to see our team chemistry take shape.
January 25, 2006
Here we are again, about to begin another baseball season. Looking back on the 2005 season there were many more positives than negatives. Sometimes overall records don?t indicate progress made during the course of the year. I think we established a strong foundation to build on. A few have moved on with degrees from Penn State, a few are now professional baseball players fulfilling their dreams, and many have returned determined to improve on last season. I am proud of last year?s team, my first as a head coach at Penn State, not because of our won/loss record but because of their effort throughout the year.
This summer we had many players out competing in some of the top collegiate summer leagues around the country. They improved and developed confidence in their abilities. It showed when they arrived on campus this fall. We had some turnover with our staff. Jon Ramsey moved on to Baton Rouge, La. with his family. He helped us out a lot and we wish him well. Our sports information director, Bob Volkert, accepted a new position at St. Francis University as the head of the sports information department. He always kept me on my toes and did a great job for us. You don?t realize how important having an SID is to a program until you don?t have one. Asst. Athletic Director Bob Krimmel accepted the Athletic Director position at St. Francis and we wish him well.
Since then we have filled these positions. Eric Folmer is now our assistant coach, Jan Bortner replaces Bob Krimmel and Matt Beltz replaces Bob Volkert. Eric comes from Old Dominion where he was an assistant coach. He was born and raised in central PA. He has local ties and we are glad to have him on our staff. Jan has filled in nicely and Matt just recently moved to Happy Valley.
I am happy to say my family is here with me now. It was tough being away from them last season. We allowed Cory, my son, to graduate from high school in Oklahoma and moved the same day we closed on our house. Since then we have settled in and things are back to normal. Cory is a freshman here at Penn State and Mackenzie, my daughter, now attends State College High School. We miss our friends from Oklahoma but have also made many new friends here in State College.
Recruiting went well. We spent many hours driving and flying to attend showcases around the state and country. We made many new connections locally with local coaches and scouts that will help us in the future in Pennsylvania and the surrounding states. We won some recruiting battles and we lost some but that?s just part of the game. It was different this year because we knew the players in our program and could identify our needs. We feel we signed some good student-athletes as well as good people. We are excited about this early group of signees.
We feel our fall practices and scrimmages went great. Our new guys competed and showed us they are exactly what we thought they were, young and talented athletes. We created as much competition as we could but still tried to stress the team concept. We improved our depth with our pitching and position players. Last season we had a hard time overcoming an injury to a key player or two. This fall we established an in-season strength and conditioning program from day one. It laid the ground work and gave us a head start for our out-of-season workouts. I think another key point that will help us is our players had a chance to see many of our fall sports programs have great success. They can learn from the football team and what they accomplished this year. Those players stuck together, believed in themselves and played with heart and pride. These are all ingredients for championship teams. We are very excited about the upcoming season. We have a lot of work to do before opening day in Tulane but we will be ready by the time February 17th rolls around.