Short Hops
Feb 10, 2005 | Baseball
Feb. 10, 2005
Welcome Wave Fans to another year of Tulane Baseball. First, I want to thank all the people who read "Short Hops" last year and gave me positive feedback about the journal. Since many of you have expressed to me how much you enjoyed reading the entries, I've decided keep it going for my senior year (Thanks so much for the letters! They're posted on my bulletin board at my uptown apartment).
Right now, I'm currently taking my last classes that I need in order to graduate in May with a double major in legal studies and marketing. So, keeping that in mind, I hope you guys can bear with me regarding the frequency I can post my entries. Don't worry, though. I'll post as often as I can in order to keep you guys inside the loop with things that are going on with the team. One new thing that I'm going to try to do for this year, if at all possible, is to try to take some pictures of the guys on the road to post with my entries. I think it will be fun to try to incorporate something new into the type of things that I posted last year. Having said that, lets talk some baseball.
I'm sure you guys already know that Baseball America has ranked us No. 1 in their preseason baseball poll. We've really enjoyed all of the attention that this has brought to the team thus far. Many of the guys have done countless interviews for television and magazine publications for both local and national publications. It really is an accomplishment that a team with this kind of talent deserves.
That having been said, however, I'm even more impressed with the way the team has handled everything so far. We realize that nothing is going to come easy for us this season, just like any other. We've had lots of talks and guys realize that whether we are ranked preseason No. 1 or No. 100, we still have to win the same amount of games in order to accomplish our goals. We can't get away from stressing the type of baseball that Tulane stands for. That type of baseball - which we like to call "Waveball" - consists of playing harder than anyone else in the country at ALL times, whether it be stretching a single to a double on a bobble by an outfielder, putting a team away when we're in a position to do so, or something as trivial as sprinting on and off the field every inning. And, it is exactly this type of attitude that we display in practice everyday, and we take pride in it. So, get out to Turchin to see lots of "Waveball" this spring.
This year's team, as I'm sure all of you already know, is loaded with talent. We return a lot of players off of last year's team that advanced to the Super Regionals and lost to the eventual national champions. Experiences like that are bonuses. I know that every one of us felt like we had the talent to play with those guys. Things just didn't go our way. But, we all remember that feeling, we all have that experience, and we know that we have the talent to get to Omaha and win the national championship. In addition, we've added some great freshman and transfers who will only make us that much better.
So, couple all that talent with all the leadership and experience on the team, and one can see why we're so excited about this season. I think the best thing about having so many talented veteran players is that there isn't an overload of pressure on any one or two players. We have so many guys who have stepped up in big situations in the past that no one should feel the stress of being leaned on too heavily to perform. We all know the drill and know that we need to play team baseball to win. If one player doesn't come through, he knows that the next guy will because we have a lineup and pitching staff jam packed with guys that are not only talented, but know how to step and produce when the game is on the line. And I've got to say that it's a real privilege to be part of something that special. I hope, throughout the course of the season, that you experience how special it is as well.
Well, I've got some work to do before I can get ready to play some ball on Friday so I'm going to sign off for now. Season opens against Southeast Missouri State at Turchin with first pitch at 6:30 pm. Hope to see all you guys out there. Let's start off the season with a packed house. Until next time...
Roll Wave,
Tommy
