The February 22nd doesn’t mean much to most baseball fans,
although the more astute might realize that, give or take a day or two,
it is just about the day pitchers and catchers can report to major
league training camps. But it has a much greater significance than
that in 2008, as, with the exception of teams playing in Hawaii, it is
the beginning of the Division I college baseball season.
And while spring training does warm the hearts of most baseball fans – these games count.
So lets take a look at where the Gotham area teams will playing as the season opens (because obviously, it won’t be in Gotham.)
Army, a rebuilding team under coach Joe Sottolano, will be traveling to play in the University of Texas- San Antonio tournament, kicking off the season with a most ambitious set of games. The Black Knights will open against Louisiana- Lafayette, ranked pre-season #28, and coming off a 45-17 season in 2007, including an appearance in the NCAA tournament, the first of two games they will play that day. The Ragin' Cajuns won the Sun Belt conference regular season and tournament titles.
The Cadets will then follow that up with a game against another NCAA tournament team from 2007, Mid-Continent champion Oral Roberts, 40-17 in 2007. Army will face the host school, UT San Antonio, the regular season champion of the Southland Conference. Cole White, a third team National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association choice at the Utility position, will be challenged early as the Cadets top starter and leading returning hitter.
Fordham, coming off an outstanding 2007 season that ended in the Atlantic 10 final, will face 10th ranked Wichita State to open their season on February 22nd, in the first of three games at Wichita State that weekend. Fordham’s cross-town rival Manhattan meets the Rams other top rival, the University of North Carolina – Charlotte to open its season. UNCC knocked Fordham out of the Atlantic 10 tournament a year ago, is once again the A-10 favorite.
Which makes for an interesting weekend, as the Jaspers are the MAAC choice as conference favorite after a 2007 season that saw Manhattan get off to a 19-0 start in conference play, and run roughshod over everyone except Lemoyne in the MAAC a year ago.
St. John’s, the Big East’s coaches’ choice for second in the conference, will travel to North Carolina to play Gardner-Webb, Winthrop and Evansville in the Johnny Gil Invitational Tournament. The Red Storm are expected to be in for a challenging, but ultimately winnable series of games. Rutgers, who tied the Red Storm atop the Big East standings in 2007 and went to the NCAA tournament along with St. John’s, opens their season with a three game series with Colonial Athletic Association power Old Dominion.
The Scarlet Knights, coming off a strong year, are expected to be one of the better teams in the Big East in 2008, but are definitely in a rebuilding mode. Seton Hall, which has struggled in the Big East the past few years, will attempt to get its season off to good start at the Service Academies Spring Classic in Tennessee, drawing rising power Memphis, to start the season. Games against Arkansas State and Ohio State round out the weekend.
Hoftsra will try to reverse its recent history of bad starts with a three-game season opening series against Coppin State. Led by Freshman All-American Matt Prokopowicz, the Pride will try to rise from the bottom of the Colonial Athletic Association in 2008.
Second year Division I program NJ Tech will face South Carolina – Upstate, making its entry into the DI ranks, to open on the 22nd, as part of the USC Upstate Tournamant in Spartanburg. Games with George Washington and Tennessee- Martin round out the weekend, as the Highlanders try to build off the late season successes of a year ago.
LIU, a member of the Northeast Conference, faces Canisius in a three game series in Gastonia, North Carolina, with a single game against St. Bonaventure to spice things up. The Blackbirds will look to get a quick start in 2008 behind sophomore lefthander James Jones, who when not pitching, leads the LIU offensive attack.
The surprise team in the MAAC in 2007, St. Peter’s, opens with a doubleheader Friday and Saturday against Wofford. Fairfield, led by All-America candidate Peter Allen, faces an impressive trio of teams in the Coca-Cola Classic, as the Stags meet Alabama-Birmingham, Kentucky and Xavier.
Iona travels to Duke for a four game series, while Marist travel to UC-Santa Barbara for a three-game set. Both teams will be decided underdogs on the road.
The Ivy League and the rest of the Northeast Conference will all be in full swing by the following weekend. So remember, if you are suffering from baseball withdrawal, the college game starts February 22nd, and all games count.
The February 22nd doesn’t mean much to most baseball fans,
although the more astute might realize that, give or take a day or two,
it is just about the day pitchers and catchers can report to major
league training camps. But it has a much greater significance than
that in 2008, as, with the exception of teams playing in Hawaii, it is
the beginning of the Division I college baseball season.
