Peyton Williams/Georgetown Sports Information Senior Ron Cano fields a ball during a game last season when the Hoyas went 14-33 overall and 4-22 in the Big East.

RELATED LINK Georgetown Catchers Blend Stellar Offense, Defense and Leadership Feb. 10, 2004

To paraphrase Yogi Berra, baseball is mostly a mental game. In a sport where failures usually outnumber successes, the right mindset is often a determining factor. Simply put, confidence breeds winning, and vice versa.

As the Georgetown baseball team prepares to open the 2004 season at William and Mary this weekend, those involved are expressing a level of confidence not seen in decades.

A quick glance at last season’s results may lead many to question this positive outlook. The Hoyas finished last in the Big East last year, compiling a 14-33 record, including a 4-22 mark in the conference. The pitching staff had the highest ERA in the league and allowed opponents to hit .324.

Georgetown coaches and players alike, however, insist that there is a new attitude this year.

“This is a completely different team, I can’t stress it enough,” fifth-year Head Coach Pete Wilk said.

The team did finish strong last season, winning four of their last five games.

The Hoyas showed that they could hit with any team in the conference, batting .298 and ranking in the middle of the Big East.

Georgetown only lost two position players to graduation last year and their offense figures to be even more productive this season.

At the heart of Georgetown’s lineup is junior Andrew Cleary, who was named to the Preseason All-Big East Team. In his first year at Georgetown, Cleary was second in the conference in home runs (12) and hit .338 with 47 RBIs.

A natural catcher, Cleary played several positions last season and will continue to do so in 2004. He will most likely spend the bulk of his time in left field but will also serve as the designated hitter when not behind the plate.

Senior captain Mike Lombardi will be the full-time catcher for the fourth consecutive season. Lombardi clearly benefited from the extra rest with Cleary on the team. Last season he hit a career-high .374 with 34 RBI, and contributed solid defense.

Junior Billy Quinn has been one of the Hoyas’ most consistent hitters over the past two seasons. The right fielder placed second on the team in both home runs (10) and RBIs (42) in 2003; he completes the lethal trio hitting behind Lombardi and Cleary.

“They can hit with anybody,” Wilk noted. “The key is to get the little squirts on ahead of them, the leadoff and two guy. If those guys get on, there’s a lot of RBIs sitting there for three very talented hitters.”

Those “squirts” at the top of the lineup are most likely going to be junior second baseman Parker Brooks and sophomore center fielder Timmy Jones. Brooks is a slap hitter who gets on base and steals. Jones showed steady improvement over the course of his freshman year, finishing with a .296 batting average and 11 stolen bases.

Rounding out the lineup will be sophomore Drew Dargen (first base), sophomore Danny Gronski (third base), senior Ron Cano (designated hitter) and sophomore Matt Johnson (shortstop).

Wilk said that this is the deepest team he has ever had, and there are certainly a number of players who can earn significant playing time at various positions.

Cano will also see playing time in the outfield, while junior Jim Supple will play a “super sub” role, as he can play all over the infield and provide good defense at each position. Sophomore Ryan Craft has intriguing power potential and will likely see some time at first and DH.

While the Hoyas will be able to slug it out with most teams, they will have to do a better job of keeping their opponents off the scoreboard. A major weakness last season was team defense – Georgetown committed 110 errors for a .939 fielding percentage.

In just a year, however, it seems as if defense has gone from a weak spot to a major strength for the team.

The single biggest factor in this change has been health. Brooks and Johnson are both coming off medical red-shirts that forced the Hoyas to play four different shortstops last season. Both are considered excellent fielders and will form a strong double-play combination.

“I don’t think you can measure how important good middle defense is to any pitching staff, never mind a young pitching staff like ours,” Wilk said. “Our defense, period, is solid.”

Jones is a stellar defender in center. Last season he showcased exceptional range and a strong arm, while committing just one error all year. Both Lombardi and Cleary are above-average defensive catchers. Gronski flashed a good glove last year, and made significant improvements during the fall.

“You can’t have liabilities out there, and none of our players are liabilities,” Lombardi said. “They can all do the job.”

The improved defense gives the pitchers more confidence, knowing that the infielders will make plays behind them.

“Last year we proved we could hit, but we couldn’t catch the ball, and that affected our pitching,” Wilk said. “We need to encourage contact this year, not shy away from it, because we’re going to catch the ball.”

While the pitching staff struggled last season, there is reason to believe that it too will be stronger in 2004. For one thing, the returning pitchers are all a year older with another year of experience under their belts.

The Hoyas will look to two sophomores to lead their rotation. Warren Sizemore led all pitchers with 68.1 innings pitched and four wins, and will be the opening day starter.

“I think Warren has taken the reins,” Wilk said. “He has a desire to have the ball in his hand against anybody. He’s only a sophomore, but he’s a pretty mature and competitive kid.”

Stephen Burns will follow Sizemore in the rotation after leading the team in saves out of the bullpen last year. Burns had won a starting role in the fall of 2002, but a broken ankle held him out of the rotation until the end of the year.

“Steven’s going to get the ball on the first weekend,” Wilk said. “Out of those two I know there’s a tremendous amount of competitiveness, a tremendous amount of baseball instinct and knowledge, and, probably first and foremost, they throw strikes. They have enough stuff to win at this level.”

Junior Eddie Pena will likely fill the third slot in the rotation after a strong fall showing. Despite starting 23 games in two years, Pena has just one win as a Hoya. Pena has some of the best stuff on the team but has struggled with control at times.

“Eddie has continuously taken steps forward,” Wilk said. “He’s gotten bigger and he’s really dedicated himself to becoming the best he can be. He will definitely be in the mix.”

Several players will compete for the final two slots in the rotation and the opportunity to start during the week. Senior Kevin Field and junior Thomas Braun will get some stars, while two freshmen, Erick Chandler and Trey Martin, will also get a look.

Junior Travis Danysh seems to have the inside track on one of the final two slots. He is the only lefty starter on the staff, and Wilk would like to have him start on the weekends.

“He has great stuff, and if he has the ability to be more consistent around the strike zone, he could really emerge as a stud,” Wilk said. “I think he’s going to be a very, very good pitcher for us the next couple of years.”

Those who do not earn starting roles will move into what will be a deeper bullpen. Last year, Georgetown lost nine games after leading or being tied in the seventh inning.

Junior Michael Halloran will again be the relief ace for the Hoyas. His left-handed sidearm motion serves as a change of pace from the starters and gives the hitter a different view of the ball.

“I’ll go to Mike at any point in the game,” Wilk said. “He has the natural capacity to handle tough situations, and he’s added a few pitches in the last eight months or so that made him better.”

The bullpen roles behind Halloran are uncertain. Senior Tom O’Connor and junior Tyler Abbot have both started at some point in their careers and will contribute valuable innings in relief this year.

Georgetown’s secret weapon in the bullpen may actually come out of right field. During the fall, the coaching staff experimented with Billy Quinn as a closer.

“Now, he’s raw, but he was throwing 88 to 92 [miles per hour], and if that’s around the zone it’s going to get you something,” Wilk said. “Billy’s a work in progress. I’m certainly not pinning the season on our success coming out of right field to close the game. I’m very intrigued by it.”

Georgetown faces a tough schedule again in 2004, with strong non-conference opponents such as William and Mary, George Washington and George Mason. As always, it is Georgetown’s play in the Big East that will determine this year’s success. Looming on the schedule is a three-game series with No. 19 Notre Dame at Shirley Povich field on April 17 and 18.

“I want us to win the games that we should win,” Cleary said. “If we do that, that’s 20 wins right there. If some pitchers step up, I think that realistically we can be in the middle of the Big East.”

The Hoyas have in many ways transformed without many personnel changes. Health, position switches and experience all contribute to create an air of optimism and confidence for the upcoming season.

“We have to take the attitude this year of expecting to win, and when you expect to win you don’t play to lose,” Lombardi said.

“It’s not an understatement that, at any time in my involvement with this program, and at least going back the last 10 years, have we had the skill guys we have now,” Wilk added.

“For the seniors, I think it will be a good payoff for three years of pain. It’s going to be a pretty special season.”