UK baseball following same script from 2013 season
April 29, 2014
If last year’s midseason collapse is any indication, UK baseball should be concerned about its latest stretch of losses.
In 2013, UK was 22-6 before heading to LSU for a weekend series against the Tigers. The Cats were riding high, sporting a potent offense that scored nearly seven runs a game and a capable pitching staff that allowed an average of three runs in their previous nine SEC games.
Then disaster struck. UK was swept at LSU and lost 15 of its last 21 games thanks to a quickly-diminished offense and hittable pitching staff. What was once a promising season turned into a disappointment, resulting in the Cats missing the NCAA Tournament.
If this year’s team is not careful, they could face the same result.
The 2014 Cats are not as fortunate with talent as last year’s team, having a 19-9 record at the same point in the season. While the offense is still their strength with juniors A.J. Reed, Austin Cousino and Max Kuhn carrying the load, the pitching is the weak link, with young, inexperienced arms residing in the bullpen.
But this was still a winning team that was capable of making it back to the NCAA Tournament. That was until this recent losing stretch hit them. Now they look like everything but a winning team.
The situation is all too familiar for the Cats. Their offense has sputtered as of late; not scoring early enough in games to have a chance to win. Top it off with an already mediocre pitching staff that continues to get worse with each passing game, and the end of this season will seem like déjà-vu.
UK has lost seven of its last 12 games and is now 27-17 with 10 games to go in the season. If the Cats don’t learn from their past mistakes, then they will face the same result as the 2013 Cats did. Without a tournament appearance, the 2014 season will be considered another disappointment.
