Coming off a season in which they posted a 40-24 record, won the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship, and advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals – It could be said that Kennesaw State took a step back in 2015 with a 28-28 campaign and 0-2 showing in the A-Sun Championships.
In what will be head coach Mike Sansing’s 25th season calling the shots for KSU, the Owls will go into the 2016 season with a renewed focus on the daily process of becoming a successful team.
“Our expectations for this season have been laid out pretty clearly by the guys with their daily expectations,” Sansing said. “We practice for the day, play for the day, and worry about tomorrow the next day. Our goals have been to follow the process of what we need to do. In the weight room, in the classroom, in the community, in practice and in games– we’re just going to go day-to-day with it. That’s been our main topic.”
The Owls lost five players, including 2015 A-Sun All-Conference selection, Travis Bergen, and strikeout leader Jordan Hillyer, to the MLB Draft last year. Sansing believes his most recent signing class will be able to fill voids and have an impact early on in the season.
“I think you’ll see several freshman playing this season,” Sansing said. “You’ll see Trevor Brown, David Chabut in some kind of combination at shortstop, and possibly Jake Franklin at first base. Those guys are all freshmen who had a good fall and have had a good spring so far. We’re still figuring a few things out, but we’re trying to close it up here soon as far as who will be where.”
KSU will welcome 13 new additions to the roster, as well as return 18 veterans. Among key returners is Preseason All-Conference right fielder Taylor Alum, who recorded a .320 batting average and a pair of home runs in his freshman year at KSU.
Junior Chris Irwin also returns for the Owls in 2016, having finished last season with a .332 batting average, 66 hits, and 36 RBI – all of which were team-highs. Additionally, Erwin posted a 5-4 record on the mound with a 4.92 ERA despite splitting time in the outfield due to lack of depth following injuries. Sansing hopes for Irwin to serve as a pitcher and designated hitter full-time this season. Junior Gabe Frieze, who struck out 46 batters in 2015 while walking 26, will join Irwin on the mound.
Perhaps the greatest Achilles heel for KSU a season ago was the performance of their bullpen in late game situations, failing to complete saves and blowing leads late.
“Our bullpen clearly was one of our key issues in the back end of games,” Sansing said. “We brought in three guys that we anticipate will assist us in that backend combination of the seventh, eighth, and ninth inning. We’ve got some guys that we anticipate will assist the back of the bullpen. It was an issue, but we feel we’ve addressed it through recruiting.”
The Owls will partake in five intrasquad scrimmages during the final week of practice prior to the season. Sansing states that the lineup is close to being finalized, but there is still ample opportunity for it to be tweaked before opening day pending on performances in practice.
The Owls will open their season on Friday, Feb. 19, playing host to Virginia Commonwealth at 4 p.m.
