University of Tampa baseball Head Coach Joe Urso described this season as a revolving door of injuries for the Spartans; a description that couldn’t be more accurate.
The injury problems came about first with the team’s number one pitcher from the 2010 season, Sean Bierman. When Bierman’s doctor went in to do a minor elbow surgery, he came out recommending Tommy John, or ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction, and things only got worse from there.
Bierman went on to have the suggested surgery, leaving the coaches no choice but to make a very difficult decision. This decision was to convert the team’s best closer, Evan Stobbs, into a starting pitcher. Stobbs had ended the 2010 season with 10 saves, a 0.76 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 15 appearances and 23.2 innings pitched.
With the numbers Stobbs put up in the back-end of the bullpen, his presence in the later innings of games were something that might be missed.
This season Stobbs has started four games and with an ERA of 1.40, the switch seemed like it would undeniably work for the rest of the year — until Stobbs became injured himself and the team’s new number one pitcher was also out of the lineup.
Highly anticipated recruit from the University of Southern California, Taylor Wrenn, was also a victim of injury. After receiving shoulder surgery in the summer, the plan was for the Florida native to take over the designated hitter role for a month and then begin to play him in the field.
When Wrenn’s shoulder didn’t bounce back as quickly as hoped, that plan didn’t work out either. Urso mentioned that Wrenn still has yet to hit in more than two games in a weekend, and has played the field in none.
And that’s not even the half of it.
“It seems like one guy gets healthy and a new guy goes down,” Coach Urso said. “We lost Shawn Pleffner for a little while with a light injury. He comes back and Eric Grabe hurts his leg. He comes back, Pat Donahue hurts his leg.”
Urso added that this past weekend, the squad’s number two pitcher Justin Leith had some problems in his lat area, so the coaching staff opted to take him out and have Leith skip his next start. On top of that, starting infielder Raiko Alfonso had a foot injury that kept him out of the lineup for a handful of games.
“There has been a lot,” said Urso.
Urso also stated that the injuries the 2011 UT baseball team has suffered are “more than I’ve ever seen or had to deal with as a coach or a player in college or in professional ranks.”
Donahue, one of the players who faced a minor injury this season, said, “It has been frustrating to watch good players go down, because you know what they can do on the field for the team when they are healthy.”
Despite the injury concerns, Donahue has started 40 games for Tampa, good for second on the team, and .385 batting average with 30 RBIs. He also touts an on base percentage that has hovered around .500 throughout the season.
“The biggest injury we had was losing the ace of our staff, Evan “Grandpa” Stobbs,” said Donahue, senior shortstop. “Having him out this year has been a bit of a setback.”
Stobbs pitched for the first time in weeks during the Florida Southern series, coming on in relief to throw 41 pitches in 2.2 innings. He allowed just one hit while striking out two and walking three.
“Everybody is frustrated when they get injured,” said Stobbs, who expects to contribute more to the team in the postseason. “You just have to keep a positive attitude and work hard in your rehab.”
With a 30-14 overall record, and 13-8 in conference play, UT has already lost more games this season than it did all last season during its national championship run. Stobbs spoke of the injuries coming into play for this year’s Spartan team.
“We have struggled here and there throughout the season, but that happens to teams with injuries,” he said. “A lot of players have stepped up their performance, playing different positions that they’re not used to.”
Urso specifically mentioned that the exact situation which Stobbs alluded to, a new player stepping up every weekend, is what “gets the coaching staff excited.”
He continued on to explain that the weekend series against Florida Southern College was a primary example. Ryan Kennedy, a pitcher who had neck issues that eventually led to problems in his throwing shoulder, came into one of the games and ended up with the win.
According to Urso, there has also been a group of freshman that have stepped up and out of their comfort zones and filled the roles in the outfield when needed.
Nearing the end of the season, however, some of these injured players who have been getting stronger each week may be seeing more playing time — a great benefit for the most crucial point of the year, the postseason.
“If everyone is healthy, I am really confident that we can go into regionals and do damage,” Stobbs said. “[The Florida Southern series] has given us the confidence that we can beat the best teams in the country.”
Urso believes that his team is on the verge of reaching its full potential.
“We’re seeing the light at the end of the tunnel right now,” he said. “And we’ve just got to get there. This team could be very dangerous.”
Throughout the season it seems as though the Spartan baseball team has overcome challenges unlike any team has in the past. If the key Spartans can get healthy and remain confident, they could embark on a World Series run that would surprise the league while putting Cinderella’s story to shame.
Maya Todd can be reached at mtodd@spartans.ut.edu.