Don't let the traces of snow on Red Rolfe Field deceive you. The Dartmouth baseball team, already with seven games under its belt, is back in action for the 1996 season.
The Big Green, straight off what might best be called an "educational" winless seven-game trip to Arizona over spring break, will once again set its hopes on the Ivy League title this year.
Despite the zero-for-seven start, Head Coach Bob Whalen, now in his seventh year at the helm for Dartmouth, put the trip in perspective.
"From top to bottom, this was by far the strongest schedule that we have played in a spring trip," Whalen said.
Co-Captain Jake Isler '96 put it bluntly: "It sucks losing seven games, but you have to take it into perspective. We were playing some tremendous ball clubs, and we were still getting the kinks out. I think that [competition] will really help us when our Ivy League season begins."
Dartmouth, playing at the Oakland Athletics new spring training complex in Arizona, went up against the likes of Division I powerhouse St. Mary's, losing 3-10 and 5-6, and nationally-ranked Arizona State, falling 5-9 despite an early 3-1 lead.
The team also took on Missouri Valley Conference Champion Northern Iowa and Washington State in losing efforts.
"We now have a better handle on what adjustments need to be made," Whalen said. "When you play really good teams the goal is to try to find out as much as you can about the club, and your weaknesses usually become very clear."
Dartmouth did find out that its offensive production has not skipped a beat from last year, when it led the Ancient Eight with a .315 average.
The Big Green sluggers batted .308 on the trip as a team, with All-Ivy third baseman Isler setting the pace with a .500 average and seven RBI's.
"He's a great number four hitter," outfielder Craig Pawling '96 said of teammate Isler. "With guys on base, he was a terror on the trip, and he always will be a terror."
Isler, along with his All-Ivy counterparts, co-Captain Greg Gilmer '96, center fielder Andrew Spencer '97 and second baseman Mike Armstrong '97, returns this year to anchor a virtually intact Big Green starting lineup.
Spencer, a speedy runner and powerful hitter, will be a major factor at the plate as well as in the outfield. The junior has started hot with a .455 batting average and seven RBI's.
Look for first baseman Jimmy Meyer '97 and catcher Mike Stacy '98 to have big years on the field as well as at the plate. Aggressive shortstop Brian Mosley '98, who homered twice in Arizona, also has the potential to spark a rally at any moment.
On the mound, the Big Green sport two proven starters in their rotation. Ace hurler Scott Simon '97 led the team last year with a 7-1 record, and he will again fill the role as Coach Whalen's number one starter.
Fireballer Eric Walania '98 will probably fill the second slot in the rotation, after a tremendous season last year in which he compiled a 2.36 earned run average. Walania also performed well on the trip, holding Arizona State to only two earned runs.
The remaining starters are still undecided. Peter Sellers '98, Chris Van Vliet '97, Dan Godfrey '98, Matt Tarver Whalquist '98, Bob Spillane '98 and Bernard Mauricia '99 make up the remainder of a youthful and slim eight-man pitching staff.
The one thing Dartmouth must avoid this year is the injury bug, according to Whalen.
"We are very thin in terms of our pitching depth and in terms of injuries to our key players," Whalen said. With only eight pitchers and little experience beyond the starting nine, Dartmouth cannot afford to lose anyone this year.
According to Gilmer, though the team did lose a lot of its depth to graduation and attrition, "compared to last year, this team is a lot tighter. I think we have as good a chance since I've been here of taking the Ivy League title."
Isler agreed. "I think with the guys we have right now, including eight returning starters, we have as good a chance as ever of taking down Yale."
With a week to go before the Ivy League opener at Princeton, the team still has time to work out the kinks and focus on a fast Ivy start this year.
The Big Green hope to build their momentum this afternoon in a non-conference game against Babson. Dartmouth will also face Hartford, Northeastern and Lowell before kicking off its race in the Ancient Eight.
Pawling, in his final year, put it simply, saying, "The team's outlook is that we should win the Ivies. No doubt."
