May is usually defined by sunshine and flowers-not rain and 50-degree weather. But rain was exactly what the Oregon baseball team practiced in on Wednesday as they prepared for this weekend’s series with Arizona State.
You can’t blame some of the players if they’re looking forward to their trip to Tempe, Ariz., to play the No. 3 Sun Devils. Temptations of 100-degree weather and sunny skies for a weekend of baseball is much more appealing than another rainy day in Oregon. But even though Mother Nature has yet to grace the team with consistent sun, the Ducks aren’t letting it get them down.
“It’s Oregon,” Sacramento, Calif., native Curtis Raulinaitis said. “I’m used to that now. I don’t expect anything but this. When you get a good day it makes it easier, but coming out and grinding it out in this will make it nicer down in Arizona in 100-degree weather. It’ll be a lot different.”
Freshman Darrell Hunter, who played high school baseball in Eugene and Springfield, says that it’s been a little different for some of the non-Oregon guys, but they’re taking it in stride. Baseball is baseball after all, no matter what the weather does.
“It has definitely been weird,” Hunter said. “Normally it’s sunny right down, so it’s strange, but rain doesn’t faze me because I’m from here. But some of these California kids are like, ‘This is spring here now?’ It’s pretty funny. They probably don’t see rain this late in the spring, but they’re trying to get through it and they’re doing well.”
The Ducks were in their uniforms on Wednesday during practice because they took team pictures before, but they used their last practice before the flight to Arizona to scrimmage in preparation for first place ASU (38-11 overall, 16-5 Pacific-10 Conference). The Sun Devils are a tough draw for Oregon (14-34, 4-17) at this time in the season because the team is still looking for their first Pac-10 series win.
“The deal in Tempe is obviously going to be a significant challenge,” head coach George Horton said. “They’re really good, and their field plays fast. Coach (Pat) Murphy doesn’t like me a lot because I ended a lot of his seasons when I was at Fullerton. The point is that they’re not going to feel sorry for us. I think coach Murphy respects coach Horton enough that he will have his players ready to compete.”
The players have taken to calling themselves “spoilers” in these last two weeks. They want to upset as much as they can in the conference standings. With just two series left to gain that elusive first conference series win, they’ll be trying their hardest.
“We’re really excited to go down there because they’re leading the Pac,” Raulinaitis said. “We want to go down there and spoil what they have going on. They’re a great team, always have been. Coach Horton has had some success against their coach Pat Murphy. He’s a good coach, but we’re going to try and do what we do and put some runs on the board and have some fun.”
“Some people have said, ‘You got your wins in this year, you’ll do better next year,’” Hunter said. “But we’re not thinking like that. There’s not much to salvage, but we can ruin someone else’s season and make a statement going into next year.”
Hunter also hopes that he can continue his personal success down in Arizona. Against Washington State last weekend he was 4-for-12 with a double. He says his sudden surge has just come from being in the lineup more consistently.
“I’m definitely seeing the ball better,” he said. “I didn’t start at the beginning of the season and I wasn’t playing, and the coaches told me to keep working hard, and I finally got my opportunity to play, and hopefully not going to come out of the lineup again.”
Horton is also pleased with Hunter’s development, but he says adding some muscle is the only way for the young first basemen to truly become a great baseball player.
“I think some of my frustrations with him are his lack of commitment to get in the weight room,” Horton said. “He’s not going to go anywhere, Division I-wise or professionally, until he gets stronger. He’s a good baseball player, but his lack of commitment in that area kind of held him back. I think that’s conducive to him being in there on a regular basis and he knows his role. I finally decided to leave him in there instead of doing musical first basemen, and he’s had a history of success.”
As a team, the mood is good. Players are staying positive, and embracing their roles as spoilers. With the end of the season in sight they can also see what the future will hold for them and the program. And on a different level, the team is excited about the second half of construction on PK Park where the final bleachers and seats will be added, along with lights, a press box, and covered concourse.
“They’re in a position to rock and roll on phase two,” Horton said. “As soon as the final out of the final game on a week from Sunday is done, they’ll move in and start working on completing this place.”
“But I’m more focused on building phase two of our baseball program,” Horton added. “My disappointment has been that we have performed inconsistently. We haven’t got better fast enough in a lot of areas. But as far as the facilities and what the university has provided it’s been phenomenal.”
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Ducks not discouraged by weather
Daily Emerald
May 12, 2009
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