As a new season approaches for the Elon University baseball team, head coach Mike Kennedy was noticeably excited about the current group of players, and thinks they stand out from his previous teams at Elon.
“We have more baseball rats,” Kennedy said. “Guys that just like the game, like to be on the field. I don’t feel like I’m having to motivate as much as I have sometimes in the past, and I like that part about this club.”
After years of finishing at the top of the Southern Conference (SoCon), Elon went 25-29 — its first season under .500 since 1999, Elon’s first in Division I. Elon enters a new season with a first-place vote in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) preseason poll, and the team was picked to finish tied for third in the conference.
The first time through the new conference was a challenge, and junior infielder/outfielder Nick Zammarelli thinks Elon wasn’t completely a step-up.
“Going into the CAA, we didn’t know what to expect,” Zammarelli said. “I thought overall, it was better than the SoCon. I think it’s the baseball schools you want to go up and compete against. The first year going in, we might not have been ready, but we’re definitely ready this year.”
Zammarelli was the only Elon player to be tabbed to the preseason all-CAA team, getting an honorable mention pick. But Kennedy says Zammarelli may be joined by multiple new faces around the field.
“We’ve got a chance to play anywhere from three to four freshmen right away,” Kennedy said. “I know we’ll play three, and two of those guys — if we had to start tomorrow, they’d start. They’ve earned that job. There’s a third that’s not far off.”
Toward the end of last season, Elon’s pitching wore thin, ravaged by injuries and overuse of the bullpen. Kennedy said it was “awful,” but found some positives to take out of them.
“When you’re running out position players on the mound because you’re so beat up on the mound, and in spite of all that, we finished a game out of third, we can look back and say, ‘What if?’” Kennedy said. “Just got to find a way to keep our guys healthy and have them ready for the core of our conference season.”
The fourth-place finish last year sent Elon to the CAA Tournament, where the injuries that plagued Elon in the second half of the season were evident to all.
“It’s kind of hard to compete in a conference tournament with only eight or nine guys active on the mound,” said senior pitcher Michael Elefante. “To know we have at least 15 guys ready for the start of the season … I’m definitely looking forward to opening day.”
The health will be a factor early, as Elefante and sophomore pitcher Robbie Welhaf are both still recovering from injuries. Kennedy expects both to be ready around the beginning of March.
“Those two guys are big keys to the puzzle right now,” Kennedy said. “Healthy enough to where they’re throwing, but haven’t been healthy enough to start the season. But that’s okay — we’d rather have them down the stretch. The key is making sure we get to the point where they are ready with no setbacks.”
Elefante had the best season of any Elon pitcher, going 3-1 in 12 appearances (nine starts) with a 4.33 ERA and 39 strikeouts. Once he gets back from injury, he’s expected to be the ace of the staff.
But he, like Zammarelli and Kennedy, noticed that the team’s injuries affect the attitude around the clubhouse.
“I think some of the team’s attitude was a little down sometimes,” Elefante said. “Especially with the injuries and struggle to win some games we probably should’ve won, but blew later. Little bit of a struggle toward the end of the season each of the last two years, especially because we did have talent.
“This year, we definitely have strong team chemistry, team bond and work ethic. I think everyone’s really pumped for the season to get going.”
And the players are proving it to Kennedy, who can’t seem to keep them away from Latham Park.
Not that he would want to, anyway.
“I think this club, regardless of how they play out of the gates, they like playing,” Kennedy said. “I can look down on any given day, and six or seven guys are hitting in the cage. You need those type of things, and that’s a pulse of your club you want to see.”