Cautiously optimistic.
That’s the only way to describe the U baseball team heading into the 2008 season. It returns plenty of talent from a year ago, but must also deal with the loss of arguably its best player, Jay Brossman. The Utes have plenty of gifted new recruits, but may have to rely on them before they are ready.
“We got some young, new coaches in this offseason and that youth has really got us excited for the upcoming season,” Utah junior Corey Shimada said. “We lost some guys, but we’ve got some younger players who will contribute.”
Utah struggled to find a rhythm early last season, losing 12 of its first 14 games — all on the road — before collecting itself for the conference season. The Utes opened MWC play by winning 10 of their first 14 games, but went into a downward spiral shortly thereafter.
The team finished the season with consecutive losses to UNLV and San Diego State on the first day of the MWC Tournament. Both losses came after the Utes built leads in the early innings.
“Overall, we took third in the conference and I think we were pretty happy with that,” Shimada said. “But we felt we could’ve done much better in the conference tournament. I think this season will be different.”
Utah began last season much like it will start this one, with half the starters on the roster suiting up as Utes for the first time. The starters that are returning, however, bring plenty of talent back.
Shimada will likely return at second base, but may see time in the outfield as well. The junior was selected as a second-team All-MWC player last season after leading the team in hitting with a .346 average. This season, Shimada has been selected as a preseason All-MWC player by league media and coaches.
“Corey really matured at the plate last year,” Utah assistant coach Bryan Conger said in the offseason. “He really started to utilize his skill set and relax himself into a specific role.”
Joining Shimada on the all-conference preseason team is centerfielder Nate Burnham. Last season, Burnham ranked third on the team in hitting with a .326 batting average.
Leftfielder Dustin Hennis and catcher Jesse Shriner will also both return after hitting over .300 for the Utes last year.
Returning aces on the mound for the Utes will be juniors Stephen Fife and Brad DeVore. Fife had the best record of any pitcher, ending the season at 6-2. DeVore struggled through injuries for much of last season but is expected to be ready to play in 2008. Also returning on the mound is junior Geoff Wolfgramm and sophomores Greg Krause and Bennett Askew.
The Utes also picked up a slew of newcomers this offseason. Two up-and-coming talents that could contribute immediately are blue-chip infielders Micheal Beltran and DC Legg. Beltran, who was drafted by the Seattle Mariners out of high school, is projected to start at shortstop while Legg may start at third base.
In the outfield, juco transfer Cooper Blanc is expected to be a contributor alongside the vigilant Burnham.
“As a whole, we were really young last year,” Conger said. “We’re going to be young again this year, but a lot of them now have experience under their belt. We’re expecting great things.”