Baseball 2011

[johnnyzip84]

Zips open at Mississippi State today. It's almost like playing against a MLB team. Check out their facilities. Did Will Clark donate some major coin or what?

[ZachTheZip]

Their facility is in the upper tier of college baseball stadiums. Ours is the worst in the entire country. It wouldn't take much of an investment to at least get some stands like the softball field has.

Luckily, it appears that some upgrades are on the way.

Moved to its present site (adjacent to the UA soccer field) at Lee Jackson Field in 1972, the Zips' diamond has undergone several upgrades over the years to keep it among the finest college facilities in Northeast Ohio. These improvements have generated a great sense of pride in the Zips' "home field."

Akron has compiled a 412-298-4 mark at Lee Jackson Field over 38 years. Thanks to the dedicated effort of grounds supervisor Jim Fleming, the Zips were able to construct new bullpens outside the existing fence lines in recent years.

In addition, a $45,000 project to install a new net-and-cable system backstop was completed prior to the 2002 season. Future projects include: a complete re-grading of the infield surface and the addition of 100-150 chair-back seats behind the new backstop. Upgrades are expected over the next few seasons as part of the Lee Jackson Field revelopment project.

I laughed out loud when I read the first bolded part.

[Blue & Gold]

Moved to its present site (adjacent to the UA soccer field) at Lee Jackson Field in 1972, the Zips' diamond has undergone several upgrades over the years to keep it among the finest college facilities in Northeast Ohio. These improvements have generated a great sense of pride in the Zips' "home field."

Akron has compiled a 412-298-4 mark at Lee Jackson Field over 38 years. Thanks to the dedicated effort of grounds supervisor Jim Fleming, the Zips were able to construct new bullpens outside the existing fence lines in recent years.

In addition, a $45,000 project to install a new net-and-cable system backstop was completed prior to the 2002 season. Future projects include: a complete re-grading of the infield surface and the addition of 100-150 chair-back seats behind the new backstop. Upgrades are expected over the next few seasons as part of the Lee Jackson Field revelopment project.

A net-and-cable backstop costs $45,000?!?!

And "100-150 chair-back seats behind the new backstop." My, my. Aren't we aiming for the stars?

[travisbaker]

I just joined up here, but I follow baseball religiously ha, I'd love to play!

[Lee Adams]

Moved to its present site (adjacent to the UA soccer field) at Lee Jackson Field in 1972, the Zips' diamond has undergone several upgrades over the years to keep it among the finest college facilities in Northeast Ohio. These improvements have generated a great sense of pride in the Zips' "home field."

Akron has compiled a 412-298-4 mark at Lee Jackson Field over 38 years. Thanks to the dedicated effort of grounds supervisor Jim Fleming, the Zips were able to construct new bullpens outside the existing fence lines in recent years.

In addition, a $45,000 project to install a new net-and-cable system backstop was completed prior to the 2002 season. Future projects include: a complete re-grading of the infield surface and the addition of 100-150 chair-back seats behind the new backstop. Upgrades are expected over the next few seasons as part of the Lee Jackson Field revelopment project.

A net-and-cable backstop costs $45,000?!?!

And "100-150 chair-back seats behind the new backstop." My, my. Aren't we aiming for the stars?

How come they couldn't work out something with the Aeros to play more games at Canal Park?

[Lee Adams]

I just joined up here, but I follow baseball religiously ha, I'd love to play!

With this program go back to school you can probably walk on and make the team.

[GP1]

Going to Zips baseball games always brings back good college memories for me. There was nothing better than sitting outside on one of the first nice Saturday afternoons in the spring and watching a game or two.

[Zipmeister]

Going to Zips baseball games always brings back good college memories for me. There was nothing better than sitting outside on one of the first nice Saturday afternoons in the spring and watching a game or two.

I'm with you. If you look closely at the MSU stadium, you will observe that unlike the Zip's facilities, no grass seating is available there.

[Spin]

I just joined up here, but I follow baseball religiously ha, I'd love to play!

With this program go back to school you can probably walk on and make the team.

6-23, 0-9 in the Mac.

They're making the football team look good.

WHAT THE HELL???

[ZachTheZip]

You're surprised?

Baseball at UA will never be anything more than a sport we keep around simply because the MAC says it's mandatory for full membership. No investments, no interest, not even a damned stadium to watch them in.

[Blue & Gold]

I just joined up here, but I follow baseball religiously ha, I'd love to play!

With this program go back to school you can probably walk on and make the team.

6-23, 0-9 in the Mac.

They're making the football team look good.

WHAT THE HELL???

You posted verbatim what I almost posted yesterday.

But I didn't. Why? Because nobody seems to care.

Honestly, shouldn't we be upset about this?

I thought I was the only ZNO poster that had taken notice.

[g-mann17]

You're surprised?

Baseball at UA will never be anything more than a sport we keep around simply because the MAC says it's mandatory for full membership. No investments, no interest, not even a damned stadium to watch them in.

Baseball is getting a new stadium, and does have better training facilities. There is a major baseball alumnus pushing for more investment. You might know him, has something to do with basketball now.

[Blue & Gold]

At 2:00 today the Akron -vs- Columbus State game is on the Big Ten Network.

That sucks.

[Spin]

You're surprised?

Baseball at UA will never be anything more than a sport we keep around simply because the MAC says it's mandatory for full membership. No investments, no interest, not even a damned stadium to watch them in.

I don't think anybody is expecting the Zips (or any other school where it snows) to go to Omaha this summer. But we're usually better than THIS. We had a winning record a couple years ago.

[RootforRoo44]

You're surprised?

Baseball at UA will never be anything more than a sport we keep around simply because the MAC says it's mandatory for full membership. No investments, no interest, not even a damned stadium to watch them in.

I don't think anybody is expecting the Zips (or any other school where it snows) to go to Omaha this summer. But we're usually better than THIS. We had a winning record a couple years ago.

cant win if you cant hit.

I could find 10 people on campus that could hit better than every player on this team except maybe Drew Turocy. And that's no exaggeration.

[72 Roo]

You're surprised?

Baseball at UA will never be anything more than a sport we keep around simply because the MAC says it's mandatory for full membership. No investments, no interest, not even a damned stadium to watch them in.

Zach and Nation, we will see at the end of this season is UA is serious about a winning program or just treading water in a pool of apathy. If Bangston is fired you will know they are serious about competing. Same could be said for softball. Both sports are under-performing. That being said, I hear coach Bangston and coach Jones are good people. Too bad, I wish they could win.

[Z.I.P.]

Akron may not be doing very good in the sport, however the next school over is. Baseball America's top-30 poll this week has just one school North of the Mason Dixon line ranked: Can't State @ #27. Good news for the MAC at least.

[RootforRoo44]

Our facilities are so bad that we already moved a series to an opponents field 48 hours before first pitch due to field conditions. That's just ridiculous.

They need to blow that place up and rebuild it. Hell, the Zips should go play at Erie Island or Summit Lake parks, they are both nicer than Lee Jackson.

[ZachTheZip]

Anybody going to the Diamond Classic tonight at Canal Park? It would be nice to pick up a win against Can't State even if it doesn't count as a conference game.

[mes102]

Anybody going to the Diamond Classic tonight at Canal Park? It would be nice to pick up a win against Can't State even if it doesn't count as a conference game.

it actually does count as a conference game...

[Spin]

For the first time in 5 years, I don't think I'm gonna make a ballgame.

[ZachTheZip]

We're 15-36 (6-19) with 2 games to go, both at Can't. Last year we were 21-34 (3-24) in the MAC. In 2009 we were 19-33 (12-15). 2008 was 25-24 (8-13).

I think it's time we got a new coach. Bangston is just awful. Even worse, he's a former Can't State athlete. If I were a bigger conspiracy theorist, I would say he's deliberately hurting our program for Can't's benefit. But would be giving a Can't grad way too much credit.

[bigzipguy]

Getting rid of Bangston may not help. The fact is the Zips have the worst facilities for baseball in the MAC. That in itself hurts in getting really good D1 players(not to pile on the current players).

The other thing is that Can't is well established as the best ream in the conference. If Can't were to have a men's soccer team, it would take them a number of years before they could even BEGIN TO COMPLETE.

[ZachTheZip]

The Zips have some talent on the roster. A surprising amount to someone who doesn't follow them closely. But that talent is mis-managed constantly. It doesn't take much to be competitive in the MAC for baseball. I would go so far as to say that it doesn't take anything more than some guys who played in high school and a coach who knows how to use them in the right situations. You won't be at Can't State's level, but you would be middle of the pack and at least get into the conference tournament.

[ZachTheZip]

Watching Duke and ND play LAX today made me realize something. Having a strong spring spectator sport is an important factor in the success of an athletic department. What it does is it keeps the fans involved for two or three months after the winter sports end. It keeps college athletics on the minds of charitable alumni through the year, filling the gap we see at UA between the end of basketball and the ramp-up to football. In another thread, CK mentioned that the football golf outing served that purpose.

Baseball could be that sport, but the way things are going it probably will not. Track, Tennis, and Golf don't lend themselves well to spectating fans. So it's either baseball, softball, or try something new. I hope there is some lobbying going on at the MAC HQ to drop the mandatory tag for baseball. Most schools will keep it, but some may choose to invest in another sport to keep them in the minds of fans after March.