2008 Woodie Awards
Injuries hampering Pioneers' season
Brian Fitzsimmons
Issue date: 4/17/08 Section: Sports
You can say it's been a culmination of bad breaks or a multitude of misfortune, but whichever way you look at it, the Sacred Heart baseball team is left wandering in the dark of the Northeast Conference without any flashlights.
As of Tuesday, the Pioneers were sitting on a 4-26 record wondering if any solace can be taken from what is now a rebuilding year.
Going 0 for 9 on the team's annual trip down south to open the season wasn't too much to worry about, given the rigid competition and past track records. Heck, the 2006 conference championship team flew back to Fairfield sporting a gruesome 0-10 mark and still came back to earn the program's first title.
But uncontrollable situations and a plethora of unfortunate injuries caused this year's downward spiral.
It began when catcher Frank Bainer felt pain in his right elbow in batting practice towards the latter part of the club's trip to Texas. Ultimately, he succumbed to Tommy John surgery and was forced to red-shirt for the season. Next, came the loss of clean-up hitter and possible Major League Baseball draft prospect Jeff Hanson, who suffered from a barking left elbow and an injured right hand.
"It was my choice to miss the rest of the year to recover from the two injuries," said Hanson, who hasn't played since a 7-2 home loss to UConn. "I'd probably be able to come back, but it wouldn't be until the very end of the season."
Those two blows occurred after infielder Steve Tedesco had preseason labrum surgery, and freshman Jeff Hepner was forced to red-shirt after transferring from the University of Vermont. Losing speedy outfielder Jovan Rodriguez hasn't helped matters either.
"Were struggling and there's been a ton of injuries on an already young team," Hanson said. "It's tough when you're without your number one, three, four and five hitters. But the young guys are getting experience and we're going to have to battle for the rest of the season."
Only eight conference games are in the books, and the Pioneers have won two of them. Against first place Monmouth, they were swept in four games and were out-scored 46-4.
As of Tuesday, the Pioneers were sitting on a 4-26 record wondering if any solace can be taken from what is now a rebuilding year.
Going 0 for 9 on the team's annual trip down south to open the season wasn't too much to worry about, given the rigid competition and past track records. Heck, the 2006 conference championship team flew back to Fairfield sporting a gruesome 0-10 mark and still came back to earn the program's first title.
But uncontrollable situations and a plethora of unfortunate injuries caused this year's downward spiral.
It began when catcher Frank Bainer felt pain in his right elbow in batting practice towards the latter part of the club's trip to Texas. Ultimately, he succumbed to Tommy John surgery and was forced to red-shirt for the season. Next, came the loss of clean-up hitter and possible Major League Baseball draft prospect Jeff Hanson, who suffered from a barking left elbow and an injured right hand.
"It was my choice to miss the rest of the year to recover from the two injuries," said Hanson, who hasn't played since a 7-2 home loss to UConn. "I'd probably be able to come back, but it wouldn't be until the very end of the season."
Those two blows occurred after infielder Steve Tedesco had preseason labrum surgery, and freshman Jeff Hepner was forced to red-shirt after transferring from the University of Vermont. Losing speedy outfielder Jovan Rodriguez hasn't helped matters either.
"Were struggling and there's been a ton of injuries on an already young team," Hanson said. "It's tough when you're without your number one, three, four and five hitters. But the young guys are getting experience and we're going to have to battle for the rest of the season."
Only eight conference games are in the books, and the Pioneers have won two of them. Against first place Monmouth, they were swept in four games and were out-scored 46-4.
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