Solid pitching may be an essential piece in the puzzle, but no pitching staff can win without run support.
Led by its seniors, the baseball team boasts a solid lineup that should rarely falter in providing that support.
The Jumbos return five seniors as position players this season, all of whom have significant game experience and encouraging numbers.
Last year the combination of then-junior tri-captain Bryan McDavitt, and then-juniors Brian Casey, Kyle Backstrom, Nick Curato and Chris Decembrele combined for 130 of the 245 RBIs posted by Tufts hitters last season.
This year the experienced core will retake the batter's box looking to lead the team to a NESCAC championship.
"College pitching is challenging and plate experience helps," Casey said. "The more pitching you see the more prepared you are to perform."
Experience and talent have made this group a formidable team with great potential. McDavitt has developed into a force in the middle of the lineup and hit for an average of .420 with four home runs and 38 RBIs last season. The first baseman also showed good plate discipline, leading the team with 26 walks.
"We have a lot of great hitters," said senior tri-captain Ben Simon, who is also an editor for the Daily. "But if you ask people around the league, [McDavitt] would probably be the one they mention most. He's a very tough hitter to face."
Unfortunately for opposing pitchers, the danger won't end with McDavitt. Backstrom, Casey, and Curato all boasted averages above .300, while Decembrele led the team with six home runs. Consistent production at the plate by those players will likely anchor the Jumbo lineup.
Perhaps just as important as their production on the field this year will be the seniors' role in helping the younger players develop.
"This is a big senior class with a lot of game experience," Simon said. "Many of them have played since they were freshmen, and all of them over time have become key players. The younger guys definitely look up to the older players."
"We provide leadership through the way we play," Casey said. "We offer advice for our underclassmen for issues they'll have on and off the field. We'll help them in practice, drill work and in dealing with game situations. And that also goes for helping each other as upperclassmen as well. We are always pushing each other to be better."
There's also an important sense of unity amongst these veteran players, which is certainly reflected in their camaraderie on the field.
"Our senior class has gelled together really nicely since our freshman year," Casey said. "Our success thus far is a result of three years of hard work, practice and experience."
With the team's seniors armed with plenty of talent and assuming positive leadership positions, the squad has the formula for success. But this team also knows that no matter how many pieces of the puzzle it may have, it still has to put it all together.
Hoping to improve on last year's loss in the NESCAC Championship game to Middlebury, the Jumbos will have to get it done when it counts if they want to clinch the title.
"We still have a lot of work to do and games to play before the book is closed on us," Casey said. "And we are [planning] on making the most of it."
