It's been a 'next man up' mentality for UConn baseball
Maddix Dalena and others have stepped up when others have gone down injured.
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UConn baseball relies on depth to keep mid-season hot streak going
In the face of major injuries to key starters in the lineup, UConn baseball has relied on some key contributions from depth pieces who have stepped up in a key way.
With starting center fielder T.C. Simmons out for eight weeks with a wrist injury, and slugging first baseman Ben Huber still out with plantar fascitis, Maddix Dalena, Ryan Daniels and Paul Tammaro have stepped up in their stead, making their mark on the season and allowing the lineup to continue without missing a beat.
When Simmons went down with a wrist injury in the first game of March, head coach Jim Penders had to get tricky with the lineup in order to replace the senior’s production.
David Smith was deputized as an outfielder, and UConn would rely on an unlikely platoon at second base: Daniels, a freshman, and Tammaro, an Oswego State transfer.
Tammaro has made 23 appearances and started 13 games this season, mostly as a lefty-killer, batting .356/.524/.556 in 45 at-bats this season. Daniels is likely the future at second base, and has given UConn a preview of what’s to come at that position, hitting .314 with eight doubles through 20 starts.
With Simmons back in the lineup, Penders suddenly has a good problem on his hands: What to do with so many capable hitters.
“We’ve gotta find a way to get them at-bats,” Penders said. “We’re gonna have to be very creative, even if it’s pinch-hitting [them]. We need to find a way to keep the timing both of them have.”
With Ben Huber’s recent foot injury, opportunities to give players at-bats increased even further, with freshman Maddix Dalena being thrust into the fold.
The freshman from Montoursville, Pennsylvania received a regular pinch-hitting opportunities earlier in the season, but looked “a little tentative” in his first few at-bats filling in for the injured Huber, according to Penders.
Indeed, Dalena only recorded a single hit in his first four games starting at first base regularly once Huber went down against Georgetown, and Penders was even considering playing Tammaro at first, trying him out at that position during practice.
But the freshman found his rhythm fairly quickly and is currently riding a five-game hit streak, with two home runs, six runs scored and seven RBI during that span.
Dalena’s hot streak continued this week, proving key to the Huskies’ narrow win against Hofstra. The freshman went 2-for-3 with two RBI, including a two-run double on a rope to right field to give UConn the lead in the bottom of the fourth.
As long as Huber is experiencing discomfort in his foot, Dalena is expected to fill in for the star first baseman, and as long as the freshman continues to hit like this, UConn won’t be missing him.
RPI Update
As of the start of play on May 11, UConn is at No. 16 in the RPI according to Warren Nolan, which is a small jump from the No. 17 ranking the Huskies held at this time last week. This comes despite a home sweep against Villanova, which was a Quad 4 opponent. They didn’t play a midweek game last week as it was finals week, but squeaked out a victory against Quad 3 Hofstra at Elliot Ballpark on Wednesday night.
Rutgers has jumped back into Quad 1, while Cal and Ohio State are now into the back end of the top 100, giving UConn a 10-5 Quad 2 record. In the Big East, Xavier sits just outside the top 50, while Seton Hall and Georgetown are sitting just outside of Quad 3.
The Huskies have seven regular season games left before the Big East Tournament. UConn has won seven straight games and 10 of 11 and needs to keep that up to maintain its precarious position in the hosting race. According to Boyds’ World’s RPI Needs Report, which measures how high a team can reach in the RPI in a vacuum, the Huskies need to win each of its remaining games to stay in the top 16.
Jim Penders’ team has a home series against Butler, followed by a single road game against Rhode Island and a road series against Creighton. The average RPI of these teams is 187.0 and both the Bulldogs and Rams are sub-200 teams, while Creighton is in Quad 3. Wins over these schools will generate little positive RPI momentum, while a loss to Butler or Rhode Island would be disastrous to the RPI. Even against Creighton, taking the road series is a must.
Bracketology
UConn is again projected by one outlet to host a regional and is headed to Boston College according to the other. The twist is that this week, the Huskies are No. 16 in D1Baseball.com’s projections, but are the 2-seed in the No. 14 Eagles’ Brighton Regional, according to Baseball America. Last week, the outlet had the Huskies seeded No. 16.
D1Baseball.com’s Storrs Regional also features Virginia, Auburn and CCSU. Boston College is also hosting, which would create two Northeast regionals. The Huskies remain within RPI range for another week, which when combined with a top-75 non-conference strength of schedule and 14-7 record against the RPI top 100, creates a viable hosting position, even if elite wins are few and far between.
Baseball America bounced UConn, along with Dallas Baptist and Oregon, in favor of Boston College, Clemson and Kentucky. The outlet hasn’t had both the Huskies and Eagles in a hosting slot yet and swapped the two after the Brighton nine nicked a road game off of Wake Forest, which was the No. 1 overall seed in both brackets, while the boys from Storrs swept Quad 4 Seton Hall at home.
The Week Ahead
Friday: Butler; 6:05 p.m.; UConn+
Saturday: Butler; 2:05 p.m.; UConn+
Sunday: Butler; 12:05 p.m.; UConn+
Tuesday: at Rhode Island; 3 p.m.; ESPN+
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