Team Preview: Dartmouth
- Updated: February 23, 2023
HANOVER — Over the last 15 years, no team in the Ivy League has a better record in conference play than the Dartmouth Big Green. Year after year, the Big Green has put itself in a position to compete for the league title with a .648 winning percentage over that time, reaching the Ivy League Championship Series in eight consecutive seasons (2008-15) along the way.
But more recently Dartmouth has come up just short of advancing to that best-of-three series, missing out by the slimmest of margins in 2016 (lost a playoff game), 2018 (half a game back in the standings) and again in 2022 when the Big Green’s 14-7 conference mark — which would have been among the top two in the league in each of the last four complete seasons — left Dartmouth three games back of Columbia and Penn.
With the adoption of a four-team, double-elimination tournament to decide which team earns the automatic bid to an NCAA Regional, the opportunity to play for that bid becomes a more likely reality. But head coach Bob Whalen, who has won more Ivy League games than any other coach in conference history (348), isn’t going to let his team settle for simply being in the top half of the league.
“We hold ourselves to high standards, and when your objective is to win an Ivy League championship, your goal is not simply to slide in the back door by finishing fourth,” Whalen said. “Our goal is to finish first, which would allow us to host the tournament and give us the best chance of emerging with that bid. If we work diligently at the things we need to do that will allow us to reach our potential, we are confident we can have a successful season.”
Last year, the Big Green displayed what it could accomplish by putting in the work, providing an exciting brand of baseball that put runs on the board. Dartmouth averaged more than seven runs a game for the first time in 11 years, led the league in triples, struck out fewer times than any other Ancient Eight squad and stole more bases (48) than it had in 16 years while succeeding on the base paths at the best rate in the conference (82.8 percent).
While it is true that two of the biggest bats from the middle of the order in Justin Murray and Ivy League Player of the Year Kade Kretzschmar graduated, the Green still has plenty of weapons returning to the fold, including co-captain Kolton Freeman. The senior led the team with eight home runs and 25 walks last year, plus posted a .948 OPS.
With Freeman playing in one corner of the outfield, the other will have several players vying for time, most notably sophomore Jackson Hower along with freshman speedster Nico Bañez and rookie Ivan Hoyt, a talented athlete who is also a wide receiver on the football team. Junior Tyler Robinson is the incumbent in center field, possessing the ability to run down many a fly ball and ignite the offense with his speed, as evidenced by his seven stolen bases and league-leading five triples in 2022.
“We are fortunate to have options in the outfield,” Whalen said. “Kolton is a middle-of-the-order bat and will be in there, but we can mix and match a bit with the returning players and the rookies as they all have different strengths that we can play to on any given day.”
The infield has veteran experience throughout, particularly the left side with Ivy League Rookie of the Year Tyler Cox at short and All-Ivy Second Team third baseman Connor Bertsch. An All-Ivy League First Team selection as well, Cox had a season for the ages last year with the 10th-best batting average (.402) among Division I players. The junior also led the team in runs (41), on-base percentage (.452) and stolen bases (11), all while playing a slick shortstop with just one error in the 21 conference contests. Bertsch was the Big Green’s most improved player last year with a robust .331 average, five home runs and 35 RBIs. His greatest improvement, however, came in the field as he was flawless in league play, starting all 21 games at the hot corner.
On the right side, Dartmouth has a pair of players that saw part-time duty a year ago — junior first baseman Max Zajec and sophomore second baseman Elliot Krewson. Zajec came on strong toward the end of the season as his playing time increased, and he showed a discerning eye at the plate with more walks than strikeouts. Over at first base, he did not commit an error in 150 chances the entire season. Krewson has good range at the keystone position and is a pesky contact hitter at the plate who held his own with a .255 average as a freshman, walking twice as much as he struck out in over 100 plate appearances.
The Big Green do have some flexibility in its lineup construction, particularly with senior Peter O’Toole who can provide plus defense at first, second or third. He struggled with the bat out of the gate last year but ended on a high note by providing a walk-off hit in the season finale against eventual Ivy League champion Columbia. Freshmen Milo Suarez and Taer Rodriguez will also vie to break into the lineup to show off their skills.
“I like where we are at on the infield,” Whalen offered. “The left side isn’t simply experienced; Cox and Bertsch have had successful experiences both inside and outside the league.”
Behind the plate, Dartmouth has junior Nathan Cmeyla, who received All-Ivy League honorable mention in 2022. His bat became a big plus for the team as the season wore on, hitting .301 for the season including .372 with a pair of long balls over the last 11 games. But it was his work with the pitchers in his first collegiate season that got rave reviews from Whalen.
“Cmeyla put the work in to build his body up to withstand the rigors of catching, and that work showed in the results,” Whalen commented. “He did a tremendous job working with the pitchers — receiving, blocking and throwing — and by the latter part of the year, he was one of our better offensive players as well.”
Two sophomores, Zackarie Casebonne and Luke Carroll, will back up Cmeyla. Carroll missed his entire freshman campaign due to an injury, and both were limited by various ailments this past fall. But Casebonne showed promise with the bat in limited action last year, and each is itching to don the gear and get an opportunity on the field.
Senior James House, who is also capable of playing a corner outfield position, will get the bulk of the at-bats at designated hitter. His scorching bat early last year played a big role into the team’s strong start. After cooling off the last month of the season, he is looking to put together a more consistent season to help lengthen the Big Green lineup.
“We are still trying to figure out how best to construct the lineup to put our players in the best position to succeed,” Whalen said. “We will experiment a bit with where guys hit in the order to determine how we can get a little bit of flow from top to bottom.”
The pitching staff, which graduated two of its three weekend starters, will be anchored by co-captain Trystan Sarcone, another All-Ivy League Second Team selection in 2022. The fifth-year senior southpaw displayed excellent control, leading the league in fewest walks issued per nine innings (1.97) while going 6-4 with a 4.85 ERA (4-3, 3.60 against Ivy competition).
“Sarcone has been outstanding in the preseason, both in his work ethic and his preparation,” noted Whalen. “He has great mound presence and has confidence in his ability — as I do — to compete against any opponent with his four-pitch repertoire, and he throws all four pitches for strikes.”
Last year’s closer, Jack Metzger, is moving into the starting rotation this year after leading the league in games finished and saves while recording a 3.66 ERA and holding opponents to a .224 average. The senior wasn’t simply a one-inning reliever, however, with five outings of at least three innings, so the transition is expected to be relatively smooth.
Figuring out the third starter for conference weekends will be one of the priorities during the first month of competition. Junior right-hander Tyler Cortland was the leading contender before a preseason injury set him back. Veterans like junior right-hander Brady Chappell and senior southpaw Luke Carpenter, along with newcomers like righty Eddie Albert alike will get the opportunity to prove themselves in hopes of giving the Big Green another reliable starter in the Ivy League race.
Whalen is optimistic about his bullpen but realizes that they are mostly untested. Junior right-hander Shane Bauer fared well in short stints last year, holding opponents without an earned run in 12 of his 16 appearances, and sophomore left-hander Danny Will had his moments as well with a 3.18 ERA over his last 11 outings. From the freshman class, righty Mac Burke has impressed the coaching staff with his stuff and presence on the mound.
While most Division I teams played their first games of the 2023 season this past weekend, Dartmouth and the rest of the Ivy League had to cool their jets for one more week before opening the season on Friday, Feb. 24. Whalen is throwing his charges immediately into the fire with a three-game series at Miami, ranked as high as eighth this week in the national polls. But he knows the value of testing his players against top-tier competition.
“You schedule several years in advance, but our recurring theme is to give our players opportunities to learn to compete at a very high level,” Whalen said. “I have emphasized playing in a series instead of one-off games. It helps them understand the adjustments you have to make during a weekend as teams make adjustments to us. With series at Miami, UCF and USF during the first month of the season, we are putting are players up against some really top-level competition to best prepare them for conference play.”
Dartmouth will play the Hurricanes on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. (EST), and once more on Sunday at 1 p.m. All three games will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX).
*******
Those who would like to help New Hampshire Hardball promote baseball in the Granite State can do so by purchasing a New Hampshire Hardball XTRA membership or by making a donation below. Sponsorship inquiries can be sent to nhhardball@gmail.com. Your support is greatly appreciated.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login