Nebraska baseball: What went wrong?
LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska baseball has always been an up–and–down program. Five-star recruits that busted, different coaching methods that haven’t seemed to work have all been the bane of Nebraska’s hopes of making the 45-minute trip to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. With a new addition of 2021 Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Max Anderson, and plenty of healthy bullpen arms, Nebraska baseball looked for a turnaround 2021 season.
The Cornhusker Baseball team finished the 2021 regular season with a winning record of 31-12 (.721). Senior Jaxon Hallmark led the team in all statistical categories except for OPS with an impressive .342 batting average and .546 slugging along with three stolen bases against Maryland, Purdue and Rutgers. On the defensive side of the ball, the Huskers collectively had a 3.81 ERA while a 6-1 record from junior Cade Povich boosted the Huskers to the top of the Big 10 conference.
As the Huskers continued to dominate the Big 10, they were chosen to participate in the Fayetteville Regional in Arkansas for a shot to go to the College World Series. They first beat Northeastern 8-6, lost to No. 1 ranked Arkansas 5-1, beat NJIT 18-4 then back against Arkansas where they won 5-3 and lost 6-2 in the championship game.
All seemed to be clicking for Nebraska as the only thing standing in their way from a trip to Omaha was the best team in the entire country. The campus buzzed with news of a powerhouse baseball program, which would sadly not last long enough.
Nebraska opened their 2022 season against Sam Houston on Feb.18. Broadcasted live on ESPN+, the Huskers fell in their opening game, losing 8-5. Max Anderson led Big Red where they left off by going 3-for-5 with a single, double and triple.
The Huskers then proceeded to lose three out of four of their opening series against Sam Houston to drop to 1-3 on the season. The next series was five days later in Arlington, Texas against TCU. The Huskers were swept by the Horned Frogs, only putting up seven runs in 27 innings. As the Cornhuskers started 1-6, people were beginning to ask, what happened?
The Huskers never turned on the jets that the collegiate baseball world saw last spring. They struggled with getting runners home, tough outings from great pitchers and fielding overall. About a month after the season started, the Huskers faced Texas A&M Corpus Christi at home in Lincoln. Corpus Christi scored 21 runs in nine innings against the Huskers while they only scored four. This is not the same team that was playing in the Fayetteville regional last year.
The Huskers’ Big 10 playoff hopes were shattered after the Purdue Boilermakers called off their game due to inclement weather on May 21, 2022. The only way the Cornhuskers could make the playoffs was if Maryland swept Purdue in their final series of the regular season. Maryland beat Purdue twice 14-7 and 18-7. As the day of the final game came, dark clouds covered West Lafayette and rain poured onto the field. The umpires and grounds crew declared the game unplayable, shattering the hopes of Huskers baseball fans.
The fault can be found all around the team. Redshirt freshman Garrett Anglim was the only Husker to bat over .300 this season at .303. Most of the starting pitchers had an above average ERA, most runs coming from Dawson McCarville that had four wins to his five losses on the season, picking up a 6.47 ERA and 1.62 WHIP. Although the pitching and hitting were a step down from last year, the fielding was not much better. Out of 53 games played during the 2022 season, the Huskers had a combined 61 errors during those games. Compared to last season’s 36 errors, the Huskers essentially doubled their fielding mistakes in crucial games against Michigan State.
A down year for the entirety of the program should not be a deterrent for Huskers fans in the future. A young squad with a lot of talent and potential lights up Haymarket Field better than any light during a night game. Max Anderson will continue to be consistent as he goes into the next season as a junior, and many of the young freshmen will continue to find their spot within the Big 10.
