Feb. 9, 2006

On the surface, it would appear as if the 2006 George Mason baseball team faces insurmountable odds. The Patriots have lost their all-time leaders in home runs and RBI (Chris Looze), runs, walks, steals and triples (Matt Cooksey), and wins, strikeouts, appearances and winning percentage (Stacen Gant). As if that wasn't enough, five of last year's starting nine won't be on the field this season.

But delve underneath the surface and you'll see that Mason returns one of the deepest pitching staffs in school history and a four-year starter at catcher. Throw in an excellent group of first-year players and one of the conference's top coaching staffs and Mason finds itself in position to make a run at Division I school history - four straight 30 win seasons, something never before accomplished at Mason.

The ability to reach that 30-win mark will depend heavily on the pitching staff. The Patriots plan to run lefties out to the mound in each of its weekend games. Four pitchers are in the mix for the weekend starts, Jared Petrovich, J.J. Pannell, Brent Hitz and Eric Gibbons.

Petrovich had deceiving numbers last year, going 0-1 with a 5.40 earned run average. Remove his back-to-back mid-season starts against George Washington and Richmond, and Petrovich had a 3.24 ERA with a .198 batting average against.

Pannell pitched exclusively out of the bullpen last year as a redshirt freshman. After recovering from elbow surgery, he was brought along slowly. His 2.73 ERA was the lowest on the team (minimum 20 innings) and he struck out nearly a batter an inning, with 28 strikeouts in 29.2 innings. He had a 3-1 record and one save.

Hitz has quietly put together a strong resume. The senior has the best ERA of any returning starter in the Colonial Athletic Association. He had a 3.76 ERA last year with a 4-5 mark. For his career, the lefty from Burke, Va. is 10-5 with a 3.56 ERA and just 29 walks in 154.1 innings. His 1.7 walks per nine innings is among the best in school history.

Gibbons is 15-8 on his career and he is tied for 12th on the career victories list. If he manages five wins this year, he would move into fifth on the all-time list. If he reaches his career average of 65 innings per year, he could reach the top three all-time in innings pitched.

Whichever starter doesn't go on the weekend will work in the mid-week along with Mike Modica, a freshman from Sewell, N.J. Yet another lefthander, he finished his high school career with more than 200 strikeouts and a 1.23 ERA. He was All-State last year and recorded a mark of 9-3 with 107 strikeouts. He also recorded the win for North Jersey in the All-State game.

The bullpen was superb in 2005, recording an 11-4 record with 11 saves and a 3.50 ERA. Five of the relievers to record an ERA better than 4.00 return to the team with Pannell and Petrovich moving into the rotation. That leaves Jason Mills, Phil Stone and Billy Tinsley as players who have both the experience and stuff to challenge hitters.

Mills has been Mason's closer for the past two seasons and his six saves easily led the team last year. He also had a 4-0 mark with a 3.25 ERA and he walked just eight batters while striking out 35 in 27.2 innings. He was named second-team All-CAA for his efforts.

Mills is second all-time at Mason with 10 career saves. Steve Kann has the school record with 18. For his career, Mills has 100 strikeouts in 82.2 innings. He is the only pitcher in school history with 10 career wins and 10 career saves. After appearing in 20 or more games each of the past two seasons, Mills could shatter the school record for appearances, which Gant holds at 66. Mills has already appeared in 54 games.

While Mills is expected to close the games, it will be up to Stone and Brian Winings to get the game to Mills. Stone pitched two seasons for Frederick Community College before coming to Mason. He was superb for the Patriots until derailed by injury in late April. After seven appearances totaling 17.2 innings, he had a 1.02 ERA. He finished the year with a 1-2 record and two saves in 25 innings. He had a 3.24 ERA, walking just seven batters while striking out 17.

Winings comes to Mason after pitching for three seasons at Penn. The native of Reston, Va. set a school record and led the Ivy League in 2003 with eight saves. He was moved into the starting rotation after his junior year and he was drafted by the Indians in the 48th round of the 2004 draft. He sat out the 2005 season as a medical redshirt, giving him one remaining year of eligibility.

Tinsley will be one of three players that will be looked to in middle relief. The sophomore lefthander was 1-0 with a 3.86 ERA last year in seven games. Dan Jaycox, also a sophomore, will return to action after earning a medical redshirt in 2005. A high school teammate of Mills, Jaycox has appeared in seven games for Mason and he has one career save. The final pitcher on the staff is Jordan Flasher. The freshman from Manassas, Va. was 9-1 with 114 strikeouts and 1.03 ERA as a high school senior. That was after going 6-2 with a 1.25 ERA as a junior. He was honorable mention All-Met last year and he has a no-hitter on his resume.

"Obviously, the strength right now of our team is the depth and experience of our pitching staff," said Mason head coach Bill Brown. "It's a luxury to have 11 pitchers you feel can win the game at any time against any team. We expect nothing but quality innings out of them."

While everyone's roles are set on the pitching staff, the lineup will be a work in progress. After catching every game the past two seasons, Robby Jacobsen once again returns as the team's starting catcher. The senior is a career .300 hitter with 20 career homers and 34 career steals. He is poised to become the first 25-25 player in Mason history. He's coming off his best all-around season as a Patriot, having batted .355 with 45 RBI and 20 steals. He set a school record in 2004 with 242 at-bats on the season and he is on pace to become the ninth player in school history with 700 or more at-bats.

Jacobsen should have some relief behind the plate this season. Sophomore transfer Jason Bour is slated to see some time at catcher as is freshman Mike Laird. Their spots on the roster will allow Jacobsen to have the occasional off-day or to start in the outfield. Bour comes to Mason from Hampden-Sydney where he hit .356 with 33 RBI. Laird, a graduate of Bishop O'Connell High School, will also see time behind the plate, as well as in the outfield. He was All-State as a senior after batting .416. The catcher/outfielder also wrestled for four years in high school and he was All-State in that sport as well.

Three other players return after having started 35 or more games. The biggest bat is right-fielder Matt York. The senior hit .336 last year and he began his Mason career with a 16-game hitting streak. He had a .398 on-base percentage and scored 51 runs last year. He could also see some time in the infield.

Tyler Youngs started 46 games for the Patriots in a variety of infield positions. This year, he is slated to play at both third base and second base. Last year's third baseman, Chris Fournier, will miss the season after having Tommy John surgery. Youngs batted .326 last year as a junior with a .380 on-base percentage. He had 30 RBI despite batting near the bottom of the order for most of the season.

Casey Slattery will platoon at first base and play designated hitter as well. After transferring to Mason from Tulane, Slattery hit a pair of dramatic home run in the CAA Championships last year, accounting for half his home run total on the season. He hit .313 on the year with a .442 on-base percentage and a .478 slugging percentage. He had nearly as many walks as strikeouts, with 27 base on balls to 31 whiffs.

Senior Mike Genovese started 15 games last year and appeared in 20 contests. The infielder will fight for time at shortstop. In 2005, he hit his first career home run, finishing the year with a .200 average and a .308 slugging percentage. Senior Brett Pomykala started 11 games for Mason and appeared in 18 contests, compiling a .178 batting average. He slugged .311 and had a .275 on-base percentage. He could start the season in left field.

Junior Matt Barrett could see time at the corner infield positions. He started 21 games last year and appeared in 32 contests. He batted .244 and hit a pair of home runs. Sophomore Chris Romanow, who is recovering from a knee injury, will also be looking for time at third, first and DH. He redshirted last year after getting a hit in his only at-bat. As a freshman, he hit .295 in 20 games with a pair of home runs.

"We're excited about the mix of returning players and a very talented freshman class," said Brown. "This group has the potential to be one of the three best classes we've brought in."

Five first-year players will be fighting for playing time and any of the five could end up in the starting lineup. Scott Kreiger will have the unenviable task, along with Slattery, of trying to replace Looze at first base. The freshman from Towson, Md. batted .500 with 10 home runs and 49 RBI as a junior and followed that up by hitting .524 with nine home runs, 45 RBI and a 1.032 slugging percentage as a senior. He finished his career with a .467 batting average and as a two-time All-Metro selection. His high school team, Calvert Hall, finished the year ranked seventh by USA Today after a state-record 31 consecutive wins. Krieger could also see time at designated hitter and even in the outfield.

Brent Weiss will see playing time at both middle infield positions. The freshman from Suffern, N.Y. will fill the position manned by Jimmy Freund the past two seasons. Weiss hit .420 with 24 steals as a high school senior and he should provide strong defense. Weiss comes from a very athletic family as he has three brothers who played three different sports collegiate and his uncle, Walt, was a major leaguer, earning Rookie of the Year honors with the Oakland As and making the All-Star game with the Atlanta Braves.

After four years of Cooksey manning centerfield, Patriot fans will have a new face in one of the sport's toughest positions. Spencer Wiggins is slated to be the opening day centerfielder. A graduate of Robinson High School in Fairfax, Wiggins set his school's single-season record with 29 steals as a junior. He finished his career second in school history with 52 steals and a .458 batting average. His father, Dave, was twice drafted by major league teams, being selected out of high school by Oakland and after playing at San Diego State and Oregon State selected once again by the New York Mets.

Jon Weislow comes to Mason from Bishop O'Connell High School. The outfielder batted .460 as a senior and was successful on 17 of 18 stolen base attempts. He was first-team All-Met as a senior and All-State as well. He was a member of the 26-player USA Junior National Team but did not compete due to injury. He will be in the mix in all three outfield positions.

Also looking for a spot in the outfield is Ryan Uphouse, who comes to Mason from Somerset Area High School in Somerset, Pa. He played basketball, football and golf in addition to baseball and he was All-Conference as senior and the team's MVP.

Brown returns for his 25th season as Mason's head coach. He has a 676-601-5 record and he is the school's all-time leader in victories. Among Division I coaches 48 or younger, he is third in coaching victories behind only Ray Tanner of South Carolina and Pat Murphy of Arizona State.

Shawn Stiffler returns for his fifth season as pitching coach and his second as the head of recruiting. Across the board Stiffler's staffs have been among the best in school history. They have been among the most successful groups in strikeouts, walks, ERA and strikeout to walk ratio. Three of his previous four seasons, his pitchers have posted one of the five-best team ERAs in school history.

Taking over in his first season as an assistant coach is former Patriot Jeff Palumbo. The school's all-time leader in games played, games started, at-bats and hits, he will be in charge of the infield and defense and working with hitters. Andy Devitt will enter his first season as a volunteer assistant coach.

Last season, the CAA failed to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA College World Series for the first time since 1997. Looking to strengthen the team's chances should Mason fail to win the CAA Tournament, Brown put together what is considered the toughest schedule in the conference. Mason will face Virginia, Pittsburgh, Arkansas, College of Charleston, Charleston Southern, Coastal Carolina, Oklahoma State, South Alabama, George Washington and UNC-Chapel Hill in non-conference play.

This year, the CAA slate calls for 30 games with the addition of Georgia State and Northeastern to the conference. Last year's regular-season champion and the 2004 CAA Tournament champions, UNC Wilmington was voted first in the pre-season coaches poll. Virginia Commonwealth, last year's CAA Tournament champions were selected second. Mason was chosen third.

"With the expansion and the number of series you play, you have to focus a lot earlier on the conference schedule," Brown said. "I think it will make it tougher for a team to dominate the conference. It certainly will make the conference season more of a grind."