LINCOLN, Neb.—In 2009, Nebraska finished last in the Big 12 conference and ended the season with a losing record.
The 2010 Huskers have every intention of turning that around and returning to the NCAA baseball tournament.
Outfielder Adam Bailey said Monday during a baseball media day in Lincoln that 2009 was fun but terrible.
“What can you say about last year? It was fun but it was terrible at the same time,” said Bailey, who was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 38th round.
“I came back for a reason: I want to show that last year was not us,” Bailey said. “We’re capable of a lot more.
“I want to have a great season. I want to do really well myself, because it feels like I have to. I want to take this team to a regional at minimum.”
Nebraska coach Mike Anderson has similar goals for his team: finishing in the top three in the Big 12 and making an NCAA regional, something he says should be the standard for the program.
Anderson said he’s confident that his team can reach those goals, if his freshmen pitchers can shore up the Huskers’ weak point from last year.
“The strength of this team is going to be our offense,” Anderson said. “We have the ability to build our strength in pitching. But it will be offense first, then defense, then pitching. If we’re going to get where we want to be, that pitching is going to have to fall into place.”
Anderson’s rotation isn’t set yet. But he said returning pitchers Sean Yost, Michael Mariot and Casey Hauptman look like weekend starters now with freshmen Tom Lemke and Kurt Giller, both of whom were drafted out of high school, pushing for big roles.
That competition will help the Huskers, said Mike Nesseth, who started last year but will become the closer this season.
“Last year, we just didn’t have the numbers,” Nesseth said. “This year’s a completely different staff. There’s going to be more guys who contribute a lot to the team.”
The turnaround for 2010 began immediately after the 2009 season ended in May.
Anderson kept returning players in Lincoln for a few days, discussing the year past, setting goals for the upcoming season and beginning a program of weight lifting and training designed to make the Huskers bigger, faster and stronger.
“The mindset is completely different than last year,” Nesseth said. “The work ethic is different. It’s a lot of the same guys, but it’s a whole new team.”
Nebraska opens a challenging nonconference schedule with a four-game series at Fresno State starting Friday. The Huskers also play perennial powers Rice and UCLA before beginning Big 12 conference play on March 19 at Texas.
“It’s tough to feel like it’s baseball season when it’s 20 degrees and the ground’s covered with snow,” said outfielder D.J. Belfonte. “But it’s that time of the year. We’re anxious to get going.”
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