Soaring Rhetoric: Boston College Baseball’s Living Nightmare

Kyle: Firing Mike Gambino, who from all I’ve heard is a really nice guy, would be useless. This is a team and a program that has never had good luck. Before making the making the NCAA Tournament most recently in 2009, the Eagles hadn’t made it to college baseball’s big dance since 1967 (they actually made the College World Series that year). This is a program that will have its hot streaks, but will never have consistent progress. But that leads to the next question: Do we take out this baseball program and throw in Men’s Lacrosse which axed for “Title IX” reasons by Gene DeFilippo at the turn of the millennium?

Joe: Well, first on Gambino, I know he’s a “BC guy” but he’s way off from his two predecessors so far. BC baseball is about as bad as it’s ever been, so if Bates eventually made a change I don’t think we’d lose any sleep over it, but let’s not blame him for all of this, either. There is a ton about BC baseball that needs to change.

I don’t think we’re there yet, but we’re arriving at a point where soon we’ll need to get real about this baseball program. Our facilities are an embarrassment worthy of a high school team, and it seems we’re still no closer to a new stadium (which was promised years before you got to BC and still only exists on a blueprint). If they’re not going to upgrade the facilities and thereby attempt to field a competitive ACC team, then maybe the school will have to reevaluate the program’s status. I don’t know if that means bringing back lacrosse or what, but we’ll cross that bridge when and if we come to it.

Kyle: Even if they build that stadium at Brighton, will anyone go to the games except for the beat writers, WZBC broadcasters and parents? Nah. Unless there is some improvement in the team, I’d rather that money be used to improve the current field we already have. Or at least put it towards the eventual Plex renovations. I know that there is an institutional master plan that Fr. Leahy implemented, and I’m pretty sure that that is on it. Also, Carney Hall will become a dining hall.

But, honestly I want to give Coach Gambino another year to see if there is any more progress. I was just reading an article in The Heights today where he basically said that he is starting to see a spark in his boys. Well, I hope that isn’t just Spaz-type hogwash and that there will be real improvement. In addition, I think that BC should advertise the baseball team at least half as much as they advertised women’s basketball throughout the last season. I swear there was an email at least every two days.

The conversation concludes on the next page