'22 Season Ends After Sweep By Clemson, Many Questions Remain for BC Baseball
The '22 season was not a step in the right direction for the Boston College baseball team. On Sunday, the Eagles concluded their campaign with a two hit by the Clemson Tigers, losing 5-0, finishing the season 19-34, and just a paltry 5-25 in conference. They ended the season on a six game slide, and were outscored 64-18 over the past two weeks. Mike Gambino's squad, who just a year ago was starting to get buzz after some early season success, finished in last in the Atlantic, an incredible 10 games behind the 6th place Tigers.
But what went wrong? The answer? Pretty much everything. The pitching was easily the worst in the conference, finishing with a 7.14 total ERA, and an 8.40 against conference opponents. Batters hit a whopping .291 against the Eagles (worst in the conference), a number that ballooned to .311 versus just ACC teams. They struck out the least amount of batters in the conference....and the list goes on and on.
It's easy to just point to the pitching but there were other factors that hindered this squad. The hitting was near or at the bottom of the conference in almost every category. Batting average (last), runs per game (12th), walks per game (13th), all highlight BC's inability to plate runners and support their struggling pitchers.
Where does the program go from here? Obviously the first question will be the future of head coach Mike Gambino. He is well liked within the BC community, and is a former player, but the results are starting to speak for themselves. The Eagles are 40-74 over the past two seasons, and have missed the ACC tournament in both.
The Eagles have a brand new facility, and stadium, putting the Eagles back in the conversation with other conference foes. But the buzz around the program has never been quieter. The games are lightly attended which isn't the fans fault, the team won three total ACC games at home this year.
Boston College currently does not have an athletic director after Pat Kraft departed for Penn State. But with baseball unable to make strides forward, the department is going to need to take a long look at the future of the program. Last season Gambino replaced a handful of coaches on his staff, and the results haven't changed. The answer of what to do next seems pretty simple, it's just a question if the school will pull the trigger.