Since we aren't allowed to call for MJ's job, I will post statistics and allow you to draw your own conclusions....

Here is a year by year comparison over the past eight years...

1998 - Team Batting Average - .308 - Team On Base Percentage - .373 - Reached Regional
1999 - Team Batting Average - .322 - Team On Base Percentage - .399 - Reached Omaha
2000 - Team Batting Average - .283 - Team On Base Percentage - .366 - No Postseason
2001 - Team Batting Average - .291 - Team On Base Percentage - .361 - No Postseason
2002 - Team Batting Average - .286 - Team On Base Percentage - .356 - No Postseason
2003 - Team Batting Average - .303 - Team On Base Percentage - .377 - Reached Regional
2004 - Team Batting Average - .300 - Team On Base Percentage - .382 - Reached Super Regional
2005 - Team Batting Average - .279 - Team On Base Percentage - .353

Averages of postseason teams - .308 hitting - .382 OBP
Averages of non postseason teams - .286 hitting - .361 OBP

There you have it. When the team bats over .300 and has an on base percentage over .370, they reach the postseason. You can argue timely hitting, pitching, and defense all you want, but in seven out of seven years, if you meet those levels, you make the field of 64, if you don't, you are out.

Pitching over this same time period has been pretty similar, except for 2000 when it was a total disaster.

So, 2005, we are smacking .279 and reaching .355 of the time. For us to meet the goal of .300 avg and .370 OBP, we have to hit .321 the rest of the way and reach .387 OBP for the remainder of our games. (Since we just passed halfway point, it was easy to calculate)

Guess what, a .321 avg and .387 OBP are 1999 like numbers where we pretty much led the country in offense, with a lineup that featured six 10+ home run hitters and eleven players with over a .305 average.

Here is some even better news in regards to our performance. Prior to the bats changing in 1999, with the stats I have available, we hit .315 as a team. After the bats have changed, we have hit .290 as a team.

[This message has been edited by Bonfire 1996 (edited 3/26/2005 1:57p).]

Nice stats. I don't suppose you'd mind putting in our pitching ERA too though? If not, I'll go dig it up later.

Here's the interesting thing....if you substitute the 2005 versions of Mav, Boggs, & Infante with their 2004 versions we're hitting .303 as a team and we're not having this discussion at all.

I've done the math up at my site

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Check out "Texas A&M & Baseball In No Particular Order"
at tamu-and-baseball.com

[This message has been edited by AgRyan04 (edited 3/26/2005 2:37p).]

Excellent analysis Bonfire 1996. Couple this with a poor start in conference play, and the writing is on the wall.

Every team has its good years and its bad years. We'll recover. And yet, we still have a good chance of picking up the bats too. LONG way from being over.

No, it is half over

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LONG way from being over

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Obviously you don't understand the law of averages. We are half way through, that means our batting average will move up and down less and less as we garner more at bats.

In fact, I bet we actually see a decrease in average as we get deeper and deeper into conference play. It has already started. We started prior to Tech with about a .290 average, we have already dropped .011 points

I wish I could say that I see this team hitting a lot better in the second half, but I just don't see it.

some of you need to put on maroon colored glasses and follow blindly!

I went ahead and looked up our team ERA's:

1998 4.27
1999 4.30
2000 4.81
2001 4.20
2002 4.04
2003 4.05
2004 4.07

2005 (as of 03/25) 3.19

That 3.19 probably means we can get away with hitting .290 instead of .300.

Unfortunately, we're at .279.

My faith is still untarnished.

[This message has been edited by AB2 (edited 3/26/2005 6:50p).]

i was expecting this answer to solve the keys of winning:

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This is a simple game: You throw the ball, you hit the ball, you catch the ball. You got it!

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quote:

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So, 2005, we are smacking .279 and reaching .355 of the time. For us to meet the goal of .300 avg and .370 OBP, we have to hit .321 the rest of the way and reach .387 OBP for the remainder of our games. (Since we just passed halfway point, it was easy to calculate)

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Bonfire- for this to be a successful season(at least playoff), we don't need to hit .321 the rest of the way out- Just meet the historic averages (.300)for this half of the season & we'll win enough games- especially with our pitching & our remarkably decent record thus far-in light of how we've hit...

But I agree, it doesn't look good.

Well, even if we don't make it this year, and I'm not saying it's a certainty, every team goes up and down. We'll be back on the upswing soon, even if not this year. Just gotta keep positive. Remember...

AS PH DuVal Jr. '51 said in "The Last Corps Trip...."

"I've seen 'em lose, and I've seen 'em win, but I've never seen 'em Quit."

The 3.19 ERA is the only reason we don't have a losing record to this point. This is probably Mark Johnson's best pitching staff since he's been at A&M, at least depth-wise. Unfortunately, the same coach who built the best offensive club in history ('89) has maybe his worst hitting club of his career. Amazing.

No offense, AgMarauder, but it is stupid sh*t like that that kept us from having a decent athletic dept. for a long time. I am all for preserving history, but it is just that history.

That is exactly the defeatist attitude that was displayed around the previous administration and we want to go home with the prom queen if you know what I am saying.