This article was written by Michael Boston during his tenure with SSM.
The University of Cincinnati’s baseball team made history this season by becoming the first team in school history to make back-to-back NCAA Tournaments. Both as at large bids.
Earning a #2 seed in the Starkville Regional was yet another step forward in the Jordan Bischel era, improving upon their #3 seed last season in Knoxville. And even though they fell short of advancing despite beating a ranked Louisiana team in game 1 pretty convincingly… vibes were still at an all-time high with what this baseball program could possibly become. The only questions would be who this team could retain, knowing the SEC and their bottomless wallets would be banging down the doors to get some of this team’s top talent.
And then Thursday happened.
Big 12 Freshman of the year Enzo Infelise was the first to announce his decision to return, having slashed .374/.441/.551 while hitting 10 HRs in his true freshman season. With a line like that he probably could have played anywhere he wanted next season yet chose to stay in Cincinnati to help build the monster that Cincinnati baseball is quickly becoming. Retaining Enzo alone would’ve been a huge win for the Baseball program, but more good news would soon follow.
If you even just casually followed College Baseball this past season, you’re aware of who Quinton Coats is and what he accomplished. While the slash line of .339/.430/.738 is off the charts insane his 28 HRs as just a Sophomore at Cincinnati is what he’s nationally known for. Like Enzo both are extremely well regarded both at the college level and for what they project to at the next level. Bringing both guys back was something a lot of people questioned whether a program like Cincinnati could do.
Turns out not only could they do just that, but they also weren’t done.
Speaking of being nationally known. If you watched SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays, chances are you saw quite a few of Derrick. His elite outfield play saved countless runs for the Bearcats pitching staff.
This specific play at the Regionals was iconic.
Derrick’s not just an ultra-athletic Center Fielder defensively, he slashed .329/.423/.459 at the plate. To be able to go into the offseason knowing the middle of your lineup has the talent the Bearcats have with all three guys announcing they’re returning almost immediately following their season ending less than a week ago, gives the coaching staff more time to identify and land talent around them.
I don’t think it’s a hot take to suggest you have to believe with all of these guys announcing yesterday, they most likely were given the heads up that Jordan Bischel also plans on sticking around a while. Like all 3 of his players, Coach Bischel could walk into an SEC clubhouse tomorrow… but hopefully he also chooses to continue to build the monster that Cincinnati Baseball is quickly becoming.
Feature image courtesy of Cincinnati Athletics