It's no secret that Ohio is a young team this year. But some people might not realize just how much the freshmen are contributing. Consider this:
Ohio's batting average leader: Freshman Taylor Emody - .331, followed by freshman Garrett Black - .323
Home runs leader: Freshman Dan Ward - 7
RBIs leader - Ward - 32
"Those guys have been doing a very credible job the whole year," Carbone said. "It's a big adjustment for a high school kid to go into Division I college baseball. It was a big adjustment for them. Their heads were spinning for a while, with all the bunt defenses, double-steal defenses, the running, the signs. It's all more involved, more intricit."
Those three freshmen make up a big chunk of Ohio's infield, with Ward at third, Black at shortstop and Emody at first. Of course, many of the Bobcats' errors have come from these players (Ward leads the team in errors and Black is fourth). But all in all, coach Joe Carbone has a high opinion of them.
"Those three freshmen position players have done a very, very credible job for us the whole year, they really have," Carbone said. "And they're going to be very good players at Ohio if they keep improving."
