Home dominance; road futility.
In a season mired with glimpses of excellence, the Saint Louis University baseball team failed to reach postseason play for the second straight year.
The Billikens finished the season with a record of 21-32. Unfortunately, 17 of the 21 wins came at the Billiken Sports Complex.
This home superiority was highlighted by a series win over conference rival and College World Series participant Tulane.
When the Bills left downtown St. Louis they were not nearly as successful. A sickly 4-19 road record spelled disaster for the Bills. The road record was the greatest sign of the inconsistency that plagued them the entire season.
This inconsistency was not only evident in the overall record but in key statistics as well. This year SLU hit .270 and the pitching staff ended with an earned run average of 6.01.
These two statistics are crucial to a team’s success and an ERA over six simply won’t cut it. There were, however, bright spots for the Bills. Offensively, senior designated hitter Mike Orrico led the team in most offensive categories. Orrico had a fabulous year with a .332 average, 67 hits, 9 home runs and 53 RBIs.
After the season, Orrico was named to the first team All-South region by the American Baseball Coaches Association.
The All-South team also included first round selections in the professional amateur draft Jake Gautreau of Tulane, Gabe Gross of Auburn and Dewon Brazelton of Middle Tennessee State.
Right behind Orrico in most of the offensive categories was senior second baseman Nick Steiner. Steiner was the only other Billiken to hit over .300. Steiner’s hit at a .321 clip, with 63 hits and 3 homeruns. Steiner and Orrico’s steady play earned them both 2nd team all-conference honors.
On the mound the Bills were led by senior Dan Shouse and junior Ben Hutton. Hutton led the Billiken starters in ERA with a 4.32 average. His five wins were tied for the team lead and his one shutout was the Bills sole shutout of the year.
Hutton earned conference Pitcher of the Week honors twice and his consistency also earned him an election to the 1st team All conference in Conference USA.
Shouse finished his Billiken career with a respectable 4-6 record with a 5.64 ERA in his final season.
Shouse did not earn any collegiate honors, but was drafted in the amateur draft by the Cardinals in the 39th round. Shouse’s career at SLU was full of quality starts.
But he received little run support in them. The professional scouts took that into account when they decided to draft him.
The pitching staff will be more experienced next year, as the only pitcher to graduate was Shouse. In 2002 the Bills will need new players to step at the plate as five of the Bills top seven hitters have moved on.
Overall, the 2001 baseball season marked success for the program, but still led to disappointment in the end. The Bills’ 21 wins were the most since 1997 and their nine conference wins tied their most-ever since entering Conference USA six years ago.
The unfortunate truth is, however, that the Billikens want to make it to postseason play and they will have to wait until 2002 for their next chance to do so.
