Photo: St. Bonaventure Athletics
BY NATHAN DONNELLY, CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The St. Bonaventure baseball team has put together a 12-18 season thus far, good for 10th in the Atlantic 10, ahead of Davidson and UMass.
In head coach Jason Rathbun’s second year at the helm, the Bonnies have more overall wins this year than they had in every full season since 2016-17. Since then, they went 26-22 and finished third in the A-10 under coach Larry Sudbrook.
The Bonnies are fourth in the conference in average at .280 and seventh in on-base percentage at .381.
The Brown and White hold a conference record of 3-6 coming off a home series victory in which they plated 18 runs in three games against VCU.
Apart from the VCU series, SBU has collected several other signature wins, including a 4-3 extra-inning triumph over Louisville, a 9-7 victory over Penn State, and a win over Little Three rival Canisius in which they scored 15 runs.
“I believe, as the team does, that when we play all three phases to our ability, we can beat anybody,” said Rathbun on the team’s important wins this season. “We have proven that with big Power 5 wins and other big conference wins such as VCU and Dayton.”
The Louisville game featured an excellent pitching performance from redshirt junior Chance Moore, who went the distance and then some, pitching all eight innings in what is usually a seven-inning game. He registered 88 pitches and fanned four batters, allowing only three earned runs and keeping the Cardinals in the ballpark.
Big wins such as those previously mentioned do not happen by coincidence. Coach Rathbun has established a culture of persistence and work ethic.
“We just want to build and get better every day,” said Rathbun. “I believe in the talent we are bringing in and have here. We need to develop those players, and I believe that is happening. I hope we will continue to grow as the year goes by and find ourselves playing our best baseball at the end of the year.”
Rathbuns says associate head coach B.J. Salerno helped him immensely in the culture change.
“Our assistants are a huge part of everything we do,” said Rathbun. BJ Salerno is a great coach and has done a great job, but more importantly, he is a great person, and the guys enjoy being around him, which is very important.”
In his 11th year with the team, Salerno has guided prior pitching staff to the top of the conference statistics sheets. 2016 saw the Bonnies lead the A-10 in ERA at 2.79 and recorded a program-best strikeout number of 344 in 2019.
Salerno’s pitching staff is currently ninth in ERA this year at 7.52 and 11th in strikeouts this year at 203. Although these numbers are not on par with prior years, Salerno said he is optimistic that his staff can turn it around.
Rathbun also credits young, talented catcher and designated hitter Antonio Cordeiro, who sports a .398 on-base percentage and .256 batting average.
“Antonio Cordeiro has had the biggest impact as a freshman,” said Rathbun. “He has given us some depth behind the plate so we can get proper rest to our captain, Jackson DeJohn. He has had some big moments with the bat as well, often hitting in the cleanup spot. He has spent time as DH this year as well. He will be a big part of our future.”
Rathbun explains that veteran presence has played a large role in the team’s success thus far. The Bonnies are led by a trio of veterans who have high expectations for themselves and others.
“Adam Rankie has been our best hitter and played every inning this year,” said Rathbun. “Jack Putney has been our rock in our lineup and come up clutch for us many times, living up to his captain status. Jackson DeJohn is our emotional leader and a team leader.”
The Bonnies have a packed A-10 schedule the rest of the way, where they could gain ground on teams ahead of them in the standings, such as St. Joseph’s, Richmond, and Fordham. They also have opportunities to widen the record gap between teams behind them, with matchups of UMass and Davidson still on the docket.
The Brown and White’s next home game at Fred Handler Park will be against Canisius on April 23, which kicks off a five-game homestand ending April 30 against Niagara.
donnelnp23@bonaventure.edu
