Corbin: “Happy but Not Satisfied”

7/14/2003

Corbin: “Happy but Not Satisfied” 7-14-03

It’s December 26, and even though little Ralphie wasn’t expecting the Red Rider BB gun under the Christmas tree, he’s still disappointed it didn’t somehow materialize anyway.

An alternate ending to “A Christmas Story?” Yes, but also a shorthand version of head coach Tim Corbin’s assessment of the 2003 baseball season.

Don’t get him wrong — Corbin’s first season at Vanderbilt was festooned with wrapping paper and ribbon ripped from dozens of thrilling toys. The ‘Dores went to the SEC Tournament for the first time since 1996 after Worth Scott’s improbable home run completed a sweep of Tennessee on the season’s last weekend.

Vandy swept Florida, took two of three from Auburn and LSU and pitched a perfect game against Western Kentucky.

“We probably went as far as we should have gone, maybe a bit further than we should have,” said Corbin. “Depth-wise, pitching, I knew we could only do so much. Our pitching was solid all year. It really was the reason we got to where we did.”

However, a little midweek break here, some SEC Tourney noise there, and visions of NCAA Regionals were dancing in Corbin’s head. Although the ‘Dores finished 27-28, they beat up enough ranked teams in the regular season to apply pressure to the NCAA selection committee with a little success in Birmingham. Losses to Auburn and South Carolina precluded that from happening.

“If we go two games deep, I think we’re playing in a regional,” said Corbin. “I think it’s a foregone conclusion. We’re banging on the door of 30 [wins] and we’re a sixth seed in the SEC Tournament that wins two games and knocks out South Carolina, which is the East Division champ.”

For Vanderbilt to leap into NCAA contention in 2004, the Grinch simply must return the bats. The Commodores hit .258 as a team, far and away the worst in the SEC, undermining a pitching staff that featured six hurlers with ERAs under 4.0 and a defense that remained in the top three in the SEC all season long.

“If you don’t hit, you can’t cover up your deficiencies,” Corbin noted. “If you can hit, sometimes the average defense you play never gets noticed. You think you play good defense, but the hitting covers it up.

“I would say that that was probably our Achilles heel, but going into the season that wasn’t a big surprise to me. I knew we were going to struggle hitting; that’s why we played a lot of small ball. I hope we got the most out of what we had.”

There has been considerable excitement and speculation about members of the incoming recruiting class that may provide immediate offensive punch for the 2004 Commodores, but Corbin realizes such notions are as addictive as Christmas cookies and twice as unhealthy if indulged savagely.

“I know when you bring young kids in, it doesn’t say, ‘All right, we’re better now.’ It doesn’t happen like that,” says Corbin. “Oftentimes what happens is the kids that are in your program for a couple years that you don’t foresee playing end up playing because of experience.

“I do know this for a fact; we’ll be much, much faster. The team speed will be better, and if you have a little more team speed, that should improve yourself offensively.”

With Jeremy Sowers, Ryan Mullins, Jensen Lewis, Matt Buschmann and a healthy Jeff Sues expected back, Corbin’s hurlers could easily be the envy of the SEC.

So, Corbin isn’t plugging robins in the backyard with Red Rider’s latest model. He also isn’t shaking coal out of his stocking about Vandy’s first fascinating baseball season in quite some time.

“A coach has a lot of small goals — to build some sort of camaraderie, to improve mental toughness, to practice with a certain style and pace — and I think we accomplished those goals,” said Corbin. “The big goal obviously was getting to the SEC Tournament.

“From a whole picture, I like what we’ve got going as a team. I like the fact that we had big crowds for Tennessee. If you said, ‘coach, you’re going to win the LSU series, you’re going to sweep Tennessee, you’re going win the Auburn series, you’re going to sweep Florida,’ I’d say you’re crazy.

“I’m not satisfied, but I’m happy and now it’s time to take it to another level.”