Rounding out a potential weekend rotation of Morgalis, Hendricks and Brunnig is senior lefthander Kenon Ronz. Ronz entered the season, with Morgalis, as one of the Crimson’s top two pitching prospects, but has since faltered a bit posting a 9.69 ERA and going winless in the Crimson’s pre-Ivy action. His first win also came last weekend, in an 8-4 decision over Columbia.
“Ronz really had a great autumn, and we really like that left hander in the mix,” Walsh says.
Despite a rocky start, Ronz’s catcher, senior Brain Lentz remains confident in the southpaw’s abilities.
“When Kenon was a freshman, I figured he would be as good, if not better than anybody in the Ivy League by the time he was a senior, and I have no reason to not agree with that statement now,” Lentz
says. “I think Kenon is going to get on a roll when he gets out there. He didn’t get all the innings last year he wanted because he was hurt, but he’s a really mentally tough kid with great stuff, and he knows it, and he’s going be a real plus for us.”
Surprisingly Ronz is the only recruit from the class of 2003 to figure prominently into the Crimson’s pitching scheme this season. Highly-touted and strong in numbers (over one-third if the pitchers on roster are members of the class of 2003) it would be hard not to call the class a collective disappointment. Performances by seniors Ronz, Matt Self, Madhu Satyanarayana and others will dictate the legacy of the senior class.
Ironically, the most prominent of the senior pitchers is a walk-on. Barry Wahlberg, a former Crimson quarterback, is now the team’s captain and closer. Wahlberg emerged as the team’s stopper during its title run last season, and the same production is expected of him this season.
Three years Wahlberg’s junior, a group of highly talented freshman have invigorated the depleted ranks of Harvard pitching. Led by Brunnig, this year’s freshman should have an immediate impact
on the mound. Wes Cogriff and Javier Castellanos flank Brunnig and form a promising trio of first-year flame throwers. Castellanos is currently sidelined with a broken hand, but his teammates remain confident based upon a promising fall.
“After seeing him early on, I expect him to contribute a lot to the team this year,” Brunnig says.
Yet, questions still linger as the Crimson forges ahead into its Ivy League campaign. Will the seniors step up to solidify the bullpen? Will Morgalis live up to the hype? Will a group of talented, but
inexperienced, freshman be able to contribute immediately?
Harvard’s veteran backstop thinks that the recipe for pitching success this season is simple. “I think the pitchers have the talent they need, it’s just a matter of throwing strikes every time they go out there,” Lentz says.
It might take more than strikes to repeat last year’s stellar performance. But hopefully, a Brunnig slider or a Morgalis two-seamer will be enough.
—Staff writer Sean W. Coughlin can be reached at coughl@fas.harvard.edu