Inexperienced baseball aims to defend title in thick league race

"Well, I guess there's only one thing left to do."

"What's that?"

"Win the whole [darned] thing."

Though it 's cleaned up slightly for publication purposes, this classic scene from one of the great baseball movies of all-time, Major League, will soon become the mantra for eight Ivy League teams looking to share in the glory of Jake Taylor, Willie Mays Hayes, and Rick Vaughn. Because as soon as the first pitch is thrown, everyone is making an offer on one thing: the Ivy League title. Here are the bidders:

Princeton

Head coach: Scott Bradley, fourth season. Last year: 24-25 overall, 14-6 Ivy League; Lou Gehrig Division champion; Ivy League champion. Key losses: first-baseman Andrew Hanson (graduation), outfielder Mickey Martin (graduation), outfielder Max Krance (graduation) Outlook: The Tigers have a conference title to defend and a huge injury to overcome. Junior pitcher David Boehle, who was second on the team last year in ERA (4.69), strikeouts (35), inning (63.1), and complete games (4), is out with an ACL injury, which will put pressure on a pitching staff that needs to reduce last year's lofty 6.40 collective ERA. Despite a strong .291 team batting average, the Tigers allowed opponents to hit .332 and will need to bridge that gap, as well.

Senior Pat Boran, team's captain and starting shortstop, leads a team counting on young players to help Princeton win their third-consecutive conference title and return to the NCAA tournament. Coach Bradley lost seven seniors to graduation last year and admits that inexperience will be a key obstacle this season.

Brown

Head coach: Marek Dabrinski, sixth season. Last year: 23-23, 12-8; tied for first-place in Red Rolfe Division; lost to Dartmouth in Red Rolfe Division championship playoff. Key losses: shortstop Dan Krantovitz (graduation), pitcher Jim Johnson (graduation) Outlook: One of the Ivy League favorites, Brown looks to build on last year's winningest season in history. A strong infield is led by two All-Ivy players — senior co-captain Shaun Gallagher and sophomore second-baseman Ryan Deeb. Despite the loss of Johnson, Brown maintains a strong, experienced rotation featuring three seniors and one junior. Senior Jonathan Stern will take over Johnson's role as team ace, hoping to improve on his 5-4 record and 1.92 ERA in last season's division-winning campaign.

Columbia

Head coach: Mik Aoki, fourth season. Last year: 20-27, 10-10; second-place in Lou Gehrig Division. Key losses: outfielder Justin Berti (graduation) Outlook: Coach Aoki's team returns seven of nine starting position players and eight of ten pitchers, a returning core he thinks can win 30 games this season. Catcher Joe Catsam and Derek Johnson, last year's top two Ivy League hitters at .406 and .405, respectively, return to bolster the lineup. The infield is strong defensively, but the outfield positions are still being settled.

Cornell

Head coach: Tom Ford. Last year: 12-26, 7-13; fourth-place in Lou Gehrig Division. Key losses: third-baseman Raul Gomez (graduation), first-baseman Flint Foley (graduation) Outlook: Drafted by the Chicago White Sox, Raul Gomez takes a career .310 average, 16 home runs, and 87 runs batted in away from a Big Red team that will need all the help it can get competing with Princeton and rising Penn in the Lou Gehrig Division. A young pitching staff, including four freshman and just two seniors, must grow up quickly for Cornell to get out of the division gutter.

Dartmouth

Head coach: Bob Whalen, 14th season. Last year: 22-18, 12-8; Red Rolfe Division champion; lost to Princeton in Ivy League championship. Key losses: catcher Mike Levy (graduation), third-baseman Brian Nickerson (graduation), pitcher Jeff Dutremble (graduation) Outlook: The Big Green will rely on a strong pitching staff to make up for the gaps left in the infield with the graduation of Levy, Nickerson, and second-baseman Chris Miranda in order to repeat as Rolfe Division champions. With so many infield positions up for grabs and seven quality outfield players competing for three spots, Whalen's early-season priority must be finding cohesion if Dartmouth is to return to prowess.

Harvard

Head coach: Joe Walsh, sixth season. Last year: 17-25, 11-9; third-place in Red Rolfe Division. Key losses: pitcher John Birtwell (graduation), outfielder Scott Carmack (graduation) Outlook: The Crimson, now coping with the loss of First-Team All-Ivy Birtwell, finished one-game shy of a share of the Rolfe Division crown a year ago and will need a strong showing from an experienced core of pitchers, headed by senior captain Ben Crockett, to make the jump over Brown and Dartmouth this season. Senior shortstop Nick Mager and senior third-baseman Nick Carter were Honorable Mention All-Ivy last season and will need to improve on that caliber to lead Harvard to the top.

Penn

Head-coach: Bob Seddon, 32nd season. Last year: 22-18, 8-12; third-place in Lou Gehrig Division. Key losses: outfielder Chris May (graduation) Outlook: The Quakers lose last year's Ivy League Player of the Year (May) but gain senior outfielder Jim Mullen, who hit .350 as a sophomore but missed last year due to injury. Penn's hopes of a third-straight 20-win season lie in their pitching staff, which returns six starters from last year. Coach Seddon admits that power is not a virtue of the hitting game. This inexperienced team, with just six seniors on the 29-man roster, will have to win with speed and fundamental play.

Yale

Head coach: John Stuper, tenth season. Last year: 12-22, 6-14; fourth-place in Red Rolfe Division. Key losses: outfielder R.D. DeSantis (graduation) Outlook: Nineteen underclassmen headline a Bulldog team relying on the youth movement to turn around an Ivy-low six-win season last year. Senior pitchers Craig Breslow, Doug Feller, Matt McCarthy bolster a staff that will need to improve on last season's 7.50 ERA if Yale is going to justify Stuper's optimism.