Baseball set to begin second season in ACC Quarterfinals

So, are they or aren’t they?

I know that’s probably not great English, but the question facing BC baseball at this point is pretty simple.

Are they truly a team capable of making a legitimate playoff run? Or has this all been a nice little story that will end up as a footnote in BC athletics history years from now?

Ahead of its ACC quarterfinal game against Miami at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, the Eagles were not ranked in the D1 Baseball Top 25 for the first time in a while, and probably rightfully so after the no-show against Georgia Tech last weekend.

But, you don’t win 36 games by accident. The Eagles went 36-20 and 17-13 in the ACC, finishing fourth. BC also went 19-7 at home and 13-10 on the road. The Eagles were 4-3 in ‘neutral site’ games.

Quick look at head-to-head vs. Miami

From March 6-8, you can make the argument that BC first arrived on the map nationally thanks to the Miami series. The Eagles took two of three down in Coral Gables that weekend, winning game one 8-7 in 11 innings and game three 9-5.

Miami had 16 hits in game one, but two runs in the top of the ninth on a Luke Gallo RBI single and a sac fly for Kyle Wolff forced extras. In the 11th, in very BC-fashion, the Eagles plated a runner on a dropped third strike that ended up being the game-winner.

After a 5-3 loss in game two, the Eagles once again were out-hit (10-9), but scored two in the second, three in the fourth, two in the fifth and one each in the seventh and ninth to pull away, while the staff did just enough.

The Hurricanes were 37-17 in the regular season (16-14 ACC) and if they hadn’t choked away two games the final weekend of the season, would have had the double bye instead of BC. Still, they beat Stanford 11-2 on Wednesday. They’re now hot while the Eagles have been off since the 15-2 beatdown at the hands of Georgia Tech on Sunday.

BC won’t make a run if…

The staff doesn’t turn things around. BC gave up 38 runs in three games against Georgia Tech and has shown an ability to give away leads at a rapid rate once things start going downhill. AJ Colarusso and Tyler Mudd need to be ‘the guys’ for the Eagles and the defense has got to be clean behind them.

The lineup hasn’t done much lately but this is a team that did have eight run-rule wins this season and even with Jack Toomey out, you’ve gotta hope it gets going a little bit this weekend if they’re lucky enough to play in the semifinals and/or finals.

BC will make a run if…

The lineup gets going again. When there are runners on base this team can cause havoc with its speed and aggressiveness. Now, they certainly ran into a bunch of dumb outs because of it during the regular season, but if you can steal a run or two in a playoff game it’s probably the difference between going home and continuing to write a new chapter in BC baseball history.

Chance to do something special

It’s not hyperbole to say they could actually gain a lot of attention around here with the Sox sucking as badly as they do. Any team going on a national, noteworthy run will garner warranted enthusiam, especially when it comes to baseball. Football might be king everywhere, but everyone in New England likes a fun baseball story as the weather gets nicer. While anything short of winning the ACC title probably doesn’t let BC host, people will follow this team if they get hot.

The Eagles are one win shy of the 37-win total the 2023 team finished with after making its NCAA tournament run. But, after such a unique and unexpected season, it will be a huge disappointment for fans and supporters of Birdball if this team is one-and-done this weekend and then gets its minimum amount of games in a regional before bowing out.

The 2026 Eagles have done too much winning for this season to just flutter out. We need a ‘Summer of Birdball’ to remember.