Head coach Mitch Hannahs enters his fifth year at the helm of the Sycamore baseball program. We sat down with the skipper to discuss the offseason, the schedule and his expectations heading into the 2019 season.
 
What did you see from your squad in the offseason and fall camp?
I really like the gains we made. We have a group of veterans who are very motivated. They've gotten stronger in the weight room and they've obviously worked hard on the field in their particular areas whether it be hitting, pitching or defense. I think from the standpoint of the time that we had and what we were able to accomplish as individuals and as a group it was very productive. I think we've always talked about development here. We have the coaching and strength staffs that are in tune with developing young people today, making them better players and maximizing their individual abilities and I was really pleased with the gains from the summer and fall. 
 
With such a senior heavy class for you right now, what has it meant to have those guys mix with the newcomers from a leadership aspect?
Just because you're a senior doesn't mean that you're a leader so a lot of times when people ask that particular question, it can take on a lot of different meanings. With this group — I was just thinking this walking down the hall a few minutes ago — this will be one of the toughest groups to watch go out the door because they are great leaders. They are great people; they're concerned about the team and they're concerned about the new guys that came in. This fall I've seen our older players teaching as much as our coaches and they obviously don't have to do that but they care enough about the program and the guys that come in to really help. That's been really neat to see and I can't say I see that with every group. You see glimmers of that, but this year it's been really enjoyable to watch and it's made our job as a coaching staff much easier. 
 
You enter your fifth season as head coach now, is this the most talented group you've had coming into a season?
Yeah, I don't think there is any question that this is the most talented team we've had at every position.
 
You return all three starting pitchers from a year ago. What does that mean for your club going into the season?
It's nice to have guys that have been there and have been in those battles because they know what to expect. We have some new guys that'll jump in there too and they'll be fine. Tyler (Ward) still hasn't thrown a lot as he's rehabbing and working his way back. Triston Polley and Tristan Weaver both had good falls as well. The thing you worry about with those guys is they come back and they get complacent and that's probably the separator with these guys. They're not complacent. They want to get better.
 
You do return a lot of guys in the field, but is there a newcomer that could come in and have an immediate impact?
I thought there were some guys that had decent falls. I think there are some people that have an opportunity to emerge this spring and we hope that they do, but to tag them right now is probably unfair. Like every year there will be a couple guys emerge and we could talk about how we didn't see that coming and there will be a couple of guys fall back that we didn't it see coming so that's a tough one to really comment on in the offseason. Do we have a lot of guys back? Absolutely. Are we excited about those guys? Absolutely. We still have to line up and have those guys on the field and play up to their potential. 
 
The team hit for a lot of power a year ago, but you lose a guy in Dane Giesler who led the team in home runs. Do you think that will be the case this year as well?
Yeah, I do. I think if there is another piece of the puzzle that we have - we're a very physical team. Even though we feel like we have as much power as a lot of teams in the country, we still feel like because of the climate that we live in. We have to be able to play both styles because you never know what the weather is going to do. There are going to be those days that power is going to be negated by the wind blowing in on a cold day and you have to be able to manufacture runs and win close games. 
 
Talk about the schedule and how you think it will prepare the team for the postseason. 
As a coach, it's your job to challenge your club. I think to look at the guys that come back and have been through the wars and to not challenge them early and often is a mistake. The worst thing you can develop is a false sense of where you are at. Obviously, you want to play your best baseball at the end of the season and we've said that every year. If we walk through that schedule and win 40 games we're in a lot of conversations throughout the country. If you walk through that schedule and you don't win 40, by the end of it, you are a hardened club and ready to go to the tournament. As we sit and talk about it in meetings, we're just trying to challenge and push our guys to get them ready for any and everything that they may see in the spring. That's a tough thing to do, but that's our job as coaches to prepare and challenge. 
 
What does it mean to have the kind of cohesiveness within a coaching staff that you have now?
When you lose coaches, whether it be a guy that's on the field every day or a strength coach or an academic coordinator or someone in compliance - any piece of the puzzle that you lose causes hiccups and takes time to kind of ramp back up. I think the ability to maintain our staff has been a big reason why we have been consistent over the past four or five years. We may not have taken that big step yet that we all want to take but I think the first thing you have to do is be very consistent on a year in and year out basis. In terms of our staff, not only do we have them, but they are very good. We're fortunate that Brian (Smiley) has a family and has turned down other opportunities. We have Jordan (Tiegs) who is blazing his own path so to speak and has opportunities and will continue to have them and the same for Brad (Vanderglas). I feel very fortunate that year-to-year we have them. Obviously, they are guys that are pursued by a lot of programs, so it may be tougher to keep them in the future but while we have them we're going to appreciate them. 
 
Is this an NCAA Tournament or bust team? 
Yes.  

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