Wyatt Hall, Benjamin Smith – 17 April 2025
CSUSB’s Baseball is 28 games into this season and is at a conference record of 15-13. The records for the last four years point to major problems in their defense.
Runs scored by the Coyotes and runs the Coyotes allowed in conference games from 2022-2024 project a negative trajectory this season. Their best season in recent years saw 276 runs scored and 206 runs allowed in 2023, a difference of 70 runs. To be on par with their 2023 season they are going to need to score over 84 runs and maintain their defense.
In 2023 the win loss percentage was about 65% with a record of 26-14. The year after, they dropped their percentage to 42% with 16-22. They are currently at 53% and will need to win a total of 26 games and prevent any more losses to exceed their 2023 record at the end of the 40 game season.
Their batting average has stayed rather consistent over the last few years, implying that the main challenge the team faces is their ability to prevent runs from being scored.
The CSUSB baseball team has had different and inconsistent results over the past three-plus seasons. A World Series run in 2023 highlighted the time frame, but that was followed up by a sub .500 season and not even a playoff appearance. They have renounced some this year but are still fighting for a playoff spot.
There is a correlation between the success of the team and the runs scored, runs allowed, and team batting average. Unsurprisingly, the team batting average was at its best in 2023, the World Series year. Also, unsurprisingly, the team batting average bottomed out in 2024, when they went just 16-22 in conference and missed the playoffs entirely. The other seasons, 2022 and this year, the averages are similar, and the 2022 team made a playoff appearance, while this year’s team is on track to make the playoffs, but they need to finish strong over the final 12 games.
Despite the team batting average being correlated to team success, there is not as much of a relation between success and the team’s runs scored and runs allowed, when considering total games, not just the conference data above. In total games, the most runs scored were in 2022, but the team also allowed the most runs, which makes sense why they were just above a .500 winning percentage. The World Series team scored the second most runs, but that team allowed the fewest runs by far. The disaster that was the 2024 season was the worst offensive year, and middle of the road in runs allowed. This season, the offense has been clicking and is on pace to be near the World Series team in runs scored, possibly even surpassing them. However, the pitching has been a problem all season, which could ultimately make or break the season for this team.
The Coyotes need to step up their pitching and prevent more runs. The data shows that they are currently projected to be behind their 2023 season, but have the opportunity to exceed it if they prevent any more losses. The odds of this happening are low considering their current standing, but not impossible. With such a difference between each year, it is entirely plausible that the Coyotes could be in the midst of their best season in the last 4 years, but that factor is entirely dependent on their ability to rally as a team and win all of the next 12 games.