IIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT’SSSSSSSSSSSS MONDAY!!!!!!!!!!!
And you fine and dandy folks know that that means. Let’s get on those orange and green leisure suits, hold up our drinks, and boogie to the beats of the Miami Hurricanes-related thoughts bumping from my brain.
1) Well, it appears the Canes weren’t done adding talent in the portal. The latest addition is Michigan State transfer defensive lineman Simeon Barrow, Jr. from Michigan State. The former Spartan picked the Canes over a handful of big-name programs, including that team up in capitol city.
BREAKING: Miami lands highly coveted Michigan State DT Simeon Barrow Jr. over LSU, Missouri, Florida State and Texas.
The 6-3, 290-pounder is addition No. 5 for the Hurricanes in the spring transfer window. https://t.co/kZY844oKlM pic.twitter.com/aABgYwMex1
— Gaby Urrutia (@GabyUrrutia247) May 3, 2024
2) And it’s one this team really needed to land, given how things have gone on the defensive line since the offseason. There’s been a departure of a swath of players along the defensive line since the end of last season, with eight players on the defensive line having moved on. The latest (or one of the latest; it’s hard to keep track with all the DL losses this year) was Jared Harrison-Hunte, which particularly stung. Finding bodies to handle the middle is key, so hey, I’m intrigued by the addition. Keep the fall camp competition options coming, as far as I’m concerned.
3) A commenter on my article last week asked about my thoughts on the hire of J.D. Arteaga. I guess I was hoping for someone experienced in the job with a record of success or someone who was on the upswing. Duke’s Chris Pollard was intriguing, but he reportedly withdrew his name from consideration. I guess I felt about Arteaga the typical disappointed-slightly-at-first-but-optimistic-about-the-future-because-what-else-can-I-be-at-this-moment mindset after many hires during my life. As it turns out, this was a not so good one, at least so far.
4) But part of this team’s problem – hell, MOST of this team’s problem – is that it simply doesn’t have NEARRRRRRRRRRRLY enough decent pitching, much less quality pitching. The Canes rank 97th in the country in WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched), 142nd in the nation in average hits allowed per nine innings, and 115th in earned run average as a team with a putrid 5.63 mark. I will say that, with a head coach WHO WAS THE PITCHING COACH BEFORE BECOMING THE HEAD COACH, the pitching performance is even that much more disappointing and inexplicable to me.
5) Still, with that all being said and as pissed as I am about this terrible baseball season, I’m giving Arteaga a little bit of time to go out and find more arms who can throw it at the plate without it coming flying back at them at 110 miles per hour. This portal season for Arteaga will be crucial, because the lineup hasn’t been a big problem. If he can assemble a staff, find a couple of reliable late inning arms, this team could go from lower end of the ACC back to being a regional host contender again that Canes fans have been used to for so long. And with Miami’s rich tradition and the South Florida location – not to mention the opportunities to come in and play right away – it should be an easy sell for Arteaga.
6) I will also admit that, while the offense has been less of the issue for much of the season, it hasn’t gone without being a culprit from time to time. The Clemson series saw good pitching from the Hurricanes, but the bats managing only 5 runs for the series cost them. Scoring two runs twice against a crappy Notre Dame team also was a head scratcher.
7) There are pieces in place for optimism. Daniel Cuvet is a bona fide star, with 17 home runs and a ridiculous 1.131 OPS in his freshman season. Blake Cyr and Jason Torres join him to make up an exciting young nucleus to build around. Two of Miami’s best pitchers in starter Gage Ziehl and reliever Brian Walters are also still underclassmen. We’ll see this offseason if Arteaga can make the moves necessary to get this program not just back to the tournament, which they’ll almost surely miss this year, but back to seeing Miami’s name on the host line again.
Go Canes!