Chatting with Curtis: Feb. 27

Huskers.com has asked Curtis Ledbetter to keep a diary throughout the 2004 season. From the start of practice to the postseason, Ledbetter will take Husker fans through the life of a Division I student-athlete.

Last season, the junior from Lawrence, Kan., earned first-team All-Big 12 honors, hitting .348 with 13 homers and 54 RBIs. Ledbetter also is a news-editorial major with a 3.0 grade-point average.

In addition to his weekly updates, Ledbetter will also answer questions from fans about the Husker baseball program. If you have a question you would like to ask Curtis, email your questions to the following address cornhuskerbaseball@yahoo.com.

              

Editor's Note: Internet problems kept this week's diary from being posted until late Friday
 
Opening Weekend
It was finally time to "Play Ball." February 19th brought about opening weekend and our first road trip of the year. We were off to Albuquerque, N.M. to face our first three opponents. The trip was very exciting for all of us—we were finally able to play someone other than ourselves. Everyone was a little edgy to get out of Lincoln and get the 2004 season off on the right foot.

We arrived in Albuquerque Thursday afternoon and went straight to Lobo Field for a short practice, including PFP (pitcher’s fielding practice) and an extending round of batting practice. After practice, we ran and got a bite to eat and made the trip to our hotel for the remainder of the evening. It was going to be an early morning at the diamond with the Northwestern University Wildcats awaiting our arrival.

Overall, opening weekend went fairly smoothly for us. Being our first three games of the season, we had to get back into the game day routine. The team was very relaxed, which was encouraging to see. Offensively, we swung the bats well and executed in key situations. We put up a few nice numbers, but the numbers really don’t tell the whole story. It was a good weekend in more regards than just that. Quite a few rookies got playing time and did well for us. A couple new pitchers were able to throw a few quality innings, and the young hitters had great success. We were able to go to work and get the job done.

We took control over our first game right off the bat at Isotopes Park in the first inning and never looked back. An extremely strong performance on the mound by Zach Kroenke gave the hitters a small comfort zone to go out and do what we’re supposed to do, score runs. Zach was relentless on the bump in his first outing of the year making very few mistakes. Also, Dusty Timm was able to climb back up on the hill for the first time after having surgery, and really threw pretty well. It was very promising to see him come out and have a good first outing after such a long time off.

The New Mexico Lobos put up one heck of a fight on Saturday, but after a short rain delay, the bats livened up a bit and we were able to put a few more runs on the board. It was nice to see us come from behind and get a big win on the road in New Mexico’s home park.

On Sunday, once again, the bats were the story. The ball was flying a little bit at Lobo Field. Kent State, a team that had played very well on the weekend, had a tough time stopping the offensive attack.

This team has a great mentality for the game of baseball and an idea of what it needs to do everyday at the ballpark. If we keep working hard each and every day, this year could be a fun one.

Previewing the Weekend in Houston
After a successful weekend put behind us in Albuquerque, it’s off to Houston, Texas, where we will be taking on Northwestern State, Rice and North Carolina. The Crowne Plaza Rice Invitational has always been known to attract some of the top teams in the country, and this year is no different.

This team prepares for the best every day we step foot on the practice field. Each team we play has the chance of being the national champion at the end of the year, so we have to prepare for just that. We have to be ready for each team to bring their best game against us. We are Nebraska—every team on our schedule is out to get us, as we are them.

Being determined to play the way Nebraska plays baseball every day is essential—prepare for the best; play harder than any other team in the country; and execute the way we know how.

This weekend is important for us coming out of Albuquerque 3-0. Being able to bounce back after any week, whether successful or not says a lot about a team. Like every other game we play this year, only the next is the most important.