PiTT and Jordano part ways...

[pitt90seven]

Pitt's baseball stadium is the worst in the ACC and one of the worst in the P5. However, its a huge upgrade from Trees, which would have been a low-level WPIAL field.

i'm not being a jerk to you personally. but i want to know what makes one college bb field so great. it's a BB field with stands. what exactly do you want to see? is it the size? why build a 5k stadium if 300 only ever show up?

i'm not being rude. i just don't know. and i'm highly skeptical. and i'll use that cameron indoor is a piece of crap and yet duke basketball is the best program in the country for 30+ years. old yankee stadium was a combination of smells involving urine and vomit. the pirates have a great stadium but they suck.

i know there are a bunch of issues here. i'm not saying any of this is truly related. but the point is, you can win despite facilities. it's important but not all that. if it's a situation of playing for FSU in front of 3k fans (no idea what they get) vs pitt and 300 (or whatever), then that's fine. so maybe winning the ACC isn't in the cards but we can't be basically dead last, or close, every year.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

you know that syracuse is in the conference, correct?

You know that Syracuse hasn't had a baseball team since something like 1972, right?

 

[bwh05]

You know that Syracuse hasn't had a baseball team since something like 1972, right?

Syracuse baseball-undefeated since 1972!!!

 

[pitt2533]

you know that syracuse is in the conference, correct?

You know Syracuse doesn't have a baseball team correct?

 

[pitt2533]

i'm not being a jerk to you personally. but i want to know what makes one college bb field so great. it's a BB field with stands. what exactly do you want to see? is it the size? why build a 5k stadium if 300 only ever show up?

i'm not being rude. i just don't know. and i'm highly skeptical. and i'll use that cameron indoor is a piece of crap and yet duke basketball is the best program in the country for 30+ years. old yankee stadium was a combination of smells involving urine and vomit. the pirates have a great stadium but they suck.

i know there are a bunch of issues here. i'm not saying any of this is truly related. but the point is, you can win despite facilities. it's important but not all that. if it's a situation of playing for FSU in front of 3k fans (no idea what they get) vs pitt and 300 (or whatever), then that's fine. so maybe winning the ACC isn't in the cards but we can't be basically dead last, or close, every year.

If you don't think facilities play a part in recruiting then I simply don't know what to say.

 

[pitt90seven]

You know that Syracuse hasn't had a baseball team since something like 1972, right?

obviously not.

 

[pitt90seven]

If you don't think facilities play a part in recruiting then I simply don't know what to say.

i didn't say that. i asked what is so bad about ours and is it truly the main thing holding us back?

 

[pitt2533]

i didn't say that. i asked what is so bad about ours and is it truly the main thing holding us back?

I don't know if it is the main thing holding us back. I think it is a combination of factors holding us back. And I am not saying Jordano was perfect, heck a change might very well be warranted. But it is an uphill battle for whoever takes over.

-Facilities(not just field either). Talking about overall facilities, lack of indoor facility other than Cost Center which is shares by far too many teams, events, etc... Baseball doesn't even get priority over freaking intramurals for use of the facility. Or at least they didn't fairly recently. For example, Virginia recently put something like $21 million into their baseball facilities. Jordano hasn't seen 21 million in improvements in his 21 seasons at Pitt. The field is nice considering what the prior field was but it still lacks compared to other ACC schools.

-Weather especially considering the rest of the Conference and the weather those teams get.

-Conference- arguably the best conference in country with teams from the South. Tough to compete in a warm weather sport being a northern team competing against 99% southern teams.

-Lack of resources/funding for scholarships. For a long time we were not fully funded. Not sure if that changed(it may have with the move to the ACC).

 

[pitt90seven]

i think the scholarship situation is (mostly fixed).

re: facilities - i guess i was focusing on the field itself, which i don't get too hyped about. but the practice facilities would be huge for recruiting. especially a northern team as they'll be in there at least 1/3 of the year. i'm guessing that will be addressed in the victory heights (or whatever the name is) plan.

 

[bwh05]

Other teams in the conference routinely draw large crowds and play in AA level stadiums. They have a clubhouse and weight room of their own located in the stadium. The atmosphere at Clemson, Louisville, UNC, etc is different than ours. It makes a difference.

 

[CrazyPaco]

Other teams in the conference routinely draw large crowds and play in AA level stadiums. They have a clubhouse and weight room of their own located in the stadium. The atmosphere at Clemson, Louisville, UNC, etc is different than ours. It makes a difference.

Other than adding those things to the Pete Sports Complex, which are sorely needed, I would like to see a connection built from the PSC complex to the Cost Center via via some underground or bridged enclosed walkway. Baseball, softball, and soccer should have priority for the Cost Center and it should be renovated to easily convert between a baseball/softball and soccer layout (draw "curtains" across that emulate softball or baseball outfield walls, non-football turf lining, or floating exchangeable turf like Navy has, etc). Such a connection would also help move people parking in the TV lot to and from events at the PSC. If the Cost Center actually feels like a practice facility for those sports, it could be an advantage.

 

[bwh05]

Other than adding those things to the Pete Sports Complex, which are sorely needed, I would like to see a connection built from the PSC complex to the Cost Center via via some underground or bridged enclosed walkway. Baseball, softball, and soccer should have priority for the Cost Center and it should be renovated to easily convert between a baseball/softball and soccer layout (draw "curtains" across that emulate softball or baseball outfield walls, non-football turf lining, or floating exchangeable turf like Navy has, etc). Such a connection would also help move people parking in the TV lot to and from events at the PSC. If the Cost Center actually feels like a practice facility for those sports, it could be an advantage.

Most of what you mention was in the original design for the PSC but cut out.

 

[Las Panteras]

Maybe Pitt could scour latin america......find talented kids that would kill to come here and go to college.

Come to america...get an education...play the game u love


If im not mistaken the soccer team has players from Brazil?

 

[bwh05]

Maybe Pitt could scour latin america......find talented kids that would kill to come here and go to college.

Come to america...get an education...play the game u love


If im not mistaken the soccer team has players from Brazil?

The problem would be getting them in academically and meeting Pitt’s language qualification.

 

[PosterToBeNamedLater]

i didn't say that. i asked what is so bad about ours and is it truly the main thing holding us back?

I have personally been in Pitts facilities and North Carolina’s facilities.... unc was like a major leagues. Pitt was like the minor leagues.

Locker rooms, player lounge, weight room, training facility was all baseball specific and not shared. Not even comparable to Pitts

 

[bwh05]

I have personally been in Pitts facilities and North Carolina’s facilities.... unc was like a major leagues. Pitt was like the minor leagues.

Locker rooms, player lounge, weight room, training facility was all baseball specific and not shared. Not even comparable to Pitts

The rest of the league is like UNC too now the BC is almost done with their upgrades.

 

[ThePanthers]

I'm hoping the Victory Heights initiative takes care of some of the shortcomings.

Pitt has taken steps over the years to move forward, but it's going to take time and money to get even more competitive. It's a journey.

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

I do not see a difference between baseball and soccer. It is big advantage to play outside all year round. My son played at Maryland and the could play outside all winter long. Same in baseball. In Pgh, both sports go inside during winter. The southern schools have a big winter advantage in all sports.
If Pitt does the same for baseball that they have for soccer(good coach and good funding), baseball can be successful as well.

Does Maryland really have a huge winter weather advantage for soccer or baseball over Pitt? Not sure it is overwhelmingly significant. Sure, Pittsburgh has a shorter period of good outdoor weather in the spring and fall but from November through February you aren't likely to be able to be outside regularly for baseball or soccer in the DC metro area either. The true all year round outdoor baseball weather argument is far more applicable to schools in the Carolinas and Florida, IMO.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

Does Maryland really have a huge winter weather advantage for soccer or baseball over Pitt? Not sure it is overwhelmingly significant. Sure, Pittsburgh has a shorter period of good outdoor weather in the spring and fall but from November through February you aren't likely to be able to be outside regularly for baseball or soccer in the DC metro area either. The true all year round outdoor baseball weather argument is far more applicable to schools in the Carolinas and Florida, IMO.

According to Google, the average high temperature in College Park Maryland from November through February is 58, 48, 43, 46. In Pittsburgh it's 51, 41, 35, 38.

 

[thom67]

Does Maryland really have a huge winter weather advantage for soccer or baseball over Pitt? Not sure it is overwhelmingly significant. Sure, Pittsburgh has a shorter period of good outdoor weather in the spring and fall but from November through February you aren't likely to be able to be outside regularly for baseball or soccer in the DC metro area either. The true all year round outdoor baseball weather argument is far more applicable to schools in the Carolinas and Florida, IMO.

As I said before, my son played soccer at Maryland. They played outside all winter including Jan and Feb. There were days that they did not play outside, but they played outside all months. You can play outside in 40-50 degree weather easily.

 

[MattP31]

Plus let’s not forget MD plays in a league of cold weather schools. They can feast on cold weather schools which helps as that competition doesn’t compare to the ACC

 

[Black Panther]

I don't understand this.One day he's talking about next year and practically the next he's "resigning"? None the less, we need to thank Coach Jordano for his time at Pitt.We'll do well if we can find another like him.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

We'll do well if we can find another like him.

Except a lot better.

 

[thom67]

According to Google, the average high temperature in College Park Maryland from November through February is 58, 48, 43, 46. In Pittsburgh it's 51, 41, 35, 38.

One thing Is different. In Pittsburgh, it is usually raining and gray.

 

[andyjc712]

I don't understand this.One day he's talking about next year and practically the next he's "resigning"? None the less, we need to thank Coach Jordano for his time at Pitt.We'll do well if we can find another like him.

It’s pretty simple he was forced to resign. It’s not really a secret either. He was going to fight it, but he was going to lose the fight and chose to resign

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

It’s pretty simple he was forced to resign.

Yeah, it's not hard to understand.

"Either you announce that you are resigning or we will announce that we fired you. Your choice, but we all know that one of those sounds a lot better for you."

 

[pitt90seven]

Does Maryland really have a huge winter weather advantage for soccer or baseball over Pitt? Not sure it is overwhelmingly significant. Sure, Pittsburgh has a shorter period of good outdoor weather in the spring and fall but from November through February you aren't likely to be able to be outside regularly for baseball or soccer in the DC metro area either. The true all year round outdoor baseball weather argument is far more applicable to schools in the Carolinas and Florida, IMO.

there's a difference but it's marginal.

 

[pantherpantherpanther]

So.. there are a lot of things that make a college baseball facility better than others. The majority of them do not have to do with crowd size or capacity. The main thing is the capacity is the ability to host an NCAA Regional, which Pitt cannot currently do. From there, what is the locker room like? Pitt baseball's locker room is nice but considerably smaller than most in the ACC. A lot of facilities also have a player's lounge, which Pitt does not. Pitt baseball does have a great training room, but it gets shared with three other teams, which is not the end of the world, but, again, something that most others do not have. The weight room is large but is not in the same facility as the baseball stadium. A good amount of ACC schools have a weight room in the baseball facility. The Pitt indoor facility is small. Only two cages. That needs to change and has been something that has been talked about in the past. The indoor facility is a big deal, a huge deal. There needs to be more room for guys to get work in, especially considering that Pitt is indoors a lot of the year. Obviously, the Cost Center is used for winter practices, but no recruits are going to walk in that facility and be awed as it is very dated. Also, it's small things like not having a bathroom in the dugout (visitor or home) and not having a direct access from the locker room to the dugout. In baseball, it is very common to go back to the locker room throughout the game whether it be to change your undershirt, take a second to yourself after striking out, etc. All in all, the Pitt baseball facility has the bones to be a very nice facility. However, there are things that need to be expanded. There is also not a great place for video analysis. Sorry, that one just popped in my head. Pitt will never draw more fans that Florida State or North Carolina, but it has the initial pieces in place to be a very nice, albeit small, facility. Also, it has been my opinion that they should consider the Petersen Sports Complex "off-campus" and sell beer. Do you want to fill the place up? Sell beer.

 

[pittchagg]

So.. there are a lot of things that make a college baseball facility better than others. The majority of them do not have to do with crowd size or capacity. The main thing is the capacity is the ability to host an NCAA Regional, which Pitt cannot currently do. From there, what is the locker room like? Pitt baseball's locker room is nice but considerably smaller than most in the ACC. A lot of facilities also have a player's lounge, which Pitt does not. Pitt baseball does have a great training room, but it gets shared with three other teams, which is not the end of the world, but, again, something that most others do not have. The weight room is large but is not in the same facility as the baseball stadium. A good amount of ACC schools have a weight room in the baseball facility. The Pitt indoor facility is small. Only two cages. That needs to change and has been something that has been talked about in the past. The indoor facility is a big deal, a huge deal. There needs to be more room for guys to get work in, especially considering that Pitt is indoors a lot of the year. Obviously, the Cost Center is used for winter practices, but no recruits are going to walk in that facility and be awed as it is very dated. Also, it's small things like not having a bathroom in the dugout (visitor or home) and not having a direct access from the locker room to the dugout. In baseball, it is very common to go back to the locker room throughout the game whether it be to change your undershirt, take a second to yourself after striking out, etc. All in all, the Pitt baseball facility has the bones to be a very nice facility. However, there are things that need to be expanded. There is also not a great place for video analysis. Sorry, that one just popped in my head. Pitt will never draw more fans that Florida State or North Carolina, but it has the initial pieces in place to be a very nice, albeit small, facility. Also, it has been my opinion that they should consider the Petersen Sports Complex "off-campus" and sell beer. Do you want to fill the place up? Sell beer.

I agree on almost all fronts - a number of the things you suggested would require a range of moderate to higher impact renovations. Improvements to the locker/training/video facilities might already be in the process of being addressed with the renovations/expansions planned for the Cost Center and OC lot with Victory Heights and/or the completion of the PSC complex near the soccer field. The addition of bathrooms, expansion of on-site indoor facilities and other improvements to Cost Field itself might require some more legwork and the available space between the baseball and soccer facilities might pose some issues.

All that said, they do sell beer on campus at the Pete, so I don’t see why they wouldn’t be able to at the facilities at the PSC.

On a related note, does anyone know if we going to get a Coach here shortly? Chris Peak’s Monday podcast seemed to suggest a hire as soon as early this week.

 

[pitt2533]

Someone mentioned to me that it was down to 2 ACC assistants for the new coach but that person might actually have gotten that info from Peak. Not sure where they read or heard it.

Does anyone know who those two assistants are?

 

[pantherpantherpanther]

I agree on almost all fronts - a number of the things you suggested would require a range of moderate to higher impact renovations. Improvements to the locker/training/video facilities might already be in the process of being addressed with the renovations/expansions planned for the Cost Center and OC lot with Victory Heights and/or the completion of the PSC complex near the soccer field. The addition of bathrooms, expansion of on-site indoor facilities and other improvements to Cost Field itself might require some more legwork and the available space between the baseball and soccer facilities might pose some issues.

All that said, they do sell beer on campus at the Pete, so I don’t see why they wouldn’t be able to at the facilities at the PSC.

On a related note, does anyone know if we going to get a Coach here shortly? Chris Peak’s Monday podcast seemed to suggest a hire as soon as early this week.

In relation to the expansion of on-site indoor facilities, Jordano once told me that the plan was to expand the hitting facility into the bullpen and then move the bullpen down where there is currently empty concourse, so it would be a decent project, but there is square footage.