The 'Cats have not had much success in baseball in recent seasons. But since head coach Ben Greenspan took over the reigns a few years ago, there's been a little more hope.

Much of that hope stems from an offense that features players who are actually pretty talented. On this year's team, for example, Jack Lausch, Jackson Freeman, Noah Ruiz, Owen McElfatrick and Ryan Kucherak are all truly legit hitters. But after a stronger start that inspired some hope that this year's team would have better results, it's become a disappointment once again.

Not only has Northwestern not won any of its last three conference series, it's been swept in all of them. During this skid, the offense has struggled, and the pitching has continued to be down-right brutal. 

The 'Cats seem to make quick work of their midweek, non conference opponents, but until they can be competitive week-in and week-out in the Big Ten, having some talent on the roster isn't going to get them any recognition. It seemed like that might be this year, but that's not what this team has shown in recent weeks.