Fielder's Choice

SENIOR Rob Carroll also has Dartmouth ties in his family. His father George Carroll is a member of the class of 1947. His brother Charles is a member of the class of 1980. "But that's not why I came here," said Carroll, captain of the varsity baseball team. "It's more or less a case of Dartmouth being one of the two schools I got into and being the more attractive of the two." Carroll, a resident of Rowayton, Connecticut, came to Dartmouth as a high-school standout in football, hockey, and baseball. At Dartmouth, he has earned three letters in football and last fall was named to the all-Ivy team at defensive end. Still, Carroll admitted a slight preference for the spring sport. "Baseball's a nice change from football," he said. "Baseball in the spring is pretty enjoyable." As a freshman, Carroll belted two home runs and a double against Villanova at the end of the spring trip. Last season, the designated hitter-right fielder batted .213 and tied for the team high of four homers. He knocked in 16 runs while appearing in 28 games.

The baseball ream got off to a slow start this spring, losing its first eight games. Seven of those games were against stiff competition during the spring trip to Florida. "You have to be realistic about those games in Florida," Carroll said. "Those schools had been outside for one or two months, so losing to them was not as bad as it might sound. We definitely improved down there and that's what we were looking for. Despite our record, I'm still optimistic of our chances of winning a few games this year. The attitude of the team is real good."

Mike Walsh is coaching the baseball team this spring. He is Dartmouth's 16th varsity baseball coach and the third coach of the Big Green team in the last three years. The 33-year-old Walsh took over in January, replacing George Landis, who coached the 1981 team to a record of 7-24 before becoming head football coach at Bloomsburg State College in Pennsylvania. Head trainer Fred Kelley coached the baseball team in 1980. Walsh is also an assistant basketball coach at Dartmouth. He was an outstanding pitcher whose playing career at the University of Massachusetts was cut short by an injury.

"Our objective is to improve as a team as we go along," said Walsh. "We want to be competitive in the Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League, and I hope we will be this year." Walsh said it was frustrating that the team was unable to practice outside until the middle of April. Practice sessions were confined to batting in the Leverone Field House and fielding on the artificial surface in the Thompson Arena "We took advantage of what we had " Walsh said.

Walsh noted that Carroll had played "exceptionally well" during the spring He praised the play of third baseman-outfielder Barry Pizor, also a member of the Ivy League championship football team and first baseman Tim Whall. Pizor, a senior, and Whall, a junior, were both batting over .300. The Big Green team was scheduled to play a 35-game schedule this year.

Walsh said he was enjoying his new coaching duties. "I'm loving it," he said. "Baseball is a great sport. I feel we'll continue to develop as a team and can be competitive."

Faber: football's casualty, crew's gain.