TOLEDO, Ohio – The 2023 season for the Toledo baseball program is in the books, and there was plenty to celebrate on and off the diamond.

Team Records

• Offensively, the Rockets set single-season school records for home runs (98) and stolen bases (101). The previous record for most home runs in a season was 65 (2002) and the previous record for most stolen bases was 85 (2022).
• For the third straight season, the pitching staff set a new program record for most strikeouts in a season (454).
• Defensively, UT's .979 fielding percentage was the highest in school history. That mark broke the previous school record of .976 set in 1976.

Individual Records

• The 2023 MAC Player of the Year and a Collegiate Baseball All-American, Jeron Williams turned in one of the best seasons by a Rocket ever in 2023. The Archbold, Ohio native shattered the school record for most stolen bases in a season (49) and was one away from tying the Mid-American Conference single-season stolen base record. His 162 total bases were a new single-season record as well, besting the mark of 152 set by Sean Dobson in 2004. Williams ended his season with 96 hits (second-most ever in a season), 67 runs scored (third-most ever), 14 home runs (tied for eighth-most ever), and a .403 batting average, making him the first Rocket since Mitch Maier in 2003 to hit at least .400 in a season and just the eighth Toledo player ever to reach that benchmark in a season. He led the nation in hits and stolen bases at the conclusion of the regular season.
• Owen Jackson's 16 home runs were tied for the most ever in a season in school history, matching Mason Sykes' record-setting mark of 16 homers from a season ago. Sykes and Garret Pike both hit 15 home runs, tying them with three other players (Chris Meyers, Ross Adolph, and Mike Ernst) for third-most ever in a season. Of the seven largest single-season home run totals in school history, three were achieved this season.
• Sykes also ended his career with 38 home runs, more than any other player in Toledo history. He also finished his career inside the Top 10 in career RBIs, finishing tied for seventh with 131.

Toledo also tied a school record with six players earning postseason distinctions from the MAC. Williams was named player of the year and first-team all-conference; Sykes, Jackson, Pike, and Cal McAninch were all named Second-Team All-MAC; and Brian Fry was named to the MAC's All-Defensive Team.

Below is a Q&A with head coach Rob Reinstetle, who just completed his fourth season with the Rockets, discussing the 2023 season:

With the season now over, what are your overall thoughts on the 2023 campaign?

RR: I have such mixed emotions on this season. As I sit back and take in the full body of work for this season, I would be lying if I didn't say that I was disappointed with the way everything played out in the W-L column.  But on the flipside, we accomplished a number of things this year that I'm proud of, and some of these accomplishments make me excited for the future as well.  Obviously, the offense and defense we had was very good. I felt that they performed at a very high level for the majority of the season.  We broke several team and individual records this year and had one of the best players in all of college baseball in Jeron Williams. The pitching, while talented, had some serious inexperience which showed. You go back to our very good 2022 season and our starting pitching was talented and experienced.  The three guys we started in 2022 are all playing professional baseball now. We felt like we had some talented pitchers in the program this season, but we still entered the year with only one guy on the roster who had ever started a Division I baseball game.  Next season we have a number of talented guys coming back who pitched meaningful innings this year and gained great experience on the mound.  They should be more accustomed to what it takes to get college hitters out, more confident, and just better all-around because of this season.

What do you think the team did well this season and what do you think are some areas for improvement for next season? 

RR: Our offense and defense were both very good this year.  We hit for a good average, got on base at a high clip, averaged over seven runs per game, hit a school-record 98 home runs, and stole 101 bases to set the school record that we broke last season.  Those are all good signs of a potent offense.  Our defense was nationally-ranked in the Top 15 as we set a school record and fielded .979 as a team.  That is another sign of a good baseball team.  While we lose a few good players on this side of the ball, the bulk will be back.  I feel like we will be equally as good on offense and defense next season. 

As I mentioned before, our pitching certainly needs to get better for next year.  Our ERA, WHIP, and opponent batting average against were all too high, and we gave opposing teams too many free bases.  These are all areas we can improve upon next year and certainly something that we will look to correct.  I attribute some of these weak areas to the inexperience I spoke about earlier, but I also have been doing this long enough to know that equates out to more experience next year on the mound. I mentioned that we had talent and that is evidenced by the fact that we did set a new school record for strikeouts this season. It's not all bad, but there are just some areas that we need to tighten up.

What will be some of the bigger games or moments from this season that you'll remember down the road?

RR: We did have some really good moments this season. I think back to our Spring Break trip when we went 7-1.  We were road warriors and played such good baseball during that 10-day span.  We swept Middle Tennessee on the front end of that trip and finished the trip by sweeping Miami to open up MAC play.  That was pretty cool because we were on the road together in and out of different hotels and towns, and just had fun as a group.  Beating Michigan was a nice moment for us.  Anytime you beat a Big Ten team, that is a cool moment for the players and the program. And lastly, I think playing again in front of so many fans at Fifth Third Field is always a highlight of any season.

This was the first year playing at Scott Park with a turf infield. How different was it this season being able to practice outside more and not having to worry as much about the weather? 

RR: Having the turf infield was such a boost for us this year.  As you mentioned, we were able to get outside in January and February on a real baseball field. That has never happened before and I attribute that as a reason why we played such good defense this year.  We are so lucky to have an indoor facility like Fetterman to practice in during the winter, but being on a baseball field is just different.  Plus, having the turf made my life so much easier this spring when the rain hit.  There is no question it saved us numerous times and allowed us to play when we might have not been able to in the past.  Not to mention the players are SUPER thankful that tarp pulls are a thing of the past here at Toledo!

Jeron Williams was one of the best shortstops in the nation and had one of the best offensive seasons ever by a Rocket. What changes or improvements did he make in the offseason to have this type of

season?

RR: Jeron had such a special year. When you look back at when he got here as a junior college shortstop that was a career .270 hitter, there is no doubt he developed tremendously. I think both assistant coaches Nick McIntyre and Michael Ryan did an awesome job of working with Jeron on his swing and his base-stealing ability. When he came to Toledo, we knew we were getting a super athletic player with a lot of ability, and we saw him start to blossom last season. I can't say that I'm surprised by this season because I told everyone that would listen, that he was going to be the MAC Player of the Year, steal 40+ bases, and break out this season. Sure enough he did! The one area that I guess I'd have to say surprised me the most this season was the amount of power that he produced. He hit 16 doubles, four triples, and 14 home runs, and I don't think anyone saw that coming. We can't take all the credit for the player he ended up being this year. Jeron is an extremely dedicated player who put the work in to his game and he deserves a lot of credit for his own development because he made it happen. I feel good with what we as coaches and a program can do for a player, but they have to want it, and Jeron certainly did. I couldn't be prouder for him and excited to see what happens in July when he gets drafted and starts his professional career.

You don't play the games to break records, but it can't be ignored how many significant school records were broken this season. What does it say about this team that there were so many outstanding individual and team performances this year?

RR: I think it's safe to say that we have never been focused on breaking records. Our goal is to win games. The record that consumes me personally is the 39 wins in a season set in 1999. That's the one that we as a program really want to break. That being said, I am proud of all the records that we have broken and set in the time that we've been here. This year we broke four program records, and two of those we broke last season as well. This year we also had two individual records

broken.  Mason Sykes became Toledo's All-Time Home Run King and Jeron Williams the single-season stolen base leader. In total, we've set or broken eight different program records and four individual records in the last two years. I honestly do think that it's impressive that we are continuously breaking records, because that represents us moving forward as a program.

How many of the guys will be playing summer ball and when will everyone be back on campus in the fall? 

RR: We have 20 guys going off to play summer baseball. They are scattered all over the country playing in the different wooden bat leagues. For the younger guys this will be a huge boost in their development to continue to face college-level competition. Some of our older guys are also going out to play and some are taking time off to rest their bodies and hit the weight room.

School starts back up in late August and we'll once again hit the ground running.  We'll welcome in a new group of talented players from the high school ranks as well as JUCO and other transfers.  I feel really good about the players we have coming in. Each year we continue to bring in more and more high-caliber baseball players. We return a lot of talent, so the new guys we have coming in are very targeted to the needs we have.  I've harped on it a lot, but I expect next season to have a different feel to it with a little edge to us. We'll be talented again and have more of that experience that we lacked. Next year maybe we break the most important program record.  Go Rockets!