The attitude of the Penn baseball team resonates somewhere between that of the uber-professional Yankees and the Jack Daniels-swigging Idiots from Beantown.
That is because coach Bob Seddon's 2005 squad is a healthy mix of veterans and rookies.
The starting pitching is anchored by seniors Josh Appell and Bill Kirk and highlighted by freshman southpaw Nick Francona.
In the batting order, only two of the nine spots are not filled by seniors or freshmen.
Seddon said that the freshmen and seniors have been able to coexist from day one in part because the incumbents never felt threatened by any of the newcomers.
"There hasn't been a competitive situation where [a senior] may lose [his] job to a freshman," Seddon said.
Seddon also pointed out that rookies such as Kyle Armeny, Jarron Smith and Francona have already earned the respect of their elders through their performances on the field.
Armeny, the Quakers starting third baseman, is second on the team in both batting average (.333) and RBIs (15).
Smith, a centerfielder, has already produced a game-ending single against Lafayette and a homer to beat Dartmouth.
Francona has recorded 19 strikeouts in 22 innings and has been a pleasant surprise.
Results like these are difficult to argue with.
"What happens is, freshman have to earn their mark," Seddon said. But "it's a good freshman group," he added.
Seddon noted that participating in off-season workouts and living together has made the team a close-knit group. "They're hanging together," he said.
And what about the good-natured ribbing that often goes on between seniors and freshmen?
Though Seddon said the young players were immediately accepted, senior captain Evan Sobel revised that statement and admitted to having a little fun with the rookies.
"It's good in the clubhouse because we give them a hard time and mess around with them a lot," Sobel said. "It's real fun to have them around."
The dichotomy that exists has also infused the older guys with energy that only 18- and 19-year-old players could possess.
"It's good to have a bunch of young guys around; they have a lot of energy," Sobel said. "Not that the seniors are old or anything."
Besides a little teasing, the seniors can also be excellent resources for advice, as they have already faced the rigors of the Ivy League season three times.
When Armeny struggled defensively at the beginning of the season -- he has a team-high 10 errors -- Sobel lent his input.
"You work with the guy," the Quakers' shortstop said. "Sometimes it's mental approaches, just helping guys get their heads right for at-bats. Other times it's helping guys with fielding technique."
Some encouragement from the captain seems to have worked and Sobel believes Armeny's defense has been much improved recently.
Sitting at 5-3 in the Ivy League standings, the Quakers will need to take elements from both age groups in order to unseat Princeton as Lou Gehrig division champions.
A mixture of energy and confidence from the precocious freshman with leadership from the seniors may add up to one last title run for Seddon.
And if you're 18, 22 or even 70, that would certainly be sweet.
Andrew Jamieson is a junior international relations major from New York. His e-mail address is jamiesoa@sas.upenn.edu.
