Mid-Missouri has won four series this season, all on the road.
There was no bonding breakthrough at a bowling alley. Nor was there the shared experience of sleepwalking through two 10 a.m. starts.
That is the stuff of the 2005 Mavericks’ legend, things that happened on a road trip to Kalamazoo and Rockford 19 days ago.
Still, Mid-Missouri returned home Monday after another successful venture away from Taylor Stadium. They went 4-2 at Florence and Chillicothe last week.
The Mavericks have won four series this season, all of them coming on the road in their past two trips.
Winning at home has been another story.
Monday night’s 9-4 loss to Kalamazoo dropped the Mavericks’ home record to a meager 3-11. They are 8-8 on the road.
“We just try to have fun every time,” Mavericks left-hander Auggie Rodriguez said. “We get a lot of bad breaks at home, but on the road we get a lot of bad breaks. For some reason we just win more on the road.”
First baseman Thomari Story-Harden also chalked the situation up to coincidence. He said the location of the game makes little difference.
“We play the same as far as where we are mentally and physically,” Story-Harden said.
That didn’t seem to be the case for Mid-Missouri right-hander Nick Renault on Monday. Pitching on three days’ rest, he struggled with his control after striking out 14 and allowing four hits in his most recent start Thursday at Chillicothe.
Kalamazoo batters worked Renault deep into counts, pushing his pitch total to near 40 in the second inning.
Renault showed resiliency in the fourth. With none out and the bases loaded, he struck out Kings’ second baseman Marco Estrada, then induced a 4-6-3 double play off the bat of Darryl Blaze.
Renault pitched five-plus innings, allowing three runs and 10 hits. He had been in line for the loss but took a no-decision when Mid-Missouri (11-19) tied the game in the sixth.
Kalamazoo (18-13) scored six runs in the last three innings to pull away.
The Mavericks’ home woes have been mind-boggling considering the usual pattern in baseball. A team’s youth typically translates to struggles on the road. Mid-Missouri made several roster moves in the week before the trip to Florence and Chillicothe, adding more new faces to a core that had just been getting acclimated to playing together.
Rodriguez said camaraderie can quickly be made up, though.
“Just being supportive and always being on that bus and long bus trips,” he said. “Eight hours, you know, you’ve got a lot of time you’ve got to spend together.”
Story-Harden snuck behind Rodriguez as he spoke, reaching around to pinch his chest. They shared a laugh and continued about their pre-game business. Rodriguez finished making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich while his teammate returned to the clubhouse.
Such scenes were hard to come by when the Mavericks started 0-10.
“Definitely the morale on the team is a lot more positive,” Story-Harden said. “The guys are just going out, getting the job done, and making less mistakes.”