Tim Reed/THE POST Ohio's Nate Conrad slides safely in to home plate in an April 25 game against Marshall.

Ohio coach Joe Carbone doesn't meddle much in his player's decisions. Bart Leahy gets drafted. Fine. He decides to stay in school. Fine. If he had decided to take the offer ... Fine.

"You're a big boy," says Carbone to his players. "You do what's best for you."

The new question: What's best for Ohio starter Bobby Sismondo?

He will be drafted, Carbone said. Of that, there's little question. He has the career strikeout record at Ohio with 254 in just three seasons. He went 8-3 this season with a 4.20 ERA. He finished first team All-MAC last season as a sophomore after being named MAC Freshman of the Year in 1996. And he capped his career to date with a 10-inning masterpiece Saturday at Kent, allowing just one earned run and striking out nine.

What else is there?

"In all honesty, I think he's going to sign," Carbone said. "He knows he has a home to come home to if he decides to stay."

Carbone said he has already received calls from every scout in Ohio, asking about Sismondo's character and abilities. So the interest is there. But Sismondo hasn't made a decision yet, and he probably won't until the June draft.

Carbone has heard projections that place Sismondo anywhere from the third to the sixth round.

"You can't control the draft," Carbone said. "He might go in the 20th. It's not an exact science."

Sismondo could not be reached for comment.

Who Ohio loses

The Bobcats lose five position players. Seniors Scott Malinowski, Leahy, Neal Packanik, Nate Conrad and Josh Heffernan move on. The players combined for 40 percent (128 of 317) of the team's RBI total.Malinowski (.385) and Leahy (.361) finished atop the leaders for Ohio in batting average.

If Sismondo leaves, Ohio will have lost its three top pitchers in terms of ERA. Relievers Josh Stivison and Dan Miller are the other two. Stivison led Ohio with a 2.45 ERA in 22 innings. Sismondo finished with a 4.20 ERA, and Miller had a 4.82.

No other Bobcat had an ERA under 5.00. But in the last few series, Carbone saw some improvements.

"They were just starting to settle in," Carbone said. "Every time they went out there, they got better. We just ran out of time."

The numbers tell the story.

Ohio pitchers allowed 354 runs (289 earned) in 55 games. So the season can be divided into five periods of 11 games. Ohio gave up 16 percent (57) of its runs in the first period, 24 percent (85) in the second, 27 percent (94) in the third, 18 percent (64) in the fourth and 15 percent (54) in the last period.

Who Ohio gains

Seven players return who started at least 25 games. And Carbone said the freshman class will have six or seven players. Included among those are Jason Arbinger's brother Mike from Start High School in Toledo, outfielder Lyle Huffman of Howland High School and catcher Scott Brownlee of Tallmadge.