Four observations from the Eagles' disappointing doubleheader against the Tigers
Clemson swept the weekend series with a pair of wins on Saturday.
The Tigers swept the Eagles on Saturday, taking the first game with a six-run outburst in the 10th inning when reliever Charlie Coon stayed on for his third inning of work. After a single and hit batsmen, BC head coach Mike Gambino replaced him with Joey Ryan, who allowed six runs to score on five hits—including a three-run double to Caden Grice.
Five runs in the first four innings of Game 2 left little doubt how this day would go for the Eagles, who dropped their fourth straight conference game and eighth of their last nine ACC matchups after their 9-3 loss in extra innings was followed by a 7-2 defeat. Clemson’s (12-9, 6-6 Atlantic Coast) lineup scored seven-plus runs in all three games of the weekend after managing to do it just twice in their previous 11 games.
BC (12-10, 3-9) ended the evening six games under .500 in conference play and have dropped three straight weekend series since starting the year 9-2. It was a difficult weekend for both the pitching staff and lineup, as a 12-run effort in Friday’s game wasn’t enough after the bullpen imploded, while Saturday’s losses saw struggles to generate enough offense.
Here’s four observations from a combined six hours and eight minutes of baseball played at Harrington Athletics Village.
Bullpen woes continue
In Friday’s loss, Gambino turned to high-leverage reliever Joey Walsh in the sixth inning with a four-run lead. Walsh proceeded to throw 47 pitches and cough up nine earned runs in an inning and two-thirds. On Saturday, with Walsh unavailable and the Eagles’ trailing by one in the eighth, Gambino turned to Coon and the southpaw was terrific in getting BC to extra innings. He struck out six in his first two innings of work, both scoreless.
But, as it has gone so often for Eagles’ relievers this season, Coon ran out of gas in the 10th. He gave up a single, then was pulled after hitting a batter with one out on his 49th pitch of the frame. That’s not to discredit the freshman—he threw his longest outing of the year and kept BC in the game. Instead, the Eagles’ bullpen just didn’t have enough depth.
Ryan entered and things just devolved from there. After giving up five earned runs to Merrimack in the midweek, Ryan let both of the inherited runners score and four more came across against the freshman in a tough outing. It turned a potential morale-boosting extra innings win into a blowout, as the Eagles put two on in the bottom of the 10th but Clemson’s Nick Clayton got a game-ending groundout.
The six-run 10th mirrored the seven-run seventh from the game prior. The Tigers just picked up hit after hit and completely stole any momentum BC might’ve had from equalizing in the eighth inning. The Eagles may rank near the top of the ACC in many offensive categories, but the pitching staff is now dead-last in ERA (6.37) and opponent batting average (.300).
Quiet middle of the order
It was a tough day at the dish for the 3-4-5 hitters of Cody Morissette, Jack Cunningham, and Luke Gold. Morissette, who went 2-for-6 on Friday night in his return from injury, went just 1-for-9 in the doubleheader. He drove in a run with a fielder’s choice groundout in the first game, but was largely quiet. It’s understandable to have a slow start after missing seven games and you’ve got to feel for the junior—he was just getting back to his 2020 levels (.400 in his last 25 at bats) before getting hurt.
Cunningham and Gold, meanwhile, had similarly hard days at the plate. Cunningham went 0-for-8 with two strikeouts while Gold fared slightly better at 2-for-9. Still, with the 3-4-5 hitters combining to go 3-for-26 (.115), the burden to bring in runs fell on the bottom of the order. As a result, the Eagles managed just five runs in 19 innings, with three of those the result of RBIs from the seven or eight hitters.
Sheehan, Vetrano bright spots
On a day where Max Gieg was pulled after walking two of the three batters he faced and where Alex Stiegler hit two batters and allowed five runs on four hits, starter Emmet Sheehan and opener-converted-long reliever Joe Vetrano were the two most impressive arms.
Sheehan continued a run of good starts, throwing at least six innings for the fifth time in six outings this year. He made a few mistakes—giving up a solo home run to James Parker and bringing a run in a wild pitch—before running out of steam in his final inning. After giving up a single to Parker to score a third run, he put two on and was likely grateful that Gieg was able to prevent any inherited runners from scoring. Still, he struck out seven and walked just one. Three hit batsmen was unexpected, but Sheehan still managed to get his fourth quality start of the year.
Vetrano, meanwhile, came on for Stiegler in the nightcap and gave Gambino exactly what his team needed: Five quality innings out of the bullpen. Shelved from the opening role for the first time in a weekend series, Vetrano responded by allowing just two runs—neither earned thanks to a passed ball and a throwing error from the catcher. He pitched to contact effectively, getting five groundouts and seven flyouts, and worked around five hits with a pair of strikeouts. Most importantly, Vetrano didn’t issue a walk after issuing eight in his first nine innings of the season.
Hoffmann who?
After Keyshawn Askew struck out eight and allowed just two runs in 6 2/3 in the first game, Clemson turned to little known right-hander Nick Hoffmann in the nightcap. The redshirt freshman had four relief appearances on the season and had never thrown more than three innings. He promptly turned in a complete game effort, allowing just six hits and two runs while striking out seven and not issuing a walk. Hoffmann set down the last eight batters he faced, including 1-through-6 of the Eagles’ lineup.
He also retired the first six batters he faced on the day, setting the tone for an efficient performance. Hoffmann needed 111 pitches to finish off the complete game effort, sparing a Clemson bullpen that used two relievers in the earlier game and four in Friday’s slugfest. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him slot in as the Tigers’ Sunday starter moving forward as they’ve wrestled with an inconsistent rotation thus far in 2021.