Miami evens series as Eagles' bats go cold in 2-1 loss
A day after scoring 13 runs, BC was held to one run on six hits and squandered Mason Pelio's second quality start in a row.
After a 13-0 blowout win on Friday, Boston College was unable to clinch the series win against Miami, dropping the second game of three by a score of 2-1 on Saturday afternoon.
The Eagles (18-22, 7-19 ACC) couldn’t take advantage of a great start by Mason Pelio and a strong relief outing Joey Walsh, failing to get the big hit needed to get something going on offense. Miami (24-14, 15-13 ACC) used phenomenal pitching and a few timely hits en route to the one-run win. A bottom of the ninth rally from BC fell just short as it left the tying run on first base.
The game was incredibly fast paced—wrapping up in two hours and 23 minutes—as both pitching staffs were dominant. Neither team could get into any type of offensive rhythm and both teams had trouble producing with runners in scoring position. The Eagles played an incredibly clean game, flashing some great defense all around the diamond.
“Other than the result, there is nothing to look back on from today and say we didn’t do a good job,” head coach Mike Gambino said.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Pelio’s Quality Start: Pelio recorded his second consecutive quality start since returning to the ACC last weekend. He finished the day with 110 pitches after six innings, surrendering six hits and allowing two runs. Pelio found himself ahead in the count more times than not on Saturday, as he was pounding the zone with his dynamic 93 mph fastball.
While his strikeout numbers were relatively low with just four, Pelio induced a lot of weak contact and allowed the Eagles’ stout defense to do the work for him. Pelio’s high pitch count was mostly due to the pesky Miami hitters fouling off pitches to cause some elongated at-bats. With only two walks, Pelio seemed comfortable and was confident throwing his entire arsenal at the Canes.
On the few occasions that Pelio did work himself into trouble, he flashed his ability to control damage and navigate jams. In the first and fourth innings Pelio was able to limit the Canes’ rallies to just one run apiece. The two innings easily could have gotten out of hand, but thanks to Pelio’s command and some fantastic defense, the Eagles were able to limit the damage as much as possible.
Timely Hitting and Some Luck Lifts the Hurricanes: In the first inning, the Miami batters put their game plan on full display: Swing early and often. After the Canes leadoff batter struck out, the next two batters were able to reach by way of a walk and single up the middle. With runners on the corners, Miami right-fielder Adrian Del Castillo hit a sharp grounder to BC first baseman Jack Cunnningham that looked like a tailor-made double play. Cunningham had some trouble on the transfer and was forced to step on first, allowing the Hurricanes’ runner to score, making it a 1-0 ball game.
In the fourth, Pelio surrendered a leadoff single to Del Castillo. After retiring the next two batters, Raymond Gil stepped up to the plate. Pelio and Gil had an absolute battle, as the Miami designated hitter fouled off multiple pitches to force a 3-2 count. Amidst the foul balls was a ball in the dirt that did not get away from BC catcher Peter Burns but allowed for Del Castillo to advance to second. With the count full, Pelio challenged Gil with an inside fastball and it led to a bloop single that landed right between Cody Morrissette and Dante Baldelli in shallow right field. Del Castillo was moving on contact and scored easily, pushing the Canes lead to two. This bloop single proved to be the game-winning hit.
Eagles Bats Fall Flat: BC was unable to get any sort of offensive momentum going, as the Miami pitching staff had an incredibly efficient day after giving up 13 runs on Friday. Hurricanes starter Alex McFarlane looked impressive, throwing five innings and scattering three hits on just 55 pitches total. This was McFarlane’s first start of the year after spending the whole season in the bullpen, and he did not let the opportunity slip away. The right-hander was living in the strike zone, getting quick innings and forcing BC hitters into weak contact and bad swings. The Hurricanes’ bullpen picked up right where McFarlane left off, mowing down Eagles hitters in impressive fashion. Canes pitchers combined for 10 strikeouts and zero walks on the day, a truly dominant performance.
BC hitters were unable to convert on any scoring chances until the bottom of the ninth inning. Sal Frelick led off the frame with a double down the left-field line, and would tag up and move to third on a Brian Dempsey flyout to center. Cody Morrissette then smoked a liner right back to the pitcher that was knocked down and thrown to first base for the out. Luke Gold, who had half of BC’s hits on the day, had the Eagles only RBI when he knocked a single to left and scored Frelick. Jack Cunningham would come to the plate and end the inning and the game on a swinging strikeout.
“Cody barrels a ball up the middle and it just happens to hit the guys glove, that’s just baseball,” Gambino said. “That’s the game sometimes.”
Play of the Day: Frelick’s Diving Grab Saves Two Runs
With two outs in the top of the fifth, Miami rattled off back-to-back singles to try and extend its two-run lead. With Miami’s top draft prospect and clean-up hitter in Del Castillo coming up to the plate, the Hurricanes look poised to break the game open. Pelio grooved a fastball to the big lefty and he did not miss it, driving a ball deep into the left-center gap. Luckily for the Eagles, All-American center fielder Sal Frelick had an amazing jump on the ball and was able to track down the ball after leaping at the warning track. The catch saved two runs for sure, and even extended Pelio’s day by an inning, as his pitch count was in the mid-90’s.
Featured Images Courtesy of Boston College Athletics
Strong use of the word "stout", which is woefully underused in most reporting.