Seven-run seventh lifts Tigers past BC in series opener

Clemson pounced on the Eagles bullpen, scoring 10 runs in a three-inning stretch to secure a 16-12 win on Friday night.

With two outs, the bases loaded, and the tying run at the plate against Clemson in the bottom of the eighth inning in the form of Boston College star center fielder Sal Frelick, you’d be remiss not to think that he would surely add to his growing legend.

After all, Frelick had been in a similar spot a few weekends ago against Auburn, launching a game-tying, three-run home run that capped off a dramatic come-from-behind inning.

Tigers’ ace reliever Geoffrey Gilbert had other ideas. After Frelick worked a full count, Gilbert got him to chase a tough pitch out of the zone for an inning-ending strikeout to escape the threat as Clemson went on to a 16-12 victory.

The four-hour, nine-minute game featured a combined 28 runs on 30 hits and 16 walks. It was a slugfest that swung both ways and saw a plethora of lead changes, with BC (12-8, 3-7 Atlantic Coast) leading from the second inning on before the Tigers (10-9, 4-6) broke it open with a seven-run seventh.

Clemson designated hitter Caden Grice had a huge day at the plate, going 4-for-6 with a double, a triple, and seven RBIs. He was bookended in the lineup by James Parker and Adam Hackenberg, who combined for five hits and six RBIs in the Tigers’ best offensive day of the season.

BC struck quickly, as Brian Dempsey’s 200th hit was a no-doubt leadoff home run to left field. Jack Cunningham added an RBI single and Vince Cimini chipped in with a two-run single to build an early 3-0 lead.

Eagles’ right-hander Mason Pelio had yet another start where he struggled in the early innings, though, only to right the ship as the game went on. After stranding the bases loaded in the first, Pelio was tagged for six runs in the second, all earned. He quickly lost the lead given to him as the first four batters reached—including a RBI single from Elijah Henderson. After getting a strikeout, it quickly went downhill as Parker drove in a run with a single, Grice had a three-run double, and Hackenberg had a sacrifice fly.

BC picked up its struggling ace with a five-run bottom of the second, however. Clemson starter Jackson Lindley—who was charged with eight runs on 10 hits—was chased after Frelick, Cody Morissette, Cameron Leary, and Peter Burns all drove in runs. Just like that, it was 8-6 Eagles, and Pelio settled down.

The Eagles’ Friday night starter worked around a double in the third, struck out the side in the fourth, and left another runner on in the fifth. He allowed just one hit in the three scoreless innings following the six-run second, but Pelio’s now given up four-plus runs in each of last three starts. His ERA is up to 6.52, almost three full points higher than his All-ACC freshman campaign.

Morissette—making his return from seven games missed due to injury—drove in two more in the fifth on a single against the shift to push the lead to four. He was a welcome sight in the Eagles lineup, filling the hole at designated hitter with a two-hit day.

The lead didn’t last long after Pelio exited, though. Reliever Joey Walsh—one of the more reliable arms in the Eagles’ bullpen—quickly ran into trouble in the sixth. After getting a big out at the plate on a dribbler back to the mound, Walsh had two on with two outs and was ahead of Grice, 0-2. Grice promptly drove in a run with a single to left field and Hackenberg added an RBI single as well.

Walsh returned to the mound in the seventh with a slimmer two-run lead and things collapsed for the BC bullpen from there. Seven of the eight batters he faced in the frame reached, giving up five runs on four hits, two walks, and a hit batsmen. John West emerged and walked both batters he faced while allowing another run on a wild pitch before he was yanked. Brian McMonagle entered with the bases loaded and walked in yet another run before finally getting a pop-up to end the inning. It was a long, ugly half-inning that saw the Tigers take a decisive five-run lead.

Clemson tacked on another run in the eighth off McMonagle, and while a fielders choice and a pinch-hit single from Ramon Jimenez brought in two runs for the Eagles, Frelick’s bases-loaded strikeout closed the door on a comeback attempt.

It was a tough day at the ballpark for both pitching staffs, but the Tigers were able to reach into their bullpen to stop the offense while the Eagles weren’t. Gilbert registered a four-out save, while the likes of Walsh, West, and McMonagle couldn’t stop Clemson’s lineup in the fateful seventh. BC’s lineup is one of the more potent in the country, but it can’t be asked to erase large deficits with regularity.

Sunday’s game was moved to Saturday due to rain, so there’ll be a doubleheader on ACC Network Extra starting at 1 p.m.

Featured Image Courtesy of Boston College Athletics