CLEMSON BASEBALL WEEKLY WRAPUP

May 1, 2011

Clemson University Overall Season Record: 29-15 ACC Regular-Season Record: 13-11

Last Week: 4-1 Tue. W, Home vs. Furman, 5-0 Wed. W, Away vs. Western Carolina, 6-4 (8 Innings) Fri. W, Home vs. #9 Georgia Tech, 4-2 Sat. L, Home vs. #9 Georgia Tech, 5-1 Sun. W, Home vs. #9 Georgia Tech, 3-1

Next Week: Sat. Home vs. Gardner-Webb, 2:00 PM Sat. Home vs. Gardner-Webb, 6:00 PM Sun. Away vs. Gardner-Webb, 2:00 PM

Last Week’s Game Notes Clemson, ranked as high as #23 in the nation, went 4-1 in five games this past week. The Tigers won midweek games against Furman (5-0) and at Western Carolina (6-4 in eight innings) before defeating #9 Georgia Tech twice in three games over the weekend.

On the week, the Tigers batted .264 with a .346 slugging percentage and .322 on-base percentage along with eight stolen bases. The Tigers also had a .963 fielding percentage.

Brad Miller led the Tigers at the plate last week by going 10-for-17 (.588) with one homer, two doubles, seven RBIs, six runs, three walks, and two stolen bases. In Wednesday’s game at Western Carolina and Friday’s game against Georgia Tech, he combined to go 7-for-7 with two walks, meaning he reached base in nine straight plate appearances. Will Lamb went 7-for-18 (.389) with two doubles as well.

The Tiger pitching staff had a 2.25 ERA and .190 opponents’ batting average on the week. The staff also allowed only four extra-base hits (three doubles, one homer) and 11 walks with 35 strikeouts in 44.0 innings pitched.

Justin Sarratt earned two wins in two starts and did not allow an earned run in 14.1 innings pitched this past week. He allowed just seven hits (all singles), a .140 opponents’ batting average, one unearned run (0.00 ERA), and two walks with 11 strikeouts. Remarkably, in the 14.1 innings pitched during the week, he allowed only one runner to advance past second base while in the game, and that runner did so because he was safe at second base and advanced to third on the play due to a fielding error on what could have been an inning-ending double play.

Miller went 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBIs to lead Clemson to a 5-0 victory over Furman at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on April 26. Clemson scored two runs in the first inning, then Miller’s three-run homer in the third inning closed out the scoring. Sarratt and three other Tiger pitchers combined for a shutout. Sarratt tossed 6.0 innings, allowing four hits, no runs, and no walks with five strikeouts. The four Clemson hurlers combined to surrender only six hits and no walks with seven strikeouts. They also did not allow a Paladin to advance past second base in the game.

Miller went 3-for-3 with two RBIs and two walks to lead Clemson to a 6-4 victory in eight innings over Western Carolina at Hennon Stadium in Cullowhee, NC on April 27. The game was postponed and later called in the top of the ninth inning due to lightning. Miller’s two-run double sparked the Tigers’ three-run first inning, then Clemson added two runs in the top of the fifth inning. The Catamounts rallied for four runs in the bottom of the fifth, but John Hinson added three hits.

Clemson then won two of three games over Georgia Tech at Will Lamb went 4-for-10 with a double, two RBIs, and three runs in the series. The Tiger pitching staff had a 2.33 ERA and allowed just 16 hits (14 singles, one double, one homer) against a team that entered the series leading the ACC with a .316 batting average. Scott Weismann had a save in both of Clemson’s victories.

In game-one on April 29, Dominic Leone allowed just two hits in 8.0 innings pitched to lead Clemson to a 4-2 win over Georgia Tech. Leone struck out 10 batters and allowed just two runs and two walks to earn the victory. Weismann pitched a perfect ninth inning to record the save. The Tigers scored single runs in the first and second innings before Zane Evans’ two-run homer in the fifth inning tied the score. But Jason Stolz’s sacrifice fly in the sixth inning gave Clemson the lead for good. Miller went 4-for-4 to lead the Tigers’ 11-hit attack, Stolz totaled three RBIs, and Lamb scored three runs.

In game-two on April 30, Jed Bradley tossed a complete game to lead Georgia Tech to a 5-1 win over Clemson. Bradley allowed seven hits, one unearned run, and one walk with three strikeouts in throwing only 99 pitches. He also did not allow a Tiger leadoff batter to reach base. The Yellow Jackets scored three runs in the first inning on only one hit, which was Sam Dove’s two-out, two-run single. Dove went 5-for-5 with two RBIs to lead the Yellow Jackets, who outhit the Tigers 10-7. Meyer and Haselden combined to allow four walks and one hit-by-pitch. Four of those five baserunners scored. Seven different Tigers accounted for the team’s seven singles.

In game-three on May 1, Sarratt tossed 8.1 strong innings to lead Clemson to a 3-1 victory over Georgia Tech. Sarratt allowed just three hits, one unearned run, and two walks with six strikeouts to earn the win. Weisman struck out two batters, including Evans with the bases loaded, in the ninth inning to record the save. Jeff Schaus’ two-out, run-scoring double and Lamb’s run-scoring single in the bottom of the fourth inning gave Clemson a 3-1 lead. Both teams had just four hits in the game.

2011 Season Notes Clemson has a 29-15 overall record and 13-11 ACC mark on the season. The Tigers, who have won 15 of their last 18 overall games, are in second place in the ACC Atlantic Division standings behind first-place Florida State, who improved to 16-8 in the ACC with two wins in three games at Miami (FL) over the weekend. Clemson has won four ACC series in a row and is in sixth place in the overall ACC standings. Virginia, Georgia Tech, Miami, and Florida State have all clinched spots in the 2011 ACC Tournament.

The Tigers are hitting .308 with a .439 slugging percentage and .400 on-base percentage thanks to 211 walks and 35 hit-by-pitches in 2011. The team has also totaled 89 doubles, 13 triples, 26 homers, and 80 stolen bases along with hitting .332 with runners in scoring position on the season. Clemson is fielding at a .966 clip as well.

Despite an ACC record of just two games over .500, the Tigers have outhit their ACC opponents .292 to .237, a margin of 55 points. Brad Miller leads the ACC with a .423 batting average in league games. The Tigers also have a league ERA of 3.91, while their opponents’ ERA in ACC games is 4.96, a margin of 1.05.

In all games, Miller leads the ACC in batting average (.437) by 37 points and on-base percentage (.535) by 53 points along with totaling eight doubles, three triples, two homers, 32 RBIs, 37 runs, 28 walks, and a team-tying-high 18 stolen bases in 37 games (35 starts). In the last 19 games, he is 39-for-73 (.534) with 13 steals.

Will Lamb batting average has climbed to .307 thanks to his 19-game hitting streak. He has also hit safely in 30 of the last 32 games.

Richie Shaffer, who is hitting .307 with 11 doubles, two triples, five home runs, 32 RBIs, and a .440 on-base percentage, saw a remarkable streak come to an end on Sunday. He committed his first career error on a hard-hit groundball in his 92nd career game. The sophomore first-baseman had gone 644 career chances before he committed his first error as a Tiger.

The pitching staff has a 3.37 ERA and .233 opponents’ batting average in 389.2 innings pitched this season. It has allowed 337 hits and 133 walks with 339 strikeouts, good for a 2.55 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Justin Sarratt leads the team and is fifth in the ACC with a 1.89 ERA. In 52.1 innings pitched over 13 appearances (eight starts), the graduate student has a 5-1 record and has allowed 43 hits (.222 opponents’ batting average), one home run, and six walks against 41 strikeouts. The Tigers have an 8-0 record in his eight starts in 2011. David Haselden is 4-1 with two saves, a 2.43 ERA, and 39 strikeouts against 11 walks in a team-high 59.1 innings pitched over 18 appearances (four starts). Jonathan Meyer is 4-1 with one save, a 3.06 ERA, and .198 opponents’ batting average, while Dominic Leone is 3-1 with a 3.38 ERA and .199 opponents’ batting average.

Scott Weismann has continued his stellar performances since moving to the bullpen. In Clemson’s last 13 games (11-2 record), he has made seven relief appearances for a total of 7.2 innings pitched. He has four saves and has allowed just three hits (all singles), a .115 opponents’ batting average, no runs, and no walks with 14 strikeouts during that stretch.

Clemson will take five days off for final exams before returning to action on Saturday against Gardner-Webb in a doubleheader at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. Then on Sunday afternoon, the Tigers will travel to Boiling Springs, NC to face Gardner-Webb for the first-ever time away from Tigertown.