Monday 06/21/1999
April 5, 1999
CLEMSON, S.C. – Clemson (17-13, 2-3 ACC) will play a home-and-home series with Western Carolina (17-12-1) this week. The first game will be at Cullowhee, NC at 3:00 while Western Carolina makes the return trip on Wednesday at 7:15. Clemson leads the all-time series 36-7 (.837), but has lost at Western Carolina the last two trips in as many years. The Tigers will start lefthander Mike Proto (0-0, 6.23 ERA) on Tuesday and lefty Thomas Boozer (4-3, 5.68 ERA) on Wednesday, while the Catamounts will start righthander Aaron Kirby (4-4, 6.48 ERA) and lefty Brian Hutchinson (1-3, 7.89 ERA) respectively.
1999 Clemson Baseball Promotional Dates
Date Day Opponent Time Promotion(s) Apr. 17 Sat. Duke 7 p.m. *Family Night Apr. 18 Sun. Duke 2 p.m. #Senior Citizens Special Apr. 21 Wed. South Carolina 7:15 p.m. oSecretaries Day Special
Apr. 25 Sun. Georgia Tech 2 p.m. +Purple Day Special /#Senior Citizens Special May 2 Sun. Virginia (DH) 12 noon #Senior Citizens Special May 9 Sun. North Carolina 4 p.m. #Senior Citizens Special
* – bring whole family for $5 with coupon in the Journal/Tribune or The Messenger + – wear purple shirt or jacket receive $3 off adult admission # – present AARP card and receive free admission o – secretaries/administrative assistants receive free admission when accompanied by a supervisor or employer who is paying full admission price
Makeup Games Announced Due to two rainouts (Maryland and Coastal Carolina), Clemson has scheduled makeup games against Western Carolina and Coastal Carolina. The Catamounts will travel to Tiger Field to take on Clemson on May 4 at 7:00 and Coastal Carolina will also travel to Tigertown on either May 7 or 8. The exact date and time will be determined at a later date. With the addition of the two games, Clemson will have a month-long 16-game homestand from April 16-May 11.
Miami (FL) Takes Two Of Three Games In Fort Mill, SC Perennial powerhouse Miami (FL) won the first and last of three games against Clemson from April 2-4 at Knights Stadium in Fort Mill, SC. The #6 Hurricanes won the two games by 5-3 and 14-11 scores, while Clemson won game two by a 7-5 count. The three games were decided by a total of seven runs. Miami entered the series hitting .364 as a team.
In game one, #6 Miami (FL) took a 5-3 decision over Clemson (16-12) at Fort Mill, SC on Apr. 2. Hurricane starter Alex Santos (7-1) allowed just one run, one walk, and five hits in 8.0 innings to pick up the win. Justin Singleton and Patrick Boyd hit eighth and ninth inning homers, respectively, to narrow the Miami (23-6) lead. Ryan Mottl (2-3) pitched 8.0 effective innings, allowing seven hits and four runs, but suffered the loss.
Game two saw the Tigers claw their back from a 4-1 deficit and defeat #6 Miami (FL) 7-5 at Fort Mill, SC on Apr. 3. Henri Stanley’s three-run opposite field homer tied the game 4-4 and Kurt Bultmann’s two-run single in the seventh inning put the Tigers ahead for good. Stanley led the Tigers with three hits and three RBIs while Bultmann added two hits and three RBIs. Matt Additon (3-1) allowed just one Miami (23-7) baserunner in 2.2 innings to pick up the victory.
In game three, #6 Miami (24-7) scored in every inning but the first on its way to a 14-11 victory over Clemson (17-13) at Fort Mill, SC on Apr. 4. The Hurricanes pounded out 17 hits, including 10 extra base hits, and were led by Bobby Hill, who hit three doubles and a triple. Clemson did not lose without a fight, as the Tigers scored four runs in the eighth to cut the Hurricane lead to just one run. But Bradley LeCroy grounded out with the bases loaded. Patrick Boyd hit a long home run and had a career-high six RBIs to pace Clemson and Henri Stanley added three hits for the second straight game. Starter Steve Reba (2-3) took the loss.
Tigers On Road A Lot Lately, Facing Stiff Competition The Tigers are in the middle of a 21 game stretch in which 16 of the games are away from home. The Tigers lost two games at East Carolina, who is currently ranked #21 in this week’s Collegiate Baseball poll, and three games at Wake Forest, who has been ranked in or near the top 25 all season. Clemson faced #6 Miami (FL) in Fort Mill, SC in neutral contests from April 2-4. Clemson’s last of four straight weekends on the road will be against Florida State, who has been ranked #1 almost all of ’99 and has won 19 straight games as of April 5. The Tigers final road game of the stretch is at arch-rival South Carolina, who has also been ranked many times this season. Therefore of the 16 games, 12 are against teams that have been ranked so far in 1999. After the South Carolina game, the Tigers will have played just 16 games at home compared to 20 games away from the friendly confines of Tiger Field.
The Tigers will come home for a 16-game homestand after the South Carolina game, including four straight home weekends against ACC teams after playing their first three ACC series on the road. Ironically, when Clemson faces Florida State on April 9-11, it will be the last ACC home series for the Seminoles while the Tigers (at the time) will not have yet played a home ACC series. Clemson is 11-3 at home and 6-10 away from home in ’99.
Pitching In The Clutch One area Jack Leggett would like to see improvement in is getting batters out with runners in scoring position. Tiger pitchers are allowing opponents to hit .335 with runners in scoring position. On the other hand, Clemson pitchers have been effective with two outs, holding opponents to a .254 average. Mike Paradis leads the way with an opponent batting average of .192 with two outs. Despite the team ERA of 5.88, Tiger pitchers have a strikeout-to-walk ratio
Boyd Busts Out Against East Tennessee State & Miami Palm Harbor, FL native Patrick Boyd had one of the best games by a Tiger in recent years when he was 2-for-2 with two homers, three walks, four RBIs, and five runs scored in Clemson’s 18-1 win over East Tennessee State on April 1 at Tiger Field. Three days later, he one upped himself against #6 Miami (FL) when he had three hits, including a towering homer, and a career-high six RBIs. That week (five games), he hit four homers and drove in 12 runs.
Boyd, who has started at designated hitter in 20 of 23 starts, has recently gotten over surgery on his right labrum (shoulder area) that caused him to miss six games earlier in the season. He is listed as probable to play in centerfield against Western Carolina from April 6-7. The sugery has not taken anything away from the 1998 ACC Rookie-of-the-Year’s bat, as he is hitting .349 with nine homers, six doubles, 31 runs scored, 30 RBIs, and eight stolen bases in ’99.
Bultmann Nearing Tiger, ACC Doubles Record Senior second baseman Kurt Bultmann gets the most out of his 5′-8″ frame. He showed he belonged when he hit .471 in the College World Series as a freshman after hitting just .243 in the first 41 games of his career. Then he hit a school record 31 doubles and 48 extra base hits as a sophomore. Now he is rising to the top of the Tiger career doubles and home run lists. The Seminole, FL native has 74 career doubles, good for second place, and 35 career home runs, tied for fifth best. The 74 doubles is also approching the ACC record of 82 held by Yellow Jacket Jason Varitek (1991-94). He had one of his best games against #24 Washington on Feb. 25 when he was 3-for-5 with two homers (grand slam and three-run) and eight RBIs. He also has shown why Baseball America listed him as the best defensive second baseman in the ACC. Bultmann went 29 consecutive games (dating back to last season) without committing an error (127 chances) before his streak ended on Feb. 26 at UNLV. He also had a streak of not committing an error in 15 games in March to early April of ’99. Bultmann has seen his fielding percentage rise to .962 in ’99 after fielding at a .979 clip in ’98. He is a career .393 hitter (22-for-56) in NCAA Tournament play as well. All this for a player who was all but resigned to attending junior college out of high school. Below is a list where Bultmann ranks in the all-time Tiger doubles list:
Clemson Career DOUBLE Leaders Rk. Name (Years) Doubles 1. Gary Burnham (1994-97) 77 2. Kurt Bultmann (1996-present) 74 3. Bert Heffernan (1985-88) 63 4. Chuck Baldwin (1984-87) 62 5. Shane Monahan (1993-95) 60
Bultmann has returned to his form of ’97 as he is hitting .345 with 15 doubles, a triple, four homers, 39 RBIs, and four stolen bases in 29 games in ’99. Ironically, the righthanded hitter is hitting better than twice as good against righthanders as he is lefthanders (.412 vs. ..205) this season.
Leggett 35-13 Against SEC Teams While At Clemson In six seasons under Head Coach Jack Leggett, Clemson has had tremendous success against the Southeastern Conference. Leggett’s record against the SEC as the Tigers’ skipper is 35-13 (.729), including 14 wins against top-25 teams. Leggett also has at least a ..500 record against all six SEC schools he has faced while at Clemson. Below is a list of Leggett’s record at Clemson against each of the six SEC member schools he has faced:
SEC Leggett's Record Winning Opponent at Clemson Percentage Alabama 2-0 1.000 Auburn 1-1 .500 Georgia 9-3 .750 Kentucky 3-0 1.000 South Carolina 11-6 .647 Tennessee 9-3 .750 Totals 35-13 .729
Clemson’s 246 Wins Since ’94 Fifth In The Nation The barometer of a great season in college baseball is getting to Omaha and winning 50 games. Since Jack Leggett took over as Clemson’s head coach in 1994, the Tigers have won 246 games (excluding ’99) for an average of over 49 per season. Leggett has led Clemson to three 50-win seasons and two appearances in the College World Series in five seasons. Included in that total is 61 wins over top 25 team and a 33-13 record against the SEC.
Renovations To Tiger Field Planned Early in the next century, Tiger Field will undergo a face-lift at the entrance of the stadium. A brick facade with a wrought iron fence will be constructed behind the north entrance to create a fan-friendly pavilion and a more asthetically-pleasing look. There are also plans to refurbish the press box and to build a visitors’ lockerroom. The plans are still in the conceptual design phase and have not been finalized.
Clemson also has plans to renovate Littlejohn Coliseum (basketball) and Memorial Stadium (football), and plans to build a new indoor track and field facility along with a practice golf range. The improvements to Littlejohn include a new sound system, restrooms, concessions area, and reformatted seating along with a new practice facility located where the driveway to the tunnel currently lays. Memorial Stadium will add a year-round restaurant along with cosmetic improvements to include new lockerrooms, concession areas, and restrooms. The new indoor track will also house an indoor practice field for football, soccer, and baseball. Tiger Pride is the capital campaign established to raise money for the cost of all renovations, which is an estimated $30-million, and is expected to take five years to complete.
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