Baseball hosts No. 5 Clemson this weekend
By Jamie Howell/ Student Publications
Junior Pitcher Blake Wood will get the start today against the Tigers. The native of Suwanee, Ga. will pitch the first game of the three-game series.
The Jacket baseball team plays a decisive series against the No. 5 Clemson Tigers this weekend, starting today. Tech is currently 8-7 in ACC play, and is only 3-3 in their last six games in the conference.
In the all time series against Clemson, the Jackets and Tigers have split the series 90-90. In the last two seasons against the Tigers, the Jackets have won six out the last seven games.
The pitching match-ups are keys for both the Jackets and the Tigers. For Tech, the season has been a story of inconsistency. The pitching has shown signs of brilliance and at other times mediocrity.
Against Clemson, Tech’s pitching staff will need to give a similar effort to the one they gave in the series against North Carolina earlier this season where the Tar Heels scored only three runs in three games.
Today junior Blake Wood will make the start. This season, Wood has a 6-3 record, a 4.47 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. The Tigers will throw their senior starter, Josh Cribb. Cribb is 6-0 with a 1.98 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP this season
The probable starters for Saturday’s game are Jared Hyatt for Tech, and junior Jason Berken for Clemson. Hyatt made his first start of his career against Virginia Tech last week.
“[Hyatt’s] going to start Saturday. With Gustafson out, he’s going to be our starter. I thought he pitched great at Virginia Tech and has been a valuable player for us all year long,” Head Coach Danny Hall said.
So far this season, Berken is 4-2 with a 1.69 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP.
On the final game of the series, freshman David Duncan will start for the Jackets against Clemson’s Stephen Faris. This season Duncan is 2-1 with a 5.57 ERA and a 1.61 WHIP. Faris has a 4-0 record with a 1.75 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP.
This game may have special meaning for Matt Wieters, a native from Goose Creek, S.C.
“Clemson is always a great team. It’s a special series for me because they are a hometown team. They were recruiting me a little bit coming out of high school. We’ll have a few people here rooting for me, but I don’t know if they will be rooting for Tech,” Wieters said.
