Thursday April 05, 2007

Momentum; Location; Moskos; Benson; The Catch

Momentum Builder?
Last night’s 11-10 win over Georgia was hopefully an example of what we talked about on the blog on Tuesday where one game or even one hit can turn around a season. I said Tuesday that I was not ready to give up on this team and hoped the spark would come soon.

Was last night’s game the big momentum builder? Only time will tell but the schedule is different in the next two weeks as the Tigers play seven of their next eight on the road. Clemson will travel to the frozen tundra this weekend for a three-game set against Virginia Tech but the Hokies are just 16-14 overall and 4-8 in the ACC.

Next Wednesday night Clemson will host South Carolina but then it is four straight on the road with a weekend series with Wake Forest who is currently 15-16 and 4-8 in the ACC. The road trip will conclude with the final regular season game against South Carolina the following Wednesday in Columbia. That contest will be the final time Clemson will play a regular season game at Sarge Frye Field.

On paper the Virginia Tech and Wake Forest series don’t scare you but neither did Maryland and the Tigers dropped two of three in College Park. However it gets tougher with four of the final five ACC series coming against teams currently ranked.

Location, Location, Location
I know I went to Mac’s Drive In last night instead of The Varsity but last night’s game looked like one of those infamous Clemson-Georgia games at Foley Field instead of Doug Kingsmore Stadium. The Athens ballpark is usually more hitter friendly and scores between the two rivals are usually higher in Athens so I was surprised last night.

The previous night neither team looked like it was capable of scoring double digit runs in a game but for the two teams to score 21 runs was amazing. I guess it might say something about the mid-week pitching and the depth of each staff.

Last night Clemson used eight pitchers including Alex Martin, Justin Surratt, Brock Schnabel and Josh Thrailkill. Martin was making his 2007 debut and those four pitchers had combined to pitch 14.2 innings so far this season.

The game featured 28 hits, 13 walks, four errors and three batters hit by a pitch. Both teams had the merry-go-round effect all night long. It was a bizarre night that saw Clemson hit three triples including two by Wilson Boyd and four home runs, all by Georgia.

But in the end it was a great win for Clemson because they showed toughness and beat Georgia’s closer Joshua Fields. It also was a game where for one of the few times all year Clemson got the big hit when it needed it. Boyd had two huge triples, D.J. Mitchell had a big hit and Addison Johnson provided the game winner.

We should take some caution in all of the optimism thought because after all Georgia is now just 10-19 on the season and like the Tigers they start a bunch of freshmen.

Moskos on the Move
Last season Clemson found a closer when Daniel Moskos blew away the Miami Hurricanes in Coral Gables. This year they hope to find a Friday night starter in the same player up in Blacksburg, VA.

Moskos did not close either win against Georgia and will instead inherit the Friday night start this week against Virginia Tech. I am very interested to see how this works out but it has some logic to it. Consider:
1. Moskos has struggled a little this season with his control. He has gotten behind batters and the one thing a closer cannot do is walk hitters. In 21.2 innings he has walked 12 batters and I think this is the biggest reason he has struggled as a closer this season.
2. Major League scouts consider Moskos a first-round talent but most like him as a starter at the next level.
3. There is a school of thought among some in baseball that the closer’s role is overrated and you would rather have your best pitchers at this level as starters. I understand the toughest three outs to get can be the last three but the starter can have a bigger effect on the game.
4. Moskos has four pitches and sometimes does not get to use all four enough if he is working a short night.
5. It just makes sense that this club needs a pick up. Maybe the Georgia wins and this move can jump start the season.
WCCP Audio
The radio station is undergoing a huge facelift and the new studio should be awesome. One of the new features we now have is the archived interviews from all of our local shows. Check out www.wccpfm.com for the latest interviews.

On the front page now you can hear Mark Richt talk about his son Jon who has committed to Clemson. You can also listen to interviews with Ray Ray McElrathbey, Dabo Swinney, Bill D’Andrea and Jack Leggett.

Today we did an interview with Tony Pauline, an NFL draft expert from scout.com, who broke down the latest on the draft news on Gaines Adams and Anthony Waters. That interview will be up soon.

Benson Update
I had a wonderful conversation with former Clemson All-American Kris Benson last night at the game. The Baltimore Oriole right-hander is out for the season with a torn rotator cuff but he said the surgery went well and he begins rehab today. He was in town to catch the game but more importantly it was a nice trip as Benson’s 10-year old son threw out the first pitch.

Benson is living in Atlanta while he rehabs and says he will become very involved with Clemson baseball this year. He plans to come back up for the South Carolina game next Wednesday. He also spent some time with Bob Mahoney and Don Munson on the radio broadcast and said he enjoyed it so much he agreed to come on our morning show soon.

It is nice to see a professional athlete so grounded and so good to the kids that were seeking autographs. Benson is a bright guy that has a passion for Clemson athletics and is a great representative of the University.

The Catch
Last night's game came to a fairly controversial ending when Addison Johnson hit the ball to left field and the UGA outfielder attempted a diving catch that was ruled a hit instead. I thought it was close but without the benefit of replay I say it was not a catch because he did not hang onto the ball.

My friend Frank Gentry sent me this from the baseball rule book:

A CATCH is the act of a fielder in getting secure possession in his hand or glove of a ball in flight and firmly holding it; providing he does not use his cap, protector, pocket or any other part of his uniform in getting possession. It is not a catch, however, if simultaneously or immediately following his contact with the ball, he collides with a player, or with a wall, or if he falls down, and as a result of such collision or falling, drops the ball. It is not a catch if a fielder touches a fly ball which then hits a member of the offensive team or an umpire and then is caught by another defensive player. If the fielder has made the catch and drops the ball while in the act of making a throw following the catch, the ball shall be adjudged to have been caught. In establishing the validity of the catch, the fielder shall hold the ball long enough to prove that he has complete control of the ball and that his release of the ball is voluntary and intentional.

If a fielder, attempting a catch at the edge of the dugout, is “held up” and kept from an apparent fall by a player or players of either team and the catch is made, it shall be allowed.

I was just hoping to see who was going to try to catch all of the balls UGA coach Dave Perno threw onto the field like he did when he went crazy at the NCAA regional in Athens a few years ago but it never happened last night.

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