Mike Kaffee
Hurricanes Baseball Reporter
[email protected]
Miami improves their record to 7-1 but more importantly doing in grand style today SWEEPING the Big Green of Dartmouth convincingly 20-2 through power and solid pitching. For the 7th time, the awesomeness of the Miami bats put on an aerial display with multiple HRs now totaling 22. Yoyo and Blake continue their tear of the ball each going 3-3. Also with three hits Dominic Pitelli. who also got his second HR of the season.Dorian since rejoining the lineup is determined to stay there getting his second HR in as many day. Speaking of HRs, freshman Jason Torres, PHing for CJ in the 8th, collected not only his first hit of his career, but one going off the scoreboard 364′. Dario Gomez who has been hitting the ball all season hard but always to someone finally is showing what has been expected of him. Batting as low as .060 finally finding a hit yesterday, turned that into two today to include a double bringing his average to .147. Along a different type of first, today marked the first ejection happening in the 4th inning. Gino, coaching third went livid on Zach being called out by the 3rd base umpire on strikes for time clock violation. It appeared according to the ump Zack had taken more than than allotted time in between pitches. This is a new ruling for pitchers as well as batters. They have X number of seconds between pitches to get set up. We had runners on the corners with two outs at the time. Zack made up for it on his next at bat with an RBI double. All tolled 20 runs on 21 hits holding our visitors from New Hampshire to just 2 runs with just 3 hits.
A shutout last night, and two runs today, speaks highly of the quality pitching from not only our starters but from the BP. The BP is a major concern and will continue to be so, but the last two outings you could not ask for more. Between yesterday and today, for the 5 innings pitched they have allowed a single walk with no runs,and just two hits,from yesterday, and striking out 11. We had brilliance yesterday form Karson and today Alejandro after having a shaky third, settled down giving us overall 5 quality innings. Never know which Alejandro will show and you cross your fingers to get us to the 5th or hopefully the 6th, never expecting anything more, managed going 6 today striking out 7 and just allowing three hits ( one in the first and two in the second). The BP of Chris Scinta and Sebastian Perez provided quality performances;each striking out the three batters faced. Gunther Braendel finished the game with a 3-1 groundout
Gino did not have to thing long and hard as to the lineup. If not broken, don’t fix it. That said, no changes.
The first inning was quiet and thoughts were the possibility that the hitting machine was shutting down. It would take the third inning, for Miami to receive their wake up call. Trailing 2-0 on a lead-off HR followed by a double which led to the second run, had fans concerned that Rosario was the Rosario no one wanted to see leading to an early departure once again. It was top of the order and Edgardo got the juices flowing with a lead off walk. Five straight hits followed accounting for 4 runs. The game could have ended there except as quickly as our bats were shelling out single after single, it came crashing down with runners on the corners three straight strikeouts from Dorian, Carlos and Dominic ended what had been a breakout inning. End of three, score 4-2 but more importantly, that would be the end of the Big Green scoring. Not only that, they would not have another hit the remainder of the game. They would have one batter reach first via a walk to lead off the 4th and also in leading off the 6th with an E1 error. For the Big Green Mean Machine that is all they wrote. Rosario and company shut them down.
Fast forward to the 5th, Miami added three more runs to pad their 4-2 lead with a pair of hit by pitch (Blake Cyr,Carlos Perez)and a single by Dorian to load the bases. No outs. A balk, SF by Edgardo to center and RBI double by Dario Gomez accounted for the 3 runs in the 5th.
With the afternoon temperatures rising, the temperature within the Cane’s dugout was stifling as the bats were over-anxious to release all the energy that it has been storing up. For the next 3 innings, the bats went on a rampage releasing 16 runs on 12 hits and peaking out in the 7th with 8 big ones on 5 hits which literally broke the backs of Dartmouth pitching.
The 6th opened with back-to-back doubles by Yoyo and Zack, a single by Blake, and Dorian labeling one to left 350′ for an additional three to add from the RBI double from Zack. Not to be outdone, two batters later, Dominic gets his second round-tripper of the year taking the rock 347′ bouncing off the top of the fence in right. That made 8 runs in two innings and the 7th which was to follow doubled the number to 8.
Twelve batters would come to the plate. All runs scoring coming after Jason Torres, PH for CJ, and Ariel Garcia failed to reach base. Following the first two outs, it became a merry-go-round as the next 9 batters rotated around the bases highlighted with Jack Scanlon BL hit by pitch (1 run), Dominic BL single (2 runs), Jacoby Long BL single (2 runs), and Jason Torres off the scoreboard 364′ HR (3 Runs).
Offensively, with 21 hits distributed around only Edgardo and Carlos of the starters failed to receive a hit. Edgardo would be credited with an RBI in the 5th with a BL SF to center and Carlos picked up an RBI also in the 5th by getting hit by pitch. Of the 21 hits three were for doubles (Dario Gomez,Yoyo Morales,Zack Levenson) and 3 HRs(Dorian Gonzalez,Jason Torres, Dominic Pitelli). 6 of the 8 starters had multiple hits: Dario Gomez 2-4;
Yoyo Morales 3-3; Zach Levensen 2-4; Blake Cyr 3-3: Dorian Gonzalez 2-4; Dominic Pitelli 3-6.
Pitching continues to impress especially the BP. Scinta and Perez each only needing 12 pitches to strike out the three batters faced. This was a great bounce back for Sebastian after his devastating performance Friday night allowing Dartmouth back into the game with 3 straight singles.
It was a total SWEEP with everyone contributing. They needed this because the level of competition is only going to increase mega-fold . FAU and Florida are not at the same levels of competition we have been facing. It will definitely be interesting if we can perform at the level we have been performing the last two weeks. We are going to have to be at our very best. The true test will come next weekend against the Gators that have had our number it seems forever. Don’t count out FAU thinking ahead. Gametime at Boca, Tuesday 630PM.
