Trey Lipsey finished on a high note, a pair of hits and a pair of RBIs. Lipsey had two of the Buckeyes’ total of 7 hits. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
On a day where the pitching was exhausted, and an exhausting season came to an end…the focus became the future, and how to get back to Omaha.
Omaha, NE – There’s a big sign inside the indoor hitting cages at Bill Davis Stadium that reads, The Road To Omaha. It was one of Bill Mosiello’s first commandments when he took the job, and you cannot hit without being aware of that sign.
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Well, the Buckeyes finished their season in Omaha Friday, sure enough, albeit on the wrong end of 12-5 score, Nebraska beating five pitchers around to improve to 36-20, and advance to Saturday’s semi-final round of the Big Ten Tournament.
The goal now becomes…how to get back here for the Buckeyes on a more consistent basis. 2024 marked the first time since 2019 that the Buckeyes qualified for the post-season tournament, and had to win impressively on the season’s final weekend to do it. More about this in a few hundred words.
First, the down and dirty of 12-5 loss to a team that has many of the attributes that Mosiello believes the Buckeyes will have in short order. Nebraska simply pitched better, and with better depth of pitching. “They have the arms to make a deep regional run,” said Mo in the post-game presser Friday.
Matt Graveline has to sky to pull down a throw attempting to knock off a Nebraska runner in the third.
“That’s a good team with a good staff and a good baseball culture. I’ve known Will Bolt since his time at Texas A&M. And it’s taken me some time to realize what he’s done in the Big Ten, to appreciate the Big Ten, and I’ve eaten enough humble pie. Going forward we have to get better.”
Colin Purcell made the start on the mound, and immediately gave up a hit batter and a walk, preceding a home run to right by Nebraska’s Gabe Swansen…3-0, Cornhuskers.
They added single runs in the second and third, while the Buckeyes got on the board in the top of the third on a walk to Ryan Miller, a stolen base, and an RBI single by Trey Lipsey…5-1 Nebraska.
Purcell would last just 2.2 innings, replaced in the third by Gavin Bruni, who finished the third and then pitched a scoreless fourth. Ohio State added another run in the fourth with a leadoff double by Tyler Pettorini, who eventually scored on a ground out by Hunter Rosson…5-2, Nebraska.
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And for a third straight inning the Buckeyes scored in the fifth when Lipsey walked ahead of Henry Kaczmar, who scored him with an RBI double, his 11th of the season…5-3, Nebraska.
Nebraska quickly got that run back off Bruni in the bottom of the fifth, who then pitched a scoreless sixth to accumulate 3.2 innings of work having given up 2 runs on 3 hits, striking out 3…6-3, Nebraska.
The final game hurt…pitcher Colin Purcell reacts to lasting just 2.2 innings against Nebraska.
But the Buckeyes simply could not put up a crooked number off Nebraska starter Mason McConnaghey, and never got any closer than 6-3. Zach Brown came out to work the seventh and immediately ran into trouble, giving up a run on 2 hits, replaced by Justin Eckhardt with two outs, with the game still within reach.
But Nebraska jumped all over Eckhardt, who lasted just 0.2 of an inning, surrendering 3 runs on 4 hits before giving way to Jacob Morin. Morin recorded the final out of the inning with Nebraska now leading 12-3.
A boisterous crowd of Husker fans were howling with each succeeding run, eager to see Nebraska return the favor of a run-rule finish, like the Buckeyes handed out on Tuesday. But they avoided that indignation by scoring a pair of runs in the top of the ninth off the relievers Jalen Worthley and Rans Sanders…before Joe Mershon grounded out to second for the final out of the 2024 season. A very frustrating 2024 season that saw some encouraging highs, but also some discouraging lows to remind Bill Mosiello and staff just how far they have yet to reach if they want to be like Nebraska.
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They closed with 5 runs on just 7 hits, and committed 1 error.
Nebraska moved on to play on Saturday with 12 runs on 13 hits and had 1 error.
It was a stinging loss for a group of Buckeyes who had played through that frustration, and those like Mitch Okuley, who’s been around long enough to have played through both Covid, and losing baseball.
“But there’s a good core of young players here,” said Okuley in the post-game presser. “And the staff has recruited more good young players. I think Buckeye baseball will be good for years to come.”
There were, in fact, a lot of hugs and more than a few moist eyes…a reminder of the brotherhood that comes with baseball, as well as the realization for some, like Justin Eckhardt, that Friday probably marked his last day in organized baseball as a player.
“It’s a hard reality,” said Mosiello. “Baseball is a tough game, to be played by tough people, and we have had great kids – wonderful kids – who are great students and never give you any trouble.
It was tough for the umps, too. Umpire Jim Schaly watches the scoreboard video as his call on a third inning steal was reversed by replay.
“But we have to get tougher. We need to improve, and we’ve done a better job as the season went on. We beat a great Nebraska team in Omaha, and beat them once early in the year. And toughness is always a staple with Nebraska. I challenged our kids with that after the game. Our culture is great – great kids, great workers, and we’re doing a lot of great things. But we have to become better baseball players, and we have to get tougher.”
The young core that Okuley talked about will include incombants Henry Kaczmar, Matt Graveline, and Tyler Pettorini in 2025, as well as developing bright lights like Isaac Cadena, Nick Giamarusti, Chase Herrell, Gavin DeVooght and Zach Brown.
“But our priority between now and then will be pitching…pitching…pitching…and more pitching,” added Mosiello. “We got to do a lot of recruiting and we’re going to be all over the place. We’re limited with portal spots because we were so aggressive in bringing in high school talent early on, but we have to use the spots we have to find more pitching, and pitching that can help us immediately.”
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Translation: There’s a lot of opportunity at Ohio State if you can throw experienced strikes and get people out.
“If you look at all the teams in this league we’re by far the youngest group. All the teams that are really playing well are older groups,” he added. “I’ve always been a believer in developing young players, but things have changed and I kinda’ have to change my mind a little bit with that…because we see in all the sports what’s happening.
Justin Eckhardt and Ryan Miller react to the final game of the 2024 Buckeyes’ season.
“But we’re in a tough spot in terms of position spots for portal talent because of all the guys we’ll have coming back.”
Statistically, there was some marginal improvement in team batting average, and the fact that they finished with six bats that finished with an average of .280 or better. And overall, as a team they improved from .265 to .280.
But pitching was another matter. Forced to lean too much on those young freshman arms, the composite earned run average was up nearly a run at 6.37. And this cardinal sin…they walked the leadoff hitter 54 times in 2024, an increase of 13 over 2023.
But those young arms, as well as players like Ike Cadena and Zach Fjelstad will be in summer baseball leagues, taking their own next steps toward 2024. Steel sharpens steel, they say, and they need to play.
So how to get back to Omaha?
Development of existing talent, of course. And the man makes no bones about recruiting, and with a priority on pitching.
Pitching…pitching…pitching…and more pitching!
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