They continue to hit…and big hits at big moments (Matt Graveline’s RBI double, above) pushed to the Buckeyes to their second win on opening day. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
The Buckeyes moved heaven and earth for 12 runs on offense and 27 outs on defense, used 10 pitchers, and finally came away with an opening day 13-10 win over St John’s.
Columbus, OH – Sometime around the seventh inning Tuesday afternoon Ohio State coach Justin Haire might have called wife Lindsey and told her not to hold dinner. He was going to be a bit late.
As to the matter of how late, he didn’t care. He just wanted a win on opening day, his first as coach of the Buckeyes, and whatever it took to snap the five-game losing streak that hovered over his team like a mushroom cloud.
VPP, in Versailles, Ohio, proudly sponsors Buckeye baseball on Press Pros Magazine.com.
“It didn’t matter how long,” he said afterwards. “We were going to stay as long as it took to win. This was a game we had to have. This was opening day and it’s always good to get the first one at home..”
Publisher Sonny Fulks writes OHSAA sports and Buckeyes baseball for Press Pros Magazine.
It took him four hours and ten pitchers to do it, but he got what he wanted…a 12-10 win over St. John’s (1-9) that was good for the sake of the 500 or so that showed up to watch. But it did little to assuage his general concern over how to get strikes and reliable outs from a beleaguered pitching staff. A win’s a win, of course. But this win came in the familiar fashion of the eight previous losses.
The prototype of a wild college baseball game, the Buckeyes scored 1 in the first, 4 in the fourth, 2 in the fifth, 3 in the seventh, and 2 in the eighth. This team hits, obviously, and it continues to score runs.
St. John’s scored 3 in the third, 1 in the fourth, overcame a three-run deficit with 4 in the seventh to take the lead, and added 2 in the eighth to force a late 10-10 tie.
Sahil Patel worked the fourth inning for the Buckeyes…gave up a run and a hit.
It took nearly every Ohio State pitcher (excluding this weekend’s starting candidates) to get it done, and Haire used them all…10 out of the bullpen, including starter Hunter Shaw, who took out looking like he might be good for at least four innings. He lasted one out deep into the third, and then…appearances by Zev Salsberg…Sahil Patel…Nik Copenhaver…Hayden Blosser…Doug Bauer…Charlie Giese…Luke Carrell…Gavin Kuzniewski…and Drew Erdmann to hold down the one-win Johnnies to 10 runs on 12 hits. The box score list of pitchers and innings worked ended up looking like a country phone directory
Neither team could hold a lead, and both teams would rely on their offense to give themselves a chance. For the Buckeyes, there had to be moments of ‘here we go again’.
“It did cross my mind because we’ve been through that a lot,” said first baseman Matt Graveline, who finished with 2 hits and 3 RBIs. “But our offense just kept staying in the fight, chipping away. And towards the end the pitchers did a really good job to get the win and the save. It was awesome.”
Logan Services, in Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus proudly sponsors your favorite sports on Press Pros Magazine.com.
The wind was blowing out, steady to left, and Trey Lipsey rebounded from the weekend to have a good day, 2 or 4 with 4 runs scored. He provided the game-winning single in the bottom of the eighth.
“It felt good because we want to win,” he smiled. “You’ve got to score more runs than the other team to win and I can’t believe we didn’t hit four or five out in that wind. But I think we’re going to keep getting better and better. We’ve just got to figure things out.”
The lines…
Trey Lipsey swipes third during the Buckeyes’ 4-run fourth inning.
The Buckeyes (2-8) scored 12 runs on 12 hits and had 1 error. Kuzniewski recorded the win, his first as a Buckeye.
St. John scored 10 runs on 12 hits and had 2 errors…and must have felt the frustration of Ohio State against Oregon State Sunday when the Johnnies lost a late one-run lead in the seventh inning.
How big was the win? Every coach counts ’em one at a time, but these are four games this week that the Buckeyes should get, and need to get for the sake of mindset going into Indiana next weekend.
The pitching, tired as you are of hearing about it, has to be front and center come Valparaiso, and their tribulations to date are something new to Haire and his previous years of success at Campbell.
“There haven’t been many like this year,” he smiled. “But part of taking a new job and a new challenge is we’ve got a lot of new guys. We’re trying to figure it out, and what we saw in the fall isn’t the same as what we’re doing now. Competition does strange things to pitchers.
Lee Ellis piggybacks third baseman Marc Stephens on this ground out play in the sixth inning.
“But it was great to see some guys come out and have good innings today. In a couple of cases we didn’t help them defensively, but there’s some bright spots mixed in with what we’re seeing. Now if we can keep finding some bright spots and keep mixing and matching I think guys will begin to settle into some roles.”
Tuesday game with St. John’s and this weekend’s trio with Valpo may not seem like marquee matchups, but given the timing of things they’ll be four of the most important games of the year. Win them all and it’s positive momentum going into next week’s Big Ten opening series at Indiana.
“They are important games,” said Haire. “But they’re all important. Tonight was the most important because it’s the one we were playing today. And Lord willing we’ll get to Friday and that’ll be the most important game. But we’ve got to continue to work between games to get better and to be successful. I’m a big believer that if you do that our guys will find a way to win these games.”
Valparaiso is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference, and comes to Bill Davis for Friday, Saturday and Sunday games. And who knows how long, and how many pitchers it’ll take.
But it doesn’t matter. By Matt Graveline’s thinking the offense will keep chipping away.
It doesn’t matter how long.
If it goes past dinner…they’re willing to order out.
Wilson Health proudly sponsors your favorite area sports on Press Pros Magazine.com.