Reliever Jake Michalak delivers the final pitch in Ohio State’s 14-12 win Saturday…and his best personal moment as a Buckeye. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Sonny Fulks)
They won for the sixth time in a row, their second consecutive Big Ten Series, improved to 6-5 in conference play, and won the home run derby in a game that saw Maryland and Ohio hit eleven home runs between them.
Columbus, OH – It’s head-scratching, unless you believe your eyes, your heart, and the words of Ohio State coach Justin Haire and those in the middle of the fight, like Dane Harvey, Gavin Kuzniewski, Henry Kaczmar, and Jake Michalak.
But whatever you choose, there’s no denying after Saturday’s 14-12 slugfest win over Maryland the Buckeyes have now won six in a row, three series in a row (Butler, Minnesota, and Maryland), and ten of their last eleven games.
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“I circle back to this a lot,” began Justin Haire, post-game, on Saturday. “It begins with the people you have in the room. They have to buy into what we’re asking them to do as a program, and just being tough and being in the fight. They never quit, they work hard every day, they love the process and they love it when it’s hard, when it’s messy, and when it sucks. And we’ve had it all.
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“I’m proud of our guys because they just keep showing up every day and punching the time clock.”
Chris Domke, the Youngstown State transfer and one of Haire’s ‘let’s take a chance and see what we get’ guys from the off-season roster makeover, got the start Saturday on the season’s windiest day (so far) while working on a 3-3 record and an ERA north of 7.00. It didn’t take long in the top of the first for the wind to blow back in Domke’s face. Maryland’s Jordan Crosland, with one out, took a Domke fastball and deposited it in the trees beyond the left field fence…1-0, Terps. An omen!
Just as quickly, in OSU’s half of the first, Gannon University transfer and left fielder Alex Bemis took a Lance Williams 95-mph Maryland fastball and blew it out to center field, the highlight of a two-run first that saw the Buckeyes take a short-lived 2-1 lead.
Tough day to pitch, and to play the outfield…Buckeyes right fielder Noah Furcht missed by this much bringing a third inning Maryland home run back in the park.
In the top of the second Domke hit the leadoff man, who later scored on a sac fly to from Maryland teammate Jackson Sirois, tying the score at 2-2.
OSU came right back to do the Terps one better. Lee Ellis walked to lead off their half of the second, CJ Reid ripped a home run, his first, and before Williams could get back to the dugout he again trailed, 5-2.
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In the top of the third, Domke loaded the bases with none out – a couple of dinks included – before serving up a grand slam home run to Maryland’s Ryan Costello, 6-5 Maryland, and the Buckeyes starter was squarely on the ropes, just six outs into the game.
“Tough day to throw the fastball,” said Haire afterwards. “And Chris had not yet found his secondary pitches (slider and changeup). Just an offensive day with that wind, and we didn’t feel like the scoring was going to end. He only had 45 pitches after the third and we stayed with him because we didn’t want to get that deep into our bullpen not knowing what we’d need on Sunday.”
Slam moment… Buckeyes coach Justin Haire had this moment following a grand slam home run in Maryland’s 6-run third.
Well, it didn’t end with the grand slam. Two hitters later in that same third inning Jackson Sirois lit him up with a two-run dinger to right and suddenly the margin was 8-5, and the wind shifted to blow squarely in the favor of the Terps from College Park.
But trailing 8-5 in the bottom of the third, first baseman Dane Harvey tomahawked a Williams fastball for a leadoff homer to cut it to 8-6. An out later, backup catcher Grant Mangrum poled one to dead center for a two run homer to tie it at 8-8. One out later, Henry Kaczmar came to the plate and ripped one to right field off reliever Ryan Bailey that left the park, cleared the chain link fence behind Bill Davis, and came to rest in the parking lot of the Nicklaus Museum. Quite the one iron shot – an homage to Jack – and the Buckeye were back ahead, 10-8.
Domke, true to Haire’s hopes, found his rhythm to pitch a scoreless fifth, and the Buckeyes, likewise, went in order.
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But in the top of the sixth Maryland delivered the knockout blow to Domke. Left fielder Alex Bemis misplayed a fly ball by leadoff hitter Jordan Crosland. Shortstop Ty Kaunas made him pay, cranking a home run to left to tie the score at 10-10. The following hitter, Ryan Costello, ripped his second home run of the game and his fifth RBI, and Domke’s day was finished – 5 innings, 11 runs on 11 hits, and ten of them earned. Jake Michalak came on, and gave up a run on an RBI triple by Nate Hawton-Henley before retiring the third out. Maryland again led, 12-10.
Alex Bemis launched his sixth home run of the season to get the Buckeyes on the board in the bottom of the first.
Ohio State, to Haire’s earlier quote, was not about to quit on such an obvious offensive day. Noah Furcht singled to open the sixth, then was promptly picked off by reliever Brayden Ryan. DH Mason Eckelman followed with a single, Dane Harvey was called out by third base umpire Sal Giacomantonio for taking too long to get in the box between pitches, bringing Lee Simpson to the plate with two outs. Simpson worked the count to two strikes, then took a Ryan fastball out to left center to tie the score at 12-12. It was Ohio State’s sixth home run of the game, and Simpson’s fifth of the year.
And while the wind continued to blow, and the threat of an offensive day still loomed, reliever Jake Michalak took the occasion to make it his personal emergence day by putting the duty of closing out the game and the win on his back. Michalak, who had struggled with command for three years previous and through two coaching regimes, would pitch the final four innings of the game allowing just that one run in the sixth, on five hits, striking out 8 and walking none.
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He started by blowing through the seventh inning in order, striking out two.
The offense had one more hand to play, Grant Mangrum leading off the seventh by getting on base via and error by the Terps’ Jackson Sirois. Alex Bemis followed with a single to center. With two outs via strikeouts, Eckelman walked to load the bases…and Dane Harvey ripped a 3-2 pitch into right field to score both Mangrum and Bemis to go up, 14-12, and the sixth lead change of the game.
Buckeyes shortstop Henry Kaczmar had a home run and saved a base hit and a likely run with this diving play on a ball in the fifth inning.
Michalak came out for the eighth, trying to reprise his efficiency of the seventh. With one out he gave up back-to-back singles, then struck out the final two outs on nasty sliders.
“Today was not the day to have a fly ball pitcher in the game,” said Haire in his post-game remarks. “And Jake’s ability to throw the slider down in the zone was to his advantage today. He’s got a lot of sink and run on the fastball and his stuff just matched up better today with the conditions. Credit to Chris for grinding through like he did, but I’m proud of Jake for what he did. He gave us what we needed over those final four innings without us having to use additional arms we might need tomorrow.”
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Still, the wind blew in the top of the ninth, and a situation loomed that had gone sideways so many times before on Jake Michalak in his attempt to be the man for the moment.
He gave up a base hit, but was undeterred, striking out the final two outs of the game with the running fastball and the slider – team win #16 for the Buckeyes, and a personal win that no one not named Michalak, from North Royalton, Ohio, could possibly understand.
“There have been times over the past three years when I wanted to quit,” he confessed. “To be honest, it’s been a really tough road, mentally and physically. But the biggest thing that’s kept me going has been my family…and of course, my team. Today was good, but it’s also something that I have to maintain now because it can be taken away at any time. And confidence is a bigger thing than anyone ever thinks about. If you have it the sky’s the limit. But in the tough times you still have to battle with it, and those are the times when you truly find out why you keep playing the sport.
“All I was thinking in the ninth was just finish the game. Don’t make it harder on yourself than necessary and go home with the win.”
All I was thinking of was…don’t make it harder on yourself, and go home with the win.” – Buckeyes reliever Jake Michalak
Sayin’s one thing, and doing is another. But of all the clutch relief performances witnessed in twelve years of covering Buckeye baseball, Michalak’s four innings on Saturday ranks among the best.
The Buckeyes won it with 14 runs on 17 hits, and had one error. Michalak gained the win, his 5th of the season without a loss.
Maryland lost it with 12 runs on 16 hits and 4 errors.
And now, Sunday, a chance for a back-to-back Big Ten sweep, something a year ago that was as far from the present as the NASA space crew as it approaches the moon. Believe it or not, the Buckeyes currently stand sixth in the Big Ten standings, eleven spots better than they were a year ago on Easter weekend in East Lansing.
“There’s a lot of work to yet do,” Justin Haire reminded Saturday. And that’s true.
But rarely, over those same twelve years, has anyone seen a group so amped to do it.
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