Lee Ellis follows the flight of his fourth home run of the season. It wasn’t enough, as the Buckeyes lost a 9-7 lead in the eighth to fall 12-10 to Oregon State. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
To good to be true, the Buckeyes squander another late-inning lead, give up 5 in the bottom of the eighth, and lose 12-10 to #9 Oregon State in the series finale at Globe Life Park.
Arlington, TX – Globe Life Park, the second of Arlington’s crown gem sports edifices (AT&T being the other), will be remembered by the Buckeyes as the ‘house of horrors’.
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Holding a 9-7 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning Sunday – trying to avoid a weekend sweep and their fifth consecutive loss – reliever Luke Carrell gave up 5 runs before you could say ‘Giddyup’, and a crowning three-run homer to Oregon State’s Gavin Turley.
Lead gone, weekend gone, and the good feeling of snapping a losing streak…gone.
Oregon State 12, Ohio State 10…as the Buckeyes would rebound to score what turned out to be a meaningless run in the top of the ninth.
The bullpen again foiled what would have been a magical comeback story to tell…they were down 7-2 after four innings, then fought their way back against the #9-ranked time in America to take a 8-7 lead with five runs in the top of the sixth, then addd an insurance run in the top of the seventh.
But, the house of horrors proved evil for the second day in a row when after striking out the side in the bottom of the seventh, Carrell gave up 5 runs in the bottom of the eighth as if voodoo was in play. It marks now their fifth loss in a row since winning the opening game in Jacksonville, and drops their record to an unforeseen 1-8 for the season.
And yet, dark as it was there were streaks of light.
Nik Copenhaver pitched a clean two innings in relief of Jake Michalak and Ryan Butler.
Starting pitching wasn’t one of them, however, as sophomore Jake Michalak lasted just two-thirds of an inning in the first, allowing 4 runs on 4 hits and walked three. Zev Salsberg had to come on to retire the final out, the first of six Buckeyes relievers in the game.
Light? Ohio State immediately bounced back to score 2 in the top of the second, highlighted by Mason Eckelman’s first home run of the season.
And Ryan Butler, restored from arm soreness, made his debut in the bottom of the second, allowing a run, and a pair of runs an inning later as Oregon State lengthened their lead to 7-2.
But this Buckeye team, for all their issues with pitching, will compete at the plate. They scored in the top of the fifth on Lee Ellis’ fourth home run of the season against Oregon State reliever Kellen Oakes.
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An inning later they scored five more…on three singles, a walk, a hit batsman and a three-run double by Matt Graveline. Ohio State suddenly led, 8-7.
Freshman Hayden Blosser pitched an impressive sixth in Sunday’s finale with Oregon State.
Better, Nik Copenhaver had come into the game to relieve Butler in the fourth inning and pitched effectively in the fourth and fifth, allowing no runs on 2 hits and striking out 2.
Freshman Hayden Blosser (Avon Lake) came on to pitch an effective sixth, clean, with a strikeout.
The Buckeyes would come back to score an insurance run in the seventh on a leadoff double to left by Marc Stephens, a walk, a hit batsman, and another walk to drive in Stephens. The score was 9-7 going to the bottom of the seventh.
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Out of the bullpen came Carrell, who in dominating fashion struck at the side and actually tipped his cap to the cheering Buckeye crowd as he left the field.
The Buckeyes went quietly in the top of the eighth after a leadoff double by Matt Graveline, and Carrell came back out to pitch the bottom. And in succession…he was greeted by a leadoff double, he walked a batter, then an RBI single (9-8), another RBI single (9-9), and after a fly ball out to center field, Oregon State left fielder Gavin Turley rifled a three-run home run to right center field to erase those Buckeyes rallies and stake the Beavers to a 12-9 lead.
Lee Ellis flashed some leather with this double play in the fifth inning of Sunday’s finale.
Once again the Buckeyes threatened in the top of the ninth when Reggie Bussey was hit by a pitch and later scored on an infield throwing error. But Oregon State’s bullpen proved to be enough to protect that 2-run lead and close out the game, sending a frustrated, reeling Ohio State team to the airport with the sounds of Globe Life Park harking in the background.
Oregon State scored 12 runs on 13 hits and committed 3 errors, while stranding 6 on base.
Ohio State scored 10 runs on 11 hits with no errors, and stranded 11 on base.
Streaks of light, sure. Once again this team proved that it’s going to find a way to score against even a top-ten team…if…they can hold teams to at least one less run than they score.
Matt Graveline had his best offensive game of the season going 3 for 5 with a pair of doubles, and drove in 3.
What’s to talk about? The Buckeyes open their home season on Tuesday at Bill Davis with a 3pm game against St. John’s.
Marc Stephens went 2 for 5 with a double and scored a pair of runs.
Lee Ellis continued to make hard contact with a home run and 3 RBIs.
Nick Giamarusti had a hit in three trips and scored 2 runs.
And Reggie Bussey was 1 for 3 and scored twice.
And yeoman’s work, for that matter, in the four innings of scoreless relief from Copenhaver, Blosser, and Carrell.
But it takes nine innings to win a baseball game, and it’s going to take some home cooking, hopefully, this week to become the better baseball team that Justin Haire talked about on Saturday. The Buckeyes play their home opener at Bill Davis on Tuesday (March 4) against St. John’s before a three-game series next weekend with Valparaiso.
No hand-wamers necessary, as temperatures are forecast in the 50s.
Good seats, as they say, are still available.
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