Photo by: Andy Mead
Perfect Planning, Flawless Execution
May 22, 2019 | Baseball, #ForBoston Files
The BC baseball team is onto the semis thanks to foresight and execution.
The Harrington Athletics Village light towers had barely darkened after Boston College's 10-1 win over Notre Dame last Thursday when head coach Mike Gambino sprung a plan into action. It was a play that would potentially make the remaining two games more difficult against the Fighting Irish, but he banked on its potential dividends and payouts in the ACC Tournament three days after the regular season ended.
The plan called for Mason Pelio to throw an "aggressive bullpen session" in the second game against Notre Dame. He would make his scheduled start, but wouldn't last much longer than 50 pitches. The intention would make Pelio available for a regular start in the first game of pool play on the following Tuesday, which would enable Dan Metzdorf to rest an extra day after throwing 101 pitches in the first game.
The goal was to pit BC's top two pitchers against midweek starters for both Clemson and Louisville. The Eagles were the No. 12 seed and therefore needed to defeat both the Tigers and Cardinals on consecutive days, so there was a need to game the system against teams likely to use midweek starters to save weekend staff for an anticipated elimination game on Thursday.
Two days into the ACC Tournament, it's safe to say Gambino's anticipation and managing stands correct. The Eagles defeated both the Tigers and Cardinals behind their top two starters to clinch Pool A and advance to the semifinal round on Saturday for the first time in program history.
"You look at the slow build of this program, but this senior class went to a Super Regional as freshmen," Gambino said. "They went to the ACC Tournament three out of four times, which if you look at these teams we're competing against in this league, that's no small feat. Now they have a chance to win an ACC championship. It's going to be a pretty good legacy (for the seniors)."
The book-end performances by Pelio and Metzdorf put a stamp on that proverbial passing of the torch. The first game featured the freshman pitching out of early jams to produce six sterling innings. He threw 98 pitches and struck out three, surrendering only three hits. He surrendered an early run largely because of an uncharacteristic fielding error by the defense, and it still only crossed the plate after Sam Hall grounded into a double play. It put the Eagles in position to score the victory, even though the game wound up going 11 innings.
"We modified his start on Friday," Gambino said. "When you have a kid like that, that's the first time he's done something like that. It's not a short turnaround so it's basically a heavy bullpen leading up to his first postseason start. But I think you could see his learning and growth in the first innings. He was just a kid learning how to pitch in the tournament atmosphere. Once he settled in, he was pretty good."
That set the stage for Metzdorf's capstone performance. The senior showed ultimate command, holding the No. 7-ranked regular season champions to one unearned run, giving up only three hits. He overpowered the elite Louisville lineup for eight innings and pitched himself out of trouble in the ninth, completing his first career complete game with 120 pitches thrown. It was the third time in his last four starts that he threw 120 or more pitches, but he never lost his command, striking out seven of the 32 batters he faced.
"When I feel like I'm pressing on somebody, I'm going to keep going," Metzdorf said. "We have a funny saying: just foot on the pedal. And once I got in that third or fourth inning where I got into that groove, I think went nine in a row. I just stayed with it, tried to get ahead of guys early and get balls in play. That was fun."
It all happened on the backdrop of defensive efficiency and brutally opportunistic hitting. The starting pitching gave up one earned run, and it wasn't until late in the first game that the Clemson lineup, boasting some of the best power numbers in the ACC, finally woke up. When the pitchers absolutely needed to get outs, they largely did, forcing 25 fly balls over the two games.
The BC lineup, meanwhile, flashed its signature chemistry from top to bottom. Hitters set the table by remaining aggressive yet patient, picking their spots. In the bottom of the fourth, Joe Suozzi lined a 1-1 pitch to right center. Danny Oriente slid to collect the pitch, but Suozzi hit the gas as soon as Oriente's knee hit the turf. He wound up taking second base because Oriente had to stand up and ready himself for a throw.
It provided just enough daylight against senior Bryan Hoeing, who entered the game with over 100 innings logged predominantly as a reliever. Peter Burns and Dante Baldelli forced the right-hander to squeeze the zone, and after two walks, Jake Alu drove a single up the middle to score two runs. It was an exchange that looked an awful lot like the way Boston College became known for scoring runs, save for the power bats the day before against Clemson.
"I know a bunch of these guys in (the senior class) are just trying to get another day at the ball field together," Alu said. "Personally, I'm just trying to have competitive at-bats and play good defense behind our pitchers. If nine guys are doing that, we are going to have a good, successful team."
The wins pressed BC into the ACC semifinal on Saturday, where it awaits the winner of Pool D. Miami, North Carolina and Virginia make up that pool, which began on Wednesday night with the lower two seeds playing. Miami joins the tournament on Thursday against the 'Hoos, needing just one win as the No. 4 seed - the same situation as Louisville on Wednesday.
Miami plays its final game on Thursday against the Tar Heels in a game that will decide the Eagles' opponent only if UNC defeats Virginia. And if there needed any more reason to conjure memories from 2016, fans with long memories can recall that the Hurricanes ended the BC season in a single-elimination game three at Mark Light Field in the Super Regional that year.
"Honestly, this is the most fun I've ever had playing baseball, with this group of guys," Suozzi said. "I just love them so much. We're loose. We're having fun. We're being competitive. It's just a lot of fun to be around right now."
The plan called for Mason Pelio to throw an "aggressive bullpen session" in the second game against Notre Dame. He would make his scheduled start, but wouldn't last much longer than 50 pitches. The intention would make Pelio available for a regular start in the first game of pool play on the following Tuesday, which would enable Dan Metzdorf to rest an extra day after throwing 101 pitches in the first game.
The goal was to pit BC's top two pitchers against midweek starters for both Clemson and Louisville. The Eagles were the No. 12 seed and therefore needed to defeat both the Tigers and Cardinals on consecutive days, so there was a need to game the system against teams likely to use midweek starters to save weekend staff for an anticipated elimination game on Thursday.
Two days into the ACC Tournament, it's safe to say Gambino's anticipation and managing stands correct. The Eagles defeated both the Tigers and Cardinals behind their top two starters to clinch Pool A and advance to the semifinal round on Saturday for the first time in program history.
"You look at the slow build of this program, but this senior class went to a Super Regional as freshmen," Gambino said. "They went to the ACC Tournament three out of four times, which if you look at these teams we're competing against in this league, that's no small feat. Now they have a chance to win an ACC championship. It's going to be a pretty good legacy (for the seniors)."
The book-end performances by Pelio and Metzdorf put a stamp on that proverbial passing of the torch. The first game featured the freshman pitching out of early jams to produce six sterling innings. He threw 98 pitches and struck out three, surrendering only three hits. He surrendered an early run largely because of an uncharacteristic fielding error by the defense, and it still only crossed the plate after Sam Hall grounded into a double play. It put the Eagles in position to score the victory, even though the game wound up going 11 innings.
"We modified his start on Friday," Gambino said. "When you have a kid like that, that's the first time he's done something like that. It's not a short turnaround so it's basically a heavy bullpen leading up to his first postseason start. But I think you could see his learning and growth in the first innings. He was just a kid learning how to pitch in the tournament atmosphere. Once he settled in, he was pretty good."
That set the stage for Metzdorf's capstone performance. The senior showed ultimate command, holding the No. 7-ranked regular season champions to one unearned run, giving up only three hits. He overpowered the elite Louisville lineup for eight innings and pitched himself out of trouble in the ninth, completing his first career complete game with 120 pitches thrown. It was the third time in his last four starts that he threw 120 or more pitches, but he never lost his command, striking out seven of the 32 batters he faced.
"When I feel like I'm pressing on somebody, I'm going to keep going," Metzdorf said. "We have a funny saying: just foot on the pedal. And once I got in that third or fourth inning where I got into that groove, I think went nine in a row. I just stayed with it, tried to get ahead of guys early and get balls in play. That was fun."
It all happened on the backdrop of defensive efficiency and brutally opportunistic hitting. The starting pitching gave up one earned run, and it wasn't until late in the first game that the Clemson lineup, boasting some of the best power numbers in the ACC, finally woke up. When the pitchers absolutely needed to get outs, they largely did, forcing 25 fly balls over the two games.
The BC lineup, meanwhile, flashed its signature chemistry from top to bottom. Hitters set the table by remaining aggressive yet patient, picking their spots. In the bottom of the fourth, Joe Suozzi lined a 1-1 pitch to right center. Danny Oriente slid to collect the pitch, but Suozzi hit the gas as soon as Oriente's knee hit the turf. He wound up taking second base because Oriente had to stand up and ready himself for a throw.
It provided just enough daylight against senior Bryan Hoeing, who entered the game with over 100 innings logged predominantly as a reliever. Peter Burns and Dante Baldelli forced the right-hander to squeeze the zone, and after two walks, Jake Alu drove a single up the middle to score two runs. It was an exchange that looked an awful lot like the way Boston College became known for scoring runs, save for the power bats the day before against Clemson.
"I know a bunch of these guys in (the senior class) are just trying to get another day at the ball field together," Alu said. "Personally, I'm just trying to have competitive at-bats and play good defense behind our pitchers. If nine guys are doing that, we are going to have a good, successful team."
The wins pressed BC into the ACC semifinal on Saturday, where it awaits the winner of Pool D. Miami, North Carolina and Virginia make up that pool, which began on Wednesday night with the lower two seeds playing. Miami joins the tournament on Thursday against the 'Hoos, needing just one win as the No. 4 seed - the same situation as Louisville on Wednesday.
Miami plays its final game on Thursday against the Tar Heels in a game that will decide the Eagles' opponent only if UNC defeats Virginia. And if there needed any more reason to conjure memories from 2016, fans with long memories can recall that the Hurricanes ended the BC season in a single-elimination game three at Mark Light Field in the Super Regional that year.
"Honestly, this is the most fun I've ever had playing baseball, with this group of guys," Suozzi said. "I just love them so much. We're loose. We're having fun. We're being competitive. It's just a lot of fun to be around right now."
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