Buckeyes Host Cleveland St. in Midweek Finale – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/14/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 14, 2002
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After losing the first three Wednesday night games at Bill Davis Stadium this season, Ohio State has rallied to win the last two midweek games. Tonight, when the Buckeyes host Cleveland State, they will be trying to even the Wednesday night record to 3-3. A victory over the Vikings would also be a milestone win for OSU coach Bob Todd. It would be his 600th at the school since his arrival prior to the 1988 season.
There was a chance that Todd would not get his 600th OSU win at Bill Davis Stadium, but fortunately for Buckeye fans, the team was rained out in a Sunday doubleheader at Michigan State after splitting the first two games of the series. The Spartans claimed game one 12-5, but the Buckeyes took game two, 6-4, on Saturday. The split move Ohio State’s record to 30-16-1 overall and 16-9 in the Big Ten.
Leading the Buckeye charge is sophomore Doug Deeds, who has a .389 batting average. He has 39 RBI and 10 home runs. Junior Nick Swisher has 42 RBI to pace the team, which is now batting .303 for the season. Freshman righthanded pitcher Matt Davis will likely start tonight’s game at Cleveland State. He has started the last three Wednesday night games for the Buckeyes, including a five-inning start last week, which was the longest of his career. He improved to 4-0 and now has a 6.11 ERA. Todd One Win Within 600
Ohio State coach Bob Todd is within one single victory of winning his 600th game at Ohio State. Todd has a 599-294-2 record and is already the winningest baseball coach in Buckeye history, doing that with his 479th win on May 5, 1999 vs. Pittsburgh. He won 500th game on March 19, 2000 against Oregon State. Todd, now in his 15th year at Ohio State, has a career record of 723-376-2 in his 19th season as a head coach, having previously coached at Kent. Todd won his 700th career game earlier this season against Detroit on March 16.
Todd’s Milestone Victories
Career Wins
1 – March 23, 1984 vs. Mercer (18-4)
100 – March 25, 1987 vs. UNC-Wilm. (12-10)
200 – April 1, 1990 vs. Wisconsin (7-4)
300 – April 20, 1992 vs. Penn State (8-0)
400 – May 11, 1994 vs. Cincinnati (14-4)
500 – March 29, 1997 at Michigan State (6-1)
600 – May 2, 1999 vs. Purdue (3-2)
700 – March 16, 2002 vs. Detroit (10-0)
Ohio State Wins
1 – Feb. 27, 1988 vs. Louisville (16-2)
100 – Feb. 22, 1991 vs. Dartmouth (14-7)
200 – March 27, 1993 vs. Cleveland State (8-5)
300 – April 12, 1995 vs. Marshall (9-6)
400 – May 16, 1997 at Michigan (8-5)
*479 – May 5, 1999 vs. Pittsburgh (7-1)
500 – March 19, 2000 vs. Oregon State (8-3)
*became the winningest coach in Ohio State history.
Big Ten Wins
1 – April 3, 1988 vs. Illinois (14-6)
100 – May 1, 1993 vs. Michigan (3-2)
200 – May 10, 1998 vs. Michigan State (5-4)
About Cleveland State
Cleveland State enters tonight’s game with a 15-30 record overall and a 9-10 mark in the Horizon League after taking two of three game this past weekend from Butler. The Vikings won 3-2 Friday and then took the first game of a Saturday doubleheader 9-4. Butler took the nightcap 10-9. Sunday’s game was rained out.
Erney Dominic leads the Vikings with a .320 batting average. As a team, Cleveland State is batting .258. Dominic and Ernest Simpson each have 30 RBI, while Simpson has nine home runs to pace the Vikings which have 30 home runs this season.
On the mound, Cleveland State is expected to throw ace Jerry Long. He has a 5-5 record to go with a 3.27 ERA. In 93 2/3 innings of work, he has 92 strikeouts and is holding opposing batters to a .206 batting average.
Against the Vikings
Ohio State leads the all-time series with Cleveland State 28-5 after a 9-0 shutout on May 9, 2001. The Buckeyes have won the last three games against the Vikings, which last won in the 1997 season, taking a 5-3 decision on April 26. OSU won the next day 23-6. Buckeye coach Bob Todd is 16-1 all-time against Cleveland State.
Big Weekend on Tap
Minnesota, which leads the Big Ten standings by just percentage points in front of second-place Ohio State, will visit Bill Davis Stadium this weekend in the final weekend of conference play. The Buckeyes need to win three of the four games against Minnesota to win the Big Ten regular season title and the right to host the Big Ten Tournament, May 22-25. The Gophers need only two wins over Ohio State next weekend to lock up the regular season title.
Last Wednesday…
Buckeyes Beat Miami 11-2
Ohio State smacked out 14 hits, including home runs by Brett Garrard and Nick Swisher, to beat Miami (Ohio) 11-2 last Wednesday at Bill Davis Stadium.
Garrard and Swisher went deep in the bottom half of the sixth inning to give the Buckeyes an 8-1 lead. Garrard’s fourth home run of the season was a solo shot with one out, while Swisher’s eighth blast of the year went over the fence in deep right-centerfield and also scored Doug Deeds, who singled up the middle to get on base.
Swisher finished the game 2-for-5 and batted in three runs. Lance Rolston went 3-for-5 for the Buckeyes on Wednesday as the designated hitter in a different defensive lineup.
Swisher moved from centerfield to first base, where he had played until this season when he moved to the outfield. Doug Dendinger, who had been the first baseman all season, moved to leftfield and Mike Rabin moved over to fill Swisher’s void in center.
Matt Davis made his third start of the season and earned his fourth victory, improving to 4-0 with the win. He pitched a career-high five innings, not allowing a run on four hits. He struck out four and walked two.
Walking Into History
Doug Dendinger needed one walk at Michigan State to become the school’s all-time leader. It came in the form of an intentional walk in the second game of the series.
A Nick Swisher single to right in the sixth inning plated Christian Snavely. Swisher then stole second to open first base for the intentional walk to Dendinger. The walk was the 137th of his career, giving him the school’s career bases on balls record. He had been tied with Greg Mohler who had 136 walks between 1981-84. Dendinger walked a second time in the game and now has 138 career walks.
His 43 walks this season leads the Big Ten and is the sixth highest season total in school history. Dendinger’s 55 walks last season were the second most in OSU history, five off the 60 free passes by Swisher a year ago. Swisher has 33 walks this season and is now fifth on the career list with 121.
Pettorini Named Second-Team Academic All-District
Sophomore Terry Pettorini has been selected to the Verizon Academic Second-Team All-District IV, which was announced Thursday.
The Buckeye sometime-designated hitter carries a 3.40 GPA in political science. On the field, Pettorini has a .247 batting average having played in 29 games, with 24 starts. He has 16 RBI with four home runs. Earlier this season, he went 6-for-6, scoring six times while driving in five runs.
The district team is made up of student-athletes from Division I schools in Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. To be nominated, a student-athlete must be a starter or important reserve and carry a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 or higher. Team members are selected by a vote of members of the College Sports Information Directors of America within the district.
Two Games Rained Out
Sunday’s doubleheader between Ohio State and Michigan State at Oldsmobile Park was rained out meaning a two-game series split. The Spartans won Friday by a score of 12-5 and the Buckeyes claimed Saturday’s game 6-4.
The teams were originally scheduled to play a four-game series with a Saturday doubleheader, but it also rained Saturday in Lansing. The teams played a single game on Saturday after a three-hour delay..
Buckeyes Rally for 6-4 Win
Lefthanded pitcher Josh Newman struck out eight batters and the Ohio State offense rallied with four runs in the sixth to beat Michigan State 6-4 last Saturday at Oldsmobile Park.
The Buckeyes scored four runs in the sixth inning to take a 6-2 advantage. Christian Snavely drew a walk to lead off the inning and then Brett Garrard reached on a throwing error by Spartan starter Nick Bates. Bates then caught Doug Deeds looking at strike three for the first out of the inning. The walk by Snavely ended a streak of 13 batters retired by Bates.
A Nick Swisher single to right plated Snavely, who then stole second to open first base for an intentional walk to Doug Dendinger. The walk to Dendinger was the 137th of his career, giving him the school’s career bases on balls record. He had been tied with Greg Mohler who had 136 walks between 1981-84.
Joe Wilkins grounded to first base, but instead of stepping on first for the automatic out, Spartan first baseman Kyle Geswein threw home trying to catch Garrard at the plate, but Garrard slid under the tag to put the Buckeyes up 4-2.
Drew Anderson and Mike Rabin knocked in runs to give the Buckeyes a 6-2 lead. The Spartans rallied to score two in the bottom of the sixth to pull within the two-run final.
Newman pitched all seven innings allowing the four Michigan State runs on four hits. He had two walks vs. the eight strikeouts in improving to 8-4 on the year. Swisher finished the game 2-for-4 for the Buckeyes, scored a run and knocked in a run. Dendinger was 1-for-2, scored once and drove in a pair of runs.
MSU Trips Up OSU 12-5
Michigan scored five runs in each of the second and fifth innings on its way to a 12-5 victory last Friday at Oldsmobile Park.
The Spartans put up a five-spot in the second inning to take a 6-1 lead. Rightfielder Bob Malek launched a line drive home run over the fence in rightfield that scored three and then the next batter, centerfielder Chris McCuiston, launched a long ball to left-centerfield. Michigan State scored five runs in the fifth inning to extend its lead to 12-1 before Ohio State could muster any more offense. The Buckeyes scored four times in the top of the sixth. Doug Deeds led off the inning with a base hit through the right side and then Nick Swisher drew a walk. Joe Wilkins grounded into a 6-4-3 double play that scored Deeds and a miniature two-out rally was on.
Drew Anderson singled up the middle to score Swisher and then back-to-back doubles by Lance Rolston and Mike Rabin scored Anderson and Rolston.
Jesse Paciorek came on in relief of E.J. Laratta with one gone in the fifth inning, but the senior left the game charged with all 12 Spartan runs on 13 hits, walking one and striking out two. He had one wild pitch and hit two batters in falling to 7-4 on the season. Paciorek did not allow a run off three hits in 3 2/3 innings of work. He struck out four and walked two.
Christian Snavely and Deeds each went 2-for-5. Deeds scored once and drove in a run.
Big Ten Rankings
Entering the week, the Buckeyes own the top ERA in the league. Ohio State has a 4.30 ERA led by Nate Smith, who has the top individual ERA in all games (2.13) and in Big Ten games (2.21). The team’s ERA in conference only games ranks fourth best (4.63) behind Michigan (3.87), Minnesota (4.09) and Northwestern (4.58). Scott Lewis has a 2.91 ERA to rank fourth in individual pitching in all games.
In all games, Ohio State ranks fourth among the 10 schools with a .303 batting average and third in fielding percentage, fielding at a .963 clip. In conference only games, OSU is third in batting behind Minnesota (.332) and Indiana (.327) and is fifth in fielding (.963).
Ohio State has two players ranked in the top 10 in individual batting. Doug Deeds is fourth with a .389 average while Christian Snavley’s .379 average is 10th. In conference only games, neither is ranked in the top 10, but the Buckeyes have two players ranked there. Mike Rabin has a .377 in conference games while Nick Swisher is hitting .369.
Other Big Ten Rankings…
Doug Deeds ranks third in the conference in runs scored (53) and on-base percentage (.488). He also ranks ninth in slugging percentage (.623), seventh in hits (28) and is tied for sixth with 10 home runs. His 28 walks also rank seventh.
Nick Swisher ranks sixth in slugging percentage (.639) and in on-base percentage (.472). He is also third in walks with 33. Swisher has batted in the third highest run total in Big Ten games with 23.
Home Run 33 for No. 33
Nick Swisher, who wears No. 33 on his uniform, hit career home run No. 33 last Wednesday night in the 11-2 victory against Miami (Ohio). That total moved him into seventh place on the school’s all-time home run list. He trails Alex Eckelman (1994-97) and Mike Lockwood (1997-99), who each have 34 home runs. He is within six home runs of second place on the list, but is still 19 behind the all-time record set by Dan Seimetz (1995-98) who had 52.
Swisher now has eight home runs this season, which ties him for second most on the team with Christian Snavely, two behind Doug Deeds, who has 10.
Rabin Sports Best Buckeye Average in Big Ten Play
Freshman Mike Rabin leads the team with a .377 (26-for-69) in Big Ten action. He was 2-for-7 last weekend at Michigan State after leading the team with a .417 average in a 5-for-12 effort at Michigan the week before. He scored three times against the Wolverines and plated the team’s second run in Sunday’s 9-5 victory.
Earlier this season, Rabin was the Big Ten Player of the Week for his efforts against Indiana. Against the Hoosiers, the outfielder batted 6-for-9 (.667), scored three times and knocked in four runs. Including the midweek game against Dayton, he was 8-for-11 (.727) that week.
Buckeyes Split at Michigan
Ohio State scored six times in the fifth inning on its way to a 9-5 victory over Michigan Sunday in the series finale at Ray Fisher Stadium. With the victory, the Buckeyes prevented the first series loss in conference play since losing three of four games at Michigan in 2000.
In the series opener, Ohio State scored four times in the first inning and never looked back in beating Michigan 11-6. Nick Swisher went 3-for-6 in the game and knocked in four runs, including a three-run triple in the top of the ninth to give the Buckeyes a five-run advantage. The ball was five feet short of clearing the fence in right-centerfield. Swisher doubled in the first inning to extend his hit streak to 19 games. Doug Dendinger also had a big day for the Buckeyes. He was 2-for-4 and produced three RBI. Doug Deeds was 4-for-5 without and RBI on four singles. He scored three times.
Saturday was a different day, however, as the Wolverines swept Ohio State. It was the first doubleheader sweep of the Buckeyes since Michigan did that in Ann Arbor in 2000.
In the first game of the doubleheader, Michigan scored five unearned runs in the fourth inning to hand Ohio State a 5-4 loss. The Wolverines scored five runs on five hits and was aided by a pair of Ohio State errors in the fourth inning. E.J. Laratta retired the first three batters of the game before walking the next two. He got out of the second inning by sitting down the next three batters. He gave up two hits in the third, but got out of the inning when Blake Rutkowski was thrown out at third after a base hit by Brock Koman. All five runs were unearned for Laratta.
Nick Swisher’s 19-game hit streak came to an end. It was the longest by a Buckeye this season and was only four games short of the Ohio State record of Jay Semke, who had a 23-game hit streak in 1987.
In the nightcap, Michigan starting pitcher Jim Brauer struck out eight Buckeyes and carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning to beat Ohio State 1-0. Michigan scored its only run on a pair of base hits and two Buckeye errors. Ohio State threatened in the sixth inning, but left the bases loaded. It was the first shutout pitched against the Buckeyes since Illinois’ Ryan Kvasnicka blanked them on May 20, 2000.
Steen Has Seven Saves
Brandon Steen got saves in both Ohio State wins against Michigan and also had one against Youngstown State on May 1 giving him saves in each of the three Buckeye wins that week. He now has seven saves this season, which is a season high for the senior from Hendersonville, Tenn. The seven saves are also the seventh most in a season by a Buckeye. He now has 12 saves in his career.
Steen has also appeared in 67 games in his four seasons at Ohio State. Those appearances rank him sixth all-time in the career record book with Gary Fragle (1993-96). He trails Kevin Goodrum (1998-01) and Chad Hale (1991-94), who are tied for fourth with 68 appearances.
Team Has 10 Saves
Brandon Steen accounts for seven of the team’s 10 saves this season, but the 10 saves equal the seventh most ever in one season. The most ever saves in one season by Ohio State is 15, which happened in both 1996 and 2001. Freshman Mike Madsen has a pair of saves and freshman Chris Hanners has one save to his credit.
Five Buckeyes on Watch List for Smith Award
Five players are among the more than 150 players that have been named to the mid-season watch list for the 15th annual Rotary Smith Award, that was announced April 25. The award will be given to the nation’s top player June 24 in Houston, Texas.
The Buckeyes landed a pair of starting pitchers on the list in E.J. Laratta and Nate Smith. The three other OSU players nominated for this prestigious honor are first baseman Nick Swisher, second baseman Christian Snavely and outfielder Doug Deeds. Swisher was the 2000 Big Ten Freshman of the Year while Deeds copped Freshman of the Year accolades last season.
Voting to determine the 12 semifinalists is currently underway. Three finalists will be announced prior to the start of the NCAA super regionals, June 7-9.
Laratta Second in Wins
E.J. Laratta is currently in second place on the school’s all-time win list and trails Justin Fry (1995-99) by just four wins for the most all time.
Laratta has now pitched 359 1/3 innings in his career at Ohio State. The total is the second most in school history, behind Fry, the all-time leader, who pitched 419 2/3 innings.
Laratta also has 229 strikeouts in his four years as a Buckeye to rank 10th. Scott Klingenbeck (1990-92) is ninth on the list with 238 strikeouts.
