Oakland Grizzlies Visit Bill Davis Stadium Wednesday – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/7/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 7, 2004
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Ohio State
(10-11; 3-1 Big Ten)
vs.
Oakland
(5-16; 0-0 Mid-Continent)
6:35 p.m., April 7, 2004
Bill Davis Stadium
Columbus, Ohio
Series History: Ohio State leads 5-1
Ohio State Radio/Internet
NPR 820 (WOSU-AM)
Frank Fraas, Neil Sika and Paul Barnes
www.wosu.org
Ohio State Pitcher
9 – Jeffrey Carroll 0-0, 8.10 ERA, 1K, 3.1 IP
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Fresh off a 3-1 series victory over Illinois to open Big Ten play this past weekend, Ohio State returns to non-conference action Wednesday at 6:35 p.m. against Oakland to end a six-game homestand.
The Buckeyes improved to 10-11 with the series victory and are alone in second place in the Big Ten with a 3-1 record. Michigan State swept Iowa last weekend to sit alone atop the conference. Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan, Northwestern, Penn State and Purdue all went 2-2 in the league, while Illinois is 1-3 and Iowa 0-4. Ohio State plays its next two Big Ten series on the road at Purdue this weekend and at Michigan State April 16-18.
The Scarlet and Gray gave coach Bob Todd his 300th career Big Ten victory last Friday by beating Illinois 5-1 and then sweeping both ends of a Saturday doubleheader, 14-3 and 5-3, before dropping the final game 12-4. Oakland lost three games at Eastern Michigan Friday and Saturday and played host to the Eagles Tuesday afternoon before it ventured to Columbus for tonight’s game. The Golden Grizzlies lost 16-11, 15-4 and 23-9 in the three-game set in Ypsilanti, Mich. before the Sunday game in Rochester was postponed.
About Ohio State
The Buckeyes took three of four games from Illinois this weekend to open Big Ten play. Ohio State gave Bob Todd his 300th league win Friday with a 5-1 score before jumping on the Illini by a 14-3 score in the first game of a doubleheader Saturday. Ronnie Bourquin gave the Buckeyes a 5-3 victory in the nightcap with a two-run walk-off home run to set up a chance for a sweep Sunday. Instead, Illinois scored nine runs in the second inning and cruised to a 12-4 victory.
Bourquin finished the weekend 9-for-14 (.643), including a 3-for-3 effort with three RBI in the second game of the series. He finished the weekend with five RBI and shared Big Ten Player of the Week honors. Drew Anderson added seven hits and Jacob Howell added six as the Buckeyes batted .338 in the three games to up their team average to .273, the highest figure of the season. Josh Newman was incredible in his start Friday night. He pitched the 15th complete game of his career, allowing only one run on seven hits with a career-high 14 strikeouts to pick up his 28th career victory. He is now tied for fourth all-time in wins, fourth in innings pitched (310.1) and eighth in strikeouts (241).
Brett Garrard, a senior shortstop from Brownsburg, Ind., leads the team with a .382 season batting average. His high school teammate, junior second baseman Drew Anderson, leads the team with 29 hits, eight doubles, two triples and 14 runs scored. Junior outfielder Mike Rabin paces the team with 14 RBI. Sophomore third baseman Jedidiah Stephen joins Garrard and Howell with 21 hits and leads the Buckeyes with a slugging percentage of .593. He is second on the team with a .356 batting average.
Newman leads the pitching staff with 50 strikeouts in 44.2 innings. He is 4-3 on the season with a 4.23 ERA. He has allowed only 13 walks. Mike Madsen picked up his fourth win of the season (4-2) with a win in game two. He has 30 strikeouts in 38.1 innings. Trent Luyster picked up his first win this year (1-3) and is second on the team with 41 strikeouts. He has a 3.33 ERA in 46.0 innings. The Buckeyes are still looking for a fourth and fifth starter and tossed five pitchers Sunday.
About Oakland
The Golden Grizzlies took a 5-16 record into their Tuesday afternoon home game with Eastern Michigan. The Eagles, which beat the Buckeyes 2-1 last Wednesday, took four games from Oakland last week, winning 6-2, 16-11, 15-4 and 23-9. The Tuesday game is a make up game for a game that was rained out Sunday.
John Sullivan led Oakland with a .338 batting average and had seven home runs and 15 RBI. Ryan Freiburger led the team with 28 hits he was tied with Ty Herriott with six doubles. Herriott matched Sullivan with 15 RBI. The Golden Grizzlies had a .249 batting average going into Tuesday’s game.
On the mound, Steve Kniebbe had the lowest ERA among pitchers with at least 20 innings. He was 1-2 with a 2.01 ERA in 22.1 innings. He had a team-high 27 strikeouts. The team has a 7.22 ERA. The Grizzlies did not identify a starter for tonight’s game.
The Grizzlies are coached by Mark Avery, who is 100-185 in his sixth season in Rochester.
Against The Golden Grizzlies
Ohio State leads the all-time series 5-1 after taking both ends of a doubleheader last season with 2-1 and 2-0 wins. Greg Prenger tossed Ohio State’s first-ever perfect game in the nightcap.
May 5, 1999 at Ohio State 11, Oakland 9
April 5, 2000 at Ohio State 12, Oakland 2
April 11, 2001 at Ohio State 8, Oakland 2
April 10, 2002 Oakland 10, at Ohio State 5
April 9, 2003 at Ohio State 2, Oakland 1
April 9, 2003 at Ohio State 2, Oakland 0
Last Time vs. Oakland
Right-handed pitcher Greg Prenger retired all 21 batters he faced to post a 2-0 perfect game victory over Oakland to complete a doubleheader sweep April 9, 2003 at Bill Davis Stadium. It was the first no-hitter by an Ohio State pitcher since Eric Thompson no-hit Michigan State on May 10, 1998. There had only been seven no-hit games on record by Buckeye pitchers since 1955.
Prenger, a former walkon who missed all of the 2002 after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder, also threw a new hitter on his high school junior varsity team when he was a freshman at Upper Sandusky.
OSU shortstop Drew Anderson recorded the final out, a pop-up he caught just into the outfield grass. Anderson did not realize what had happened until the Buckeyes mobbed Prenger in celebration as he was walking off the field. Prenger struck out one batter in the first, two in the third, two in the fifth and one for the seventh out of the seventh and final inning. He had seven fly or pop outs and eight ground or line outs to go with the six strikeouts, which equaled the most in his career.
Bucks Open Big Ten with Win
Josh Newman pitched his 15th-ever complete game and fanned a career high 14 batters to lead Ohio State to a 5-1 victory over Illinois in the Big Ten opener for both teams Friday night at Bill Davis Stadium. The victory was the 300th by the Buckeyes under 17th year head coach Bob Todd.
Newman, who struck out nine batters in the first three innings of his last start March 24 at Florida Atlantic, struck out six Illini batters through three innings Friday. The senior from Wheelersburg, Ohio gave up a lead-off double in the second and a one-out home run in the third by catcher Chris Robinson as Illinois took a 1-0 lead. Newman responded to the home run by retiring the next 10 batters before the third hit of the game by the Illini. Newman gave up a total of seven hits in picking up the first complete game by a Buckeye pitcher this season. He allowed only the one run and fanned 14 without a walk in throwing 123 pitches.
The Buckeyes answered the third-inning home run by scoring three runs on four hits on a pair of Illini errors in the bottom of the inning. Drew Anderson reached on a two-base throwing error by shortstop Eric Eymann. Jacob Howell singled to shallow left field to put runners at the corners. Jedidiah Stephen doubled down the left-field line to score Anderson. Howell was waved home, but was thrown out at the plate. However, Illinois third baseman Chad Frk was called for obstruction as he nudged Howell rounding third. The interference allowed the run to score and then Paul Farinacci doubled in the third run of the inning.
Anderson plated two more runs for Ohio State in the bottom of the sixth inning with his 11th career triple giving the Buckeyes a 5-1 lead.
The Buckeyes rebounded from a two-hit effort in the home opening loss to Eastern Michigan Wednesday night to put 11 hits on the scoreboard against Illinois. Four different players each had two hits. Anderson and Howell each finished 2-for-5, while Farinacci was 2-for-4 and Ronnie Bourquin was 2-for-3. Anderson delivered two RBI, while Stephen and Farinacci provided the other two.
Bob Todd Becomes Second Big Ten Coach to Reach 300
With the Buckeyes 5-1 victory over Illinois last Friday, 17th year coach Bob Todd won his 300th career Big Ten game, becoming the second coach to ever top the number. Current Minnesota coach John Anderson guided the Golden Gophers to 354 Big Ten victories entering his 23rd season in Minneapolis. He recorded his 300th conference victory during the 2001 season, his 20th season at Minnesota. Former Golden Gopher coach Dick Siebert had 295 conference wins.
In Big Ten Openers
The Buckeyes are 11-6 in conference openers since head coach Bob Todd arrived in Columbus prior to the 1988 season. Ohio State has won it last six Big Ten openers, including last season’s 1-0 victory over Northwestern in Bradenton, Fla. When opening league play at home, the Buckeyes are 8-4 under Todd. Since 1988 when the team is on the road to open Big Ten play it is 2-2 and at a neutral site, the team is 1-0. Ohio State has not lost a Big Ten season opener at home since dropping a 5-2 decision to Iowa March 23, 1996.
OSU Slugs Way Past Illinois 14-3
Ohio State stormed out to a 12-3 lead through three innings and cruised to a 14-3 victory in the first game of doubleheader Saturday at Bill Davis Stadium. The Buckeyes’ 14 runs were the most this season and came on a season-high 17 hits.
Illinois took a 1-0 lead in the first inning and then Ohio State answered with three runs in the bottom of the inning thanks to five hits, including singles by both Drew Anderson and Jacob Howell to open the inning. The runners each moved up a base on a sacrifice bunt by Steve Caravati. Jedidiah Stephen grounded to second but a throwing error on Hastings, the Illinois second baseman, allowed him to reach first and Anderson to tie the game 1-1. Paul Farinacci singled to right-center field to score Howell and then back-to-back singles by Ronnie Bourquin and Garrard scored Farinacci to give Ohio State a two-run lead.
That lead didn’t last long as the Illini scored twice in the top of the second to tie the game, but Ohio State erupted for six runs in the bottom half of the inning to take a 9-3 lead. The Buckeyes plated another three runs in the third inning to take a 12-3 lead on singles by Anderson, Howell and Bourquin. For Howell and Bourquin, both freshmen, it was their third hits of the game. Howell finished 3-for-5 with one RBI and scored three times while Bourquin was 3-for-3 with RBI.
Ohio State scored twice more in the fifth inning to go up 14-3. In addition to the three-hit efforts by Howell and Bourquin, Anderson, Caravati and Kinnear each added two hits. Mike Madsen pitched 6.0 innings giving up the three Illinois runs on four hits. He struck out three and walked five. Jesse Paciorek pitched the final inning for Ohio State.
Walk-off Home Run Lifts Bucks
True freshman Ronnie Bourquin took a 0-1 fastball and launched a rocket over the fence in right field for two runs lifting Ohio State to a 5-3 victory over Illinois in the nightcap of a doubleheader Saturday at Bill Davis Stadium. It was Bourquin’s first home run as a Buckeye.
Trailing 3-1 entering the top of the seventh, Illinois catcher Chris Robinson tied the game with a two-run home run he poked over the fence in right field. JR Kyes led off the inning with a single through the right side. After giving up the home run, Ohio State starter Trent Luyster got two ground outs and a strikeout to get out of the inning.
Steve Caravati struck out to start the seventh, but Jedidiah Stephen reached on a walk. Paul Farinacci skied a shot to a windy right field, but it was caught for the second out of the inning. Bourquin, who was 3-for-3 with three RBI in the first game of the doubleheader, provided the heroics giving the Buckeyes their second win this season in their last at bat. The Buckeyes came back to defeat Connecticut 4-3, March 6 in Jacksonville, Fla. Bourquin finished the Saturday nightcap 2-for-4 and was 5-for-7 on the day with five RBI.
Bourquin was the only Buckeye with multiple hits as the team out hit the Illini 6-5. Illinois had only two hits the first five innings. Trent Luyster improved to 1-3 on the season, picking up his first complete game of the season, allowing the three runs on five hits. He recorded eight strikeouts against two walks.
Illinois Claims Finale
Facing a potential sweep by Ohio State in the opening Big Ten series of the season, Illinois stormed out to a 12-0 lead, which is all it needed in a 12-4 victory over the Buckeyes Sunday at Bill Davis Stadium, denying the Buckeyes their first sweep of the Illini since 1999.
Illinois wasted no time, scoring three runs in the first inning and then adding nine runs on seven hits in the second to build a 12-0 lead. Dan DeLucia walked the first batter of the second inning and then gave up back-to-back base hits as Illinois took a 4-0 lead. That hit given up by DeLucia was his last as the Buckeyes brought in reliever Trey Fausnaugh, who got rocked for another six runs in 1/3 of an inning, including two singles and the third home run of the weekend by Robinson that scored two runs. After Fausnaugh’s second walk of the inning, he was lifted in favor of Jesse Paciorek, who gave up a two-RBI double before getting the final two outs of the inning. Fausnaugh had allowed only two runs in 13.0 innings coming into the game.
Ohio State put the leadoff runner on base five times in the game and turned it into all four of Buckeye runs. Paul Farinacci led off the second with a double and later scored on an fielding error by the Illini leftfielder. Drew Anderson led off the third with a double and scored on a fielding error by the Illini first baseman. In the fifth, Anderson led off with a single up the middle and later scored on a ground out by Jedidiah Stephen and then in the eighth, Ronnie Bourquin led off with a single up the middle and scored on a pinch hit ground out by Cody Caughenbaugh.
Paciorek pitched 4.2 innings keeping Illinois off the scoreboard, but left the game after the sixth inning when the Buckeyes brought in Justin Myers to start the seventh. Myers retired his first five batters but had to leave the game after the fifth batter lined one off Myers’ pitching arm, forcing him to leave the game. Jeffrey Carroll finished the game.
Anderson, Caravati and Bourquin each finished with two hits. Illinois out-hit Ohio State 13-11, but committed three errors to the Buckeyes’ zero. DeLucia got his first loss of the season (0-1).
Bourquin Shares Big Ten Player of the Week Honors
Ohio State designated hitter Ronnie Bourquin has been named the Big Ten Baseball Player of the Week for leading the Buckeyes to a 3-1 series win over Illinois the opening weekend of conference play, the league office announced April 5. Bourquin, a freshman from Canton, Ohio (Canton South), hit .529 in the Buckeyes’ five games last week against Eastern Michigan and four games against Illinois. He hit .643 against Illinois and was 9-for-17 (including two doubles and a home run) with five RBI and scored four runs. Bourquin was a perfect 3-for-3 with three RBI in the first game of a doubleheader Saturday against the Illini and in game two hit a walk-off, two-run home run, which clinched the 5-3 victory. He posted a 1.000 slugging percentage against Illinois while adding a .667 on-base percentage. He shared the honor with Michigan State’s Travis Gulick. Northwestern’s J.A. Happ won pitcher of the week honors.
Shooting for .500
Ohio State had climbed to 10-10 after taking the first three games against Illinois, but the Sunday loss prevented the Buckeyes from climbing above .500 for the first time this season. Ohio State is now 10-11. It was only the second time this season the Buckeyes were playing for a better than even record in the won/loss columns. Ohio State was 7-7 heading into a two-game series at then No. 19 Florida Atlantic March 24. Now, Ohio State will try to get back to .500 for just the third time of the year.
Last Wednesday…
OSU Falls 2-1 in Pitchers Duel
Ohio State took a no-hitter into the seventh inning but Eastern Michigan starting pitcher George Biddle allowed only two hits in 8.2 innings as the Eagles came back to score two runs in the final two innings to steal the Buckeyes’ home opener by a score of 2-1.
Having just gotten a one-run lead in the top of the ninth inning, Biddle took a one-hitter into the bottom of the inning. Jacob Howell, the potential tying run, reached base on a two-out fielding error by the Eastern Michigan second baseman, who dropped a pop up just beyond the infield dirt. Steve Caravati singled to left field to put two runners on base. That prompted a pitching change as the Eagles went with Ryan Vandenbussche in to face perhaps the Buckeyes’ hottest hitter of the moment, Jedidiah Stephen, but Stephen flew out to center to end the game.
Biddle ended up with three strikeouts against the two hits. After giving up a hit to his second batter of the game, he retired the next 13 batters before his second walk. He than sat down the next 12 before the ninth inning error and Caravati base hit.
Trent Luyster fell to 0-3 in his eighth appearance of the season and the fourth in relief. He gave up the winning run on three hits with two strikeouts in 1.1 innings. Dan DeLucia made his first career start and went four hitless innings before turning the reins over to Mike Madsen, who added two hitless innings. Trey Fausnaugh pitched the seventh and gave up three hits in 1 2/3 innings.
In Home Openers
Since Bob Todd arrived to Ohio State prior to the 1988 season, the Buckeyes are 12-5 in home openers. The Scarlet and Gray defeated Eastern Michigan 4-2 in the first game of a doubleheader last season to get back in the winning column after losing a 6-4 decision to Detroit in 2002. In the eight home openers at Bill Davis Stadium, Ohio State is 5-3.
In the Rankings
After starting the season ranked as high as 26th in the four major preseason college baseball polls, the Buckeyes are not currently ranked. Ohio State continues to receive votes in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 35 poll, but do not appear in any of the other three. The preseason ranking of 26th was in the NCBWA poll. Ohio State received note in all four preseason polls, ranking 31st in Collegiate Baseball, 32nd in Baseball America. The Buckeyes received the 28th most votes in the USA Today Sports Weekly/ESPN coaches’ poll. Last season, the Buckeyes finished the season ranked as high as 17th and no lower than 21st in any of the polls.
Newman Tied for Fourth All-time
With his win over Illinois April 2, Josh Newman moved into a three-way tie for fourth place on the Ohio State career wins list with his 28th victory with the Buckeyes. The senior from Wheelersburg, Ohio, who was drafted in the 31st round of the 2003 draft by the Cincinnati Reds, is tied with Scott Klingenbeck (1990-92) and Tom Schwarber (1987-91). Newman won eight games each of his first three seasons and is 3-3 in 2004. The school record for career victories is 36 by Justin Fry (1995-99). Newman’s 310.1 career innings ranks fourth all-time. He now needs 34 innings to move past Pete Perini (1947-50) who is third with 344.0 career innings and 69.2 innings to move past E.J. Laratta (1999-2002), who is second with 379-.2 career innings.
Ohio State All-Time Victories 1. Justin Fry 1995-99 36 2. E.J. Laratta 1999-02 34 3. Pete Perini 1947-50 30 4. Josh Newman 2001-present 28 Scott Klingenbeck 1990-92 28 Tom Schwarber 1987-91 28 6. Chris Granata 1991-94 27
Ohio State Career Innings Pitched 1. Justin Fry 1995-99 419.2 2. E.J. Laratta 1999-02 379.2 3. Pete Perini 1947-59 344.0 4. Josh Newman 2001-present 310.1 5. Chris Granata 1991-94 295.1
Newman Climbing Strikeout List
Josh Newman’s 14 strikeouts against Illinois last Friday now give him 241 career strikeouts, which puts him in ninth place on the school’s all-time list. He moved past E.J. Laratta (1999-2002) and Scott Klingenbeck (1990-92) with his career high against the Illini. The 14 strikeouts were three better than his all-time best off 11 against Michigan in 2001. Keep an eye on Newman in his next outing as he needs only 10 strikeouts to crack the Top 5.
Strikeouts 1. Justin Fry 1995-99 382 2. Steve Arlin 1965-66 294 3. Bill Cunningham 1982-85 281 4. Tim Smith 1989-91 254 5. Mark Dempsey 1977-80 250 6. Paul Semall 1974-77 247 7. Matt Beaumont 1992-94 245 8. Tom Schwarber 1987-91 244 9. Josh Newman 2001-present 241 10. Scott Klingenbeck 1990-92 238 11. E.J. Laratta 1999-02 234
Anderson A Triple Threat
Ohio State second baseman Drew Anderson tripled three times in a span of five games (games 14-18) to move into a second-place tie on the school’s all-time triples list. The figure is within one of the record set by Jason Driscoll (1997-2000).
Triples 1. Jason Driscoll 1997-00 12 2. Drew Anderson 2002-present 11 Scott Meadows 1985-88 11 Tim Kauffman 1975-78 11 5. Mark Carek 1995-98 10 Christian Snavely 2001-03 10
Anderson Fifth in Steals
Drew Anderson has 43 career stolen bases to tie him for sixth place on the Buckeyes’ all-time stolen base list. He needs one to move into a tie for fourth place with Wade Manning (1976-78) and six to tie Bo Rein (1965-67) for third. Anderson is a perfect 6-for-6 this season after one steal against Eastern Michigan Wednesday night. He was 20-for-25 as a freshman and was 17-for-19 last season. The school record is 73 set by Roy Marsh (1992-94).
Stolen Bases 1. Roy Marsh 1992-94 73 2. Mike Check 1998-01 63 3. Bo Rein 1965-67 49 4. Drew Anderson 2002-present 44 Wade Manning 1976-78 44
On the Radio
NPR 820 (WOSU-AM) will again serve as the broadcast home for Ohio State baseball and will broadcast a total of 40 regular-season games, plus all postseason contests. Joining veteran broadcaster Frank Fraas will be newcomers Neil Sika and Paul Barnes.
www.wosu.org or www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com
All Home Games to Feature CSTV Gametracker
The official athletics web site for Ohio State will offer Gametracker, live scoring Internet software, for all home games this season. Access live stats at: www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com
Up Next…
The Buckeyes travel to West Lafayette, Ind. this weekend for a four-game conference series at Purdue. The teams will play a single game at 4 p.m. Friday, a doubleheader at 2 p.m. Saturday and a single game at 2 p.m. Sunday. The next home game will be next Wednesday, April 14, against Dayton. Game time is at 6:35 p.m.
