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Russell's Ramblings on Georgia Tech Baseball: 3/22

After seeing their mid-week game get canceled last week due to inclement weather in the area, Georgia Tech’s baseball program knew they had a big opportunity in front of them as they prepared to head east to Winston-Salem to take on a scuffling Wake Forest team.

Following a display on Friday night that included just five hits, two walks, a total of two runs, and another series-opening loss, fans began to have doubts about the true ceiling of this team.

So, too, did I. Is this team different than the other recent teams that Danny Hall has had in the past? That question remains up for debate, but just as they have on multiple other occasions this season, the team rebounded nicely from the loss Friday.

Saturday’s win was in large part due to a dominant pitching performance from Andy Archer. Archer threw 102 pitches in 6 innings, striking out eight and allowing just two hits. Tres Gonzalez came through with a two-run HR that put the Jackets on the board, one of the two hits they were able to put together in the entire game (Wilhite had the other hit)

Sunday’s game was completely different than the first two, and much more like what spectators and media watching this team have become accustomed to seeing.

The Jackets totaled 16 hits, 8 runs and had just one error.

Stephen Reid was given the day off, and due to an injury suffered in Saturday’s win, freshman OF Brad Grenkoski was placed into the starting lineup. Not only did Grenkoski show up, he showed out in his first career start.

Grenkoski went 3-4 on Sunday, with a double and a HR to go along with 3 RBI. His performance should give both he and Danny Hall confidence, in the event that Colin is forced to miss more time.

Kevin Parada may be human, but the platoon appears dead

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For the first time this season, Kevin Parada looked like a freshman for more than a couple at-bats at a time. Despite those struggles (Parada went 1-13) there was never any doubt about putting him in the lineup, at least publicly. Jake Holland did not touch the field, or get an AB all weekend.


The one hit of the weekend proved to be a big one, as he brought in a run on an RBI double, and despite the slow weekend at the plate, Parada continues to be the only regular in the field that is yet to have an error charged to him.

Malloy’s glove and bat continue to play a crucial role on the success of this team

Justyn-Henry Malloy was penciled in as the starting 3B going into the season, but Danny Hall wasn’t exactly 100% locked in on the idea that he would be the everyday starter.

From the start of the season, it has been clear that Malloy can play at a high level defensively. After some inconsistencies with the bat early on, Malloy has really come on as of late, grabbing hold of the No. 2 spot in the lineup and never looking back. Malloy is currently tied for second on the team in RBI with 16, and is batting right around .300 for the season.

Looking at his numbers strictly from conference play, he is actually tied for the team lead in RBI with 13 (Drew Compton)

The rotation deserves some love

The bats struggled on Friday and Saturday, but take a look at these numbers from the weekend from the trio of Hurter, Archer, and Crawford-

In 18.0 IP, they gave up a total of 4 ER (2.00 ERA) while striking out 19. In a series in which runs were at a premium for both sides in games one and two, the trio came through when it was needed the most.

Coming into the weekend, there ere some whispers and questions about whether or not Crawford would remain the third starter if he had another performance like the ones he had his previous two outings going into Sunday.

He quieted those questions a bit, and secured his spot moving forward with his performance.

Andy Archer had his eyes set on becoming a starting pitcher for quite some time before getting his chance to do so this season. He has performed better than anyone expected, and heading into the weekend series against Duke, he’s got a 2.36 ERA, as well as a 28/8 K/BB ratio in 26.2 IP (team high)

Josiah Siegel has earned himself more innings, possibly in higher leverage situations

Another big question going into the weekend series with Wake Forest was what bullpen arms were willing and ready to step up when their name was called. Along with names such as Cort Roedig, Chance Huff, and John Medich among others have struggled with control throughout the season, Josiah Siegel was someone that found himself on that list as well going into the weekend.

A shut-out performance of 3 IP, 5 K and no hits could place Siegel into a bigger role moving forward. Fellow bullpen lefty Luke Bartnicki has been relegated recently to the setup (8th inning) role, but if Siegel is able to remain consistent, command the strike zone, and miss bats the way he did on Sunday in Winston-Salem, he could play his way into a competition for that role.

ACC POWER RANKINGS 1.0

1. Louisville

2. Pitt

3. Georgia Tech

4. Notre Dame

5. Florida State

6. Miami

7. Virginia Tech

LOOKING AHEAD

Up next is another trip to North Carolina, this time to Durham to face a Duke team that is searching for consistency thus far this season. The Blue Devils will either be one game under or one game over .500. The Blue Devils big series win of the season thus far is a 2-1 win at home in Durham over a Pitt team that is now ranked.

Two names to know for them are RJ Schrock (.429/.507/.768 with 5 HR and 19 RBI) and RH starting pitcher Henry Williams, who’s got a 26/8 K/BB ratio.

The first two games of the series will be broadcast on ACC Network. I will be on vacation, but will be checking in periodically throughout the weekend.

Friday- 7PM

Saturday- 7PM

Sunday 1PM

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