2018 Gopher Baseball

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MennoSota said:
In an exhibition I imagine its like a scrimmage, which means you don't lose a redshirt. Probably the last time you see Duffy pitch this season. Bummer he had his one outing and gave up a wild pitch walk-off.
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He pitched last Sunday and went 3 innings allowing 1 run on 3 hits and struck out 4.
 

Goldy Gopher said:
He pitched last Sunday and went 3 innings allowing 1 run on 3 hits and struck out 4.
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Thanks, I figured since Bridges was redshirted last season, Duffy would be the choice to redshirt.
Bridges was a better pitcher at So St Paul than Duffy when they played together a couple years back.
 

Gophers with a dominating win over BC. Gophers were able to get 14 position players time in the win. Including Drew Hmielewski's first outing and he got his first collegiate hit. Jacob Hitz and Gabe Knowles also made their first appearance in a non exhibition game. Terrin Vavra led the way with 3 hits while Alex Boxwell, Ben Mezzenga, and Cole McDevitt each had 2 hits including a homerun from McDevitt. All 9 Gopher starters had at least 1 hit. On the mound Reggie Meyer had a good start and got the win going 5 innings allowing 0 runs on 3 hits 1 walk 1 hit batter and striking out 3. Sam Thoresen went 3 innings allowing 1 run on 0 hits walking 3 hitting 2 batters and striking out 4 so a better outing but can still be much better with control as the stuff is very good. Patrick Fredrickson finished the game giving up no runs and no hits while striking out 2.
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Goldy Gopher said:
Real game against Georgia State.
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Thanks, I went to the schedule and looked it up, then changed my post. I always thought Bridges was a better pitcher when both were at SSP. I expected Duffy would redshirt.
 


Gophers battled back from an early 4-0 deficit to get the win today. Nick Lackney had kind of an up and down day. Giving up 4 runs in the first 3 innings although some of it was just some luck for Chicago State with a couple key bloops and a ball lost in the sun with 2 outs that scored 2 runs. Lackney also struck out 5 and walked 1 while allowing 9 hits in his 4 innings of work. Brett Schulze came on and stabilized things allowing no runs in 3 innings of work and giving up 4 hits 1 walk and striking out 4. Jackson Rose came on for the 8th and got 2 quick outs and then he lost his control a little walking 2 pinch hitters and giving up a hit to score a run before a fly out to end the inning. Rose's final line was 1 IP 1 run 1 hit 2 walks. Ryan Duffy pitched the 9th giving up no hits or runs and striking out 2. Cole McDevitt had the big hit for the Gophers coming through with a 2 out bases loaded single to score 2 runs and give the Gophers their first lead 6-4 in the 6th. McDevitt would add a 3 run homerun in a 6 run 7th and was 4-6 with 5 RBI on the day. Eli Wilson and Terrin Vavra each had 3 hits on the day and Alex Boxwell had a 2 run homerun in the 7th as well.

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Toby Hanson did not start today and was pinch hit for late in yesterdays game so not sure if he has some kind of injury or what. Jake Stevenson got the win on the mound going 4.2 innings allowing 2 runs(both unearned) on 4 hits 2 walks and a strikeout. Jackson Rose replaced Stevenson and got a foul popout to get out of a 1st and 3rd jam. Jeff Fasching went the next 2 innings and gave up no runs on 2 hits while striking out 2. Max Meyer pitched 1.2 innings allowing 3 runs(all unearned in the 9th) on 2 hits while hitting 1 batter and striking out 3. Bubba Horton came on for the final out striking out the only batter he had to face. Offensively the Gophers had 7 extra base hits. Doubles from Micah Coffey, Eddie Estrada, and Max Meyer, triples from Terrin Vavra, Alex Boxwell, and Riley Smith, and a homerun from Eli Wilson. Vavra and Coffey each had 3 hits and 3 RBI.
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OT: Saw Neb and tOSU play Oregon State twice each in Surprise, AZ this weekend.
Neb's pitching was less than impressive and they had some poor fundamental play. Got blown out in both games and burned through six pitchers in each game
Buckeyes #1 starter was very impressive. 94-97mph and was hitting his spots. He made a couple of mistakes and their relievers let them down in game one. He will be a handful for teams on Friday night. Came away more impressed with the Buckeyes than the Huskers.
 

Let's hope Toby is not injured. We need him despite how good our offense is. I'm still concerned about our pitching, but it probably does not need to be great with our offense. It will be interesting to see who the starting pitchers are in the midweek games.
 



Golden04 said:
Let's hope Toby is not injured. We need him despite how good our offense is. I'm still concerned about our pitching, but it probably does not need to be great with our offense. It will be interesting to see who the starting pitchers are in the midweek games.
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Game notes listed Fredrickson for Tuesday and Culliver for Wednesday.
 

Kind of a grind it out type win. Patrick Fredrickson gave the Gophers a good start going 5 innings allowing 1 run(unearned) on 3 hits 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Sam Thoresen went the next 2 innings giving up 1 hit walking 2 and striking out 2 and got the win. Ryan Duffy went the next 1.1 walking 1 and striking out 1. Jackson Rose came on to get the final 2 outs with men on 1st and 2nd and struck out both batters he faced to record the save. At the plate Terrin Vavra was 3-4 and Toby Hanson was 2-4. Gophers left 12 runners on base tonight and just couldn't seem to breakthrough with a key hit to really blow this one open. Gophers had some really hard hit balls that they weren't rewarded for as a couple were caught on the warning track and another turned into a double play.

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Good start from Freshman Josh Culliver going 5 hitless innings. Jeff Fasching went the next 2 and Max Meyer picked up the save pitching the 9th. Big test this weekend with Arizona, Washington, and UCLA.
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Gophers scored 9, 11, 6, 14, 16 and 16 in their previous 6 games before putting up 3 and 1 against the Dakota's at U.S. Bank Stadium. Does anyone know if it's more difficult to pick up the pitch at USB? Did we see a drop like this last year as well?

Excited for this weekend! It's a big opportunity to get some quality wins and solidify the RPI.
 



The walkoff walk wins it for the Gophers. Great pitching both ways tonight. Reggie Meyer went 7 innings 5 hits 1 run 2 walks and 4 strikeouts. Jackson Rose went 2 innings 2 hits 1 run 2 walks and 3 strikeouts. Max Meyer pitched 2 innings 2 hits and struck out 3. Brett Schulze would get the win pitching a perfect 12th inning. Offensively Micah Coffey had the big hit as he hit the tying homerun to start the bottom of the 9th. Arizona played some great defense robbing the Gophers a few times and even though the Gophers finished with 11 hits they only had 4 heading into the 9th inning so the homerun might've ignited them a bit. Kind of a controversial call in the 9th. Ben Mezzenga was called out on a play at the plate that would've won the game for the Gophers. The throw beat him and he dove over the top of the Arizona catcher avoiding the tag and it looked like he tapped the plate while he was in the air but the ump said he didn't touch it and the Arizona catcher tagged him after he landed past the plate. Gophers play Washington tomorrow night.
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Great comeback tonight. Lots of fun. We absolutely got robbed in the 9th but good to see the bullpen keep it together.
 

I see that UCLA is ranked but how are Washington and Arizona this year?
 

WoodburyTim said:
I see that UCLA is ranked but how are Washington and Arizona this year?
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I think Arizona is supposed to be pretty good not as sure on Washington. Arizona was picked 4th in the conference in the coaches preseason poll behind Oregon State, Stanford, and UCLA and has been in pretty much every preseason NCAA tournament projection. Washington was picked 7th by the coaches.
 

Goldy Gopher said:
I think Arizona is supposed to be pretty good not as sure on Washington. Arizona was picked 4th in the conference in the coaches preseason poll behind Oregon State, Stanford, and UCLA and has been in pretty much every preseason NCAA tournament projection. Washington was picked 7th by the coaches.
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Thanks Goldy! It sounds like even getting the Arizona win + Wash would make for a successful weekend. UCLA would be a real cake topper.
 

Gophers let one get away tonight. Seemed like everything little thing the Gophers did wrong Washington took advantage of. Washington's first run scored on a wild throw. Their 3rd run was on base because of a walk and scored on a strikeout with a wild pitch. Their 4th run was on base because of a walk as well. Gophers big inning was the 3rd tonight scoring 3 runs. A Terrin Vavra solo homerun, Cole McDevitt walk, RBI double from Toby Hanson, and RBI triple from Micah Coffey although the announcer though it hit above the yellow line and should've been a homerun which looking back would've ended up being huge because the next batter Eli Wilson hit a groundball to 3rd and Coffey was caught in a rundown for the out and Wilson was doubled up trying to reach 2nd. Washington made some great plays defensively and was the better team there tonight and was really opportunistic to really kind of steal this game away. Gophers used 5 pitchers tonight. Nick Lackney 6 innings 4 hits 3 runs(2 earned) 2 walks and 7 strikeouts. Sam Thoresen 2 innings 2 hits 1 run 1 walk. Jeff Fasching 1 inning 0 runs 3 walks. Josh Culliver loss 1/3 of an inning 2 hits 2 runs. Bubba Horton 2/3 of an inning 1 hit and 1 strikeout. A little bit disappointed with this loss just because it felt like the Gophers should've and could've easily won it although I've felt that way about all 3 losses this year. I think and hope the guys will respond well against UCLA tomorrow.
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Have to agree, I call this their first disappointing loss of the year. Had a lead and playing a very mediocre team. Beat UCLA and all is forgotten. Illinois has been a big surprise so far.
 


Sounded like the coaching staff was pretty disappointed with the result and the way the guys played last night and I'm sure they can't be any happier with tonight. Things started out well as Jake Stevenson pitched 2 solid innings and was getting ahead in counts and the Gophers got a 2 out double from Terrin Vavra followed by a Toby Hanson RBI single that gave the Gophers a 1-0 lead. The 3rd inning was where things went downhill the first UCLA batter reached 2nd on a dropped fly ball and a 4 pitch walk followed. UCLA tried to sac bunt and the Gophers tried to get the lead runner but the 3rd baseman was caught a little off of 3rd and the throw was wild and into left field. A hit by pitch and flyout would follow before Brett Schulze entered and walked UCLA's best hitter to force a run in before a strike out and fly out ended the inning leaving the bases loaded. UCLA put up another run in the 4th thanks to a hit by pitch, a double, and 2 walks but Patrick Fredrickson came on and struck out UCLA's 2 and 3 hitters to leave the bases loaded again. UCLA tacked on 1 in the 5th and 2 in the 6th on their way to the 6-1 win. UCLA only had 3 hits the entire game but 6 walks, 4 hit batters, and 3 errors will always put you in a real bad spot. Jake Stevenson took the loss going 2.1 innings 0 hits 2 runs(both unearned) 1 walk 1 hit batter and 2 strikeouts. Brett Schulze 1 inning 1 hit 1 run 3 walks 1 hit batter and 1 strikeout. Patrick Fredrickson 2 innings 1 hit 2 runs 1 walk 1 hit batter and 3 strikeouts. Sam Bridges 2.2 innings 0 hits 1 unearned run 1 hit batter and 2 strikeouts. Fred Manke 1 inning 1 hit and 1 strikeout. At the plate Micah Coffey was 3-4 on the day. Jack Wassel and Sam Bridges made their regular season career debuts while Fred Manke had his first outing of the season. Alex Boxwell did not play at all this weekend after coming out of the NDSU game Tuesday after a diving catch where it looked like his wrist was injured a little bit but it didn't seem serious at the time. Sounds like Ryan Duffy will miss at least a couple weeks with an injury as well. Will be interesting to see whether Freshman LHP Danny Kapala redshirts or not as he hasn't pitched on the year yet but it sounded like he was warming up in the 9th tonight. Gophers need to get back on track Tuesday against an Omaha team that took 2 of 3 against Northwestern I believe opening weekend.
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Was able to listen to Coach Anderson on ESPNU radio tonight and he gave a little update on some of the injuries. Ryan Duffy had to have his appendix out so not sure how long that keeps him out. Sounded like Alex Boxwell has a sprained wrist which would make sense with watching the play and then one of the announcers saying it didn't seem that serious. Also mentioned that Riley Smith was out with an injury although he didn't go into detail what it was but that explains not seeing him at all with facing some lefties this weekend
 

Started a little rocky but Gophers did enough to get the win. Omaha struck first getting 2 runs on 3 hits and a walk in the 1st inning. Gophers responded in the bottom of the 2nd getting 3 runs on 3 hits in the inning. Despite some opportunities for the Gophers the game stayed that way until the 8th when Omaha had a runner on 1st with 2 outs and the runner stole 2nd and the throw went into centerfield so he advanced to 3rd. Omaha followed that with another hit to tie the game before a strikeout ended the inning. Max Meyer drilled a single to start the bottom of the 8th Ben Mezzenga followed with a sac bunt and Eli Wilson roped a double to left field to give the Gophers the lead again. A Cole McDevitt single would score Wilson and give the Gophers an insurance run. Josh Culliver started and was really solid after a bumpy 1st 5.1 innings 5 hits 2 runs 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Jeff Fasching went the next 2.1 innings allowing 1 hit 1 run and striking out 1. Jackson Rose got the win picking up the final out of the 8th giving up 1 hit and getting a strikeout. Max Meyer pitched a perfect 9th striking out 2 to get the save. At the plate Eli Wilson had 3 hits 2 of them doubles. Max Meyer and Luke Pettersen each had 2 hits while Toby Hanson had a triple. Gophers face Milwaukee tomorrow.

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Toby Hanson missed tonights game he had a little bit of an awkward slide into 3rd last night and it sounded like it was a late decision to have him sit tonight so hopefully it isn't anything serious. Alex Boxwell entered as a defensive replacement in the 9th inning so maybe a sign he is getting closer to returning, I'd guess the wrist injury is more of a concern when trying to hit though. Jake Stevenson started and really struggled again. Just looks like a guy who doesn't have a whole lot of confidence on the mound right now and doesn't trust what he is doing and that probably as much as anything else could be why he is struggling so much. It was really kind of a struggle in all facets for most of the game tonight for the Gophers. Didn't hit real well with some give away at bats, struggled to execute situationally, a baserunning miscue or two, defensively had a few plays that most of the time the guy probably makes, and an error as well but all that said the guys got the win and that is what good teams do. You are gonna have to win some games throughout the long season when you aren't at your best. Jake Stevenson went 1.2 innings and allowed 3 runs on 4 hits while walking 2. Sam Thoresen went the next 3.1 innings allowing 1 run on 2 hits 1 walk and 3 strikeouts. Brett Schulze was next and picked up the win going 2 innings 0 runs 3 hits 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Jackson Rose pitched the 8th giving up 1 hit and striking out 2. Max Meyer got the save allowing 1 hit and a strikeout, the one runner who reached was thrown out by Eli Wilson for the final out as he tried to steal 2nd. At the plate Micah Coffey had a double and scored but Cole McDevitt had the huge game going 3-3 scoring a run and picking up 5 RBI. The big blow was a 2 out grand slam to centerfield in the 6th inning. I believe they listed TBD for the Sunday starter again but I'd guess it will be freshman Patrick Fredrickson as he has pitched pretty well in his appearances so far this season.

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Thanks for the recap. Good to get these types of wins. Hopefully they can continue to beat the teams they are supposed to.
 


I always look forward to your recaps. I'll add one comment

Third starting pitcher - It's time to try someone else. I think Fredrickson would be the safe choice (I would not be against it), but I like him better as the main midweek starter.

I look at the bullpen which has been very good this year. Schulze, Rose, Meyer, and Fasching have all so far done really well. Now it looks look Manke the senior is back, and he had a good year in the bullpen last year. Plus, it looks like Bridges the redshirt freshmen is healthy. I have a co-worker who is a huge Twins fan and he saw the Gopher game against the Twins. He was really impressed with Bridges. If those two pitchers are now healthy, how many good pitchers do you need in the bullpen?

My choice would be more of a risk but I'd pick Bridges. I think he has a huge upside and really good potential. If not Bridges then try someone else in the bullpen. I know it may seem scary to take someone really good out of the bullpen, but think about this. If you can get a really good weekend starter and Fredrickson as your main midweek starter, you won't need the bullpen nearly as much as you do now. Plus, one mid-week game a week instead of two starting after next week, will also help save wear and tear on the bullpen (St. Louis only exception).

I would not be opposed to giving Fredrickson a shot as the third weekend starter, but I think out of the bullpen, we might have an even better option.
 

Golden04 said:
I always look forward to your recaps. I'll add one comment

Third starting pitcher - It's time to try someone else. I think Fredrickson would be the safe choice (I would not be against it), but I like him better as the main midweek starter.

I look at the bullpen which has been very good this year. Schulze, Rose, Meyer, and Fasching have all so far done really well. Now it looks look Manke the senior is back, and he had a good year in the bullpen last year. Plus, it looks like Bridges the redshirt freshmen is healthy. I have a co-worker who is a huge Twins fan and he saw the Gopher game against the Twins. He was really impressed with Bridges. If those two pitchers are now healthy, how many good pitchers do you need in the bullpen?

My choice would be more of a risk but I'd pick Bridges. I think he has a huge upside and really good potential. If not Bridges then try someone else in the bullpen. I know it may seem scary to take someone really good out of the bullpen, but think about this. If you can get a really good weekend starter and Fredrickson as your main midweek starter, you won't need the bullpen nearly as much as you do now. Plus, one mid-week game a week instead of two starting after next week, will also help save wear and tear on the bullpen (St. Louis only exception).

I would not be opposed to giving Fredrickson a shot as the third weekend starter, but I think out of the bullpen, we might have an even better option.
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I'm mostly just thinking it will be Fredrickson who gets the next opportunity as the Sunday starter because he wasn't used in either of the midweek games this week and it is hard for me to believe he wouldn't have got to start one of them unless they were saving him for the weekend. The young pitching has really been pretty solid for the Gophers to start this season and hopefully that continues and we get a few more guys to take steps forward throughout the year.
 

Not a good night for the Gophers. Creighton jumped out to a 3-0 lead with a little help from the Gophers. They drilled a leadoff hit and the runner stole 2nd on a close play even though it seemed like Cole McDevitt had to double clutch it a bit and a walk followed. A sac bunt gave the Gophers the first out and a ground ball to Jordan Kozicky to 3rd looked like it would be the 2nd out at home plate but Kozicky had trouble getting it out of his glove and getting a grip and the runner beat the throw. Creighton would get a couple more singles in the inning and add another run. Creighton got a solo homerun in the 3rd and 3 more in the 7th on a hit batter a double and a 2 run homerun. Gophers had chances and had quite a few balls that were absolutely drilled but just right at Creighton players. The most disappointing thing at the plate was the Gophers struck out 10 times in 7 innings against Creighton's starter and while he has good numbers he isn't anything special. Just seemed like the Gophers were constantly falling behind and in 2 strike counts. Reggie Meyer got the loss going 6.2 innings and giving up 7 runs on 8 hits walking 1 hitting 2 and striking out 4. Seemed like Reggie really tried to rely on his fastball and Creighton took advantage of that. Fred Manke pitched 1 inning striking out 1 and Bubba Horton pitched the final 1.1 innings and allowed 1 hit while striking out 3. Need to get off to a good start tomorrow and bounce back. Focus should probably be just keep winning series.
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