Clemson Baseball Preview vs. Furman & Notes |
Clemson vs. Furman
Clemson (27-11), ranked as high as #6 in the nation, will play host to Furman (23-11) on Wednesday at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 PM. The game will be broadcast live on the radio by WCCP (104.9 FM) out of Clemson. Live stats will also be available at ClemsonTigers.com for the game. The Starting Pitchers Furman will start freshman righthander Jay Jackson (1-0, 3.22 ERA) on the mound Wednesday. The Taylors, SC native has made three starts and four relief appearances for a total of 22.1 innings pitched. He has allowed 16 hits (.203 opponents' batting average) and eight walks with 20 strikeouts. Jackson also has two saves. The Tigers will counter with sophomore righty P.J. Zocchi (3-0, 4.65 ERA) on Wednesday. The Bronx, NY native has made four starts and six relief appearances (31.0 innings pitched). He has yielded 37 hits and 17 walks with 34 strikeouts. The Series Clemson and Furman have met 191 times on the diamond, with the Tigers holding a 132-55-4 advantage dating back to the 1896 season. Clemson's first two games in school history were against the Paladins, both losses in 1896, which were the Tigers' only games that season. The two teams have played at least one game every year since 1983. The two teams last played in 2005, as the Tigers were victorious 11-1 on March 16 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium thanks to 10 runs in the first three innings. The Tigers have won the last two meetings after the Paladins broke a 29-game losing streak to Clemson by winning both games in 2003. The Tigers lead 74-24-1 in games played at Clemson and 24-2 in games played at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. Jack Leggett is 12-2 against Furman as Clemson's head coach. He was also 29-7 against Furman as Western Carolina's head coach from 1983-91, meaning he is 41-9 against the Paladins as a head coach. The Paladins Furman, led by 13th-year Head Coach Ron Smith, enters Wednesday's game with a 23-11 overall record and 10-2 Southern Conference mark after winning two of three games against Georgia Southern over the weekend. Furman, who is 4-4 on the road, has won 12 of its last 15 games. The team is hitting .340 with a .414 on-base percentage and 56 stolen bases in 68 attempts. Furman also has hit 76 doubles and 37 home runs, good for a .509 slugging percentage. All 10 Paladins with at least 60 at-bats have a .331 batting average or better. Tony Maccani is hitting a team-best .431 with six homers and 39 RBIs. A.J. Davidiuk, last week's SoCon Player-of-the-Week, is hitting .400 with seven home runs and 31 RBIs. Jay Jackson is hitting .331 with a team-best seven homers and 31 RBIs, while Andrew Greene has a team-high 17 stolen bases. The pitching staff has a 3.93 ERA and .275 opponents' batting average. It has allowed just 103 walks in 302.0 innings pitched. Nick Hollstegge has a team-high seven saves in 12 relief appearances. Furman sports a .953 fielding percentage as well. The Tigers Clemson enters Wednesday's game with a 27-11 overall record and 10-5 ACC mark after falling to #23 Winthrop 6-3 on Tuesday. The Tigers, who are 20-4 at home, have played 14 of their last 19 games against teams ranked in the top 25. In those 14 games, Clemson had a 10-4 record. The Tigers, who are fielding .966, are 13-6 overall against top-25 ranked teams this season as well. The team is hitting .290 with a .365 on-base percentage and 53 steals in 66 attempts. Brad Chalk is hitting a team-best .336, while Tyler Colvin is hitting .331 with 14 doubles, seven homers, 32 RBIs, and 13 steals. Andy D'Alessio has hit 12 homers with 52 RBIs, while Travis Storrer (.312) and Stan Widmann (.310) have raised their averages above .300. The pitching staff has a 3.64 ERA and .253 opponents' batting average. Lefty Daniel Moskos has a team-high six saves and a 1.80 ERA in 19 relief appearances. Winthrop Upends Tigers 6-3 Tuesday Behind starter Alex Wilson and Heath Rollins, #23 Winthrop downed #6 Clemson 6-3 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on April 18. Wilson, the Eagles' ace, allowed two earned runs on eight hits with no walks and five strikeouts to earn the win. Rollins hit a three-run homer in the fifth to give the Eagles the lead for good, and later picked up the save. Clemson took a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning on a two-run single by Travis Storrer, who joined Brad Chalk and Taylor Harbin with two hits in the game. Winthrop totaled 10 hits in the game, including five doubles and two home runs. The Eagles also hit only one flyball out compared to 15 groundball outs.
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