Clemson Baseball Preview vs. Furman, WCU |
CLEMSON, S.C. - The Tigers travel to Greenville and Cullowhee to take on Furman and Western Carolina, respectively, in midweek contests.
GAMES SETUP • Who - Clemson (17-6) vs. Furman (10-13) & Western Carolina (11-12) • Rankings - CU - No. 17 CB, No. 22 USA; FUR - NR; WCU - NR • When - Tuesday (7 p.m.), Wednesday (6 p.m.) • Where - Greenville, S.C. (Fluor Field), Cullowhee, N.C. (Hennon Stadium) • Watch - American Sports Network (Tuesday), WACH (Columbia, S.C.) (Tuesday), WMMP (Charleston, S.C.) (Tuesday), WMYA (Greenville, S.C.) (Tuesday), WTGS (Savannah, Ga.) (Tuesday), WWMB (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) (Tuesday), SoCon Digital Network (Wednesday) • TV Announcers - Jack Connors, Mark Keady, Jason Patterson • Listen - TigerCast, Clemson Tiger Sports Network (Tuesday), WCCP (105.5 FM) (Wednesday) • Live Stats - ClemsonTigers.com • Social Media - Twitter/Instagram (@ClemsonBaseball) SERIES HISTORY (FURMAN) • Overall Record - Clemson leads 146-57-4 (1896-2015) • Record at Furman - Clemson leads 59-28-2 (1896-2015) SERIES HISTORY (WESTERN CAROLINA) • Overall Record - Clemson leads 59-16 (1974-15) • Record at Western Carolina - Clemson leads 17-11 (1979-15) STARTING PITCHERS • Tuesday - LHP Jake Higginbotham (CU) vs. LHP Harry Norman (FUR) • Wednesday - TBA (CU) vs. TBA (WCU) CLEMSON OVERVIEW • Clemson suffered a three-game sweep at No. 4 Miami (Fla.) last weekend. Two of three three losses were by one run on walkoff hits. • The Tigers are averaging 6.9 runs per game and hitting .288 with a .392 on-base percentage and 22 steals. • The pitching staff has a 3.06 ERA, .230 opponents’ batting average and 2.56 strikeout-to-walk ratio and Clemson is fielding .961. FURMAN OVERVIEW • Furman is led by 23rd-year head coach Ron Smith. • The Paladins beat Samford twice in three games at home last weekend. They are hitting .282 and have a 5.63 ERA and .971 fielding percentage. • Jabari Richards is hitting .395 with four homers, 13 RBIs and five steals. Jordan Simpson is batting .367 with three homers and 23 RBIs. WESTERN CAROLINA OVERVIEW • Western Carolina is led by ninth-year head coach Bobby Moranda. • The Catamounts beat East Tennessee State twice last weekend. They are hitting .306 and have a 7.18 ERA and .961 fielding percentage. • Matt Smith is hitting .391 with five homers and 21 RBIs, while Garrett Brown is batting .352 with 13 stolen bases. QUICK HITS • Clemson has defeated Furman 13 times in a row dating to the Paladins’ 4-2 win in 14 innings on March 3, 2009. • Clemson hit eight home runs in the series at No. 4 Miami (Fla.). But only 10 runs scored on those eight long balls. • The Tigers have hit 19 home runs in their nine ACC games. No other ACC team has double-digit homers in ACC games this season. TIGERS AT FLUOR FIELD • Clemson has an 18-6 all-time record at Fluor Field in Greenville, S.C. • The Tigers have outscored the opposition 194-96 at Fluor Field, an average score of 8.1-4.0. • The only teams to defeat Clemson at Fluor Field are South Carolina (2010,11,14,15), Presbyterian College (2011) and Michigan State (2015). • Clemson is 9-0 against Furman at Fluor Field. CRAWFORD EFFECTIVE OUT OF THE PEN • Freshman righthander Brooks Crawford came to Clemson as both a pitcher and hitter, but he has made a home on the mound in 2016. • In 17.2 innings pitched over 10 relief appearances, he is 2-0 with one save, an 0.51 ERA and a .179 opponents’ batting average. • He leads the team in ERA thanks in large part to limiting opponents to a .111 batting average with runners on base. • He has only allowed one of 12 inherited baserunners to score.
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