IU@Michigan, Game 2: IU 9 UM 5. IU comes from behind while getting good bullpen pitching for an important win...

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RHP Bradley Brehmer is on the mound for IU with an ERA of 5.88 in 52 IP, while RHP Cameron Weston is on the mound for UM with an ERA of 4.95 in 56.1 IP.

In the first, a single by Whalen and a walk to Mathison put two on, and Ellis hit a 2-0ut double to score both runners to give IU an early 2-0 lead.

In UM's 1st, Brehmer hits the first batter he faced. Brehmer then gets a K for the 1st out and a runner on. A single puts runners on the corners with one out. A ground out scores the run from 3rd and we have two outs with the score at 2-1, and for the second straight game, a hit batter has scored for Michigan. Another single scores the runner from 2nd and we are tied at 2-2, and it's not a good sign to see Brehmer struggling in the 1st. Another single puts runners on 1st and 2nd with two outs. Brehmer gets a K to end the 1st.

 

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In the 2nd, Tibbetts and Johnson lead off with outs. Serruto singles to put a man on with two outs and we are at the top of the order. Whalen grounds out to end IU's 2nd.

In UM's 2nd, Brehmer puts them down in order on two Ks and an infield pop out.

 

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In the 3rd, Jessee pops out to lead off and Pyne and Mathison strike out to end IU's 3rd.

In UM's 3rd, the leadoff hitter singles. A potential DP ball goes for a force out at 2nd for one out and a runner on 1st. IU is not a good team at turning DP balls this season, and our opponents lead in that category by a wide margin. A flyout results in the 2nd out. Brehmer had the next batter on a 1-2 count and walked him to put runners on 1st and 2nd with two outs, and a ground out ends the inning.

 

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In IU's 4th, Ellis flies out to lead off. Doanes then walks on four pitches with one out. Tibbetts flies out for the 2nd out with a runner on 1st. Goforth then singles sending Doanes to 3rd to put runners on the corners with two outs. A fielder's choice at 2nd ends IU's threat and their 4th.

In UM's 4th, Brehmer is at 53 pitches going into this inning with the No. 7, 8, and 9 hitters up. An infield hit puts the leadoff hitter on. A single to right field puts runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs, and the bottom of the order is creating a threat. Brehmer gets the next batter on a ground out which moved the runners to 2nd and 3rd with one out, and we are at the top of the order which killed us yesterday. IU intentionally walks Clark Elliott, UM's top hitter, to load the bases with one out. Brehmer then gets a big K for the 2nd out with runners on 2nd and 3rd. A double clears the bases to give UM a 5-2 lead. Brehmer then hits the next batter, his 2nd of the day, to put runners on 1st and 2nd with two outs. A ground out ends the inning as Brehmer gave up 3 runs after two outs in this inning.

 

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In the 5th, IU's bats have been mostly quiet since the 1st. Whalen grounds out and Jessee flies out for two outs. Pyne then hits a double with two outs. Mathison reaches on an infield hit to put runners on the corners with two outs. Ellis then walks to load the bases with two outs. Doanes hits a high chopper for an infield single to score Pyne from 3rd to make it 5-3 with the bases still loaded and two outs. A ground out ends IU's 5th.

In UM's 5th, Brehmer is back out there with a pitch count of 86, and he is facing the 6 thru 8 hitters. The leadoff hitter strikes out. Brehmer then gets another K for two outs, but gives up a double to the No. 8 hitter and the bottom of the order has been hitting Brehmer today. A WP moves the runner to 3rd with two outs. Brehmer gets another K to end the inning and he avoids having to pitch to the dangerous Clark Elliott at the top of the order in this inning. I doubt that Brehmer will be out there for UM's 6th.

 

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In the T6th, Goforth singles to lead off and he is 2-2 so far. Serruto flies out for the 1st out and the runner still at 1st, and it brings up the top of the order in Whalen. With the count at 2-2 on Whalen and after he had fouled off several pitches, UM goes to the bullpen to bring in LHP Angelo Smith with an ERA of 7.36 in 11 IP. UM is a lot like IU in that their bullpen is suspect and you never know what you are going to get when they come in. However, on his first pitch Whalen hits into a DP to end IU's 6th.

In UM's 6th, LHP Ty Bothwell comes in with an ERA of 4.99 in 30.2 IP, but Bothwell's ERA has been much better in B1G play and is under 2.00, and he faces the top of the order. The dangerous Clark Elliott flies out to leadoff. A one-out double put a runner on. Bothwell gets the next batter on a flyout for two outs and the runner still on 2nd. Serruto then makes an error sending the runner to 3rd on a pickoff attempt at 2nd where IU didn't have anyone at the bag and the ball hit the leg of the UM player and went into the outfield. Bothwell didn't let the error affect him and he got a K to end the inning.

 

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In IU's 7th, IU has 2, 3, and 4 hitters up. Jessee and Pyne open the inning with singles to put runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. Bloop fly by Mathison drops in between fielders for a single to load the bases with no outs. Ellis is then it by a pitch to bring in Jessee to make it 5-4 with the bases still loaded and no outs. UM goes to the bullpen again to bring in LHP Jacob Denner with a 6.35 ERA in 45.1 IP. Doanes then hits into a DP, UM's 2nd of the day, which scores Pyne to even the score at 5-5 with two outs. A base hit by Tibbetts scores Mathison to give IU the lead at 6-5 with a runner on 1st and two outs. Goforth strikes out to end IU's 7th, while the DP ball probably prevented a much bigger inning, we scored 3 runs and we'll take it.

In UM's 7th, Bothwell is back out there and faces the 5 thru 7 hitters. Bothwell strikes out the first two batters for two outs. An infield hit puts a runner on 1st with two outs. The No. 8 hitter is up and he is 2-3 on the day so far, but Bothwell gets another K to end the inning on three strikeouts.

 

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In the T8th, Serruto strikes out to lead off and we are at the top of the order in Whalen and he strikes out for two outs. A flyout ends the 8th for IU.

In UM's 8th, Bothwell faces the 9, 1 and 2 hitters. Bothwell gets the leadoff hitter on a K for his 5th K in his short outing, and we are at the dangerous top of the order in Clark Elliott. Elliott grounds out for two outs and no one on. Mercer decides to go with RHP Reese Sharp with an ERA of 8.24 in 39.1 IP and Sharp is coming off a great outing against Illinois. Sharp gets a ground out to end the inning and IU is three outs away from pulling this game out.

 

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In the 9th, IU is at the 3 thru 5 hitters and they sure could use some insurance runs here. Pyne helps the cause with a leadoff double to right center. Mathison just misses on a homer but gets the double to right center to score Pyne to make it 7-5 IU with no outs. Ellis grounds out, but moves Mathison to 3rd. Doanes reaches on an error by 1B, with Mathison holding at 3rd to put runners on the corners and one out. Tibbetts hits a single to score Mathison to make it 8-5, and that chases the UM pitcher as they go to the bullpen again. UM brings in RHP Avery Goldensoph with an ERA of 6.28 in 14.1 IP, with runners on the corners and one out. Goforth hits a double to score Doanes which is unearned to make it 9-5 IU with runners on 2nd and 3rd and still one out. Serruto and Whalen both ground out to end IU's very productive 9th.

In UM's 9th, Sharp had to sit for awhile as IU padded the lead which I'm sure he doesn't mind, and he needs three outs to win what would be a big game for IU. UM is at their 3 thru 5 hitters. Sharp gets a flyout for the first out. A base hit puts a runner on with one out. Goforth bobbled what could have been a DP ball and instead of two outs or possibly being out of the inning, there are runners on 1st and 2nd with one out on the error, IU's 2nd error of the game. Sharp gets a K for the 2nd out on a WP which moved the runners to 2nd and 3rd with two outs. Sharp ends the game on another K, and IU wins an important game and has a chance to win their third straight B1G series with a win tomorrow.

 

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IU outhit MIchigan, 16-11, with three players getting three hits apiece with Mathison going 3 for 4, Goforth at 3 for 4, and Pyne was 3 for 5. Ellis was 1 for 3 with 3 RBIs, while Tibbets was 2 for 5 with 2 RBIs. IU didn't hit any homers today, but had five doubles. Brehmer had an up and down start today throwing 102 pitches over 5 IP, while giving up 5 ERs. He had 8 Ks, 2 BBs, 2 hit batters, and a WP. IU committed two more errors today and have three in the first two games, and that goes along with the six they committed in the Illini series, so all of a sudden their fielding has become a little erratic at times. Bothwell (2.2 IP) and Sharp (1.1 IP) came out of the bullpen to pitch the last four innings and pitched very well. They combined to give up just three hits over those four innings and no walks, and they had 7 Ks. Bothwell faced 10 batters, striking out five of them, while Sharp faced 6 batters, striking out two of them.

 

[Orford]

In the 3rd, Jessee pops out to lead off and Pyne and Mathison strike out to end IU's 3rd.

In UM's 3rd, the leadoff hitter singles. A potential DP ball goes for a force out at 2nd for one out and a runner on 1st. IU is not a good team at turning DP balls this season, and our opponents lead in that category by a wide margin. A flyout results in the 2nd out. Brehmer had the next batter on a 1-2 count and walked him to put runners on 1st and 2nd with two outs, and a ground out ends the inning.

I believe this DP miss as Johnson hesitated with ball and possibly the 3pitch strikeout got Johnson pulled for goforth in 3rd

 

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I believe this DP miss as Johnson hesitated with ball and possibly the 3pitch strikeout got Johnson pulled for goforth in 3rd

Yes, and it's not the first time this season that IU has had what was considered a DP ball that they were slow to start. I don't know if it includes the two DPs that Michigan had today, but it had been a while since I had looked at that stat and IU has 22 DPs on the season to 44 by our opponents.

 

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Here's the game recap with a link to the box score:

Bullpen, Late Runs Even Series at Michigan - Indiana University Athletics

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – It was a flipped script on Saturday (May 7) at Ray Fisher Stadium, as the Indiana baseball program came from behind for a 9-5 victory over...

iuhoosiers.com

 

[Orford]

Yes, and it's not the first time this season that IU has had what was considered a DP ball that they were slow to start. I don't know if it includes the two DPs that Michigan had today, but it had been a while since I had looked at that stat and IU has 22 DPs on the season to 44 by our opponents.

 

[Orford]

DP not much better when glasses is in there with Doanes either with those stats. Two freshmen can forgive but I recall seeing some similar opportunities where doanes seemed to be late start to move to 2b earlier in season

 

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I'm assuming that Tucker will probably be on the mound tomorrow and a series win would be big, especially with Minnesota coming into The Bart next weekend where we can make a big move to try and grab one of those top 8 positions for the tournament, and we still might do that with a win tomorrow. If it is Tucker, he has been up and down this season which is not something unique to this pitching staff, so hopefully he has good stuff tomorrow if he's the starter. It would be nice if we could get Glasser's bat back in the lineup, and he was hitting close to .350 when he went out. He broke the finger against Miami (OH), and they tried to use him as a DH with a splint on his finger, but I believe he went 0-4 and he hasn't played since. I'm beginning to wonder if Colopy is done for the season since he has been out for what seems forever. I can't remember what problem he had, but I want to think that it was related to the hamstring, and maybe he had a tear there, but I'm not sure on that and that would be speculation.