Friday, April 12
Pittsburgh, PA
6 PM
Pitt
vs
Wake Forest
Pitt Returns to Cost Field, Welcomes Wake Forest
4/11/2019 9:17:00 PM | Baseball
Panthers Look to Get Back in ACC Win Column
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh baseball team returns to Charles L. Cost Field for a three-game series with Wake Forest in ACC action.
Pitt will get things started at 6 p.m. Friday, returning to the field at 3 p.m. Saturday before closing it out at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
HOW TO FOLLOW
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Pitt will get things started at 6 p.m. Friday, returning to the field at 3 p.m. Saturday before closing it out at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
HOW TO FOLLOW
- All three games will be streamed live on the ACC Network Extra via WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app.
- Live stats will be available via PittsburghPanthers.com.
- Fans can follow @Pitt_BASE on Twitter and Instagram.
- Pitt (8-22, 2-13 ACC) returns to Charles L. Cost field to host a three-game series with Wake Forest. The Panthers come home after traveling to Penn State on Wednesday for a mid-week tilt, taking down their in-state rival 7-2.
- Sophomore Ron Washington Jr. has taken charge of the offense, hitting at a .308 clip with 14 doubles, two homers and a team-best 15 RBI. Connor Perry leads the team with a .561 slugging mark, hitting .289 with five doubles, one triple and a team-high eight homers. Junior Nico Popa has also been strong, hitting for a .297 average with six doubles, three triples and 14 RBI.
- Redshirt junior Derek West will take the mound in the opener, bringing in a record of 0-2 with a 4.05 ERA. He's let up 21 runs (15 earned) in 33.1 innings off 37 hits and 17 walks, tallying 35 strikeouts. Junior Dan Hammer will resume his usual spot in the rotation, making his eighth start of the season Saturday. Hammer is 2-3 on the season with a 7.02 ERA, having allowed 33 runs (26 earned) off 45 hits and 18 walks, striking out a team-high 47. Sunday's starter has yet to be announced.
- Wake Forest (20-16, 7-9 ACC) enters the weekend fresh off a mid-week victory against High Point. The Deacons last ACC series came on April 6-7 as they took two from Virginia Tech in Winston-Salem, N.C.
- As a team, Wake Forest has put up some solid offensive numbers, hitting at a .285 average. The Deacons currently have four hitting above the .300 mark, led by Patrick Frick who owns a .375 average, adding 32 RBI and seven doubles. Bobby Seymour isn't far behind with a .365 average and helps lead the team with 44 RBI. Chris Lanzilli (.345) leads the team with 44 RBI, 16 doubles, 51 hits and nine home runs, while Michael Turconi is hitting at a .305 clip.
- Wake Forest will go with a trio of right-handers on the weekend as junior Colin Peluse gets the start Friday night. Pelue has allowed 32 runs (26 earned) off 51 hits and 17 walks, whiffing 37 in 47.0 innings. Saturday will see junior Morgan McSweeney take the hill, his ninth start of the season. He owns a record of 3-3 with a 5.82 ERA, having let up 26 runs (25 earned) off 40 hits and 21 walks, tallying 32 strikeouts in 38.2 frames. Freshman Ryan Cusick will wrap up the weekend, bringing in a record of 4-2 with a 7.32 ERA. He has surrendered 31 runs (29 earned) off 50 hits and 18 walks, striking out 31 in 35.2 innings.
- Wake Forest holds a 4-3 all-time advantage over the Panthers in a series dating back to the 1940 season.
- The series is tied at 3-3 in games played in ACC action as the two teams have met just twice since joining the league in 2014.
- The Panthers are 2-1 in games played at Cost Field, having taken the series from the Demon Deacons in 2015.
- Sophomore Bryce O'Farrell brings in the team's longest hit-streak, sitting a five games. He's followed by Ron Washington Jr., who has tallied a hit in four straight, and Nico Popa, Sky Duff and David Yanni at three.
- Washington Jr.'s 29-game reached base streak paces the Panthers, followed by Duff at 10. O'Farrell has reached safely in nine, while Popa sits at eight.
- Pitt owns a record of 11-3 all-time in games played on April 12.
- The Panthers are 2-1 in games played against ACC opponents on April 12, including a 1-0 record against Wake Forest.
- Pitt owns a record of 13-9 all-time in games played on April 13.
- The Panthers are 3-2 in games played against ACC opponents on April 13.
- Pitt owns a record of 13-12-1 all-time in games played on April 14.
- The Panthers are 3-1 in games played against ACC opponents on April 14.
- Outfielder Connor Perry is having a season to remember, putting up impressive offensive numbers in his senior season.
- Perry leads the Panther offense with a .289 average, tallying five doubles, one triple and eight homers with 14 RBI. He owns a .561 slugging percentage and a .421 on base mark, going 5-6 on the base paths.
- Six of this team-leading eight homers have come in conference action, ranking third in the league.
- There's been no slump for sophomore Ron Washington Jr. as the outfielder/designated hitter has continued to shine in the Panther offense.
- Washington Jr. has tallied 14 doubles in 31 games this season, in a tie for fourth in the ACC and 17th in the nation.
- On the season, he's hitting at a .303 clip, tallying 16 extra base hits with 15 RBI and a .479 slugging percentage.
- He paces the Panther offense in league play, hitting for a .339 average with a .475 slugging mark and a .418 on base percentage. His average in ACC play ranks 20th in the conference.
- After missing a majority of the 2018 campaign due to injury, junior Nico Popa has returned to the lineup with a purpose for the 2019 squad. Popa is hitting at a .297 mark, ranking second on the team, tallying 14 RBI to rank second on the offense.
- He leads the ACC with three triples, boasting a .398 slugging mark and a .396 on base percentage.
- Popa has swiped six bases on the season, drawing 12 walks and eight hit by pitches, adding six doubles.
- Freshman Billy Corcoran has had an impressive start to his collegiate baseball career, putting up strong numbers as he looks for a spot in the weekend rotation.
- Corcoran ranks sixth in the ACC with a 2.02 ERA, leading all Pitt pitchers. On the season, he's struck out 29 over 35.2 innings of work, holding opponents to a .214 average, which ranks seventh in the conference.
- In league play the hard-throwing righty hasn't shied away, ranking third in the league with a 1.44 ERA in ACC action. He's collected 25.0 innings of work in the conference, letting up just four runs off 19 hits and 10 walks, fanning 18 and holding opponents to a .209 average.
- Sophomore reliever Chase Smith was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watchlist, an award annually given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball.
- The Georgia native made 22 appearances as a true freshman, third most on the team. He held opponents to just a .191 average, competing to a record of 1-1 with one save and a 3.16 ERA.
- Smith is one of five ACC pitchers to garner the recognition and marks the second straight season in which a Pitt reliever has earned the preseason distinction (Yasin Chentouf).
- Freshman pitchers Billy Corcoran and Brady Devereux are no strangers to one another, as the duo comes to Pitt after stellar careers at Malvern Prep in Malvern, Pa.
- The pair won three state championships at Malvern, collecting the state title in 2015, 2016 and 2018.
- Both nationally touted recruits and highly sought after Pennsylvania player, both ranked in the top five amongst right handed pitchers and in the top 20 in the state of Pennsylvania by Perfect Game.
- Mike Bell is in his first season as head coach at Pitt after a seven-year stint as the associate head coach for ACC powerhouse Florida State. He brings 14 years of Division I coaching experience to the program and has coached 47 MLB draft picks, including 2006's No. 1 overall pick Luke Hochevar.
- In 2012, he was named the Perfect Game Assistant Coach of the Year and before the 2017 season, was named the No. 13 recruiter in the country by D1Baseball.com. In the last 13 years, Bell has also helped lead three teams to four College World Series appearances - Tennessee (2005), Oklahoma (2010), and Florida State (2012 & 2017). In his time at Florida State, the program won three ACC titles in 2015, 2017, and 2018 and his pitchers have recorded 500 or more strikeouts.
- Junior pitcher Dan Hammer had a summer to remember in the prestigious Cape Cod League, earning national recognition in his second stint with the Chatham Anglers. The hard-throwing righty was the East Division's starting pitcher in the 2018 Cape Cod League All-Star game and put up impressive numbers splitting time between the bullpen and the starting rotation.
- The Panthers' righty was one of the best in the nation's top collegiate summer league, posting a 2-0 record and a 2.16 ERA in 25.0 innings for the Anglers, striking out 20 in the process.
- The Chatham Anglers are no stranger to Pitt pitchers, having hosted 2016 First Round Draft pick T.J. Zeuch, as well as 2017 19th round pick Isaac Mattson and 2018 Sixth Round pick RJ Freure.
- Redshirt junior pitcher Derek West had a solid season in the Cape Cod League, pitching with the league champion Wareham Gatemen. After joining the Gatemen in July, West made four appearances, including two starts, competing to a 1.10 ERA in 16.1 innings. He allowed just two runs off eight hits and six walks, striking out 15 and holding opponents to a .143 average.
- The Panthers will take part in a pair of mid-week contests, hosting Youngstown State Tuesday before traveling to Kent State Wednesday.
- ACC play resumes at Cost Field the following weekend as Pitt welcomes Notre Dame April 19-21.
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