To say Notre Dame baseball needed a pick-me-up entering this weekend would be an understatement. The Irish have taken care of business in their midweek competition, but that didn't stop them from being swept against North Carolina last weekend, extending their losing streak in ACC games to 10.
The only bigger understatement, though, would be to say that's exactly what they got against Boston College over the last three days. No, this was so much more than that.
“We pitched all week. We pitched. I know the offensive numbers are are kind of glaring this weekend … We pitched all week, really,” said head coach Shawn Stiffler.
Stiffler is right about both things. The Irish certainly pitched, but at least through the first two games against Boston College, the offense stole the show. When the dust settled on Sunday, the Irish clobbered 11 home runs throughout the weekend, including one on the very first pitch Notre Dame saw in the series by senior outfielder T.J. Williams. Notre Dame never gave the Eagles a chance to breathe, scoring 13 runs within the first four innings of the werkend. Never once did Boston College seriously threaten a comeback.
There was no shortage of heroes at Frank Eck Stadium — some familiar, others not. Nine different players left the yard, including a resurgent Jack Penney, with the junior infielder now 17 for his last 48 with hits in 11 of 12 games. In the blink of an eye, Penney has gone from the fringes of the Mendoza line to the top-tier hitter he was expected to become.
“He's our guy, and [it] doesn't shock me that we had a lot of hits because Jack [Penney] was good,” Stiffler said.
Other regular power threats like sophomore infielder Estevan Moreno (two homers on Sunday) and David Glancy (homer on Saturday) also went deep. But offensively, the two most memorable swings of the series came from freshman Carson Tinney. The catcher homered twice in four at-bats in the series, but they were no ordinary trips around the bases. The first was a dead sprint on Friday, the first inside-the-parker for the Irish in two years. The second cleared the bases on Sunday, a line drive grand slam that snuck over the right-field wall to truly blow the game open.
“Carson is a very, very talented [and] gifted player. He's going to be a cornerstone of the [catcher] position ... He really put a swing on that ball — that grand slam. I mean, the wind's blowing that way, but that was a purely hit double in the gap, and he's gonna be a big part of what we're doing,” Stiffler said.
But if Notre Dame's pitching went under the radar to start the week, it rose to the occasion on Sunday. Not only did it record its first shutout of the season, Boston College failed to notch a single hit before the game was called for the run rule after the top of the seventh. It was the first no-hitter in program history since Brian Piotrowicz tossed one against Ball State on May 11, 1988.
An already difficult feat is only more impressive when you consider the circumstances. After hitting the leadoff batter, sophomore Rory Fox's day abruptly ended when he was struck by a comebacker in the forearm of his right pitching arm. Stiffler expressed optimism after the game that the injury won't sideline Fox for a significant portion of time. But in the moment, it presented quite a challenge, as graduate student Tobey McDonough was pressed into emergency duty.
Early in the year, that challenge would've appeared too great for McDonough, who had an 11.00 ERA through his first six outings. Now, though, he is as confident and sharp as ever, and it showed in a shutdown, season-high 3 1/3 innings.
“[Pitching] coach [Seth] Voltz made some adjustments. We went from a two-seam [fastball] to a four-seam about three weeks ago and since then, his strike percentages have really come up. He did exactly what you needed that guy to do in that situation. He was calm [and] threw strikes, and that was awesome,” said Stiffler.
The Irish also pulled out Sunday's rout without the services of Williams, who was hit by a pitch up high on Saturday. Williams did finish that game and Stiffler said he was well enough to play the field on Sunday, but the team decided to play it safe with their star center fielder as he had swelling around his eye as a result.
His status will be critical, though, in determining the success of the rest of the team's season. Suddenly, the Irish are within striking distance of the ACC Tournament again. Only two games separate the Irish from Boston College and Miami, who are currently tied for the last spot in the field, with Notre Dame having won the season series against both. In the eyes of Stiffler, though, the postseason has already begun — and so far, the Irish certainly are living up to the pressure.
“We feel like we're in playoff baseball right now. That's that's the way we're looking at. So I said [to the team] regardless if we get a chance to play in the real ones. We've talked about the NBA and the NHL right now. There's a couple of these teams playing for these wildcards that, like, they're in the playoffs right now. This is their playoff season,” said Stiffler. “This is our playoff season.”
