Terps Open Home Slate With Manhattan
3/1/2012 7:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 1, 2012
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Manhattan (1-3) at No. 20 Maryland (5-1)
Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday (3 p.m): RHP John Soldinger (0-1, 2.57) vs. RHP Brady Kirkpatrick (1-0, 0.00)
Saturday (Noon): RHP Kevin Bonanni (0-0, 3.68) vs. RHP David Carroll (1-0, 3.60)
Saturday (4 p.m.): RHP Scott McClennan (0-1, 10.80) vs. RHP Sander Beck (0-0, 0.00)
Sunday (1 p.m.): RHP Mike Giordano (0-0, 1.50) vs. RHP Brett Harman (1-0, 0.00)
Leading Off...
• Maryland is off to its best start in 25 years and comes into its season-opening homestand with a 5-1 record and a top-30 ranking in two national polls. After making an undefeated run at the Keith LeClair Classic, including wins over No. 20 East Carolina and No. 26 Purdue, the Terps check in at No. 20 in the Perfect Game USA Top 50 and No. 27 in the Collegiate Baseball News Top 30. It's the program's first appearance in the Perfect Game poll and its first inclusion since at least 1980 in the Collegiate Baseball News poll. A win on Friday would give Maryland its best start since 1975, when it opened the season 7-1.
• Pitching has been the highlight for the Terrapins in the early going. With a 1.24 team ERA, Maryland leads the Atlantic Coast Conference, and went all three games last weekend without allowing an earned run. In fact, the Terps have gone 28 innings without surrendering an earned run, and all against good competition. According to WarrenNolan.com, Maryland has faced the fifth-toughest schedule in the country so far, and is ranked No. 1 nationally in RPI. In three games last weekend, Maryland surrendered just 15 total hits.
• Defense has also been a strong suit. Maryland has committed just five true fielding errors in six games (two have come on failed pickoff attempts). Shortstop Alfredo Rodriguez is one of two ACC shortstops with at least 20 assists and no errors (also Angelo LaBruna of Duke).
• First baseman Tim Kiene (.360), right fielder Jordan Hagel (.350) and second baseman Kyle Convissar (.333) have been swinging hot bats in the first six games. Kiene is tied for the league lead with three home runs and has hit safely in every game; Hagel is on a five-game hitting streak; and Convissar went 4-for-5 in the win over Purdue (2/25).
Follow the Terps
• Audio of all three games will be streamed online at WMUCSports.com, and live stats are available at umterps.com. Also follow @umterpsbaseball on Twitter for updates. There will also be a live blog on Friday.
Scouting Manhattan...
• Manhattan arrives in College Park, Md. after losing three of four games in its opening series against Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton, Fla., last weekend. The Jaspers hit .289 on the weekend and committed just two errors, but had a staff ERA of 6.82. Manhattan won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and reached the NCAA Tournament last season.
• On the mound, the Jaspers are led by 2011 MAAC Pitcher of the Year John Soldinger and Mike Giordano, the 2011 MAAC Tournament MVP. Despite striking out seven batters, Soldinger was handed the loss after allowing two earned runs in 7.0 innings against FAU. Meanwhile, Giordano allowed only one earned run in 6.0 innings of a Sunday start against FAU, but did not factor in the decision.
• Catcher Ramon Ortega leads Manhattan offensively, batting .583 with two RBIs and two runs in three games. Additionally, freshman Vin Teixeira has earned the cleanup spot in the Jasper order after reaching base five times and knocking in three runs in the team's lone win of the season. He is batting .500 through three games. Shortstop Nick Camastro has also been hot, hitting .529 on the year including a five-hit game in Manhattan's win over FAU.
• Head Coach Jim Duffy is in his inaugural season at the helm for the Jaspers. Prior to Manhattan, Duffy spent seven seasons as an assistant coach at Seton Hall, helping to win one Big East Championship along the way.
Pitching Sets the Tone...
• The Terps returned eight of their top-11 pitchers in terms of ERA from 2011 and that unit has been a major area of strength in the early going.
• Maryland heads into the weekend leading the ACC with a 1.24 team ERA. The closest conference team to the Terps is NC State at 2.10.
• The starting rotation of Brady Kirkpatrick, David Carroll and Brett Harman has a combined 3-0 record and a 1.10 ERA.
• Kirkpatrick, though only a sophomore, has excelled in his role as the Friday-night starter. After going 5 1/3 innings while allowing just one unearned run in the season-opening win at No. 14 UCLA, Kirkpatrick went 7 1/3 shutout innings against Western Carolina last weekend, striking out five and surrendering just four hits. The Catamounts had come in averaging 10 runs a game.
• Carroll bounced back from a tough first start of the year (3 IP, 4 R at UCLA) to give a dominant performance last weekend. The 6-foot-8 senior matched a career high with 8 strikeouts, spreading out four hits in 7 innings while surrendering one unearned run. He held the Boilermakers, who came in with a .343 batting average, to a .148 clip.
• Harman has been steady too, making his return after redshirting last season due to Tommy John surgery. The fifth-year senior has gone 5 innings in each of his two starts and leads the team with 12 strikeouts (8 at UCLA). He has yet to allow an earned run and opponents are hitting just .200 against him.
• Led by Jimmy Reed, Michael Boyden and Korey Wacker, the Maryland bullpen has been close to perfect.
• Reed is a perfect 3-for-3 on save chances, tied for the league lead. In 5 2/3 innings, the lefty has allowed just three hits (.167 opponent b/avg) and struck out seven without issuing a walk or allowing a run.
• Boyden and Wacker have gone a combined 8 1/3 innings without allowing a single hit. Each has made two appearances, with Boyden totaling 4 2/3 innings and Wacker 3 2/3. Boyden has been brought into two very tight games, pitching 2 2/3 scoreless innings to help Maryland beat UCLA 2-1 on 2/17; and pitching 2 scoreless innings to help the Terps beat East Carolina 2-1 on 2/26.
Mr. Consistent...
• If there has only been one constant for Maryland baseball over the past four seasons, its senior shortstop Alfredo Rodriguez. The Oakton, Va., native has started 127 straight games at shortstop - it's been 1,038 days since the last time someone other than him started at short for Maryland.
• Rodriguez, who is a member of the team's leadership council, has been flawless defensively so far this year. He is one of just two ACC shortstops to record more than 20 assists (22) without committing an error (also Angelo LaBruna of Duke).
• The 6-foot senior is also a threat on the base paths. Though he is 0-for-1 on stolen bases this year, he ranks seventh in school history with 46 stolen bases, and is in position to move up that list, just one stolen base behind Chris Cannan and Mark Poehlman for fifth place.
What To Look For This Weekend...
• Maryland's pitching staff enters the weekend with a 1.24 ERA, while Manhattan is batting .289 as a team and boasts three players hitting better than .500 on the season. Through six games, Maryland opponents are hitting just .203.
• With seven more strikeouts, Brett Harman can crack Maryland's career top-10. The senior currently has 193, just behind Joe Hart (1997-2000), who sits in 10th place with 200.
• Tim Kiene needs one home run to match his total from all of 2011 (four).
• The Terps were 12-4 in non-conference home games a year ago.
Terps Debut In National Rankings...
• The Terps made their debut in two national rankings on 2/27, checking in at No. 20 in the Perfect Game USA Top 50, and No. 27 in the Collegiate Baseball News Top 30. It's the program's first appearance in the Perfect Game poll and its first inclusion since at least 1980 in the Collegiate Baseball News poll.
Notes on the Offense...
• Tim Kiene leads the team with a .360 batting average and is tied for the league lead with three home runs. A sophomore, Kiene finished fifth in the ACC (league games only) last year with a .352 clip. He has hit safely in all six games this season.
• Kyle Convissar recorded the first four-hit game by a Terrapin in 21 months when he went 4-for-5 against Purdue (2/25). The sophomore is third on the team with a .333 batting average.
• Kiene and Michael Montville hit back-to-back home runs in the 11-1 win over Purdue (2/25). The last time Maryland had done that was 2/27/10 (Adam Kolarek and Brandon Padula).
• Maryland cranked out a season-high 15 hits against the Boilermakers, with four Terps achieving multiple hits: Convissar had four; Kiene and Charlie White had three apiece; and Jordan Hagel had two.
Upcoming...
• Following this weekend's four-game series with Manhattan, the Terps open mid-week play with a home contest against Delaware Tuesday at 3 p.m. at Bob "Turtle" Smith Stadium. Maryland then goes on a four-game road trip, visiting Navy Wednesday, March 7 at 2 p.m., and then opening ACC play at Wake Forest March 9-11.
Two Terps Named CB360 Primetime Performers...
• Relief pitcher Jimmy Reed was named to the College Baseball 360 Primetime Performers Weekly Honor Roll on 2/21 for his performance in Maryland's series victory over then-No. 14 UCLA.
• A left-handed junior, Reed picked up a save in the 2-1 win on 2/17 by striking out the side in the ninth as Maryland won its first season opener since 2001. On Sunday, he inherited a runner with no outs in the seventh inning, but used a strikeout and 6-4-3 double play to get out of the inning. Overall, Reed struck out 6 of the 11 batters he faced and didn't issue a walk in three innings of work.
• David Carroll picked up the honor on 2/28 for his start against Purdue on 2/26. Carroll matched a career high with eight strikeouts in seven innings, settling in after an unearned run in the first. He retired the side in order in the second, then struck out the side in the third. The senior also struck out the side in his seventh and final inning of work and allowed just four hits on the night.
