Game 11: #4 Florida 10, Virginia 5
Florida’s offense kept rolling on Friday afternoon. For the third time in four games at the 2015 College World Series, opposing pitchers failed to hold the Gators under ten runs as Virginia junior starting pitcher Nathan Kirby and three relief pitchers allowed 10 runs on 11 hits over eight innings. The Gators stranded just five base runners in the game, but four of those came after they had already built a 9-1 lead after six innings.
“We have a tendency to have big innings,” Florida head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “In order to have big innings you have to have a consistent lineup, one through nine, and not necessarily the first four or five guys in your lineup, but the guys that hit seventh, eighth, and ninth. I think we’re getting a lot of contributions up and down the lineup, and it just allows us, when we get things rolling in an inning, to build some big innings.”
The bottom of the lineup for the Gators has provided a good share of the production in their three wins in Omaha this year. In the two wins over Miami and the win over Virginia, the Gators have outscored their opponents, 35-10. In those games, the seven-eight-nine hitters in the lineup are hitting 14-of-34 (.412) with nine runs batted in and 10 runs scored.
“I just try to keep it simple,” Florida freshman catcher Mike Rivera said. “I just try to hunt fastballs and square something up.”
Rivera, who usually hits out of the seventh spot in Florida’s lineup, went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs batted in against the Cavaliers in Friday’s win. He is now hitting .357 through four games in his first trip to the College World Series.
The top of the order wasn’t exactly quiet, especially junior shortstop and 20th overall pick by the Oakland Athletics, Richie Martin. He entered the rematch with Virginia, hitting just 3-of-13 in the College World Series, then matched that hit total with a 3-for-4 day, including two doubles, two runs batted in, and a run scored. In his second-to-last at-bat in Florida’s 10-2 win over Miami, Martin hit an opposite field home run. He stayed with that approach and enjoyed continued success on Friday, going the other for his first two hits to drive in runs for the Gators, including the go-ahead RBI double in the bottom of the third inning.
“I struggled the first two games, but that’s baseball,” Martin said. “It’s going to go like that, but I just stuck with my approach. The first two games I hit a few balls on the barrel, but I was just unlucky. I stuck with my approach and it happened to work out today.”
The Gators and Cavaliers will meet for a third time on Saturday. The winner will move on to the College World Series Finals that get started on Monday.
“They got nine of their ten runs in two innings and that’s to their credit,” Virginia head coach Brian O’Connor said. “We just couldn’t put them away in a couple of those innings. We were able to do that the other night against them, and we have another opportunity tomorrow. We’re looking forward to that chance.”
Game 11 Highlights
Top of the 1st: Virginia didn’t waste any time before jumping ahead of Florida. Freshman center fielder Adam Haseley singled up the middle on the first pitch of the game. A sacrifice bunt moved Haseley into scoring position, then Cavaliers sophomore catcher Matt Thaiss drove him in with an RBI single into center field against Gators ace Logan Shore to give Virginia a 1-o lead.
Bottom of the 3rd: After managing only two singles in the first 11 innings against Virginia in the College World Series, the Gators offense finally woke up. Base hits by freshman second baseman Dalton Guthrie and sophomore right fielder Ryan Larson put runners on the corners with one out. That gave the top of the order a chance to go to work with runners in scoring position against Cavaliers starter Nathan Kirby — junior left fielder Harrison Bader tied the game with an RBI ground out to second base, junior shortstop Richie Martin went the opposite way with a go-ahead RBI double, senior third baseman Josh Tobias sent a rocket into left field for an RBI single, then later scored on a passed ball to put Florida in front, 4-1, after three innings.
Bottom of the 6th: The Gators broke the game wide open the second time through the order against Virginia sophomore reliever Alec Bettinger–A hit by pitch, a single, and a walk loaded the bases with nobody out. An RBI single by freshman catcher Mike Rivera brought in the first run to make it 5-1. A bases-loaded walk to Dalton Guthrie plated another Gator and brought junior left-hander David Rosenberger out of the bullpen. The Cavaliers reliever wasn’t able to keep the flood gates from opening, however, as Ryan Larson drove in a run on a ground ball to shortstop, then Harrison Bader and Richie Martin each drove in another run with RBI singles to extend the Florida lead to 9-1.
Top of the 7th: Virginia started clawing back after giving up the five-spot in the sixth. Three singles loaded the bases for the Cavaliers with one out as they chased Gators starting pitcher Logan Shore from the game. A sacrifice fly to left field off the bat of Matt Thaiss cashed in the first run, then a two-run double by senior third baseman Kenny Towns cut the Florida lead to 9-4.
Bottom of the 7th: Mike Rivera got one of those runs back for the Gators in their next at-bat. Freshman catcher JJ Schwarz reached first base on a throwing error by Kenny Towns pulled first baseman Pavin Smith off the bag. A wild pitch moved Schwarz into scoring position, then with two outs, Rivera doubled to left-center field to give the Gators a 10-4 lead and their third double-digit scoring output in four games at this year’s College World Series.
Top of the 8th: The Cavaliers kept scratching away at the deficit. A throwing error by Florida relief pitcher Bobby Poyner allowed junior designated hitter Robbie Coman to reach second base to lead off the inning. A ground out moved Coman over to third, then a sacrifice fly to deep center field by junior left fielder Kevin Doherty made it a 10-5 lead for the Gators.
Game 12: Vanderbilt 7, #7 TCU 1
The night started out painfully for Rhett Wiseman, but it ended with a big smile, a baseball-sized welt on his neck, and a second consecutive trip to the College World Series Finals. In his first at-bat of the game, Vanderbilt’s junior right fielder was hit in the neck by a pitch from TCU starting pitcher Tyler Alexander. After a lengthy examination by trainers and coaches, Wiseman stayed in the game and later scored in the third inning as the Commodores began to pile on runs.
“It’s the College World Series, baby,” Wiseman said when asked how close he was to coming out of the game. “You would have to kill me to take me out of that game.”
Good thing for Vanderbilt that he didn’t, because with a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning, Wiseman cracked a two-run home run over the right field bullpen as part of three consecutive innings where Vanderbilt scored two runs to build a 7-0 lead on the Horned Frogs.
“It was just a 1-0 slider that was a little up in the zone,” Wiseman said of the pitch he got on the home run ball. “It didn’t break the way he wanted it to, and with a runner on second base, I was just looking for some off-speed pitches. I was fortunate enough to get one up in the zone, and just put a good swing on it.”
Along with Wiseman’s big day, sophomore center fielder Bryan Reynolds continued to come up with big hits for the reigning College World Series champions. Reynolds went 3-for-4 hitting out of the five-hole in the Commodores’ lineup, driving in two runs and scoring another after leading off the bottom of the fifth inning with a triple against TCU senior ace right-hander Preston Morrison.
The Horned Frogs would score a run in the bottom of the seventh, but they had no chance with the way Vanderbilt starting pitcher Walker Buehler was mowing them down. Working with a fastball that topped out at around 97 miles per hour, Buehler generated nine swings and misses. The junior right-hander scattered four hits, allowed one run, and struck out eight batters in his first start since June 1st.
“He was attacking with all of his pitches and throwing them for strikes,” TCU senior shortstop Keaton Jones said. “He was tough. He was throwing it down the middle, hitting his spots in and out, and throwing his breaking ball on the corners as well. For us, I think we were just trying to attack his fastball, but it was tough. He was pitching well.”
The win puts the 2014 College World Series champions back in the Finals for the second consecutive season. Despite only being a year removed from winning the title, the Commodores aren’t taking their this experience for granted.
“It’s so special,” Wiseman said. “I mean, you walk around the locker room right now, everyone’s fired up. I think some guys, I mean, when you look at it, I guess I find so much excitement out of it, because of the guys that weren’t here last year, especially the guys that were on the team that were redshirted. That’s where I get kind of choked up talking about it. Just for them to be able to get back here after hearing about what it was like last year. Sometimes you’re around these guys and you don’t even want to talk about it, because you feel like they’ve missed out on it. To get back here for those guys is what is so special.”
Game 12 Highlights
Bottom of the 1st: Needing one win to clinch a return trip to the College World Series Finals, reigning champion Vanderbilt struck first against TCU. Sophomore designated hitter Ro Coleman walked on five pitches to lead off the frame. Then junior right fielder Rhett Wiseman was hit in the neck by a pitch when he squared around to bunt Coleman over. After two failed chances to drive in Coleman, sophomore center fielder Bryan Reynolds put the Commodores up 1-0 by pulling a two-out, RBI single into left field.
Bottom of the 3rd: Vanderbilt could have had a big inning here, but settled for two more runs after a controversial call at third base to end the inning. Bryan Reynolds and freshman left fielder Jeren Kendall delivered RBI singles with the bases loaded to extend Vanderbilt’s lead to 3-0. They appeared to tack on another run on a sacrifice fly to center field by sophomore catcher Jason Delay, but an appeal at third base by TCU was rewarded when umpire Frank Sylvester ruled that Commodores junior first baseman Zander Wiel left the base too early. Replay showed that Wiel left on time, but the call stood to end the inning.
Bottom of the 4th: The Commodores kept pouring it on in the fourth. A lead off single by junior second baseman Tyler Campbell put a runner on, then Rhett Wiseman sent him home with a two-run bomb into the bleachers behind the right field bullpen to push the lead out to 5-0.
Bottom of the 5th: Back to the dish, and back to scoring runs for the Vanderbilt offense. TCU brought in senior ace Preston Morrison, but it didn’t help to slow down the Commodores. Bryan Reynolds recorded his third hit of the game, a triple to lead off the inning. Two pitches later, freshman third baseman Will Toffey lined an RBI single into left field to make it 6-0. A fielder’s choice took out Toffey, but put fellow freshman Jeren Kendall on base. Kendall stole second, then advanced to third when TCU freshman catcher Evan Skoug threw the ball into center field on Kendall’s stolen base attempt. A sacrifice fly to center field by Jason Delay brought Kendall in to score and the Commodores took a 7-0 lead into the sixth.