No mid-week game this week for Clemson Baseball, and there’s a part of me that’s happy because it was not very enjoyable talking about the Tigers getting swept last weekend during my preview of Coastal.
So we’ll sweep that…oops…and move right along.
I hate that both of Clemson’s games with Coastal were rained out this season, that’s been a really fun couple of games every season.
We’re here at the last weekend of the regular season. The Tigers will welcome in former Wofford Head Coach Todd Interdonato back to Doug Kingsmore as he completes his first season on Chestnut Hill as the leader of the Boston College Eagles.
Clemson Briefly:
Clemson is now 37-13, 17-10 in the ACC. 1.5 games ahead of second place NC State in the Atlantic division.
The Seniors: Blake Wright, Jacob Hinderleider, Jimmy Obertop, Alden Mathes, Nick Clayton, BJ Bailey, Ty Olenchuk, Matthew Marchal, and Rob Hughes. Thank you! The Seniors will be honored before Saturday’s game 3.
Erik Bakich: Coach has an opportunity to win 20 conference games in his first two seasons, a feat that has not happened very often in the strongest baseball conference in the country.
Here is your preview of the Boston College Eagles:
Boston College Eagles
Head Coach – Todd Interdonato (1st Season @ BC)
Record – 22-28 (8-19 ACC)
Wins against: Ohio State, Cal, UT-Arlington x2, Richmond, William & Mary, UNC-Wilmington, Merrimack, Siena, Pitt x2, UConn x2, Georgia Tech x3, Harvard, Florida State, Dartmouth, Wake Forest, Virginia, Maryland
Losses against: Kansas State, UT-Arlington, VCU, NC State x3, Pitt, Northeastern x2, Virginia Tech x3, Florida State x2, Wake Forest x2, Notre Dame x3, Virginia x2, UMass-Lowell, Louisville x3, Maryland x2, Georgetown
Pitching Match-Ups:
Thursday 6 PM: LHP Ethan Darden (Clemson) vs. RHP John West (BC)
Friday 6 PM: LHP Tristan Smith (Clemson) vs. LHP AJ Colarusso (BC)
Saturday Noon: LHP Aidan Knaak (Clemson) vs. TBA (BC)
Coach Erik Bakich will run the same three starters for the final series of the season. He moved Darden out of the Game 2 spot two weeks ago, and the Tigers still have not won a Game 2 in any series since April 6th vs. Notre Dame, a game in which Darden went 7 innings in, arguably, his best start of the season.
Speaking of best starts, the Tigers hope to get a better start from Aidan Knaak this weekend. The freshman sensation had his worst outing of the season last weekend against Wake Forest.
BC has named starters for games 1 and 2, but the dreaded “TBA” for Sunday. My guess is that Interdonato will throw Graduate Michael Farinelli who had a decent outing starting in the Eagles Game 3 last weekend.
Here is the best-guess, projected starters for the Boston College Eagles positionally based on previous games, with their season stats as well:
Position Players:
| Name (Jersey #) | Year | Position(s) | 2024 Cumulative Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sam McNulty (28) | Junior | Shortstop | .291; 10 2B, 3B, 21 RBI; 6-7 SB |
| Cameron Leary (11) | Senior | LF/RF | .263; 8 2B, 13 HR, 45 RBI; 22-24 SB |
| Kyle Wolff (18) | Sophomore | DH/1B | .314; 13 2B, 3B, 7 HR, 42 RBI; 3-4 SB |
| Nick Wang (44) | Junior | 1B/3B | .287; 12 2B, 3B, 11 HR, 44 RBI; 6-8 SB |
| Adam Magpoc (2) | Freshman | 3B/LF | .281; 7 2B, 3B, 3 HR, 18 RBI; 9-15 SB |
| Vince Cimini (14) | Senior | 2nd Base | .240; 2B, 5 HR, 37 RBI; 7-8 SB |
| Parker Landwehr (23) | Senior | C/DH | .254; 7 2B, 3 HR, 22 RBI |
| Beck Milner (39) | Sophomore | Catcher | .228; 2 2B, HR, 2 RBI |
| Barry Walsh (8) | Graduate | Centerfield | .175; 3 2B, 3 RBI |
| Cam Caraher (5) | Graduate | Right Field | .248; 5 2B, 3B, HR, 11 RBI; 10-13 SB |
Offensively, the Eagles are hitting .268 as a team (204th nationally), with 78 doubles, 9 triples, 50 home runs and have knocked in 285 runs. This Boston College team can hurt opponents on the basepaths and playing small ball. They do not wow anyone with overwhelming batting averages, but when they are on base, they will run. The team is stealing bases at an 80% rate (80-100) on the season.
Junior infielder Nick Wang has homered for the Eagles in consecutive games. He has 11 on the season to go along with a team leading 44 runs batted in.
STARTING PITCHING:
| Name (Jersey #) | Year/Hand | 2024 Cumulative Stats |
|---|---|---|
| John West (34) | Senior/RHP | 1-4; 5.00 ERA, 72 IP, 59 K, 28 BB; OppBA: .286 |
| AJ Colarusso (48) | Sophomore/LHP | 3-7; 7.04 ERA, 61.1 IP, 60 K, 31 BB; OppBA: .305 |
| Michael Farinelli (49)***TBA*** | Graduate/RHP | 0-5; 5.98 ERA, 49.2 IP, 41 K, 19 BB; OppBA: .304 |
Clemson faced John West a season ago and he dazzled the Tigers with a 6 inning outing allowing only 2 hits and 1 run. The Tigers did not strike out a lot (only 1) but West was able to slow down the Clemson offense at BC.
As a pitching staff, Boston College has a 6.45 ERA, 183rd in the country through 50 games, while opponents are hitting .291 against the Eagles. They’ve surrendered 105 2Bs, 21 3Bs, and 54 HRs as a staff.
SUMMARY
Clemson Baseball is still licking its wounds from a tough series last week in Winston-Salem. They have all the tools to turn that right around against a scrappy Boston College team hungry to play spoiler.
As mentioned, Clemson will honor the Seniors during a short ceremony before the Saturday game. Get out there if you can to show your support to the boys. It’s been a heck of a regular season. Time to get the train rolling and go on a memorable run!
This is a special Clemson baseball team.
As always…
Go Tigers!
