Bucciferro Tosses Complete Game As Spartans Shutout Hawkeyes

@StateBaseball

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

Tony Bucciferro is supposed to be the ace of the Spartan staff, and on Friday against Iowa, he was. Bucciferro threw a complete game, five-hitter in the Spartans 6-0 victory over the Hawkeyes.

The complete game shutout was the fourth of Bucciferro's career, his nine strikeouts was just one shy of his career high, and with the full nine innings under his belt, Bucciferro took sole possession of the all-time innings pitched record for Michigan State University with 352.1.

With the win, their sixth in seven games, the Spartans move into a second-place tie in the Big Ten with the Indiana Hoosiers, but still trail Purdue for first place.

As has become the norm for Michigan State, they struck early, getting a first inning run off a Ryan Krill single. The Spartans would strike again in the third when Ryan Jones singled before coming home on a Torsten Boss sac fly to make the score 2-0.

Freshman catcher Blaise Salter hammered his first career home run in the fourth inning to give Bucciferro a 3-0 lead. Bucciferro would struggle in the fifth inning, hitting three straight batters to load the bases but was able to wiggle out of the jam without allowing a run.

In the seventh inning Bucciferro again appeared to lose a bit of control when he walked and then hit a batter, putting two men on base. Once again, he was able to focus and get three straight Hawkeyes out to avoid surrendering a run.

Bucciferro was rewarded for his performance in the stressful innings with three Spartans runs in the seventh, all with two outs. As the axiom goes, two out hits get you to heaven and if that's the case John Martinez is getting to heaven. With the bases loaded and two outs Ryan Krill drew a walk to force home a run to make it 4-0. Martinez then singled to center field, scoring Justin Scanlon and Jordan Keur extending the Spartans lead to 6-0.

At 108 pitches heading into the ninth, Bucciferro could have been one long plate battle away from not finishing the game, but he was able to come out and fan two more batters in the ninth frame to close out the win with 118 pitches.

Garner Tosses Complete Game As Spartans Shut Out No.13 Purdue

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 By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

Spartans pitcher David Garner took things into his own hands on Sunday when he threw a complete game shutout, while fanning seven to lead his Spartans to a 5-0 win over the No. 13 Purdue Boilermakers.

During the nine innings that Garner was on the mound, he allowed just five Purdue hits - impressive as Purdue entered Sunday as the third best batting team in the country. The shutout was the first the Boilermakers suffered this season.

The win was Garner's first complete game of his career and the second in three days for Spartans pitching. Tony Bucciferro threw eight innings against Purdue on Friday in Michigan State's 6-2 loss that day. Sunday's win allowed the Spartans to avoid the sweep by the Boilermakers who won in walk-off fashion in the 14th inning Saturday night.

Michigan State got on the board first in the fourth inning when Torsten Boss, Ryan Krill and Justin Scanlon all contributed RBI singles to the effort. The three runs would be all Garner would need as he did not allow a runner to reach base on balls and surrendered just two hits in the final four innings of the game.

The Spartans would tack on two more runs in the eighth and ninth innings, with Jared Hook hitting an RBI single in the eighth and Scanlon with his own RBI single in the ninth. 

No. 13 Purdue Takes First Two Games From Spartans

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By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

The Spartan baseball team traveled to West Lafayette, Ind. to take on No. 13 Purdue in a three-game weekend series. First on the mound for the Spartans was Tony Bucciferro, the ace of the staff, and despite giving Michigan State a complete game in the first game of the series, the Spartans fell 6-2. On Saturday, the Spartans lost a 14-inning heart breaker to the Boilermakers, 4-3.

Friday

Michigan State went up against Purdue's ace, Joe Haase, who improved to 7-0 on the season, allowing just one run and maintaining his perfect record. Haase gave the Boilermakers seven innings of work while giving up six hits and fanning three. 

In Bucciferro's eight-inning outing he scattered eight Boilermaker hits, while allowing six runs, four earned. Purdue struck big in the fourth inning when RF Barrett Sarrato turned on a Bucciferro pitch and sent the ball over the fences for a grand slam - erasing the one-run lead the Spartans had and putting the Boilermakers up 4-1.

Two unearned Boilermaker runs came across in the seventh inning to extend their lead to 6-1. With the win Purdue improved it's nation-leading winning percentage to .846 and their record to 33-6. Michigan State failed to scratch across another run until the ninth inning when they loaded the bases with no outs.

With the bases loaded and no one out the Spartans bounced into a double play, which allowed a run to score but all but put the nail in the Spartans coffin. 

Jordan Keur improved his team-leading batting average to .406, by going 2-for-4 and being the only Spartan with more than one hit.

Saturday

The Spartans were in familiar territory on Saturday when they took the Purdue Boilermakers into 14 innings, but for the first time in seven attempts, Michigan State did not come out on top in the extra inning match-up, falling to Purdue, 4-3.

Both pitchers were on their game on Saturday - with a pitchers duel going on, the Spartans did not score until they were able to get three in the eighth inning. Torsten Boss cleared the bases with two outs in the top of the eighth for the Spartans when he took a pitch and drove it into the gap.

Andrew Waszak was on the mound for the Spartans and went 7.2 innings, exiting in the eighth inning having allowed just one run on the day. Waszak was in line for the win with closer Tony Wieber on the mound with a 0.94 ERA. But Wieber didn't seem to have it on Saturday.

With one out in the ninth, Wieber loaded the bases, but after getting a fly out for the second out of the inning, a clutch hit plated the two tying runs, tying the game a three and sending it into extras. The Spartans threatened but did not score in the 11th inning when they squandered a Ryan Jones single and Torsten Boss reaching on an error with no outs.

Purdue took home the win in the 14th when Tyler Spillner was able to reach first base on a fielding error by Jones. The next batter, Eric Charles, got on first on a throwing error by Boss. With men on first and second, a wild pitch moved them each up 90-ft. Cameron Perkins then singled to right field to score Spillner and win the game for the Boilermakers, 4-3.

Spartans Baseball Take Two of Three Against Minnesota

MSU Baseball

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier
 
After a rain soaked Friday forced a double header on Saturday the Spartans and Golden Gophers of Minnesota split the twin billing with Michigan State winning on a walk-off in game one before having their five game winning streak snapped in game two. On Sunday, the Spartans shook off their loss and beat the Gophers in the 10th inning on a Torsten Boss walk-off allowing the Spartans to win two out of three games on the weekend.

Saturday - Double Header

The first game of the double header featured some of the best pitchers, starting and relievers, in the Big Ten. Michigan State had Tony Bucciferro on the mound going against Minnesota's TJ Oakes. Oakes entered the game ranked No. 1 in the Big Ten in ERA, IP and wins.

Minnesota struck first in the game when they strung together three hits in the first inning and were able to plate a runner, but the Spartans Jordan Keur tied things up in the bottom of the third inning with an RBI single.

Michigan State got to Oakes in the fifth with two outs when Ryan Jones singled to center field and was able to scamper around the bases and score on a Boss double to left field. After a shaky first inning, Bucciferro was able to toss four scoreless innings for the Spartans, allowing them to get out to a 2-1 lead in the fifth inning.

The Gophers tied the game at two in the sixth when catcher Matt Halloran singled in a run. Minnesota was able to chase Bucciferro from the game in the seventh when they loaded the bases with two outs. Spartans coach Jake Boss, Jr. gave the ball to Jeff Kinley to get his team out of the jam. Kinley did his job and got the next batter to ground out to end the inning.

Oakes also left after throwing 6.2 innings; he left runners on first and second with two outs for his reliever who was able to get Boss to pop out to end the threat.

Kinley and Gophers reliever Tom Windle both continued the pitchers duel into the 11th inning when Joel Fisher singled with two outs to put Spartans on first and third. Minnesota turned to their closer Kevin Kray to stop the rally but he walked Jones, loading the bases. Then Boss was able to draw a five pitch walk that forced in the game winning run.

The win was the Spartans third walk-off of the season, the fifth win of the season for Kinley and expanded Michigan State's extra innings record to 5-0.

Game two did not go the Spartans way. Michigan State, looking for their sixth win in a row, jumped out to a early 1-0 lead in the first inning. Ryan Krill, continued to shine in his freshman season when he drove in an RBI in the first with a ground out. The Spartans struggled to bring runners home in the early innings, leaving four runners on in the first two innings.

Krill's RBI would be the only run the Spartans would get until in the late game as they struggled to get anything going against Minnesota's DJ Snelton. The Gophers would bounce back in the second inning and plate two runners before adding two more in the fifth to take a 4-1 lead.

After a shaky first two innings Snelton settled in and faced the minimum through the next four innings. In the seventh the Spartans were able to scratch across another run when Jimmy Pickens was able to ground out to the right side of the infield.

Snelton completed the game, his first of the season, while throwing 121 pitches, allowing seven hits and fanning three. His counterpart, Andrew Waszak allowed just four runs through 5.2 innings, but his offense wasn't able to bail him out and he suffered his third loss of the season, making his record 4-3.

Sunday

In another extra innings game, the Spartans counted on Torsten Boss once again as he drove in the winning run on an RBI single to lift Michigan State over Minnesota in the rubber match of the series by a score of 5-4.

Extra innings have been good to the Spartans this year, with Sunday's victory being the fourth walk-off win of the season and second of the series for the Spartans. Michigan State's bats were hot on Sunday, racking up 15 hits, lead by Jordan Keur who matched a career high four hits on the day.

Minnesota scored twice in the eighth to tie the game at four, then Michigan State loaded the bases with no outs for the second straight inning, but came up short in both instances. Jimmy Pickens attempted to break the tie with two outs in the eighth when he made a break for the plate on a fly ball to center, but Gopher's center fielder Jake Bergren cut him down at the plate to end the inning.

In the 10th inning the Spartans once again filled the bases with no one out when Pickens launched a deep hit to right-center field, but as he was rounding first base he ran into Gophers first baseman Dan Olinger. The collision with Olinger sent Pickens stumbling but he was able to round second base and dig for third where he was thrown out. The umpires called Olinger for interference however, and awarded Pickens third base on the play.

Joel Fisher hit a hard liner between the shortstop and third baseman, but Gophers SS Matt Puhl was able to knock it down before it got out of the infield and held Pickens at third while Fisher reached first on the infield hit. In the next at bat, Ryan Jones was able to hit a pop up that dropped just in front of the Minnesota left fielder; it allowed Fisher to advance to second and Jones to reach first but was not deep enough to score Pickens.

With the bases loaded and no outs Boss stepped to the plate. He had worked a five pitch walk to score the game-winning run in the first game of the double header on Saturday and now he looked to do the same. On the first pitch Boss saw he connected with it and drove it to left-center field to score Pickens and give Michigan State the 5-4 win.

Spartans Fall 4-3 To Michigan In Front of Record Crowd

MSU Athletics

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

Michigan State continued to struggle with runners on base for the second straight day, falling 4-3 to Michigan, in front of a McLane Baseball Stadium record 2,734 crowd, despite amassing 13 hits and leaving 10 runners on base. The loss dropped the Spartans record to 18-10, 2-3 in the Big Ten.

Five Spartans collected two hits apiece, but despite the efforts of Jordan Keur, Torsten Boss, Justin Scanlon, Blaise Salter and Anthony Cheky the Spartans couldn't hold onto an early lead.

Salter used his two hits to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead after four innings with his RBI singles in the second and fourth. The lead was short lived as Michigan tied things up in the fifth off a Dylan Delaney two-run single to center.

With things knotted at two, the Spartans regained the lead in the bottom of the fifth by capitalizing on two errors by the Wolverines. Keur singled to left to lead off the inning. Then on a wild pitch by Michigan starter Trent Szkutnik he advanced to second base, but the Wolverines catcher, Cole Martin, overthrew the bag and the ball landed in center field. Keur took advantage of this to advance 90 more feet to third base. Center fielder Patrick Biondi grabbed the overthrown ball and attempted to cut down Keur at third, he however, missed the bag which allowed Keur to cover the last 90 feet to give the Spartans a 3-2 lead.

The lead was not to be however, as the Wolverines tied and then passed the Spartans in the top of the sixth inning. Martin redeemed himself with an RBI groundout that tied the game at three. Then a John DiLaura single chased Spartan starter Andrew Waszak from the game leaving runners on first and third with two outs.

Spartans coach Jake Boss, Jr. turned to his beast in the bullpen, Jeff Kinley, who had not allowed a run in his previous four outings. Kinley was unable to keep that streak alive as he allowed a hit to pinch hitter Kevin Krantz that put the Wolverines ahead 4-3.

Despite giving up the run in the sixth Kinley gave Michigan State 3.1 innings of solid work, allowing just two more hits and striking out three batters. Waszak was charged with all four runs and the loss on Saturday. He was only able to stay on the mound for 5.2 innings while surrendering eight hits, walking one and striking out four.

Michigan State threatened but did not score in the bottom of the sixth after a leadoff single by Scanlon chased Szkutnik from the mound. The Wolverines handed the ball to Alex Lakatos who was able to wipe the runner from the diamond with a double play. However, he got himself into another jam when he walked Ryan Krill and then giving up a frozen rope to Cheky which reached the right field gap, but a late jump by Krill allowed him to be cut down at home to end the inning.

Like their game on Friday, the Spartans struggled with men on base, managing to get runners on base in the final three innings but failing to get any of them around to score. Michigan State left runners on base in seven innings on Saturday.

The Spartans once again threatened in the eighth when Jimmy Pickens singled and was able to advance to second off a wild pick off toss. A groundout moved him to third base but a popout to second base ended the threat by Michigan State.

Michigan State was able to get Boss on base with two outs in the ninth, but pinch hitter Jared Hook struck out to end the Spartans threat and the game. 

Wolverines Drop Spartans 4-0 in Ann Arbor

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By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

Michigan's Brandon Sinnery proved to be too much for the Spartans as he tossed 8.1 scoreless innings in the Wolverines 4-0 victory of the series opener with Michigan State in Ann Arbor on Friday night.

Michigan State has ace Tony Bucciferro on the mound and, as always, he gave them a good outing, throwing 7.2 innings while striking out seven. The loss was reminiscent of Bucciferro's first Big Ten outing this season against Ohio State. During his two starts against the Buckeyes and Wolverines Bucciferro has allowed just four runs but has not received any run support of his own.

The Wolverines had their own ace on the mound in Sinnery, who turned in a stellar performance. He was eventually relieved from the mound, but only after throwing 127 pitches in 8.1 innings of scoreless ball while fanning five, walking just one and scattering nine hits.

UM shortstop Dylan Delaney gave the Wolverines all the runs they would need in the first inning when he connected with a Bucciferro pitch in the bottom of the first and drove it over the left field wall for a solo home run.

Bucciferro held the score at 1-0 until Patrick Biondi launched a pitch over the right field wall for a home run and John Lorenz plated a runner with a single to left. Coley Crank drove a Bucciferro pitch down the left field line in the eighth for an RBI double, giving the Wolverines a 4-0 advantage.

Michigan State outhit Michigan nine to eight, but struggled with runners in scoring position, stranding nine men on base in the game and four in the eighth and ninth innings.

The Spartans threatened in the sixth inning when the top of the order clicked and combined for three straight singles to load the bases with two out. Michigan stymied the rally when Sinnery was able to get Tony Wieber to pop out to end the inning.

In the eighth the Spartans threatened once again, getting Jordan Keur and Torsten Boss on base on back to back singles. But with the runners on and two out the Spartans were unable to cash in on the scoring opportunity.

Michigan State gave one last effort with one out in the ninth when they loaded the bases. But a Jared Hook grounder that was turned for a double play ended the rally and the game for the Spartans.

The Michigan victory is their first in their last four opportunities, with the losing skid dating back to the 2010 season. The series shifts to McLane Baseball Stadium in East Lansing on Saturday before closing out back in Ann Arbor on Sunday.

Spartans Score 8 In First En Route to 10-5 Victory over Buckeyes

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier
 
The Spartans took the rubber game of their series with Ohio State on Monday with an eight-run first inning en route to a 10-5 victory. Michigan State's victory was their 13th in their last 15 and seventh of eight at McLane Baseball Stadium this season.

Monday's game was the opposite of the first two of the series which were pitchers duels, on Monday the two teams racked up 11 runs and eight hits. Ohio State got out in front of the Spartans early with a three run first inning before Michigan State answered with eight of their own in the bottom of the first.

During their eight-run first the Spartans sent 12 men to the plate, racked up five hits and knocked Buckeye starter Brett McKinney out of the game. Tony Wieber lead the rally in the first when he sent a single up the middle that scored two.

With two runners in and Wieber on base Joel Fisher hit a frozen rope down the left field line that scored Wieber to tie the game at three. Ryan Krill then hit a sacrifice fly to center field that plated Fisher before Ryan Jones got his second hit of the inning that scored another two runs.With the hit Jones knocked McKinney out of the game.

Ohio State turned to John Kuchno in relief - his first batter was Jordan Keur, who promptly sent a double down the left field line to bring home another two runs to increase the Spartans lead to 8-3.

On the mound for the Spartans was Mike Theodore, who despite being knocked around in the first, bounced back allowing one run in the second before retiring nine consecutive batters. However, he was unable to get out of the fifth inning. Coach Jake Boss, Jr. took the ball from Theodore after 4.2 innings and handed it off to Jeff Kinley with the bases loaded and two outs.

Kinley proved the trust his coach had in him was well placed by getting out of the bases loaded jam with a flyout and providing the Spartans with 4.1 innings of scoreless, two hit work. During his time on the mound Kinley recorded a career-high six strikeouts and earned his fourth win of the season. Kinley has been on high of late, not allowing an earned run in his last four appearances.

In the bottom of the eighth Torsten Boss launched a one-out triple before being plated on a Wieber double to extend the Spartans lead to 10-5. The victory gives the Spartans their first series win over Ohio State since 2007. 

Spartans Walk-Off Against Chippewas

Photo from MSU Athletics

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

With the game tied at five apiece in the bottom of the ninth Spartans Head Coach Jake Boss Jr. tapped Jared Hook as the pinch-hitter and he delivered. Hook stepped into the box against Central Michigan's Dietrich Enns, a Cape Codd League All-Star, and launched a fly ball into the outfield that allowed Torsten Boss to tag from third base and score the game winning run giving the Spartans a 6-5 victory.

Wednesday's win is the Spartans 11th in their last 12 and their third straight over the Central Michigan Chippewas.

The game was anything but clean defensively as the teams combined for seven errors, which may or may not have been due to the nearly constant 25 mph winds.

Mick VanVossen made his first collegiate start for the Spartans - he spent 4.1 innings on the mound. During his time on the rubber VanVossen gave up six hits and five runs, only two of which were earned. He used his 86 pitches to fan two Chippewas while issuing four walks.

VanVossen did not however earn the victory, Jeff Kinley earned that honor after throwing 4.2 innings of relief. Kinley did not allow a run while striking out four on the day.

Central Michigan countered VanVossen with Matt Trowbridge who went five innings while giving up four runs, two earned, eight hits while striking out five batters.

After four innings the Chippewas held a 5-3 lead over the Spartans but Michigan State caught up with runs in the fifth and sixth to tie the game. Justin Scanlon delivered an RBI in the fifth before Boss hit a sacrifice fly in the sixth to tie the game.

The Big Ten Conference opener begins on Friday when the Spartans host the Ohio State Buckeyes for a three game series.

Spartans Sweep Cincinnati Before Homestand

From the Lansing State Journal

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier
 
Saturday, Mar. 17   Spartans v. Cincinnati        Game 2 of 3

Last week the Spartans endured a 16-inning marathon of a game, started by Andrew Waszak, who went seven of those innings, and beat Seton Hall. On Saturday, Waszak was once again on the mound and the Spartans game against the Cincinnati Bearcats extended all the way to the 14th inning where John Martinez drove in the winning run to give the Spartans the 5-4 victory.

After being swept in College Station, Tex. in Feb. the Spartans have won five of their last six games and with their latest extra-innings win improve to 3-0 in extra inning games on the season.

Waszak again went seven innings on Saturday, giving up two runs on five hits while fanning four Bearcats. It was another quality start for the Spartans No. 2 pitcher who now boasts a 1.34 ERA on the season.

Michigan State was leading 4-3 heading into the bottom of the ninth and with their shutdown closer Tony Wieber toeing the rubber the Spartans thought they were in the clear. Wieber however struggled in his outing and the Bearcats were able to scratch two runs across off the pitcher who hadn't allowed a run in his last seven appearances.

With the game tied at four the Spartans called on Bryce Jenney out of the bullpen to keep the Bearcats from rallying in extras - he did just that. Jenney tossed three scoreless and handed the ball to the eventual winning pitcher Ryan Martin, his first career win.


The Bearcats threatened but did not score off Martin in the 13th. Martin allowed a single which due to an error and a flyout placed a runner on third with two outs, but Martin was able to get the next batter to pop out.

Torsten Boss reached base in the 14th when the Cincinnati shortstop bobbled the ball and allowed him to reach first on an error on a fielder's choice. With one out Jordan Keur bunted Boss over to second where he was able to score off a Martinez single up the middle.

Sunday, Mar. 18     Spartans v. Cincinnati    Game 3 of 3

The Spartans came out swinging on Sunday, compiling 16 hits off Cincinnati pitching while scoring nine runs in a 9-4 victory.With the win the Spartans have won the last six of seven and completed a sweep of the Bearcats.

Mike Theodore made his third start of the season for the Spartans but was still looking for his first win despite having allowed just one earned run and boasting a 0.89 ERA. Theodore had not enjoyed much run support in his previous starts, but Sunday was different.

Michigan State was able to plate five runs in the first two innings and give Theodore the support he needed. Theodore allowed two runs off six hits on the day and came home with his first victory as a Spartan.

John Martinez continued his hot streak and drove in another RBI in the seventh to give the Spartans a 7-2 lead before Jordan Keur singled in another in the eighth. With the score at 8-2 Jimmy Pickens drew a bases loaded walk later in the eighth to drive the score to 9-2.

Sunday was the first collegiate appearance for Mick VanVossen, drafted in 2011 by the Texas Rangers, when he relieved Theodore in the sixth inning. In his 2.2 innings of work VanVossen allowed just one run on four hits while fanning and walking two apiece.

The sweep of Cincinnati was the 11th sweep of a series for the Spartans under Coach Jake Boss Jr., which continues to allow Boss to add to the school record in that category.

Bucciferro Shines as Spartans Down Bearcats 4-3

Photo from Michigan State Baseball Facebook Page

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier
 
It may have taken a career game by Tony Bucciferro but the Spartans went into Cincinnati and beat the Bearcats 4-3 on Friday. Bucciferro, the Spartans right-handed ace, fanned a career-high 10 batters while pitching his way to his 23rd career victory.

With the win, Bucciferro (3-1) moves into a tie for fourth in all-time wins for Michigan State with Larry Ike and Brian Wolcott. His 10 strikeouts also pushes Bucciferro over 200 for his career, becoming only the third Spartan to accomplish such a feat.

The Spartans scored first off a Torsten Boss sacrifice fly in the first to score Andrew Cheky. Bucciferro then surrendered two runs in the bottom of the inning giving Cincinnati a 2-1 lead going into the 2nd inning.

The two runs would be the only the Bearcats would get off Bucciferro who had a highlight reel game, retiring 10 consecutive Cincinnati batters at one point.

Michigan State would knot the game at two in the fourth when a Ryan Krill single allowed Jimmy Pickens to reach the plate. The Spartans would then jump out the the lead in the sixth when Pickens again reached the plate, this time off the bat of John Martinez.

Boss then added one more to the Spartans tally in the seventh when he knocked home Jordan Keur on a double. Bucciferro would give up the ball in the eighth and was relieved by Trey Popp who then promptly gave up three hits to his first four batters, including a leadoff home run in the inning that cut into the Spartans lead, 4-3.

Head Coach Jake Boss Jr. called on Saturday's starter, David Garner, who came into the eighth with his team up one and runners on second and third with just one out. Garner then fanned his first batter before walking the bases loaded and getting the final out of the inning on a looking strikeout.

Coach Boss then gave the ball to his closer, Tony Wieber, in the ninth and he made short work of the Bearcats. Wieber fanned all three batters in the ninth and picked up his fourth save of the season and 13th of his career.

His 13 saves puts Wieber one save away from a tie with Brad Lamont for the Michigan State record. Including Wieber's three and Bucciferro's 10, Spartan pitchers recorded 15 strikeouts on Friday.
 

Spartans Rally Pushes Them Past Xavier

Photo from MSU Baseball Facebook Page

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

The Spartans headed to Port Charlotte, Fla. to compete in the Snowbird Classic and their first opponent was Xavier. Michigan State rallied for the lead in the bottom of the seventh to claim a 6-5 lead after scoring three runs in the inning. They would go on to add two more runs in the eighth to bring the final to 8-5.

In the seventh the Spartans did their damage with two outs, striking for three straight hits to rally for three runs. Anthony Cheky made his second collegiate start in center field and started the seventh inning rally with a single before stealing second, his second swipe of the game. Torsten Boss then drove home Cheky on an RBI double before Ryan Jones singled in Boss, tying the game at five.

A Jimmy Pickens double down the right field line scored Jones before he was caught in a run-down to end the inning. Ryan Krill started the Spartans off in the eighth when he drove a double to the right center field wall that scored Justin Scanlon before he himself came to the plate on a balk and an error in the field.

Spartans starter Tony Bucciferro had an uncharacteristically poor outing, being charged with all five Xavier runs while surrendering seven hits, walking two and fanning four during his 6.2 innings on the mound. Bryce Jenney came on in relief of Bucciferro and although he allowed one of the runners he inherited from Bucciferro to score he threw a scoreless eighth and picked up his first win as a Spartan. 

Tony Wieber came on to throw his usual ninth inning and sat Xavier down in order to record his third save of the season. His 12 career saves now places his second all time for the Spartans with Mike Ericson and Domanick Squires.

The key to the Spartans recent wins and their ability to hang with the top teams in the country is that Coach Jake Boss Jr. has them running the base paths - the Spartans have stolen eight bases in the last two games, three from Cheky who is making a name for himself in his first two collegiate starts.

Spartans Bounce Back with Win Over No. 25 Baylor

Photo from MSU Baseball Facebook Page

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

The Spartans bounced back from a weekend drubbing in College Station, Tex. to ride the performance of David Garner to a 4-0 win over No. 25 Baylor in Waco, Tex. The sophomore RHP Garner tossed six scoreless innings while scattering three hits and fanned four Baylor Bears.

Coming off three straight losses to No. 5 Texas A&M and a loss earlier in the season to then No. 15 Louisville the victory over No. 25 Baylor was the Spartans second win over a ranked team this season. Michigan State defeated No. 11 St. John's on Opening Day in Dunedin, Fla.

Baylor countered Garner with freshman Austin Stone, who was making his first collegiate start, but he was pulled from the mound after throwing just 1.2 innings. Stone got the hook after walking two straight Spartans before hitting another to load the bases. Michigan State was unable to capitalize on Stone's miscues and were unable to plate any of the runs that were on base.

The Bears pitching struggled with control all game, walking 10 batters on the day over the six pitchers that were called to the mound. 

Torsten Boss got things rolling for the Spartans in the third when he lead off the inning with a bunt before advancing to second on a throwing error. Ryan Jones was able to drive in the run with a double but got greedy and was thrown out at third trying to stretch his double into a triple.

Michigan State again added to it's lead in the sixth on a Boss groundout that scored Anthony Cheky, who was making his first collegiate start in center field. The Spartans stretched their lead to 3-0 on a Jimmy Pickens RBI infield single.

Cheky came around to score again for the Spartans in the seventh when Jordan Keur drove him in on an RBI single. Following Garner to the mound was Jeff Kinley, Trey Popp and Tony Wieber who each threw an inning of relief to close out the game.

Spartans Drop Final Game to Aggies

Photo from MSU Baseball Facebook Page

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

They jumped out to an early lead but the Spartans were unable to hold off the hard charging Aggies who came back and beat them 9-8 on Sunday. Michigan State was able to strike for 10 hits and left six runners on base but couldn't get over the hump and allowed Texas A&M to get back into the game and ultimately win.

Things started out going the Spartans way in the first inning, with Jordan Keur reaching on a fielding error and Justin Scanlon reaching right after him after a catcher interference call. With two runners on Torsten Boss singled to right which scored an unearned run in Keur. Ryan Jones hit a fly ball to left that allowed Scanlon to score from 3B. With one out and in a 2-1 count Jimmy Pickens hit one over the fence bringing Boss with him on his home run trot. Michigan State then grounded into two straight outs to end the inning.

It was just what Coach Jake Boss Jr. had wanted his team to do, take advantage of the miscues that the Aggies gave them and get runners home. In the first the Spartans were able to plate four runners on two hits and three errors.

TAMU was able to claw back into the game in the second off two throwing errors by 3B Andrew Carpenter. With two runners on base due to throwing errors and a walk the Aggies had the bases loaded and were able to get a run across after Spartans starter Mike Theodore hit an Aggies batter.

Texas A&M was able to cut the lead in half in the fourth inning when a throwing error by 1B Ryan Krill allowed the Aggies to make the score 4-2. TAMU was able to take a 5-4 lead in the sixth when a pair of singles by Jacob House and Brandon Wood scored three.

The Spartans imploded in the seventh, allowing four more runs when a walk, stolen base and a balk moved runners to second and third base. After a two RBI triple chased Bryce Jenney, Trey Popp took the ball and promptly surrendered another RBI triple and an RBI single to drive the score to 9-4 in favor of the Aggies.

In the eighth Michigan State mounted a rally driven by Jared Hook RBI double and a Krill 2 RBI home run. With the score now at 9-7 the Spartans turned to their closer Tony Wieber in the bottom of the eighth and struck out two of the four batters that inning. In the ninth Keur singled to left before being moved up by a Boss single and was able to score on a Jones single. Pickens then flew out to center field.

Spartans starter Mike Theodore performed well during his 4.1 innings of work, surrendering just three hits while giving up two runs, neither of which were earned. While he did strike out two of the 23 batters he faced, he struggled with command and hit two batters with a pitch. His replacement Jeff Kinley did not fare well in his 1.1 innings as he surrendered three earned runs on three hits while hitting one batter.

The bullpen is where Michigan State lost on Sunday as Jenney, who was brought in as relief for Kinley, gave up three earned runs on two hits in just 0.2 innings of work. Popp then relinquished another run on two hits in his 0.2 innings before Wieber was able to shut down the Aggies in his one inning of work, giving up just one hit.

Michigan State was able to take early advantage of some Aggies miscues but could not keep it up against the No. 5 Aggies who were just too much for them to handle. The Spartans (4-6) head to Waco, Tex. on March 7 to take on the Baylor Bears.

Errors Cost Spartans Series Opener Against Aggies

From MSU Athletics Department

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

Michigan State headed down to College Station, Tex. to take on the No. 5 Texas A&M Aggies in the biggest series of the young baseball season but errors cost the Spartans the game as they lost 7-3 in front of 5,236 onlookers.

The Spartans were able to get to Aggies starter Michael Wacha, who had surrendered just three hits in his previous two starts. Jordan Keur, Torsten Boss, Ryan Jones and Ryan Krill each struck for two hits as the Spartans combined for 12 hits Friday night. Michigan State, now 4-4, left 10 runners on base, seven of whom were in scoring position against the Aggies, something that Coach Jake Boss Jr. called "frustrating."

Wacha gave up the first run, giving up a lead-of home run to Boss, his second of the season. But A&M came right back and plated two runs in the third inning and three in the fourth to gain a 5-1 lead - they never looked back. Spartans starter Tony Bucciferro didn't have the benefit of solid defense behind him during the third and fourth as his defenders committed three errors.

In Wacha's seven innings of work he fanned seven Spartans while surrendering a season-high eight hits and two runs. His counterpart, Bucciferro, didn't fair as well as he was on the mound for six innings, surrendering five runs, all earned, on 10 hits while striking out five Aggies.

Jimmy Pickens singled in the Spartans second run in the eighth inning to bring the score to 6-2 after the Aggies plated their sixth the half-inning before. A&M reliever Estevan Uriegas pitched out of a bases loaded jam in the eighth by striking out Andy Johnson on three straight pitches.

Texas A&M would go on to add another run in the bottom of the eighth to extend the lead to 7-2. In the ninth the Spartans recorded three straight singles from Krill, pinch-hitter Blaise Slater and Keur loading the bases before Boss hit into a double play bringing the score to 7-3. Pickens then grounded out to end the game.

Spartan Baseball Opens Season in Big Ten/Big East Challenge

Photo from SpartanNation.com

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

Baseball season is already here for the Spartans who traveled down to Dunedin, Fla. to compete in the final year of the Big Ten-Big East Challenge. Michigan State drew a tough slate of opponents for the tournament facing off against No. 11 St. John's, South Florida, and No. 15 Louisville over the weekend.

RHP Tony Bucciferro becomes the Spartans ace this season and took the mound in the opener against St. John's, securing a victory on the power of his teammates bats. The team wasn't able to keep things rolling on Saturday when they fell late to South Flordia in a 2-1 loss.

Opening Day vs. No. 11 St. John's - Feb. 17

Michigan State never trailed on the day to St. John's and rode a six-run eight inning to claim an 11-4 victory. The Opening Day win is nothing new for Spartan Head Coach Jake Boss Jr. who extended his Opening Day record to 4-0 in green and white.

Bucciferro stepped up and showed why Coach Boss considers him the ace of the staff and why he was named co-captain by getting his 21st career victory and surrendering just one hit through six innings while sitting down his first 13 batters. On the day Bucciferro struck out six while walking just one.

The performance of his ace pitcher is exactly what Coach Boss wanted to see out of the gates as he is looking to fill the void left by Kurt Wunderlich. Wunderlich dominated the opposition and clearly established himself as the ace of the staff last season - something Coach Boss wanted to see from Bucciferro. If the senior can continue with the kind of stuff he displayed Friday, he will do Wunderlich justice.

Pre-season All American Torsten Boss played his first career game in center field on Friday, a move that didn't appear to phase him as he turned in a 3-for-5 performance with a home run in his first plate appearance and three RBI on the day. Boss had previously played third base the past two seasons but Coach Boss, no relation, said that he felt that Boss was too athletic for the hot corner and could do much more in center field.

The Spartans relief corps looked a bit shaky once Bucciferro left the game, allowing St. John's to creep back into the game, getting as close as 5-4 before closer Tony Wieber came in to shut down the rally. Following clutch RBI knocks in the eighth Wieber recorded his 10th career save, tied for fourth most in Michigan State history.

vs. South Florida - Feb. 18

The Spartans suffered their first loss of the season on a solo-home run by South Florida's Andrew Longely in the bottom of the ninth inning, handing MSU a 2-1 defeat. Longely's home run was just the coup-de-gras in the collapse - the Spartans led the Bulls 1-0 heading into the eighth but following an RBI double and Longely's homer the next inning green and white went home losers.

RHP Andrew Waszak dominated the Bulls through seven, holding them scoreless while surrendering just four hits, walking two and striking out three. The junior looks to solidify his spot in the rotation with a number of quality starts early in the season.

LHP Jeff Kinley relieved Waszak in the eighth and was hit around to some extent, allowing an RBI double with two outs in the eighth before surrendering the game-winning homer in the ninth. Kinley's performance wasn't all bad, the contact pitcher was able to strike out a batter and secure a ground-out before Longely's one-out walk-off homer in the ninth.

The only run the Spartans were able to plate came off the bat of junior Jordan Keur who singled in Joel Fisher in the 2nd. Keur's RBI wasn't the only scoring opportunity the Spartans had as they stranded seven runners, four of whom were in scoring position on the day.

Boss may have some competition this season as Keur is 5-for-7 over the Spartans first two games this season. The Spartans have RHP David Garner on the mound as they take on No. 15 Louisville on Feb. 19.

Spartan Baseball Picked to Repeat as Big Ten Champs

Photo from SpartanNation.com via MSU SID

By Sean Gagnier

Easton Baseball released their predictions for each of the major collegiate baseball conferences and has Michigan State repeating as the Big Ten champions in 2012. The Spartans took control of the Big Ten last season and won their first conference title since 1979.

2011 saw Michigan State win more than 30 games for the second year in a row and maintain the highest batting average in the Big Ten (.318). Despite losing several players to the MLB draft the Spartans are returning seven starters, four of which posted batting averages of .300+.

The bad news for Michigan State is that they lost Brandon Eckerle, who hit .379 last season, Jeff Holm a .376 hitter and ace-pitcher Kurt Wunderlich who went 10-2 with a 3.19 ERA. With their top two hitters having left the banks of the Red Cedar the Spartans will look to players like Torsten Boss, .370 in 2011, and Ryan Jones, .344, to pick up the slack and propel them back to the championship.

Michigan State could have fielded an all "Gold Glove" team in 2011 with a .976 fielding percentage. The Spartans will again field Boss at 3B, Justin Scanlon at SS, Jones at 2B and the nearly perfect Joel Fisher. Behind the plate Fisher was only credited with one error during the 2011 season and will be managing an experienced pitching rotation.

The pitching rotation is highlighted by Tony Bucciferro (8-3, 3.38 ERA), Andrew Waszak (4-3, 4.79 ERA) and  David Garner (5-4, 4.62 ERA). The top Spartan pitchers will need to maintain their output from last season in order to give their team a chance to get back to the Big Ten title game and beat Illinois for the outright Big Ten title.

Top Spartan relievers Tony Wieber (5-0, 3.64 ERA, 8 SV) and Bryce Jenney (0-1, 4.58 ERA, 5 SV) are returning and will be joined by a solid group of incoming players that will fortify the bullpen for Coach Jake Boss.

The highlights of Coach Boss' recruiting class are C Blaise Salter, 1B Ryan Krill, OF Jeremy Pickens and RHP Mick Van Vossen. All four were drafted, Slater, Krill and Pickens by the Detroit Tigers and Van Vossen by the Texas Rangers but decided to head to East Lansing instead of the minors.

This season could prove whether or not Michigan State was a fluke last year or if Coach Boss is truly building something special in East Lansing. With the amount of skill the Spartans possess, they should have no trouble reaching 30 wins once again, but it will take special effort by several players to get Michigan State back to where they were last season.