BB: OAC: Ohio Athletic Conference

[Spence]

Rain delay in Marietta. Just a brief storm it looks like but the main body of rain is advancing more quickly now and it looks like there may be only be about 2 hours left in the playing day at Schaly Stadium.

Looking unlikely that this 2nd game is completed before the main body arrives.

If today ends early they really need to get this game completed and another in Saturday. That seems questionable.

Having won their way to the championship game, rain favors John Carroll winning the tournament.

[Spence]

And Heidelberg is back to Edelweiss or wherever they came from after a 13-11 loss to Baldwin-Wallace. 26 runs allowed in 2 games for the Burgers.

Really not looking like a regional team right now. Lost season series to Case. Lost season series to BW, lost the league by 2 games clear, 0-2 in the conference tournament, lost 6 of 9 overall.

[Spence]

Well, Brewer said at the beginning of the year that this was a really good league.

Baldwin-Wallace was very good today and John Carroll showed the quality they've had all year. Getting Doring back and near 100% helps a lot too.

Can the OAC get 3 teams? The Pool A and Marietta seem pretty likely to be in, but a third...depends on what happens tomorrow and Sunday I guess.

[Spence]

The tarp is coming off the field (again) in Marietta. 9-7 John Carroll, 9th inning, 2 BW runners on, 1 out.

Would guess John Carroll will need a new pitcher.

JCU came back from 7-2 down to take the lead. Hold they lead, and they are champions.

[Spence]

BW scores 3 in the 9th in what can only be described as highly controversial fashion. JCU turned what looked like a double play to end the game, but the umpire ruled the runner safe at second. BW went on to score on a bases loaded walk, then take the lead.

Bottom 9 now, BW up 1 with a chance to force a second game.

BW wins, 10-9 when the game ends on *another* controversial call at 2nd.

JCU charged out of the dugout thinking they had won, and now has to play another game.

BW may have done enough to get a Pool C berth, but I'm sure they don't want to count on that.

[Spence]

And now fog may become a factor. Some light fog moving in, nothing too serious yet.

This has certainly been one to remember.

[motorman]

Great to see all 4 OAC teams make the field. Could be historic, since they are in 3 different regions. Baldwin Wallace in Mid Atlantic regional, Heidelberg in Mid West, and Marietta and John Carroll in Mid East. Hopefully we see more than 1 make it to Appleton.

[mideastfan2]

I'm thrilled with the draw for all our OAC teams!!

[Dr. Acula]

Congratulations to Herstine and Hug on their awards.

The All-OAC awards drive me nuts sometimes.  I hate when they do dumb stuff like name Lauer and Grove both 1st team catcher and then have no 2nd team catcher.  Make a decision.

I wouldn't be a homer if I didn't lodge a couple Mount-related gripes.  I was bummed that Jakubik didn't get better than HM.  He was 3rd in the conference with a .440 BA in OAC games (.379 overall) and drove in 20 runs in OAC play.  But I was borderline shocked that Morino was left off.  He had 13 errors in 18 OAC games, but to my surprise he wasn't much worse than the guys picked in that regard (one had 12 I saw).  I guess I kind of assumed a guy who was All-OAC last year and ended up 7th in the conference at .387 this year would make it.  It's especially puzzling when the kid with 12 errors is a freshman who hit .314 with negligible power numbers.  Guess I don't get it.     

[Dr. Acula]

Forgot...the reason the Jakubik thing didn't bother me as much is because I'm guessing Hesse would have had the choice to flip flop him and Mathis between 2nd team and HM and he chose to put his senior up for 2nd team.  So I almost view that as a coach's decision, not a voting one.

[EttaFan1]

From a very limited number of times seeing a few of the players....

Lauer from JCU was very good in the OAC tourney and in the regular season. 

I only saw Hug play two games, but he didn't necessarily impress me as much as Monroe did at the plate.  Defensively he was an adventure.

Kettering was really solid at Short when I saw him early in the season.

I didn't see any of the kids from Mount or ONU. 

Herstine was as good of a pitcher as anyone I saw all year.  A couple of kids from other conferences really impressed me, but Herstine was dominant most of the times he pitched. 

Byers was inconsistent.  At times dominant, at times shaky. 

Waite from BW was the second best OAC pitcher I saw this season.   

[Spence]

I don't think they looked much at in-conference play vs. full season at all, or defense.

As far as the regional, I would like where BW is except their first round opponent may have a first team all-American starting pitcher.

Heidelberg was definitely done a huge favor, drawing a team they've beaten twice and are very familiar with. Concordia has a great record but their top two pitchers were knocked around by MIAC schools in probably the toughest teams they faced (they did beat St. Thomas though). The issue for Heidelberg is going to be where is the pitching going to come from...that's become the consistent problem in their late-season downturn.

Marietta probably got a favorable first round draw though Berks does have one pitcher with impressive stats so little doubt that's who MC will see. But getting Widener-LaRoche winner in the second round is tough, both teams look pretty good. And then Mike Finlan's health becomes an issue, and if he's not able you're looking at the kiddie brigade again unless Fulton starts.

JCU got a tough draw, but when you're a Pool A that wouldn't have been a Pool C, you don't have the right to ask for much more than a 6 seed. Both JCU and Salisbury look to have aces I would describe as "good enough" but not great for this level. So in other words, JCU isn't up against a likely all-American.

[motorman]

Part of the reason they don't look at just the conference games is because that is actually a minority of their season for the teams that don't make the OAC Tournament. 18 of 40 scheduled games are conference games. We could play 27 conference games like the teams out west and then complain about our SOS numbers not comparing.

In all your complaining about Heidelberg's HBP numbers Spence, you left out any mention of who is the co-leader in the HBP category. Is it embarassing that Geers has been hit that many times. Maybe he picked the wrong school to attend too. Since the next highest Marietta hitter in the HBP category has only been hit 4 times, he must really be moving into a lot of pitches too. Doubt Marietta's opposition suddenly gets really wild only when he is at the plate.

[Spence]

Geers is one player on a team. Marietta's team is not getting hit that many times, so obviously there's nothing being done on a program level here. And that's all that really matters with regard to that discussion, so you really made the point for me.

He led the team last year with 10 but second was 9, so I'd chalk up at least part of this year's numbers to being a product of multiple outliers -- being hit more often than normal, and other guys not getting hit as often. I don't even know if Geers has Marietta's program record because it's not in the records link on the website. That's for good reason; it's a garbage "record" that requires no skill.

Geers has 19 HBP and the next highest on MC is 4.
Heidelberg has guys with 19, 17, 16, 14, 13, 9, 9, 7 and 115 total. Heidelberg has hit batters almost as many times as Marietta batters have been hit.

So you tell me which program has guys being coached to be hit and which doesn't.

At this point I wish some pitchers would learn to throw because Marietta's had two guys injured this year on hit by pitches. Figures that the team that doesn't try to get hit by them is the one that has the injuries.

[Spence]

As far as numbers in league play go, it should be pretty darned obvious now that the OAC was a higher level of competition than non-conference, and of course you're facing #1 and #2 pitching most of the time as well.

I realize mileage can vary on this one, but at the least I like to see guys do well both inside and out of the league. Still think BW was/is the best offensive team in the conference.