Baseball: Bats are amiss in losses to Ivy foes

Princeton (8-9 overall, 1-3 Ivy League) got off to a murky start, dropping the first game of a Saturday doubleheader against Yale (5-8, 1-1) by a 6-0 score. As the skies began to clear, the Tigers’ bats warmed up and put together a 9-3 win in the second game against the Bulldogs. Just as things were looking up, though, the storm clouds rolled in on Sunday, and Princeton dropped both games against Brown (8-9, 3-1) by scores of 7-3 and 7-2.

The Tigers were almost on the wrong side of history in the opening game on Saturday, as Yale pitcher Vinny Lally came within two outs of pitching a perfect game. The crafty lefthander baffled the Princeton lineup with a combination of fastballs and well-timed off-speed pitches, striking out nine batters and allowing only one hit in a 6-0 win.

Senior infielder Dan DeGeorge broke up the perfect game in the bottom of the seventh inning with a double to deep centerfield.

“We were down 6-0 and were just trying to get something started. The perfect game was the furthest thing from our mind,” head coach Scott Bradley said. “In college baseball, scoring five runs [in an inning] is doable. In terms of our mindset, we just want to try to have good at-bats all the time, which I don’t think we did a very good job of this weekend.”

Junior pitcher David Hale took the loss — his first of the season — allowing six earned runs and striking out nine.

“I thought David Hale’s stuff was very good. He made a couple of bad pitches, and every time he did they capitalized,” Bradley said. “David walked three guys, and every one of those guys scored. That just shows that throwing hard isn’t necessarily the only thing.”

It took Princeton until the sixth inning of its second game Saturday to finally put a run on the scoreboard. After senior outfielder Derek Beckman crossed home plate with the Tigers’ first run of the game, the floodgates opened, and Princeton exploded for nine runs against the Yale bullpen to take home a 9-3 victory.

“We had a couple innings where we hit balls a little better, but we never really swung bats the way that we should,” Bradley said. “Having one big inning was nice because it helped us get a win, but what we need better is more consistent solid at-bats throughout games … We need to have more innings where we put runs on the board. You have to consistently be able to score runs, and we did not do a very good job of that this weekend.”

The Tigers plated two runs in the sixth inning before batting around in the eighth for seven more runs. By the time the inning was over, Princeton had recorded eight hits against four Yale pitchers. Sophomore infielder Greg Van Horn finished the game with three hits and two runs while junior outfielder Brian Berkowitz added three hits and three RBI.

Senior pitcher Brad Gemberling twirled a seven-hit, 10-strikeout complete game for his third win of the season. Gemberling worked himself out of multiple jams, leaving seven runners on base during the game. In the top of the eighth inning, with Princeton trailing 3-2 and two Yale runners on base, Gemberling got pinch-hitter Andrew Kolmar to ground into an inning-ending double play. From there, the Tigers lineup took over, giving Gemberling all the support he needed before the righthander returned to pitch the ninth inning.

“I thought Brad threw the ball really well. Brad did a really good job of keeping the game close and giving us a chance to come back,” Bradley said. “I think [Gemberling and Hale] are as good as anybody in the league, but we have to play better defense.”

With an opportunity to finish its first homestand of the season with a winning record, Princeton came up short in both of its games against Brown. In the first game, the Bears took advantage of eight walks and two Princeton errors to post a 7-3 win. Junior pitcher Langford Stuber, who took the loss, struggled with his control, giving up six walks in less than four innings of work.

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Brown pitcher Josh Feit pitched a nine-inning complete game in the series finale, a 7-2 win for the Bears. Early on, it appeared Princeton had Feit on the ropes, as the Tigers had four hits and two runs in the first inning. From there, the Brown pitcher settled down and limited Princeton to only two hits and no runs for the rest of the game.

Sophomore pitcher David Palms gave up nine hits and six runs in five innings of work and was credited with the loss. Palms held the Bears scoreless through the first three innings of play before two-run home runs from infielders Robert Papenhause and Pete Greskoff in consecutive innings gave Brown a 6-2 lead it would not relinquish.

“Baseball is a weird thing. You go from a weekend at William & Mary, where we swung the bats really well, to this weekend,” Bradley said. “Baseball is a sport where sometimes the harder you try, the worse off you are. Some guys were trying to do a little too much, and that will hurt you in baseball.”

The Tigers hope that as the spring weather continues to improve, their performance at the plate and in the field will progress in turn.