Baseball: Ivy slate continues against Yale, Brown

Last weekend, the Tigers went 2-2 in the opening weekend of their Ivy League season. Princeton split a pair of home games against Harvard on Saturday, and then split against Dartmouth on Sunday. The weekend was characterized by good pitching, timely hitting and tight games. Each of the weekend’s four games was decided by two runs or less including two — the first game against Harvard and the nightcap against Dartmouth — which were decided in extra innings.

This weekend, the Tigers will face two of the Ivy League’s better offenses. The Bears went 2-2 in their first conference games and are in the league’s top five in batting average, on-base percentage, doubles and home runs. Though they lost all four games last weekend, the Bulldogs currently lead the conference in slugging percentage, runs scored, runs batted in and home runs.

The weekend opens at in Providence, R.I., for two games against the Bears. Brown first baseman Pete Greskoff currently leads the Ivy League with seven home runs, and junior catcher Matt Colantonio is among the league’s best hitters. Last season, Princeton surrendered 14 runs in two games to the Bears’ offense, two losses that kick-started a five-game losing streak. This weekend, it will be critical for the Tigers’ pitching staff to establish a rhythm early.

On Sunday, the Tigers will travel to New Haven, Conn., for two games against the Bulldogs. Yale’s vaunted offense is led by second baseman Gant Elmore and first baseman Trygg Larsson-Danforth. Elmore is currently ranked second in the league with a .400 batting average. The Bulldogs’ leadoff hitter has also scored 21 runs and driven in 12. Larsson-Danforth, Yale’s powerful cleanup hitter, leads the Ivy League in RBI, with 28, and is second in the conference with six home runs. From top to bottom, Yale’s lineup is one of the best in the conference. Elmore and Larsson-Danforth provide a lot of the firepower, but Andy Megee and Andrew Moore are also dangerous hitters.

Yale’s pitching staff struggled mightily last weekend, giving up 17 runs in two games to Brown. None of the Yale starters has electric stuff — Pat Ludwig has struck out 30 batters in 30.1 innings — but the Tigers will need to have a strong performance at the plate.

For the Tigers, however, starting pitching has remained a bright spot all season. Last weekend, freshman Zak Hermans pitched a shutout in Princeton’s 2-0 win over Dartmouth. In six innings of work, Hermans gave up four hits, walked one and struck out six. Hermans was named Ivy Co-Rookie of the Week for his performance.

Princeton has also received strong outings from junior pitchers David Palms and Dan Barnes. Barnes gave up just two runs in nine innings last weekend against Harvard, and Palms followed that performance with six innings of three-run ball in the nightcap. The Tigers’ staff ERA is 7.01, but the team’s recent performances — Tuesday night’s 10-2 loss to Rutgers aside — indicate that this number will continue to drop as the season progresses.

Offensively, the Tigers are led by senior captain and second baseman Noel Gonzales-Luna and junior designated hitter Brian Berkowitz. Gonzales-Luna leads the team with a .333 batting average and is second with 13 RBI. Berkowitz, who did not play last season, is batting .325 with a team-high nine doubles and three home runs. As a team, Princeton is currently ranked fifth in the Ivy League in runs scored, with 105, and third in the conference in both hits, with 197, and home runs, with 16.

This is the last time — besides conference playoffs — that the Tigers will face either Brown or Yale this season, and with the short Ivy League season, every conference game is critical. This weekend’s opponents pose a difficult challenge for Princeton’s pitching staff, but if the Tigers work off the momentum they gained last weekend, this could be a triumphant weekend.