Baseball: Tigers keep pace with division behind pitching, homers

As they did last weekend, the Tigers’ pitchers paved the way to victory. In the first game against Yale, sophomore Mike Ford had his second strong performance of the year, going the distance and allowing just three runs, only two of which were earned. Ford had some troubles early in the season, but in Ivy League play, he has two complete-game victories and an ERA of 1.29, continuing his conference success from last year.

Ford’s seven-inning outing was followed by an even longer start from junior Zak Hermans, who went eight-and-a-third innings, striking out six batters and allowing just one run. This outstanding showing allowed the Tigers to eke out a one-run win in the nightcap. It was also a confidence booster for Hermans, who had a rougher than expected outing last week in a loss against Dartmouth.

“I was throwing my off-speed better than last week,” Hermans said. “It was good to get back on track. Trying to get a lot of quick, easy outs was the main thing.”

The pitching on Sunday was less predictable. For the fourth time in Ivy League play, Princeton’s starter went the distance in the opening game. Junior Matt Bowman, who had nine strikeouts and allowed one run in a full seven innings last week, outdid himself at Brown with a complete-game shutout in which he struck out 12 batters.

It wasn’t until the last game of the weekend that the Tigers’ pitching showed signs of weakness. The Bears got on the board for the first time in the series in the second inning when second baseman Nick Fornaca doubled in a run and crossed the plate two batters later, putting Brown up 2-0. Junior starter Kevin Link let up three more runs in the next frame, when two singles and an error loaded the bases for Brown’s Graham Tyler, who doubled to score three runs.

Link lasted one more inning, which he got through without a problem, but he left in the fifth after giving up a leadoff double. Senior Ryan Makis entered, allowing the inherited runner to score before the end of the inning.

Unfortunately for Princeton, Brown’s usually lackluster offense was relentless. In the sixth, Makis left early after hitting the first batter and walking two more. Sophomore lefty Michael Fagan came in with the bases loaded and walked in a run. After a fielder’s choice that resulted in another run, Fagan walked four consecutive batters, bringing in three more Bears. When the inning ended, Brown was ahead 11-0.

The Tigers’ offense put up solid numbers in every game, starting with Saturday’s opener. The first run of the series was batted in by junior outfielder John Mishu, and Bowman added another run with an infield single to put the Tigers up 2-1. Yale tied it up in the fourth, but Princeton pulled away in the top of the last inning when sophomore right fielder Alec Keller was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Bowman, who had four hits and three RBIs on Saturday, drove in two more runs with a single, and Ford brought home another runner with a sacrifice line-out, giving himself a little more breathing room in the 6-3 victory.

Small ball worked for the Tigers in the second game. Princeton got out to an early lead in the second with RBI singles from juniors Nate Baird and Alex Flink, and that lead held thanks to Hermans. Yale’s starter, David Hickey, had a good day by most standards, and reliever Nolan Becker held the Tigers scoreless and hitless for the last four frames while striking out seven.

At Brown, the Tigers again started off the day with an easy victory. Even before Bowman took the mound and began blowing through the Bears’ lineup, the Tigers had given him a comfortable lead. Keller, the leadoff hitter, got things started with a ground ball single and advanced to second when Bowman reached on an error. Senior Sam Mulroy, who played two games at catcher and two games in center field this weekend, singled to load the bases, and Ford knocked in two runs with another single.

He crossed the plate moments later, when Mishu hit a three-run blast to right-center field, and another homer, this time from sophomore third baseman Jonathan York, brought home junior outfielder Nate Baird two batters later. The Tigers had taken a seven-run lead before Brown’s starter, Will Marcal, got his first out and rolled to an 8-0 victory.

A few of those runs would have been useful in the nightcap. Brown’s starter, Mark Gormley, went seven innings and allowed no runs. When he left, his team was up by 13.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

Two Brown relievers allowed a total of six runs, including homers to Mishu and sophomore designated hitter Ryan Albert, but the hosts still took an easy victory.

In splitting the series, Princeton fell back to .500 overall. The loss will by no means sink the Tigers’ season, especially since it came after five straight wins in the league, but it did drop them to second in the Lou Gehrig Division. That division is now led by Cornell, which is 7-1 in league play and has the best overall record in the league at 21-6-1.

The other three Gehrig teams, Princeton, Columbia and Penn, all have winning records in the Ivy League, meaning that the Tigers have their work cut out to qualify for the Ivy League Championship Series. Next weekend, they will host the Quakers for four games, all of which will be very important given the fierce competition in the division.

“We know every game is going to be twice as important as it was before [in Gehrig division play],” Hermans said. “We don’t feel like we’ve played our best baseball yet.”