Week 2 Baseball Notebook

Posted by SID

Overall Record: 5-3; Record for the Week: 4-0

Last Week:
2/25 Vanderbilt 10, Western Kentucky 7
2/27 Vanderbilt 7, Vermont 2
2/28 Vanderbilt 14, Vermont 3
3/1 Vanderbilt 14, Vermont 1

This Week (Buy Tickets):
3/3 vs. Lipscomb - 4 p.m. CT at Hawkins Field
3/5 vs. Illinois-Chicago - 4 p.m. CT at Hawkins Field
3/6 vs. Illinois-Chicago - 4 p.m. CT at Hawkins Field
3/7 vs. Illinois-Chicago - 2 p.m. CT at Hawkins Field
3/8 vs. Illinois-Chicago - Noon CT at Hawkins Field

Notes:
Vanderbilt went 4-0 on the week, scoring in double digits in three of the four wins … Offensively the team batted .386 on the week with 15 doubles, 45 runs scored, 30 walks and just 12 strikeouts in 132 at-bats (.500 on base percentage) … Aaron Westlake was torrid at the plate collecting a hit 10 times in 13 at bats (.769) with three doubles, two RBI and six runs scored with a walk and a .733 on base percentage. He moved to catcher for the first time ever against Vermont on Saturday and started two games behind the plate … Steven Liddle went 8-for-13 (.615) with two doubles, a triple, six RBI and six runs scored. He walked five times and struck out once (.684 fielding percentage) … Freshman Riley Reynolds went 4-for-7 (.571) with six runs scored and had five walks and four stolen bases in five attempts in four games, three starts. He stole three bases in Sunday’s win over Vermont … Another freshman, Jason Esposito, went 6-for-15 (.400) with two doubles and three RBI.

Pitching wise, all four starters went a minimum of five innings, with three going six-plus … Caleb Cotham held Vermont hitless and scoreless for 6.2 innings before giving up a RBI single in the seventh inning of Saturday’s win. He ended up giving up three runs, two earned, on three hits with five strikeouts and two walks … Nick Christiani (6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 8 SO, 1BB) and Mike Minor (7.2 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 4 SO, 3 BB) also had quality starts over the weekend … Seven other pitchers had at least an inning of scoreless relief with Sonny Gray (Western Kentucky) and Russell Brewer (Vermont, Game 1) picking up saves … Grayson Garvin (Vermont, Game 2), Mark Lamm (Vermont, Game 3) and Navery Moore (Vermont, Game 3) each saw their first action of the year and pitched an inning of scoreless relief … As a team the staff posted a 2.50 ERA with 33 strikeouts and nine walks in 36.0 innings.

Junior catcher Andrew Giobbi suffered a broken hand in his first at bat against Vermont Friday night and is expected to miss a minimum of four weeks. Aaron Westlake will start behind the plate until he gets back … The Commodores will play five games in six days against 2008 NCAA Tournament clubs in Lipscomb and Illinois-Chicago.