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Pitching Possibilities For Tonight's Deciding Game

Bumped. GO BRUINS. - N

Tonight (8 pm PT, ESPNU), UCLA and Cal St. Fullerton will take to Goodwin Field with the regional championship on the line. The winner will advance to next weekend's Super Regionals and the loser's season will be over. In a do or die game like this teams will throw everything they have at each other. This is most evident on the mound where every single pitcher is at the head coach's disposal. No pitcher will be given much leeway and will be on a short leash. Each team could use 5, 6 or 7 pitchers tonight as they hope to get a few innings out of each guy.

The Bruin pitching staff is in far better shape than the Fullerton staff. UCLA's best arm out of the bullpen, Brendan Lafferty, has yet to pitch this weekend and their next best bullpen arm, Jason Novak, didn't throw yesterday. Fullerton's top two relievers, Adam Jorgenson and Michael Morrison pitched 2.1 innings yesterday and would be weary if used today.

For UCLA:

I talked to Coach Savage last night and he said the two guys most likely to get the start are Garett Claypool and Rob Rasmussen. Claypool has been inconsistent this season, but Savage likes the way he competes and he has postseason experience. Ramussen, as a freshman, doesn't have any postseason experience, but Savage really likes him and has thrown him in some pressure filled situations already. The wildcard here is Tim Murphy, who we almost certainly will see tonight. In college baseball it's not unusual to see aces make an appearance in a deciding game and Murphy has shown a rubber arm all year. I think we'll see him out of the bullpen, but a start would not surprise me.

My guess is we'll see Claypool get the start. They'll hope he can make it 4 innings and turn it over to Brendan Lafferty, who would go 2 or 3. Then Murphy would come in and finish it. That's in a perfect world so we could see Jason Novak for an inning or two or Rasmussen in relief, especially if Claypool runs into early trouble.

For Cal St. Fullerton:

Fullerton's pitching staff is battered so their situation is tough to figure out. They could go with the freshman lefty Kevin Rath, who has pitched against the Bruins twice this year. On March 5, Rath came out of the pen and gave up one run in 1/3 of an inning. On May 20, he got the start and made it two innings, allowing two runs. For the year, Rath was 1-0 with a 6.48 ERA. Rath hasn't pitched in the regionals so he'll have a fresh arm, but he could also have a butterfly stomach.

The Titans could also go with another freshman left in Jason Dovel. The Bruins have seen Dovel too, as he pitched against them three times. On March 4, Dovel finished off a Titan blowout win by pitching two scoreless innings. On May 20, he went 2/3 of an inning without giving up a run. Dovel pitched two nights ago versus the Bruins in mop up duty with the Bruins well ahead and didn't allow a run in 1.2 innings. Dovel went 3-3 with a 5.15 ERA on the year.

Another arm you could see as the starter or out of the bullpen is righty Ryan Ackland (1-1, 2.10). Jorgenson and Morrison are going to be available in a game with such high stakes, but their effectiveness after throwing yesterday is in question. Brian Wilson could be used in relief as well. Wilson, a righty, got the start on Friday versus Rider and threw a complete game shutout. It was Wilson's first start of the season, but in relief he put together a 3.86 ERA.

 

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.

2 recs | Comment 13 comments

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Just talked to one of the players

and while Savage hasn’t told them who’s starting yet, he said it seemed like he was leaning towards Rasmussen.

by ryebreadraz on Jun 2, 2008 2:44 PM PDT   0 recs

Question for Rye

First, thanks for the thorough analysis and insight. You’re the man!!

I would not be surprised to see Kaplan tonite for the Titans. He only pitched into the 3rd on Saturday..don’t know how many pitches he threw.

If Pepperdine and the Bruins both win, what are the chances of the Bruins hosting the Super Regional?

by 78Bruin on Jun 2, 2008 2:52 PM PDT   0 recs

In that scenario the Bruins will host

Two years ago Pepperdine hosted a regional and it was a mess because Eddy D. Field Stadium does not have lights. Since then, the NCAA has said that a stadium must have lights to host postseason games. That means should Pepperdine and UCLA advance, the Bruins would host.

BTW, Pepperdine leads Stanford 6-2 in the 5th inning of their deciding game.

by ryebreadraz on Jun 2, 2008 2:55 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

A 2 run homer and grand slam in the same inning gives Stanford the lead

Pepperdine’s pitching staff was battered entering the regional and now is running on fumes. I can’t see the Waves pulling this one out.

by ryebreadraz on Jun 2, 2008 3:13 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Thanks for the info

If Murphy were to come in to finish the game, how early do you think he’d enter the game?

by gilbert on Jun 2, 2008 2:55 PM PDT   0 recs

No idea

The first week of the season he threw 99 pitches in a start on Saturday, then threw 2 innings in relief on Wednesday. In this situation I could see him going up to 4 innings, but with Murphy you never know. He’s such a competitor out there that I wouldn’t ever put a cap on how much he has to give.

As to when he’d come in, it could be at any point. My guess is Savage would use Murphy to close, but he could use Murphy in the middle innings and use Lafferty to close. Don’t rule out the possibility of Murphy starting either. I’ve heard that he’s been badgering Savage since they got on the bus last night to start.

by ryebreadraz on Jun 2, 2008 3:02 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Heck, I have some Final 4-style butterflies

I’d love to see the local (for me) Arcadia/Pasadena boy Rasmussen shine.

by Raisin on Jun 2, 2008 3:28 PM PDT   0 recs

Stanford beat Pepperdine

Should the Bruins win, they will travel to Palo Alto next weekend for Supers and if the Titans win, the Cardinal will come down to Fullerton.

by ryebreadraz on Jun 2, 2008 4:51 PM PDT   0 recs

Update on the SP?

Any update on who will be on the mound, rye?

Also, and you may have already answered this, what’s your connection to the baseball team? (I ask because you mentioned you spoke with Savage about who the SP would be… just asking ot of pure curiosity).

by cabz on Jun 2, 2008 5:50 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

No word yet from either team

and I don’t expect either team to say anything until game time.

I don’t have any connection to the game. My grandpa and dad, both UCLA alums started taking me to UCLA sporting events when I was very little. I went to the basketball and football games, but also to a lot of baseball games. I have spent a lot of time at Jackie Robinson Stadium since I was little so I’ve known the people working there for a long time who give me a lot of access an information. I’ve also met Coach Savage and have become friendly with him. He stops and talks to me when I see him so when I saw him after the game last night we began to talk and he told me his thoughts on who might start tonight.

by ryebreadraz on Jun 2, 2008 6:15 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Is there going to be an open thread?

One specifically for this game and not attached to another post?

by UCngLA on Jun 2, 2008 5:52 PM PDT   0 recs

Yeap

An open thread will be up tonight around 7 pm EST.

by Nestor on Jun 2, 2008 5:59 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

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