Going into the ninth inning, the Michigan baseball team was up 6-4 \u2014 a score that was upheaved minutes later by Oakland. And while the toe-to-toe match seems to call attention to its dramatic end at first glance, there\u2019s a more pressing statistic that plagued the Wolverines: nine walks.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m embarrassed by the way we represented ourselves,\u201d Michigan coach Tracy Smith said. \u201c \u2026 When you walk nine guys and hit a guy, when you don\u2019t play the game the right way, it doesn\u2019t matter who\u2019s in the other dugout.\u201d<\/p>\n
In three separate instances, the majority of occupied bases for the Golden Grizzlies could be attributed to a lack of control on the mound. And in two of these nerve-wracking moments, a fourth batter was walked to complete the loop around the bases.<\/p>\n
The first example came early on, in the top of the second inning, with freshman left-hander Shane Brinham starting off the pitching. After throwing 15 pitches \u2014 14 of which were balls \u2014 Oakland had loaded all of the bases. The bullpen was called on for backup, and sophomore right-hander Erik Puodziunas found ground on the mound.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Two pitches were thrown. Both of which were balls, resulting in a fourth runner going on the move, scoring Grizzlies third baseman Boston Halloran from third.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe start a game and we walk four guys, it\u2019s just not who we are.\u201d Smith said. \u201cIt\u2019s not winning baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n
Puodziunas also assisted in loading the bases for the next walk to home plate in the fifth inning. Four balls and a single to right field were capped off with a wild pitch, monopolizing the board for Oakland. And like clockwork, another bullpen member was called upon \u2014 and a walk was gifted to the Grizzlies once again.<\/p>\n
In a game where Michigan lost by a single run in the final moments of the game, maintaining composure on the mound was essential to its success. While the walks were manageable at moments, the final inning truly brought the heartbreak.<\/p>\n
Substitutions aplenty found senior right-hander Max Debiec on the mound. After consecutive singles to right field, the third and final batter Debiec faced ended with a walk to fill the diamond. Once again, a reliever had to come and clean up the mess, with junior right-hander Cade Montgomery being called from his standard Friday starting role.<\/p>\n
After a groundout batted a run in from third, Montgomery added the ninth walk of the day to load the bases once again. A mishandled ball on a single allowed Oakland to score from the latter two bases, climbing above the Wolverines at the last second.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you\u2019re facing an opponent that\u2019s struggling offensively, you throw strikes,\u201d Smith said. \u201c \u2026 and we didn\u2019t do that. We essentially gave them five of the runs scored.\u201d<\/p>\n