Wake Forest Athletics
Baseball Gears up for ACC Weekend Battle
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 8, 1999
WAKE FOREST (21-10, 6-5 ACC) vs VIRGINIA (15-20, 5-6 ACC)
DEACONS HOST CAVALIERS IN KEY ACC SERIES
Wake Forest and Virginia will meet for a critical three-game ACC
series this weekend in Winston-Salem as teams are trying to jockey for
position in the conference race. Florida State (12-0) heads up the
conference, followed by Georgia Tech (6-3). The Demon Deacons (6-5) and
Cavaliers (5-6) stand in third and fourth place, respectively, in the
league standings entering this weekend's three-game series.
Friday's game is scheduled for 3 p.m. and Saturday's contest will begin at 1:30 p.m., with both of those games played at Hooks Stadium on campus. Sunday's game will have a special 4 p.m. start time and will be played at nearby Ernie Shore Field, home of the Winston-Salem Warthogs. Sunday's game will also be televised regionally by the ACC TV Network (Fox Sports South, HTS and Sunshine) while the games on Saturday and Sunday will be broadcast on WXII 830 AM in the Winston-Salem area.
UPDATING THE DEMON DEACONS
The Wake Forest offense continues to be led by All-American first
baseman Jon Palmieri, who leads the team in nearly every offensive
category. Palmieri, the 1998 ACC batting champion, is batting .386 with a
team-high 10 home runs and 37 RBI. He has reached base safely in 29 of 31
games this year.
Sophomore DH Danny Borrell, .368-5-21, has been one of the Deacs' top hitters in recent weeks, batting .545 in the last three games. At one point two weeks ago he reached base safely in 10 straight plate appearances, going 8-for-8 with two walks.
Catcher Andrew Riepe, .297-4-18, continues to be an ironman behind the plate for the Deacs and has started 101 of Wake's last 104 games (97%), dating back to the final weeks of the 1997 season. He has been hot at the plate this week, going 5-for-9 (.556) in two games.
After a slow start to the season, third baseman Corey Slavik, .241-4-21, has been one of Wake Forest's top hitters in recent weeks. He has hit safely in 11 of the last 14 games (.348), improving his batting average from .161 to .241 in that stretch.
Jump starting the Wake Forest offense is center fielder Scott Daeley, .323-1-19, who has been a fixture on the basepaths this season for the Deacs from his leadoff spot in the batting order. Daeley leads the team with nine stolen bases in 12 attempts.
Outfielder Ben Danosky, .302-6-27, is second on the club in homers and RBI and has started 97 straight games in right field. In left field, however, the Demon Deacons continue to look for one player to rise above the mix among righties John Kubachka, .267-0-5, Ricky Mendez, .235-2-6, and Carlos Brackley, .289-0-2, and lefty Stephen Sullivan, .227-2-10. Walk-on Matt Price, .667-0-1, added his name to the mix with a 2-for-3 performance in his first career start this week against Appalachian State.
The sophomore middle infield combination of shortstop Chase Voshell, .303-4-14, and second baseman Jason Aquilante, .293-3-16, have been solid in all aspects of the game to date this season.
On the mound, junior right hander Mike MacDougal is 6-2 in nine starts with an impressive 2.45 ERA. MacDougal, who tossed the school's first no-hitter in 60 years earlier this season against Duke, has been equally impressive against ACC competition, posting a 3-1 record and a 2.70 ERA in four starts.
Rounding out the weekend starting rotation are senior southpaw John Hendricks, 4-4, 5.16, and junior righty Eric Schmitt, 3-1, 4.86. After struggling in mid-March, both have turned in solid outings in recent starts.
Sophomore righty Scott Siemon, 6-1, 4.46, 3 SV, has emerged as the top man out of the bullpen after making appearances in 18 of 31 games this year. A pair of righties in junior Matt Briggs, 2-0, 5.08, and freshman David Bush, 0-1, 6.75, have been the other workhorses out of the bullpen.
Sophomore southpaw Danny Borrell, who had been out with a bad back and tendinitis in his left elbow, bolstered the bullpen with his return to the staff last weekend against Florida State. He should see his action on the mound increase in upcoming weeks. (See note below).
PROBABLE PITCHING ROTATION
Junior right-hander Mike MacDougal (6-2, 2.45 ERA) will make his
fifth straight Friday ACC start this weekend against Virginia. MacDougal
has been impressive in his previous four starts against conference
opponents, posting a 3-1 record and 2.70 ERA in 30.0 innings of work. He
has been especially tough against ACC foes in Winston-Salem (Duke and
Clemson), posting a 2-0 record and a sparkling 0.53 ERA while allowing just
five base hits in 17.0 innings (.094 opponent batting average). MacDougal
is 2-0 with a 4.20 ERA in two career starts against Virginia. Last 3
starts: 2-1, 3.86 ERA, 21.0 IP.
Senior southpaw John Hendricks (4-4, 5.16) will start on Saturday in game two of the UVA series. Hendricks is looking for his 29th career victory, which would tie him for first place on the school's all-time win list. Additionally, Hendricks needs just one more strikeout to become Wake Forest's all-time leader in that department (see notes below). He earned a save in his most recent outing, a 1.1 scoreless inning performance against Appalachian State on Wednesday. Hendricks has not won a ball game since 3/13 against Duke, although his four losses this season have come on the road at the hands of Florida State, Auburn, North Carolina and Georgia. Hendricks is 4-0 with a 2.37 ERA in 39.1 IP at home this season. In two career starts against Virginia, he is 2-0 with a 1.06 ERA. Last 3 starts: 0-1, 6.75 ERA, 13.1 IP.
Junior righty Eric Schmitt (3-1, 4.86), who owns a 16-2 career record, will get the starting call on Sunday in the series finale. Schmitt has pitched well in each of his last two starts (Clemson and Florida St.) despite struggling with a blister on his right index finger all year long. In those two appearances, he is 1-0 with a 2.40 ERA after earning a win against the Tigers (1 ER in 7.0 IP) and a no-decision vs. the Seminoles (3 ER in 8.0 IP). Schmitt is 1-1 with a 4.05 ERA in three starts against ACC opponents in 1999. Last year he started against Virginia and got no decision after allowing three runs in 4.1 innings. Last 3 starts: 1-1, 4.05 ERA, 20.0 IP.
SERIES VS. VIRGINIA
Wake Forest leads the all-time series with Virginia, 59-52, since
ACC play began in 1954. The Demon Deacons have won three in a row and five
of the last six over the Cavaliers. Last season Wake Forest swept a
three-games series in Charlottesville, winning by scores of 3-2, 13-4 and
13-7. Wake Forest is 17-17 against Virginia under head coach George Greer.
BORRELL BOLSTERS BULLPEN WITH HIS RETURN
Sophomore southpaw Danny Borrell returned to the mound last weekend
against Florida State after missing much of the first two months of the
season with various ailments and injuries. A back injury kept him off the
mound for much of fall practice and all of the month of February. He made
his initial return on 3/10 in a start against UNC Greensboro, but had to
leave the game after just 1.1 innings with a sore elbow.
Borrell was diagnosed with tendinitis and he did not throw off a mound for nearly three weeks. After returning last weekend against FSU with a shaky outing (2 ER in 1 IP), he was very impressive in his next appearance this week against Virginia Tech. He recorded a save against the Hokies by tossing 2.2 hitless innings while his fastball consistently registers 90-92 MPH on the radar gun.
During all of this time, Borrell has continued to sere as Wake Forest's everyday DH and he owns a .368 batting average on the season. In fact, his batting numbers have actually risen since his return to the mound, as he batting .545 (6-for-11) over the last three games.
HOME, SWEET HOME
Wake forest owns a 15-2 record in the friendly confines of Hooks
Stadium this season, and a closer examination of the statistics reveals
just how much the Demon Deacons have dominated their opponents in
Winston-Salem. In 17 games, the Deacs are batting .355 as a team and own a
solid 3.34 team ERA. Conversely, opponents are hitting just .244 and have a
8.63 ERA. Wake Forest has outscored its opponents 146-73.
The home field advantage also has an affect on individual statistics as well. First baseman Jon Palmieri is batting a whopping .486 (35-for-72) with 6 HR and 27 RBI at Hooks Stadium while DH Ben Danosky is hitting .436 with 4 HR and 16 RBI. Overall, seven of Wake Forest's starting nine players are batting .310 or better.
On the mound, Mike MacDougal is 4-1 with a 1.24 ERA in five starts (36.1 IP), including tossing a no-hitter against Duke. Southpaw John Hendricks owns a 4-0 record and one save with a 2.37 ERA in 39.1 IP at home while bullpen ace Scott Siemon is a perfect 3-0 with 2 saves while posting a 3.32 ERA in 19.0 IP.
HENDRICKS EYES CAREER VICTORY & STRIKEOUT MARKS
Senior southpaw John Hendricks, who owns 28 career victories, needs
just one more win to tie Frank Humber (1986-89) on Wake Forest's all-time
victory list. Two more wins would move Hendricks into sole possession of
first place on the school's chart and he would become just the 11th pitcher
in ACC history to win at least 30 games in his career. The ACC record for
victories is held by Brian Barnes, who won 44 games at Clemson from 1986-89.
Additionally, Hendricks needs just one more strikeout to become
Wake Forest's all-time strikeout king. Hendricks currently stands at 277
career K's, tied with current-record holder Buddy Jenkins (1987-91).
