I don’t always know what I’m talking about, but sometimes it seems that way. After lamenting the Tigers inability to get good performances from all of their players synced up, wouldn’t you know that Dean Stramara has a great start and Towson hits two home runs to take a 6-2 lead, only to see Gavin Weyman have his first rough appearance in nearly a month, including the first two homers he has given up all season, and eventually fall to the University of Maryland Terrapins in extra innings, 8-7. Some of this is just a matter of inconsistency, but sometimes it just feels like this team is a little snake-bitten.
Look, I love baseball, but I HATE tigers.
The winning hit for the Terps was a bloop double down the right-field line that dropped between three Towson defenders. It’s a theme that I keep harping on, but baseball is such a mental game, you just never know how things could have turned out had an extra play here or there gone the other way this season. I’m not saying they would be leading the conference, but there is a slimmer margin between the Tigers current 13-39 record and something closer to .500 than one would think at first glance. Hopefully the team can take something good from another close loss. There were certainly some good individual performances in this one.
Positive Pixels
- Richard Miller slammed his seventh homer of the season, second on Towson only to Richie Palacios’ eight. Miller has some serious pop in the bat, as evidenced by his .230 ISO. His strikeout rate is a little high, but that’s somewhat skewed by a couple of four strikeout games and the whole series against Northeastern (7 K’s in three games). A junior this year, Miller figures to be a major part of the offense next season.
- For the second straight game, Mark Grunberg had two hits and drove in multiple runs, pulling his batting average back over the Mendoza line and raising his season RBI total to 23. It’s been a tough season for the excellent defensive centerfielder, who never previously hit lower below .273 at Towson, though he is second on the team in doubles and stolen bases and third in RBI and runs. Like Miller, Grunberg is a junior (though of the redshirt variety) and, if he rebounds offensively, will be a pivotal part of next year’s team.
- Craig Alleyne had two hits, his second multi-hit game of the season, which…doesn’t seem right? Alleyne has been a totally different hitter in the second half of the season, slashing .259/.339/.370, which doesn’t sound amazing until you consider he was at .059/.200/.059 on March 31st. Continuing the trend, Alleyne is a junior, though a JUCO transfer in his first year at Towson, and his improvement this year is a great sign for next season.
- Billy Lennox continued his excellent senior season by belting his first home run. He also walked twice, scoring each time.
- Dean Stramara (junior!) bounced back with three excellent innings in his third start of the season. In those three starts, Stramara has a 1.80 ERA, with six strikeouts and only two walks.
- Josh Seils only allowed two hits and a walk in his three innings of work, but unfortunately one of those was a two-run homer. It’s been a bit of an up-and-down season for the freshman, but considering it’s the first time he has focused only on pitching (he was also an infielder in high school), I think he has shown a lot of promise. He has a prototypical “projectable” pitcher’s frame and the kind of easy, low effort delivery that should allow him to improve his control and command with more experience.
- Another freshman pitcher I’ve mentioned several times is Jake Pecilunas, who also allowed a home run in this game, but has largely had a successful first year in college. Pecilunas has walked 19 batters in 23.2 innings, but ten of those were in three appearances that totaled one inning. And of the 31 runs (30 earned) that he has allowed this season, 15 of them came in the first three games of his collegiate career.
The Watch List
Richie Palacios, SS – 0-3, 1 R, 1 SB. Another hitless game for Palacios, though he reached twice via hit by pitch. He only has two hits in the month of May, but considering he has only struck out twice in that time, has six walks, and scored five times (including at least one in each of the last three games), I have a hard time being too concerned. I’ve pretty much assumed all season that Palacios will be playing professionally next year, but is it conceivable that he comes back for his senior season if the last few weeks results in his draft position dropping? I suppose anything his possible, but I have a hard time seeing it happen.
Dirk Masters, 2B – 1-3, 1 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI. Masters hit was a double, only his third of the season (which account for all of his extra-base hits). He’s never going to be a slugger, but it’s imperative that he gets a little stronger going forward. Masters is a really good baseball player, has a great eye, and makes a lot of contact. That extra pop is all that stands between him and being a real prospect.
David Marriggi, P – DNP
Michael Adams, P – DNP
Up Next
It’s Towson’s final road trip of the season, down to North Carolina for three games at Elon. Tomorrow and Saturday’s games start at 6 p.m., with a 1:30 p.m. start on Sunday.
