Griffin Green was working on a masterpiece, his best start of the season, when he fired pitch No. 88 of his night. He grabbed his right elbow with his glove and winced in pain during the sixth inning on Saturday night at English Field. Green paced a little bit and then talked with head coach John Szefc and Kyle Staggers, Virginia Tech baseball’s lead trainer, before subsequently leaving the game.
That moment put a damper on an otherwise stellar night for Green & Co. that resulted in a 13-1 victory over Georgia Tech (20-15, 7-10 ACC) for their first series victory over the Yellow Jackets since 2010. Green was, blatantly put, shoving through 5 ⅓ innings for the Hokies (20-12, 7-9 ACC).
No one had scored to that point in the sixth with runners on first and second. One later came around on Jonah Hurney’s wild pitch, but Green had struck out seven, one away from tying a season-high.
“I mean, [an elbow injury] is never really a good thing,” Tech head coach John Szefc said after the win. “The sad thing is really the worst thing. Other than the injury, that might be as good as I’ve ever seen him throw. He was outstanding.
“… It was just one of those unfortunate things, he’s been a big part of what we’ve had going on for the last three years.”
Szefc wasn’t able to provide much of an update on Green after the victory, stating that he’ll be examined on Sunday, but confirmed it was an elbow injury.
“It would be a huge loss,” Szefc said if Green were to miss an extended period of time. “He’s an All-ACC starting pitcher, pitching dominates the game.”
Even when Green struggled to begin the season, replacing him in the rotation was never up in the air. He had earned himself a long leash after his stellar 2022 campaign. One that earned him All-ACC honors, one that was eventually derailed because of a finger injury and one that Green knew he would return to.
Since the conference slate started, on a chilly day in early March, Green turned a 4 ⅓ inning start where he allowed two runs against Boston College. That began a stretch in which he allowed two runs or fewer in three of his next four outings — his 4 ⅓ inning outing against Virginia was the one outlier. He used that appearance to learn, parlaying that into, likely, his best start of the season coming in — a three-run, 5 ⅔ inning outing against Duke.
“That would be really tough for the team because he’s a really good person,” Tech right fielder Carson Jones said of Green.
He was on his way to his best start of the season before he left — a departure that sucked the life out of English Field. Green is the most respected player in Tech’s locker room and that was evident when the entire team met him at the front of the dugout, offering words of encouragement before he went back to the Weaver Center.
“It’s just his work ethic, he’s the hardest working guy we have on this team,” Jones said. “He’s one of our leaders, one of our captains. I think he does a great job, people rally around him.”
But before he left, English buzzed over Virginia Tech’s offense, which was electric and jumped out to a 7-0 lead through five innings.
A homer from Jack Hurley and Carson Jones, mixed with a pair of Garrett Michel RBIs and a Jones hit-by-pitch, was all the offense Tech needed. All of that gave Tech its fifth conference win in its last six tries and will give the Hokies a chance to sweep a conference opponent for the first time this season.
“I think overall pitching and defense has been better,” Jones said of the team’s turnaround. “We’re getting timely hits in timely places, everyone is swinging well, pitching well.”
The Hokies added on in the latter innings, drawing 18 walks, breaking an all-time program record that was set in 1976 and then tied in 1990 (17). Christian Martin drew five, which tied a program high in free bases set in 1964 and was tied in 2015 and 2023 (Carson DeMartini).
“I’ve never seen that,” Szefc said of the walks. “Forty-one free bases, I’ve never seen that, not even in intrasquads.”
But, even with how well Virginia Tech has played, Georgia Tech still presented a sneaky challenge. It’s one of the better hitting teams in the ACC, one that makes a lot of contact. And Green is a pitch-to-contact, ground ball pitcher.
For 5 ⅓ innings, Green showed his best stuff before he walked back to the Weaver Center with his right elbow in his glove. But Hurney injected life back into the ballpark when he got out of the sixth inning without incurring too much damage and then tossed a scoreless seventh and eighth.
After Friday’s pair of weather delays, the Hokies needed a win with as little drama. Aside from Green departing early, they did just that and will go for the sweep Sunday afternoon.
Box Score: Virginia Tech 13, Georgia Tech 1
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Best Wishes to Griffen Green, the whole stadium stood up in shock and awe when they saw him grab his elbow. He was pitching a great game and I was hoping he’d make it threw 6+ innings for a great outing. Ice up that elbow and take a shot of Tequila (couldn’t hurt) to sooth the pain.
Hope to see you back out at English Field in two weeks vs UNCheaters.
GO HOKIES!!!