Virginia Tech kicks off ACC play this weekend, welcoming Notre Dame to Blacksburg for a three-game series to continue its home stand.
Tech (8-3) is seeking its first home victory in the series since 2003, having lost the previous seven. The Fighting Irish (9-2) lead the all-time series 18-10-1 but the Hokies stole the previous matchup on March 25, 2022, using a six-run ninth inning to leave South Bend with a 10-5 win.
Notre Dame is carrying a five-game winning streak into English Field after taking a Sunday game on the road against FIU, notching a high-scoring sweep of Tennessee Tech and dominating Purdue on Tuesday — its lone home game of the season to date.
Boasting seven hitters with an OPS over 1.000, the Irish have scored double-digit runs in each of their last four contests and are averaging 9.8 runs per game this season. They currently rank sixth in the NCAA RPI; the Hokies rank 65th.
Senior center fielder TJ Williams leads the team with a .457 batting average and a .558 on-base percentage. Sophomore second baseman Estevan Moreno paces the Irish with six home runs and an even 1.000 slugging percentage. Right fielder Tito Flores, a graduate transfer from Michigan, has a team-high 17 RBI while junior shortstop Jack Penney has slugged four homers and has worked a team-high 12 walks.
While its offense has been excellent, Notre Dame’s pitching has left a lot to be desired with double-digit runs surrendered in five games, including two last weekend against Tennessee Tech. Newfound Friday starter Matt Bedford has a 3.46 ERA in a team-high 13 innings, but the other two members of the rotation — Caden Spivey and Jackson Dennies — have struggled mightily.
Spivey’s ERA has ballooned to 18.00 in six innings pitched after he failed to record an out in his previous start at Tennessee Tech, giving up nine runs on five hits and three walks. Dennies also had a short outing against the Golden Eagles, giving up nine runs on 10 hits in 1 ⅓ innings on Saturday, pushing his ERA up to 15.58.
The good news for the Irish? They still managed to win both of those games with their offense picking up the slack. And while the starters haven’t been up to par, they have a gem in the bullpen in Bennett Flynn, a graduate transfer from Davidson who was D1Baseball’s No. 24 relief pitcher in 2023. The former two-time All-Atlantic 10 arm has given up just two runs and six hits with a whopping 19 strikeouts in 11 ⅔ innings this season.
Meanwhile, Hokies are coming off their third series victory in as many weekends after taking games on Friday and Saturday against Stony Brook before dropping the Sunday game in a thriller. A midweek matchup with Binghamton, originally scheduled for March 6, was canceled due to rain.
Tech’s offense remains led by Chris Cannizzaro, who has a team-high .452 avg, 19 hits, 1.362 OPS, four home runs and 17 RBI. Ben Watson is right behind him with 16 RBI on 15 hits. Sam Tackett has upped his average to .286 after a pair of three-hit games last week, and Christian Martin has entered the 1.000+ OPS club at 1.087 with a team-high 10 walks and .519 on-base percentage.
But the Hokies will feel the absence of Garrett Michel, who will miss the remainder of the 2024 season with a broken wrist, the team announced Thursday morning. The injury occurred on a violent collision at first base on Friday against Stony Brook. The team says he has since undergone surgery and is expected to make a full recovery, and he is expected to return to the Bourne Braves in the Cape Cod League this summer.
Michel still ranks first on the team in home runs (4) and second in OPS (1.361).
Ethan Gibson started at first base on Saturday and Sunday, going 1-for-7 with a double. With a solid bat and a very good glove, he figures to be Tech’s first baseman moving forward, although someone like Eddie Eisert could see some action there, too.
The offense is also missing the contributions of Carson DeMartini, who is coming off a 0-for-11 series in which he struck out six times. The star third baseman has a team-high 16 strikeouts, but has still walked nine times and homered thrice. His bat isn’t one to stay cold for long, and the Hokies will need it to warm back up as they enter conference play.
Tech’s rotation of Brett Renfrow, Wyatt Parliament and Griffin Stieg have remained in-form on the mound, combining for just two runs allowed last weekend against Stony Brook. All three pitchers set new season-highs in innings pitched with Renfrow and Stieg recording shutout performances.
However, the Hokies’ bullpen and defense saw some struggles against the Seawolves, particularly in Sunday’s loss. Usually reliable arms like Brady Kirtner, Jacob Stretch and David Shoemaker had their worst outings of the season while Tech committed seven errors in the series, with Sunday’s three miscues costing the game.
With two high-flying offenses in the spotlight, this figures to be a series won by pitching. These staffs are almost the ying to each other’s yang, with the Irish having a stronger bullpen than rotation and vice versa for Virginia Tech. Notre Dame’s offense has been able to make up for the shortcomings of its starters, but they haven’t faced a rotation like the one the Hokies have, especially with how locked in those three arms have been. And Tech has taken advantage of poor starting pitching all season long.
If the Hokies want to notch another series victory feather in their cap, they will need better relief appearances and much tighter defense. Their offense should see a return to form after Sunday’s lull, especially with how poor Notre Dame’s starters have fared thus far in 2024. But it’ll be the execution down the stretch in games that dictates how the opening ACC series of the year goes.
Times and Streaming Designations:
Friday, March 8: 2 p.m. ET on ACC Network Extra
Saturday, March 9: 4 p.m. ET on ACC Network Extra
Sunday, March 10: 1 p.m. ET on ACC Network Extra
Projected Pitching Matchups (ND vs. VT):
Friday: RHP Matt Bedford (1-1, 3.46 ERA in 13 innings) vs. RHP Brett Renfrow (3-0, 1.69 ERA in 16 innings)
Saturday: RHP Jackson Dennies (0-0, 15.58 ERA in 8 â…” innings) vs. RHP Wyatt Parliament (1-0, 3.86 ERA in 14 innings)
Sunday: RHP Caden Spivey (0-0, 18.00 ERA in six innings) vs. RHP Griffin Stieg (1-1, 3.55 ERA in 12 â…” innings)
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VT’s defensive woes are as much mental as physical – need to make smart plays that reduce the risk of a big inning. Don’t try to be a hero, make the easy play….
I know your projected starting pitchers are likely based off past few weekends, but to me would be very surprising if ND stuck with those same 2 sat/sun guys, as bad as they’ve been. Good program with a bunch of good arms, would think someone else gets at least 1 of those starts, but hopefully not.