Charles Fischer Administrator No. 1 Share Posted March 31, 2022 In both the pre-game remarks and afterward....Oregon Baseball Coach Mark Wasikowski hinted that maybe Oregon is changing their attitude toward starting pitchers. While it would be ideal to have three pitchers who can go deep into a game--the Ducks don't have that. But what they do have is a STRONG Bull-Pen, and all he will ask out of a starter is two or three innings as he does most of the relievers. Oregon relievers kept the Ducks in the game yesterday when the hitting just wasn't there, and having six pitchers used in a game might become the norm for this Baseball team, since it seems to be working extremely well. You will see some pitchers only come in for an inning or an inning and a half, and turn it over to another. I guess if they don't pitch very much in a game--they can go again the next night easily enough. Great to see Caleb Sloan shake off his tough start the other day, and great to see Andrew Mosiello come in for a scoreless inning, his first pitching in 3.5 weeks as he is overcoming a back injury. So, since the strength of this Oregon team is hitting, defense and relievers--Coach Waz is going to go with that! Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 2 Share Posted March 31, 2022 More reliever action... BTW...in the live-stream yesterday--they pointed out how Oregon entered the game as the No. 1 team in the nation for hitting. I don't think that is the case now, but the point is--this team is hitting like none other you have seen! Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ICamel No. 3 Share Posted March 31, 2022 On 3/31/2022 at 2:33 AM, Charles Fischer said: this team is hitting like none other you have seen! And what a refreshing turnabout this has been. ATTACK of the DUCKS! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tandaian No. 4 Share Posted March 31, 2022 Ducks fell to tied for No. 5 in Batting AVG. NCAA College Baseball DI current team Stats | NCAA.com WWW.NCAA.COM Discover the current NCAA Division I Baseball leaders in every stats category, as well as historic leaders. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 5 Share Posted March 31, 2022 What is interesting, is how no other Pac 12 teams are in the top 25, except for Oregon State who is No. 2. This means we are going to have some epic Civil War matchups! Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
30Duck Moderator No. 6 Share Posted March 31, 2022 What is really promising about this team is just what they showed in the two games against USF. They can explode and win a blowout, but they are also capable of winning a small ball game. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ICamel No. 7 Share Posted March 31, 2022 Beavers bullpen has struggled to hold a lead so far this year. In their two most recent games at Nevada they couldn't sustain an 11-0 lead through five innings in the opener, and in game two they were ahead 8-4 going into the 8th frame. Oregon State won both games, but their relief pitchers weren't stellar. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ICamel No. 8 Share Posted March 31, 2022 On 3/31/2022 at 1:09 PM, 30Duck said: they are also capable of winning a small ball game Heresy I say! We actually saw some bunts in the second game. Winning however you can is evident of a well rounded team! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Axel No. 9 Share Posted March 31, 2022 I'm very impressed so far with Coach Wasikowski's management of his personnel and his in-game strategy. Ordinarily, you want three strong horses that you can run out to the mound on successive starts. Failing that, you need to go with the hand you're dealt, and that's exactly what Wasikowski is doing for now. Relying on multiple pitchers to get 27 outs is tricky; you really need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of your players, It will be difficult to win long-term with this strategy, because of both the mental and physical strain it will place on the Ducks pitching staff. Ideally, at least two strong starters will emerge from the bunch, and Wasikowski can use more of a conventional strategy. One of the problems with using, say, five pitchers in a game is that you need each of them to perform capably. The odds are that at least one of the five will be a little off and could give up a multi-run inning. I do like how Wasikowski isn't relegating his pitchers to the doghouse after poor outings. A case in point is Caleb Sloan, who struggled in Sunday's game against USC. Wasikowski put Sloan in the game yesterday with the score tied and he pitched masterfully. It's one thing to tell a pitcher to shake off a bad outing, it's quite another to give him the ball again and send him back to the mound. Coach Waz is showing his players that he trusts them and this in turn is building player confidence. A key confidence-building moment in yesterday's game: with the Ducks down by a run in the ninth, Wasikowski let Anthony Hall hit with a runner on first and no outs. A bunt, of course, would have been in order. Former coach George Horton would have bunted in that spot 1,000,000 times out of 1,000,000. But here again, Coach Waz decided to trust his player to get it done, and Hall, batting .291 at the time, delivered a single to right field on the first pitch. Coach Wasikowski knows the value of letting his players face pressure situations. He's allowing his players to see pitches, grind out at-bats, and build more confidence with every plate appearance. Horton often inserted himself into games by ordering bunts, and in so doing he took precious at-bats away from his hitters. Coach Waz's smarter approach will pay cumulative dividends as the season progresses. Hitters will continue to improve, because they're being allowed to battle many different pitchers in many different situations. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
30Duck Moderator No. 10 Share Posted March 31, 2022 On 3/31/2022 at 1:42 PM, Axel said: A bunt, of course, would have been in order. Former coach George Horton would have bunted in that spot 1,000,000 times out of 1,000,000. But here again, Coach Waz decided to trust his player to get it done, and Hall, batting .291 at the time, delivered a single to right field on the first pitch. I could have quoted many other sections, but this encapsulated it very well. No situation for this team so far has been too much for it, and as a rule, I'd rather have a coach go with his gut than by the book. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 11 Share Posted March 31, 2022 On 3/31/2022 at 1:13 PM, ICamel said: Beavers bullpen has struggled to hold a lead so far this year. In their two most recent games at Nevada they couldn't sustain an 11-0 lead through five innings in the opener, and in game two they were ahead 8-4 going into the 8th frame. Oregon State won both games, but their relief pitchers weren't stellar. Interesting. Thanks for the information on the Beavers, so it appears that they have great starting pitching, great defense, great hitting, but marginal relief pitching. Hmmm. Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 12 Share Posted March 31, 2022 On 3/31/2022 at 1:42 PM, Axel said: Coach Waz's smarter approach will pay cumulative dividends as the season progresses. Great stuff Axel, and I believe we are seeing the dividends right now of that strategy put into place two years ago. The end result is players improving their hitting, and that is what we are seeing! If this was based on a couple of incredible recruits, or some real bloomers like Zavala or Matthews last year--I would not have the same level of optimism about the long term upside of the program. But he is turning nearly everybody into good hitters. If he can recruit some starter-stud pitchers....this could be a perennial Omaha-type program. (Gosh, it is fun to dream!) 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Axel No. 13 Share Posted March 31, 2022 (edited) On 3/31/2022 at 2:06 PM, Charles Fischer said: If he can recruit some starter-stud pitchers....this could be a perennial Omaha-type program. (Gosh, it is fun to dream!) Coach Wasikowski is a savvy guy. He knows that it's easier to recruit star pitchers to a program that provides a ton of run support. Imagine trying to convince a top pitching recruit to a system that worships at the altar of the sacrifice bunt: Recruit: With all due respect, Mr. Coach Sir, your team didn't hit any home runs last year. Coach: Yes, young man, but we did hit some doubles. Recruit: Yes, you did. Three. Coach: Baseball is a game of strategy, son. Get 'em on with a bunt, bunt 'em over, and bunt 'em to third. Recruit: Do you have a strategy to get him home? Coach: Learn to respect your elders, kid. Edited March 31, 2022 by Axel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisjenn99 No. 14 Share Posted April 1, 2022 On 3/31/2022 at 4:31 AM, Charles Fischer said: While it would be ideal to have three pitchers who can go deep into a game--the Ducks don't have that. But what they do have is a STRONG Bull-Pen, and all he will ask out of a starter is two or three innings as he does most of the relievers. Reminds me of the Kansas City Royals in 14 - 15. So So starters and a lights out Bullpen for Innings 6 - 9. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badwater No. 15 Share Posted April 1, 2022 Waz has been very clear about what he expects. What he says isn't a hint about Oregon's starting pitching, it's a de facto recognition of the pitching situation. We've been seeing it all season. Coach is not shy about pulling starters. He wants strikes, and walks gets you pulled. Every pitcher knows this. Doesn't matter the situation, doesn't matter if you're a "starter". We've had a sensational bullpen all season to allow this, and not every team can do it. I think, and maybe I'm wrong, that we'll narrow things down to a couple of solid starters; because that's all the Ducks need. They just might have the finest bullpen in NCAA baseball, right? GO DUCKS Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
