Subpar innings lead to series loss for Michigan baseball

For the Michigan baseball team to win its series against Minnesota, it needed to play nine innings of quality baseball. But as Saturday’s game ended in a double play off the bat of sophomore designated hitter Joe Longo, so did the Wolverines’ hopes of taking home a series victory.

And for Michigan, those imperfections showed immediately. In fact, all the Golden Gophers needed was one big inning. Through their subpar play on the defensive end, the Wolverines let that happen — and did so on multiple occasions.

Friday’s loss was just the first example of Michigan’s struggles over the weekend. Even with junior left-hander Connor O’Halloran in the game, Minnesota produced instant offense. The Gophers quickly got on base with a leadoff walk from center fielder Brett Bateman, and their continued patience at the plate allowed for successful at-bats and the advancement of baserunners throughout the inning. 

A single from third baseman Jake Perry scored two runs for Minnesota, and by the end of the inning, it had a three-run advantage over the Wolverines. Offensive inconsistencies have plagued them all season long and made it infeasible for them to recover. Even when Michigan played up to par on defense in the other eight innings, one weak defensive inning for the Wolverines essentially won the game for the Gophers due to its lack of offense. 

“I don’t think we were focused across the board,” Michigan coach Tracy Smith said. “We did a terrible job. We didn’t do much well from an offensive standpoint, just bad all weekend, and that really contributed to Connor (O’Halloran’s) …  struggle … we (didn’t) score and give (him) run support.”

On Saturday, the circumstances were different. This time, Michigan entered the bottom of the eighth inning with a 2-0 lead after a leadoff solo shot from freshman right fielder Greg Pace Jr. All the while senior right-hander Noah Rennard was dealing on the mound through a career-high seven innings. However, that all quickly unraveled after Rennard walked his first two batters of the inning, forcing Smith to replace him with freshman right-hander Mitch Voit.

And with Rennard out of the game, Minnesota pounced. Voit walked his next two batters, reducing the Wolverines’ lead to one. And a one-out double by second baseman Brady Counsell brought in two more runs, giving the Gophers their first lead of the ballgame. To top the inning off, a sacrifice fly tacked on a fourth run to the inning, accomplishing a 4-2 lead.

Despite the outcome of the inning, Smith remains confident in the pitching system he employed.

“Mitch Voit has been the guy for us all year,” Smith said. “This was one of the first times this season (that we didn’t hold the lead). I was disappointed but we would script that out all over again. I don’t know that we would’ve done that differently.”

When all was said and done, Minnesota had a domineering lead, and Michigan had just three outs to make up the deficit. And now, the Wolverines are right in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten standings. After starting at third place on Friday, they finished at seventh when the weekend concluded, just barely sneaking into the conference tournament.

“We talked about it (Saturday), how (Saturday’s) game was a gut check, a tough one to lose,” senior left-hander Jacob Denner said. “We understand where we are. Our backs are somewhat against the wall.”

Michigan needed a strong performance from their offense in the ninth inning. But unlike its opponent, that performance never came. And as the Gophers celebrated a series win after the Wolverines collapsed, all Michigan can do is watch as it let another series slip away.