(Photo by Alex McCreery)
By Matt Weiner (@MattWeiner20) – BSB Beat Reporter
Portland 15 (5-0, 0-0) vs SJSU 5 (4-2, 0-0)
Winning pitcher: Eli Morse (2-0)
Losing pitcher: Ethan Ross (0-1)
Walking 15 batters and expecting to win is like thinking gas station sushi will be appetizing and not come with any consequences.
Seven of the 15 walks came from starting pitcher Ethan Ross in 1.2 innings pitched, throwing 78 pitches, more than half of them as balls.
“If you’re going to give that many ‘free 90’s’ you have no chance to win,” said head coach Brad Sanfilippo. “Unless you score 25 runs you’re not going to win.”
From the jump he was unable to find any success, allowing a lead off single to Jake Tsukada followed by a walk to Jake Holcroft.
Both Tsukada and Holcroft advanced to second and third on a wild pitch and eventually touched home on a Seth Brown double down the line.
Walks and singles followed by thundering base knocks was an inning-by-inning conundrum that wasn’t just limited to Ross.
Carter Heninger relieved Ross in the third inning with one out and the bases loaded, allowing all three runners he inherited to score after back-to-back singles and a walk.
His appearance swung the pendulum toward Portland, yet it’s unfair to crucify him because he didn’t create the mess he walked into.
The inability to find the strike zone was spreading like a wildfire between relievers as well, with Heninger, Trevor Ernt and Casey Spencer combining for seven walks.
Spencer struggled mightily in his appearance, opening the sixth inning by walking four straight hitters and setting a slow paint-drying pace for the rest of the game.
Ben Polak helped end the game at a desperately needed fast pace by pitching three incredible scoreless innings to end the game, allowing only one hitter to reach base.
The lefty who’s a year removed from a devastating injury after taking a comebacker to the face, had an outing that gives Sanfilippo confidence to call his name at any time going forward.
Early on, it looked like the Spartans’ bats would be enough to overcome the pitching staff’s control issues.
With the back half of the order putting ducks on the pond, Robert Hamchuk was able to whomp a ball to the outfield scoring Dalton Bowling and Danny Zimmerman. Through six games in 2022, he’s the quintessential spark plug that any offense could thrive off of.
After punching in a team-leading three hits at the plate today, he’s now slashing .407/.467/1.060 on the year.
“I have to be ready to hit, especially when the bottom of the order gets on for me,” said Hamchuk.
The Spartans brought five across home plate in the first four innings against Portland’s Eli Morse. It seemed as if a back-and-forth ensemble of fireworks would take place before Morse posted scoreless frames in the fifth and sixth and Joey Gatrell threw another two scoreless innings after that.
The Spartans wouldn’t end with five runs, as Hunter Dorraugh launched his fifth homer of the year in the bottom of the eighth.
He’s now perched at the top of the Mountain West in that category and slashing a jaw-dropping .400/.600/.1900 to begin the year.
