NOTEBOOK: Crimson Plagued by Big Innings

HANOVER, N.H.—Harvard baseball’s Saturday split with Dartmouth displayed remarkably different outcomes in the two contests, with the Crimson suffering a 14-2 blowout before rebounding to top the Big Green, 6-4, in extra innings. While the games featured numerous differences, including a key two-run shot by senior Matt Rogers and a stellar outing from rookie Brent Suter in the nightcap, perhaps the largest improvement between the contests was the avoidance of the “big inning.”

In game one, freshman starter Jonah Klees and classmate Jeff Reynolds were tagged with nine runs on seven hits in the second inning—including two home runs—as Dartmouth sent 12 hitters to the plate and effectively put the game out of reach before it began.

“We’ve had some of these big innings that have crushed us,” Harvard coach Joe Walsh said. “I’ve been trying to say to guys we have to slow the games down during those innings.”

Walsh’s observations have held true for much of the season. In three of the squad’s last eight losses, Harvard watched otherwise even games fall apart by yielding five runs or more in an inning.

While hypothetical situations are often convenient excuses, without the second inning on Saturday the Crimson would have entered the sixth inning with a 2-1 edge.

“[After the second inning] it was the type of game where you try to get some experience going,” Walsh said. “We have to minimize the big inning [to stay competitive]. A big inning should be three or four runs…but when you’re walking guys and hitting guys, that’s going to give you a very big inning.”

BIG GREEN BLUES

With a raucous Dartmouth crowd in attendance for the dedication of the Big Green’s remodeled home, Rolfe Field at Biondi Park, there was no lack of boisterous heckling from the bleachers. While Harvard endured many verbal jabs, the umpires suffered the majority of Dartmouth’s ire.

A tight strike zone from home plate umpire Brian Troupe gave both sides trouble, but the crowd erupted when Troupe refused to grant Big Green center fielder Brett Gardner first base after being hit by a pitch, ruling that the batter had failed to make an effort to get out of the way. Although disgruntled fans had a few choice words for the men in blue, Walsh implied that Dartmouth’s supporters may have suffered from selective memory—sophomore catcher Tyler Albright received the same call after being hit.

“[The umpire] dug a hole for himself when Albright was called back, saying he was in the batter’s box,” Walsh said. “Part of that is [the rule against leaning into pitches] has become a point of emphasis in college baseball. They try to enforce it…which puts a whole lot of pressure on the umpires.”

The situation heated up even more in the sixth, when junior Dan Zailskas squared to bunt and pulled back as a fastball tailed inside. Although the ball appeared to strike Zailskas when he was in the batter’s box, Troupe opted in this instance to grant the free pass. As expletives rained from the crowd and home bench, Big Green head coach Bob Whalen argued, to no avail.

THE BALK MOVE

All year long Walsh has emphasized the little things, honing fundamentals on the diamond. One such focus has been pickoffs, of which the team has 10—including four by Suter—this season. In attempting these moves Harvard has also yielded eight balks, but Walsh welcomes the risk of granting an extra base.

“I ask all the guys on the first day of the season, ‘How many of you got called for balks last year?’ And the answer is usually none,” Walsh said. “And I say, ‘Well we have to work on that. It’s a compliment to get called on a balk.’”

Walsh encourages his hurlers to push the envelope on the mound, practicing a “balk move” that walks a thin line of legality. The weapon may have been on display Saturday, as senior Tom Stack-Babich incited the crowd once more by turning to throw to first in the ninth without clearly stepping off the rubber. The close call prompted more protest from Whelan, but Stack-Babich defended the move, saying, “I guess there was a potential balk, but I thought I stepped off.”

The umpires agreed with the Crimson reliever, refusing to grant an extra base. Stack-Babich went on to pitch two scoreless innings of relief, silencing Dartmouth and earning his first victory of the season.

—Staff writer Max N. Brondfield can be reached at mbrondf@fas.harvard.edu.