CLEMSON- Erik Bakich readily admits that his Clemson baseball team is attempting to push through some adversity at the moment.
Injuries have hit the Tigers hard, with both Andrew Cuifo and Will Taylor going down with injuries in a week's time. Cuifo is out for the season with a torn ACL and Taylor is expected to miss the rest of the regular season with a broken bone in his wrist. The two injuries have caused Bakich to shuffle not only the infield, but also the batting order.
Despite it all, the Tigers still managed to clinch its fifth ACC series of the year with a 9-2 win over Pitt on Saturday in the second game of a doubleheader. However, it wasn't all pretty this weekend. Clemson had to once again overcome an early deficit in a 6-4 win in the series opener on Friday. In game one of the doubleheader on Saturday, the Panthers pounced on the Tigers early, racing out to an 8-0 lead after four innings of play, before holding on for an 8-4 victory.
"The best thing about that, when you drop game one, it's just like amnesia," Bakich said. "You instantly forget. Flush it and move on. You learn the lessons you need to learn, get something to eat, change your jersey, and you get ready to come out. And you make the adjustment. If you win game one, you stick with all the positive things that were working for you and you want to continue to build off of those."
Pitt hit starting pitcher Ethan Darden hard in the first game of the doubleheader, scoring five runs and pounding out eight hits off the left-handed hurler in just two-plus innings of work. And after the way the first game played out, Bakich didn't have to do much talking ahead of the series finale.
"Our guys were definitely pissed after game one," Bakich said. "You could just see it. We came out and dug such a hole. I don't think anyone, with Darden on the mound, could have predicted (that), based on how he's pitched the last few weeks, but that is baseball. That happens some days. And some days pitchers are up and any offense can take advantage of mistake pitches and they did."
"In between games, they made a quick adjustment and came out with a very, very focused look in their eye. You could see the approach was executed and they were putting really good swings on the ball. All game."
Bakich is confident that the recent adversity his team has faced will not only make them better, but also help prepare the Tigers for what lies ahead in the postseason.
Next up is a midweek road trip to Athens for a Top-25 matchup against Georgia, and then it is on to Louisville for a three-game ACC series against the Cardinals next weekend.
"There is an adjustment period, and we have been going through it the past two weeks," Bakich said. "It's not been the same level of baseball that we were playing against Duke and Florida State. Certainly, we have taken some hits. But we will go through it and battle and fight and compete and I think it will make us better because if it."
"Never happy because of injuries, but this time of year is totally fine to get knocked down a little bit. This whole thing. The adversity of the injuries, the losing and all of it will be part of the story."
If you want to place your bet for the NBA, NHL, MLB, College Football or any other sporting events, go to BetOnline.ag and enter the code ACTTV for a 50% welcome bonus up to $1000. With the earliest lines, biggest bets, and fastest payouts, Betonline.ag is the place to go. Don’t forget to use the code ACTTV!