CLEMSON, S.C. — Chad Fairey and the Clemson baseball team is having a lot of fun.
No more was that evident then in Sunday’s 19-1 victory over Binghamton to complete its three-game sweep at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
“I thought it was great way to finish the weekend. Exclamation mark on the weekend,” Clemson head coach Erik Bakich said. “We played well. Pitched well and hit well.”
On Sunday, the Tigers had 21 hits. Produced seven extra base hits and stole three-more bases. They were aggressive on the base pads for a third straight day, and they were not trying to hit home runs.
“It is awesome. It is fun. It really is fun,” Fairey said after going 4-for-4 at the plate and driving in one run. “You get guys on base. They are stealing. They are moving. They are trying to draw a pick. That form of baseball is really, really fun to watch. It’s fun to play with too.”
How much fun did Clemson have this weekend? The Tigers scored 33 runs, produced 38 hits, had 14 extra base hits, including three home runs, and stole 17 bases. They even laid down a successful bunt in their only attempt of the weekend in Game 2.
Clemson (3-0) nearly broke a 72-year-old record in Game 1 when it stole 11 bases, one shy of the school record for a single game. They stole three more in Game 2 and recorded three on Sunday as well.
Bakich said they identified there was an opportunity to swipe a lot of bases this weekend from their scouting report on the Bearcats.
“It is also a part of our offense. We like to run,” he said. “The stolen base may not always be there. There are pitchers that are quick to the plate and catchers that will come up throwing, but it is something we have in the arsenal. The one thing we will not be, as an offense, is one-dimensional.
“We are not just going to rely on the bunt game or just try to hit homers. You saw today, we hit some balls hard that would have been way out Friday when the wind was blowing out, but today just was not a home run type of day. So, to have the ability to be dynamic, to be balance, to be able to have a speed and power type of offense and the combination of that is something that is going to help us.”
Bakich said the Tigers also bunt, hit-and-run and slash. They just have not been able to break that out, yet.
“That is kind of the idea with the offense. We have multiple ways to score runs because the offense is all about scoring runs,” Bakich said. “It is not just about swinging. It is about scoring.”
Clemson will get back on the baseball diamond on Tuesday, when it hosts Charlotte at 4 p.m.
—photo courtesy of Clemson Athletic Communications
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