<ite the best efforts of the rain, the cold, and Jose Conseco, baseball season is alive and well this spring. The Knights are in the midst of a marathon game schedule, and this past week saw a lot of great action.
On Saturday, Carleton hosted a doubleheader against Concordia in their first MIAC action of the year. Despite a Drew Ziller-like performance on the mound by freshman phenom Michael Servis (7.0 IP, 3 ER) and a dramatic final frame that saw the Knights plate 3 runs, the Knights were unable to overcome their early offensive sputters and fell 5-3. In Game 2, Carleton’s struggles at the plate continued as the Cobbers (no, they still haven’t changed that nickname) cruised to a 12-2 victory. Lost in the day’s disappointing results was the outstanding play of another promising rookie, Zach Miller ’11, who finished the contests with 3 RBI while hitting 4-for-7.
On Tuesday, the Knights took out any frustration that may have lingered from the Concordia series on the pitching staff of North Central University on their way to victories of 15-6 and 8-0. The Knight’s 15 runs in the opener were a season-high, and came on the strength of 14 hits. Carleton proved to be gracious in their role as host, even allowing North Central to build up an early 5-3 lead, before turning the game into batting practice in the fourth and fifth innings. The Knights put up 10 runs over these two frames and never looked back. Each of Carleton’s top five hitters posted multiple hits, and the Knights channeled the clutch play of their inner Tom Brady (from 2003, not that time he got shown up by Eli Manning), batting 11-for-22 with runners on base. In Game 2 it was the Carleton pitchers who took over, as four players combined for the two-hit shutout. Zack Miller (3.0 IP, 1 H) picked up the victory, and is reminding everyone of a young Babe Ruth with his ability to take over a game both from the mound and at the plate. Jay Melson ’09 and freshman Brad Eckelmann, who both went 3-for-3 with 2 runs scored and an RBI, led the Knight’s hitters, while Jacob Anderson ’11 added 4 RBI. If you’re beginning to think that this Knights team is filled with extremely talented rookies, you are correct (imagine Michigan’s infamous Fab Five of the early ‘90s, only with the ability to properly call a timeout).
On Wednesday, the Knights were unable to break out of their MIAC slump as they fell to Hamline in both halves of a doubleheader, 15-4 and 11-0. Carleton did put together 9 hits in Game 1, but the Pipers took advantage of a tiring Knights pitching staff and put the game out of reach with 5 runs in the fifth inning. In Game 2, Carleton was able to break up the no-hitter in the fourth, but managed little offensive production after that. One promising player in the series was Glenn Greenberg, yet another Knight freshman. Greenberg pitched in both games, going a combined 2.1 scoreless innings.
On the season, consensus first-round fantasy baseball pick Jay Melson leads the Knights with 2 HR, 14 RBI, and 7 stolen bases, while captain Doug Sylvester ’08 is hitting .400. Ethan Guevin ’09 lead all Carleton pitchers, posting a 1.59 ERA and a 2-1 record in three starts while embarrassing opposing hitters with 13 strikeouts.
Be sure to keep up with all the action as these strong veteran players to lead the rest of Carleton’s extremely young team into the rest of the season. The next Carleton home game is Saturday, April 19, when they play host to MIAC rival Bethel University.