Florida State baseball turned in one of the most impressive offensive performances in the past decade, beating the Stetson Hatters 18-10 on Wednesday night with relentless power hitting.
After a 5-game skid, FSU completed the 2-game sweep of Stetson and now look to end a 4-game losing streak in ACC play as the Seminoles head north to face Boston College.
The Good: Florida State’s offense rebounded in dominating fashion. After a disappointing 4-hit performance on Tuesday night, the Seminoles ramped up the production with 20 hits and an astounding seven home runs. That’s the most in a single game since the 2009 season. It also translates to a .455 batting average. While it’s too early to say the offense will continue this rebound, it’s certainly a welcomed development after the recent dry streak. The 18 runs is a season-high.
The Bad: Perhaps it was foreshadowing in the third inning when Stetson pitcher Chris Gonzalez gave up back-to-back home runs. It was 3-2 before that and the Hatters were able to stay close for a while. But even though Gonzalez was able to get a quick three outs in the fourth inning, Stetson still made the decision to bring in another pitcher. That’s when it started to get ugly.
The Ugly: Speaking of ugly, Stetson’s sixth inning is the perfect example of a meltdown. The Hatters entered it down just 6-4 with one of their best pitchers on the mound. They left it after giving up six runs and going down 12-4. Four different Seminoles hit homers in this inning, piling on to what seemed like an endless number of deep shots.
Studs of the Game: It’s hard to pick studs of the game when seven players hit home runs. We’ll just highlight the most notable of the most notable. Steven Wells and Drew Mendoza combined for nine hits, four runs, five RBIs, and two home runs on Wednesday. Cobi Johnson pitched and batted too. While he wasn’t spectacular in the former role, he hit a home run in just his second at-bat of his career. Pretty good for a guy who missed all of 2017 with an arm injury.
For Stetson, there were still a couple of bright spots. One was Austin Bogart, who had two hits and two runs. Two more were Eric Foggo and Mike Spooner with two home runs and five RBIs combined. Third baseman Jon Meola also had three RBIs in the loss.
Duds of the Game: Four Stetson pitchers gave up at least three earned runs and one home run. Those are Ben Onyshko, Chris Gonzalez, Brooks Wilson, and Ryan Stark. When it’s not your day, it’s not your day. Starting pitcher Austin Pollock was also slightly disappointing for FSU with over three innings pitched, but four earned runs allowed.
Extra Innings: It’s time for FSU baseball to form another promotional agreement. The free Chick-fil-A sandwiches and free Moe’s queso are good and all, but the people want diversity. Who should be next for giveaways? Maybe a special free meal if the team gets 20 runs would motivate them.
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