The Florida State junior pitcher who began the 2017 season as the team’s ace aced his first test as the team’s closer in Tuesday’s 6-5 win over Jacksonville.
Head coach Mike Martin’s decision to move Drew Carlton from the Friday spot in the rotation to the back end of the bullpen came last week after six different FSU relievers allowed four runs on one hit in the ninth inning of a 4-2 loss to South Florida.
In Tuesday’s come-from-behind victory at Jacksonville, Martin didn’t need six pitchers to end the game. He simply needed Carlton to get six outs.
Carlton retired each of the six batters he faced, including one by way of strikeout in two innings of work. Carlton needed just 30 pitches to get through the final two frames and collect his first career save.
Carlton’s debut as the team’s closer served as a nice pick-me-up for FSU, which won its fourth straight game on Tuesday night. The bad news for the FSU bullpen is that Jim Voyles, who was given the closer role to start the season, struggled yet again.
The Dolphins tagged Voyles for two runs on three hits in just 2/3 of an inning to take a 5-3 lead into the eighth inning. This, after FSU had rallied from a 3-0 deficit. Fortunately for the Seminoles, they were able to answer with three runs in the top of the eighth before Carlton came in to close the door.
Tuesday night’s victory was a case where Carlton’s experience as a starter and working deep into games could prove to be invaluable. Rather than use two pitchers to get through the eighth and ninth inning, Martin was able to turn to Carlton for six outs.
That’s not something FSU would like to do on a nightly basis, but it could be a remedy to help ease the burden on a bullpen that could at some point become overtaxed as the season goes on. Thanks to stellar starting pitching, that hasn’t happened yet, but there’s no guarantee that a youngster like Drew Parrish won’t hit a rough patch down the road.
After dealing with inconsistency from the closer spot last season, Carlton being able to set down six straight on Tuesday night for FSU served as sweet relief. Pun intended.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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