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Georgia baseball concluded its midweek schedule with a 9-2 victory over Kennesaw State. Here is what stood out from the win.
By: Olivia Sayer
When head baseball coach Wes Johnson meets with Georgia’s pitchers to share his plan for the Bulldogs’ midweek games, his message is simple.
“You want the ball? You better go out there and be good,” Johnson said. “If you’re not, you’re not pitching. We’ll go to the next guy.”
Georgia’s pitching staff responded to Johnson’s challenge by limiting two of the ACC’s best offensive teams, Clemson and Georgia Tech, to five combined runs in its last two midweek games.
Tuesday’s midweek finale was no different, as nine different Bulldogs limited Kennesaw State to two runs on four hits in Georgia’s 9-2 victory. The win lifted the ninth-ranked Bulldogs to 36-11 on the season and capped off a non-conference slate that saw them finish 24-2.
Here is what stood out from the victory.
Nate Taylor continues to impress on the mound.
Georgia had no shortage of upperclassmen on the mound on Tuesday night, but the most impressive arm was freshman Nate Taylor. Taylor recorded three of the Bulldogs’ 16 strikeouts by having solid command of both his fastball and offspeed pitches, which he threw for strikes.
“Nate’s coming,” Johnson said of Taylor, who struck out the side on 13 pitches. “He’s been coming. He’s been working really hard, and we’re excited to see where he can go with it.”
Taylor finished his senior season at Buford High School with a 1.95 ERA and has a team-leading 1.29 ERA in seven appearances with the Bulldogs. Johnson said the freshman right-hander has “work[ed] himself into being a guy we can get in there and push up the matchup grid.”
There were a lot of free passes.
Georgia and Kennesaw State combined to issue 18 free passes, and the Bulldogs were beneficiaries of 11 of them.
“Just suffocates them,” said Slate Alford, who extended his on-base streak to 30 games with two extra-base hits. “Anytime you can get some freebies, it helps. It’s big, and obviously the hits are big, but the freebies, the walks — those are huge.”
Three of Georgia’s runs reached base via a free pass, and over half of its baserunners took first on either a walk or hit-by-pitch. Some were a result of the Bulldogs showing good plate discipline, while others were due to Kennesaw State’s hurlers being wild.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, four different Owl pitchers combined to hit three Bulldogs with two outs. Devin Obee took Georgia’s last hit-by-pitch off the head and was pulled, but Johnson said it was precautionary.
“Devin’s fine,” Johnson said Obee, who also made a solid catch in centerfield to rob Kennesaw State of extra bases in the fourth inning. “He [gave the] thumbs up, but it’s like I said, ‘I need you for three games this weekend.’ It’s like, we’ll get somebody else in there for you and move on, and he was fine with it, but he’s a 100% go.”
Slate Alford improved his speed this season.
One of the main areas of focus for Alford after he decided to return to Georgia for his senior season was improving his speed. According to Johnson, he wanted to show MLB scouts that he could become quicker both defensively and on the basepaths.
“You can ask [Henry Hunter], there’s a lot of days on that track,” Alford said. “We called it the griddle. We got after it. It’s nice to see it pay off a little bit.”
The results of his work showed on Tuesday night, as he hit his second triple of the season to score Brennan Hudson, who hit leadoff for the first time this season, in the bottom of the seventh.
Hudson’s double — which was really a pop up that Kennesaw State let drop in front of it — marked his seventh hit as a Bulldog, which includes four doubles and three home runs.
Ryland Zaborowski will have another doctor’s appointment on Wednesday morning.
Ryland Zaborowski, who left Saturday’s game after suffering an injury to his throwing arm, did not play against Kennesaw State. Georgia’s leading hitter was dressed out but did not participate in pregame defensive drills either.
Johnson said Zaborowski had an MRI and has “range of motion” in his arm but is going to have another doctor’s appointment on Wednesday morning to help determine the next steps.
“I don’t wanna speculate on it,” Johnson said. “I’ve been right in my career. I’ve been wrong in my career. There’s multiple options on stuff like this, but once we get back from [Wednesday’s appointment], I think we’ll have an idea of which direction we’ll be able to go in.”
Zaborowski is still helping the Bulldogs in his absence, although it is not at the plate.
“He’s a big leader for us, so he’s been vocal, just staying around,” Alford said. “He’s a great hitter, so I’m asking him for tips. ‘What do you see here? What do you see there?’ He’s been a great vocal guy for us.”
What comes next for the Bulldogs
Georgia will next travel to Missouri on Friday night for a 7 p.m. first pitch. The Tigers have struggled this season with a 0-21 record in conference play, but in the game of baseball, any team can win on any given night.