Michigan baseball starting pitching struggles in midweek loss at #10 Notre Dame

Michigan Wolverines baseball head south on Tuesday, April 12 to go toe to toe with a dominant Notre Dame Fighting Irish team.

Michigan started southpaw Walker Cleveland on the bump, while the Fighting Irish started Jack Findlay. Cleveland was able to mow down the first five Fighting Irish bats before struggling to find the strike zone. He walked four straight without mixing in any strikes before exiting the game, with a final stat line of 1.2 innings pitched, zero hits, four walks and four earned runs. The Wolverines had to dip deep into their bullpen, trying not to burn out any arms before an important rivalry series this weekend. No pitcher in the game threw more than 1.2 innings, while a total of eight Wolverine arms toed the rubber in the contest.

Michigan was able to load the bases in each of the first two innings, with no runs to show for it. The Fighting Irish struck first in the bottom of the second, with a bases loaded walk by shortstop, Zack Prajzner to score the first run, followed by a booming grand slam off the bat of Spencer Myers, making the score 5-0.

The Wolverines responded in the fourth with two runs of their own, due to a wild pitch scoring Jack Van Remortel, and a Joe Stewart single which plated Clark Elliot.

Two-out hitting proved to be the difference for Notre Dame – their first nine runs all coming with two outs. Throughout the game, the Fighting Irish had 10 two-out RBIs.

Notre Dame was able to fend off the Wolverine’s persistent offense by constant scoring. In any inning the Wolverines scored, the Fighting Irish answered with more runs in the bottom of the innings, killing any momentum the Wolverine offense might be able to muster.

Elliot and Stewart both had three-hit days at the top of the Wolverine lineup, but it was not enough, as Notre Dame took the game 14-5.

Walker Cleveland got the loss on the mound, dropping his record to 1-3 on the season.

The Wolverines travel to East Lansing this upcoming weekend for a three game set against the Michigan State Spartans, starting this Friday.