No. 5 Florida State pitcher Wes Mendes tossed a pick-off throw to first base, and Jack Toomey dove back safely in the fifth inning of Boston College baseball’s Saturday afternoon game against its nationally ranked conference opponent.
Mendes peered into the sign-relaying bracelet on his wrist, began his motion, and tossed another throw to first.
This time, Mendes extended his foot too far towards home, and Toomey advanced to second on the balk. The frivolous pick-off throws were the Eagles’ best rally to that point.
BC (7–9, 2–4 Atlantic Coast) was given its first runner in scoring position, and the litany of little-league mistakes continued with the next batter.
Esteban Garcia check-swung at a chin-high fastball that went sailing to the backstop, then FSU (18–1, 3–0) catcher Hunter Carns raced to get the ball and threw it wide of first. Garcia reached first on the wild pitch, while Toomey sprinted through home plate and scored the first run of BC’s 6–2 loss.
For BC, the fifth inning’s greatest success was forcing Mendes to toil. But that didn’t last forever.
Garcia took off toward third as Mendes lifted his leg. All it took was a quick pivot and dismount for Mendes to fire a strike and catch Garcia stealing third.
BC continued to struggle after Mendes left the game in the top of the eighth.
Garcia produced the best contact off Mendes in the eighth with a leadoff double, prompting a pitching change. But, relief pitcher Maison Martinez struck out the next three batters to strand Garcia.
BC couldn’t capitalize on more runners in scoring positions in the ninth inning. Toomey swung with runners at the corners and hit a hard ground ball to short, giving FSU plenty of time for a double play exchange. BC finished 0 of 5 with runners in scoring position in the 6–2 loss.
BC was run-ruled 14–0 in the second game of its series on Saturday morning as FSU scored 10 runs in the first four innings—enough to enact the mercy rule.
BC trailed by six in the third but earned a bases-loaded, no-out chance to get back in the game.
The Eagles exited the innings with no runs, though. Kyle Wolff cracked a line drive right into the glove of Cal Fisher at third base, and Sam McNulty started toward third at the crack of the bat and was caught in between bases, sending them into the fourth scoreless.
Despite an exceptionally prolific first four frames, FSU kept the pressure on.
Vince Cimini gifted the Seminoles two unearned runs in the sixth by letting a routine ground ball go through his legs. Gage Harrelson then stepped in and cranked a two-RBI home run to right field as FSU finished the sixth inning with four runs.
BC went into Friday’s game against FSU on a high note after knocking off then-No. 9 Virginia last weekend and beating Merrimack at home on Tuesday.
But the Eagles weren’t as successful in Friday’s series opener, as they fell to FSU 8–2.
Bobby Chicoine got the start for BC and escaped an early jam with a runner in scoring position in the first inning to keep the game scoreless. But Chicoine ran into trouble early in the second inning as FSU star second baseman Drew Faurot blasted his first of two home runs.
Chicoine was pulled shortly after for Peter Schaefer. Schaefer scored a runner on a wild pitch, hit a batter with a pitch, walked a batter, then gave up two earned runs on another homer. Every out he collected in his 1.2 innings pitched was a strikeout.
One of the few bright flashes for BC was Cimini. He finished the day with three hits in four at-bats and scored one of the Eagles’ two runs in the fourth inning, stealing third base and taking home after an overthrow. Cimini’s run brought the game within reach, cutting the score to 4–1.
But the score didn’t stay close for long, as FSU’s standout shortstop Alex Lodise took BC’s freshman lefty Brady Miller deep for a two-run shot, putting the Seminoles ahead 6–1 in the bottom of the fourth.
Alex Bryant, one of the transfer pitchers who’s clearly becoming comfortable in BC’s pitching staff, worked out of trouble and punched out a batter to complete a scoreless frame in the bottom of the sixth.
But the Seminoles quickly tagged on more insurance with an RBI double in the seventh and Faurot’s second home run in the bottom of the eighth.
The Eagles showed some fight in the top of the ninth, as Beck Milner came off the bench to plate Adam Magpoc on an RBI single to left. Unfortunately, that was the only offense BC could generate for the remainder of the game, as the Eagles walked away with an 8–2 loss.
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