Mitchell Verburg explains outburst in dust up with Bobby Pierce in Oregon State-Auburn Game 1
Auburn and Oregon State battled it out in Game 1 of the Corvallis Super Regional late on Saturday night, and the game was not without drama.
In the top of the sixth inning, Oregon State relief pitcher Mitchell Verburg was facing Auburn outfielder Bobby Pierce with two runners on and two outs. With a full count, Verburg induced a swing and a miss from Pierce, getting out of the jam with a big strikeout.
After the strikeout, Verburg began walking off the mound. But not without some choice words in the direction of Pierce. Verburg appeared to say, “Struck you out three times.”
Pierce had a visible reaction to Verburg’s outburst, telling him to, “F****** get over there,” pointing towards Oregon State’s dugout.
Warning: NSFW language below
Verburg explains the dust up with Pierce after Oregon State fell to Auburn
When asked after the game, Verburg said that his outburst was simply the competitive nature of this time of the year. The redshirt senior pitcher knows the stakes are big on this stage, and he pointed towards passion when addressing the dust up.
“I was just competing,” Verburg said after the game. “I’ve done this for a long time and I have a lot of passion for what we do and put a lot of work into this. I thought I made some good pitches and that’s really all I can control and that’s what I did.
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“Like I said, that’s passion. That’s why you play. A lot of respect for Bobby. No disrespect towards him in my actions. Just going out there and competing in a big game and trying to bring some energy, especially towards our dugout.”
At the time, Auburn led 6-4 heading into the bottom of the sixth. A base hit from Pierce would have blown things open for Auburn, but Oregon State instead stayed within striking distance. Auburn ultimately went on to win 7-5, although Oregon State rallied for a run in the bottom of the ninth.
Verburg has made 25 appearances on the season with one start, pitching to a 5-3 record. He has one save in 33.2 innings of work, in addition to a 5.61 ERA. Verburg has struck out 37 batters on the season and allowed 14 walks.
Game 2 between Auburn and Oregon State will begin at 10 p.m. ET on Sunday night on ESPN 2. A win would propel Auburn to the College World Series in Omaha, while a win from the Tigers would force a winner-take-all Game 3 on Monday.