Big bats carry Kentucky in sweep over Western Michigan

There are two main takeaways from Kentucky Baseball’s (7-0) series win over Western Michigan (1-5) this weekend in Lexington: The Wildcats’ bats sure can put runs on the board, but so can their pitching staff.

In three games, Kentucky totaled 43 runs against WMU.

…that’s quite a bit.

On the flip side, the ‘Cats allowed 20 runs to the Broncos.

Sure, that’ll do when you average over 10 runs a game, but Kentucky will not be so lucky in SEC play if the opposing team is pushing at least six across the plate each game in a three-game series.

It’s nice to see that the offense is there against a lackluster opponent like WMU, but when the big dogs roll into town, how will they respond to a top-notch SEC pitching staff? How will UK’s staff fare against fearsome lineups that run deep from the top to the bottom of the order?

If this weekend is any pre-cursor, the answer may be not great.

But for now, however, Kentucky is undefeated. Here’s how they improved to 7-0 this weekend in Lexington:

Game one onslaught: UK wins 14-3

After nearly getting shutout against Bellarmine earlier in the week, those same bats that we saw in Jacksonville to begin the season made their return in the series opener on Friday.

Kentucky recorded 12 hits, scoring all 14 of its runs in the first five innings.

Daniel Harris IV continued his fine start at the plate with a 3-3 day, while Ryan Ritter, Chase Estep, Oraj Anu and Alonzo Rubalcaba each drove in multiple runs.

Hunter Jump got the ‘Cats going in the bottom of the first, doubling home Ryan Ritter. Adam Fogel drove in Jump two batters later with a groundout to the third baseman, soon to be followed by an RBI double off the bat of Oraj Anu, kickstarting UK’s series with an early 3-0 lead in game one.

Hartford transfer John Thrasher began the second inning with a walk, which saw the speedster subsequently steal second base before advancing to third via a balk by WMU starter Jack Huisman.

Ritter scored Thrasher to make it 4-0. Jacob Plastiak was then hit by a pitch, ending Husiman’s day early.

After stealing third base, Ritter made some magic and swiped home plate before new pitcher Joe Shapiro had even completed an at-bat against Fogel.

Catcher Rubalcaba rifled a two-run homer to left field in the third inning before the Wildcats opened the flood gates in the fourth. An Estep RBI triple, Anu sacrifice fly and a pair of doubles from Thrasher and Ritter quickly made it a 12-1 blowout.

Estep and Anu each added another RBI in the fifth for good measure.

On the bump, Cole Stupp was credited with his first win of the season, pitching five innings of two-run baseball despite allowing eight hits. He fanned nine Broncos, throwing 101 pitches on the day.

The UK bullpen locked down game one, as four relievers each threw one inning, allowing four hits and one run combined.

Despite allowing 12 hits, Kentucky rocked the WMU pitching staff en route a lopsided win.

‘Cats comeback to swipe game two, winning 13-12 in extras

While Kentucky Basketball took a tough loss in Fayetteville on Saturday, the baseball team took part in a real doozy at KPP, somehow mustering a 12-inning victory.

The two teams finished with 29 combined hits in a game that took just over four hours to complete.

Magdiel Cotto was less than spectacular in his home debut, allowing six unearned runs and three walks in 2.2 innings. The Wildcats walked 10 Broncos on Saturday.

Kentucky led 3-0 after two innings, but a six-run third from WMU blew game two open.

Following a Cotto throwing error, two walks, a passed ball and a hit batter, WMU left fielder Ryan Missal took the UK starter yard for a grand slam, giving the Broncos the lead.

Fast forward to the top of the sixth, and WMU was threatening once again with the bases juiced, up 8-4. Tyler Guilfoil took the mound to relieve Ryan Hagenow, striking out one before allowing right fielder Dylan Nevar to pimp a four-bagger of his own, giving the Broncos a 12-4 lead, sucking the life out of KPP.

Somehow, some way, UK came all the way back.

Jacob Plastiak belted a two-run homer in the seventh to make it 12-6, before the ‘Cats nearly completed their comeback in the bottom of the eighth.

Again, Plastiak brought home a run, this time just an RBI single. Outfielder Jase Felker singled home Jump, making the deficit to just four runs.

Estep worked a walk to load the bases. Up stepped Anu, who couldn’t hit a grand slam of his own, but still cleared the bases with a three-run double to left field. The Bat ‘Cats worked their magic to shrink WMU’s lead to one.

Sean Harney recorded the final two outs of the top of the ninth, leaving UK with three outs to get more runs on the board.

Kirk Liebert went down swinging, followed by Thrasher who grounded out to the pitcher. With two down, Ritter entered the box and immediately went down 0-2 in the count. After taking a ball, the shortstop singled to center, keeping the ‘Cats alive.

Jump was the following batter, who worked a full count. He would pop one up to the shortstop Brendan Harrity, who somehow was unable to haul it in, allowing Ritter to hustle all the way from first base to home, tying the game at 12-12.

Both teams would pitch scoreless 10th and 11th innings.

Austin Strickland entered the game with two outs in the 12th for Harney, landing a strikeout in four pitches.

UK would end it in the bottom half, as Plastiak once again started off the rally, this time drawing a leadoff walk. Felker reached on a fielders choice, leaving a runner at first with one down.

Estep would single to center, getting Felker to third base, but he would then race home as Harrity couldn’t come up with the relay, bobbling the ball just enough for UK to escape with its sixth win of the season.

Strickland earned the win despite pitching just 0.1 of an inning. Zack Lee and Harney provided quality outings from the pen, allowing just two hits in 5.2 innings.

Anu’s four RBI led the charge back, while Ritter, Plastiak and Estep each recorded three hits.

Late inning annihilation: ‘Cats win game three 16-5

How about 13 more hits in the final game of the series?

After being tied 5-5 entering the eighth inning, the Wildcats erupted for 11 runs, ending the game via mercy rule for head coach Nick Mingione’s 150th win as head coach of Kentucky.

Eight different players earned at least one RBI despite totaling just four hits in the half inning. Six walks and two errors helped the ‘Cats not break a sweat in their eight-inning ambush.

Plastiak and Harris each picked up three more hits while Thrasher and Reuben Church totaled three RBI apiece. Church capped off the eighth inning with a pinch-hit, three-run double.

Tyler Bosma took the mound for the ‘Cats in game three, allowing five runs on eight hits and two walks in five innings. Bosma fanned eight Broncos along the way.

Darren Williams picked up the win, tossing three shutout innings while giving up just three hits.

When push has come to shove, Kentucky has relied on some big innings at the plate to put away its opponents.

In all three games against WMU, the ‘Cats managed to have one inning where they pushed at least five runs across the board.

After a wild weekend, UK somehow remains perfect on the season at 7-0. Even when losses have seemed certain this season, the bats are saving the pitching staff when it matters the most.

Another busy week of baseball approaches, as the ‘Cats will play five games this upcoming week. It all kicks-off with a matchup against Western Kentucky on Tuesday, March 1 at 4 p.m. EST at Kentucky Proud Park in Lexington.