I think (JMO) that we may have 2 vulnerabilities this season:
1. Our pitching is suspect - no offense to Emma Lemley. She is very good, but not elite .......yet. And our no. 2 or no. 3 are an unknown.
2. Our infielding has let us down in the past, partly because our pitching was so good, they never got enough plays to gain confidence. The Florida series exposed this last year.
19 Replies
3y
I don't buy that at all. You could say that the strikeouts could make infielders relax a bit.... but that did not cause errors. If Bre Peck, for example, made an errant throw to 1st base, it wasn't because the pitching was so good she lacked confidence.
The no. 3 last year was not reliable so go ahead and leave the "no. 2 or no. 3" out of the equation. You can talk about the no. 2 but Grein could be what Emma was last year. We don't know that yet.
(In response to this post by Archdale)
3y
The fact that we are using Peck on the mound suggests that we were counting on List, but she apparently is not available for whatever reason. So, imo, questioning the pitching is a fair concern. We'll just have to see. I do have a ton of confidence in our pitching coach, Gillis I believe.
(In response to this post by Archdale)
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RJHokie
3y
coaching staff about pitching this year. So, they gave her a shot this Fall and they apparently believe she can help out with the pitching duties, and outfield as well in addition to third base.
(In response to this post by jboyhokie)
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VT4Natty
3y
(In response to this post by RJHokie)
3y
starters. Typically unless you really do by committee, the no. 1 starter is going to pitch the majority of the innings. If an elite team has a great no. 2 pitcher, then there will be very little room for a no. 3 or no. 4 unless they are young and wait their turn. And when you create a tough schedule or get in the post-season, you are pitching your top 2. We face some teams who went with the committee approach but ... they were not consistent.
(In response to this post by VT4Natty)
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Techdady
3y
Pretty sure the two pitchers who left were highly recommended by the coaching staff as to how hard they worked, and to their exemplary character.
** Edited by Techdady at 2/15/2023, 3:48:58 PM
(In response to this post by VT4Natty)
3y
(In response to this post by VT4Natty)
3y
and grand slam HR against unranked Maryland. They pulled her after 2.1 innings. It was Okie State's first loss, ranked #3 and then fell to #5 due to that loss. I think she is either #3 or #4 pitcher in their rotation, she is definitely not in the top 2 pitchers. So appears she may be in the same boat at Okie State as she was at VT. It would be interesting if they start Ivy against us this weekend since she knows our batters very well. But our batters know her well too, so if she does start against us, I hope we bomb HR's against her.
** Edited by carhokies at 2/15/2023, 7:58:09 PM
(In response to this post by william floyd)
3y
has one game on Friday, and that's against us so they can probably start one and bring the other in relief if needed. They play aTm and Nebraska on Thursday, play VT on Friday, and another two games on Saturday against Louisiana and Michigan.
(In response to this post by carhokies)
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RJHokie
3y
haven’t shown much in the early going this season. Not sure how much Peck will pitch against the really good teams, but time will tell.
(In response to this post by VT4Natty)
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2hhoop3
3y
"chased out" is a questionable choice of words. Both Mac and Ivy made their own decisions based on desires for expanded roles not likely available to them at VT with the returning and incoming talent. Peck's ability and/or Jacobsen to fill the 3 spot effectively against good teams.
I'll give the OP the benefit of the doubt for now that the wording choice was just ill considered and not part of his normal historical MO of passive aggressive swipes at the coach and program. We will see if he is capable of living up to his word.
(In response to this post by RJHokie)
3y
(In response to this post by Archdale)
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RJHokie
3y
She’s a power pitcher though. Grein probably has the best pitch movement of the group but she’s not a power pitcher at this point.
Peck hasn’t really pitched much since high school but she did start up again this past summer and in Fall ball. She might develop into a decent relief pitcher and Jacobson as well.
(In response to this post by IB4TECH)
3y
though. A good showing this weekend would certainly end the discussion.
(In response to this post by texashokie1)
3y
Her strikes to pitches % is very high.
(In response to this post by texashokie1)