Starting pitching is supposed to win baseball games.
More often than not, the Saint Louis University Billikens have gotten good enough starting pitching to win.
Regardless of that fact, the Billikens have dropped 11 of their last 13.
Last night, it was junior Jake Baumgartner who threw another quality start for the Bills but came away with a loss. Baumgartner went five and a third and gave up seven runs, but only one of those runs was earned. It has become the all-too- familiar pattern for the Billikens this season.
Had the Bills been able to handle the ball, they would have gone on to a 2-1 victory and possibly put an end to their woes of late. Unfortunately, the Bills mishandled the ball and gave Southeast Missouri State eight unearned runs and lost the game 9-2.
Sadly, the Bills defense cost them as well over the weekend in their second Conference USA series against the league-leading Louisville Cardinals.
Normally, when your starting pitchers give up a combined four runs in a three game series you would expect to win at least a game. Unfortunately for the Billikens, that didn’t happen this weekend against Louisville.
The Cardinals swept the Bills in a series that SLU could have easily won.
Game one of the series saw junior Zach Placzek return to the starting rotation for the first time in more than a year. Placzek was solid on the mound, going six innings and giving up just two runs. He was overpowering at times and registered eight strikeouts in his stint.
At the end of the sixth, the Bills trailed 2-1 and things seemed under control. Unfortunately shoddy defense in the latter innings proved to be the Bills’ Achilles’ heel. Mistakes that don’t show up in the box score were what haunted SLU. Misplayed flyballs in the outfield cost the Bills runs and were the difference in the game. Game one ended with the Bills suffering a 6-1 defeat.
Saturday’s double-header was more of the same.
In game two of the series, it was junior Corey Lawson who got stuck with his first loss of the year in a rough 2-1 complete-game defeat. Lawson went all nine innings and allowed just two runs, one of which was earned. He lowered his team-leading ERA to 2.20 and threw his fourth complete game in five starts.
An errant throw and a mishandled tag cost Lawson his fifth victory in as many outings. In the second inning, junior third baseman Derek Muncy let a throw get away from him and put a Cardinal runner on base. Later in the inning, that runner came home to score in a controversial play at the plate.
Left fielder Michael Crane picked up Louisville catcher Fernando Isa’s single and fired it home in enough time to get the Cardinal runner. Billiken catcher Andrew Slania seemed to apply the tag in time, but the ball popped out of his mitt as he turned to throw out Isa at second base. The home plate umpire ruled that Slania had dropped the ball while applying the tag and called the runner safe.
Billiken coach Bob Hughes flew out of the dugout like he had been shot out of a cannon. Despite a vehement argument from Hughes, the umpire refused to change the call or ask his fellow umpires for help. Hughes retreated back to the dugout with his Billikens trailing 1-0.
The Bills tied the game on senior Jim Bredenkoetter’s solo home run to left, but were unable to push across another run in the game and eventually lost 2-1.
Game three of the series saw the Billikens receive another stellar pitching performance from senior Wes Jaillet. Jaillet went seven innings and allowed one run, on just two days of rest. It was Jaillet’s second consecutive quality start for the Bills.
Going into the top of the ninth the Bills led 4-1 and looked to have the game won. However, a bases clearing triple by the Cards off of Bills reliever Kris Weber tied the game at nine. In the tenth a two- run blast over the right-field fence put the Cards on top for good.
And thus ended a disappointing weekend for the Bills.
