Strong performances from starters drive UCLA baseball onto NCAA Super Regionals
Sophomore Nick Vander Tuig is congratulated as he walks off the field, having pitched through the eighth inning with only one earned run, one hit, and a career-high 11 strikeouts.
By Emma Coghlan
June 4, 2012 2:32 a.m.
While it wasn’t a surprise that UCLA was the last man standing in the Los Angeles Regional ““ they were the resident national seed ““ the way they supported themselves certainly was.
In a year of starters who tended to last five or six innings per game, a strong bullpen played a large role in the team’s success.
In an interview after UCLA swept USC in their last regular season series, coach John Savage was blunt about his pitching staff.
“Our starters … are five- or six-inning guys at best, and that’s all you need to know,” he said.
That was in reference to the success his relievers have had this season, and the impact they had on the 2012 campaign.
Moving into the postseason, it was assumed that David Berg, Scott Griggs and Ryan Deeter would be major players in this weekend’s NCAA regionals.
However, relievers pitched one inning in the first two games, and were well-rested by the time they were needed on Sunday.
Sophomore Adam Plutko has been the strongest starter for the Bruins this year, but he showed abnormal strength and stamina in a two-hit complete game to open UCLA’s postseason play.
Though Plutko had a lot to celebrate after Friday night’s game, he went into it with a heavy heart, having attended his great-grandmother’s funeral just a day before.
“My great-grandma died about eight days ago,” Plutko said. “I went to a funeral (on Thursday). … It has kind of been a whirlwind of a weekend.”
Sophomore Nick Vander Tuig, who went into Saturday with a 4.94 ERA and a tendency to break down in the middle of games, held a perfect game into the fifth and a no hitter into the eighth.
Both Plutko and Vander Tuig showed a masterful handle of their fastball, which Savage said after Saturday’s game was the difference-maker.
“(Vander Tuig) established the fastball again like we did last night.
“You have to give him credit, he’s one of the hardest working guys in our program and he really set the tone this evening.”
Vander Tuig, who has perpetually struggled this season, surprised everyone with his strong showing.
Before his senior year in high school, Vander Tuig had Tommy John surgery on his arm, an operation that many big name-pitchers such as the Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg or the Giants’ Brian Wilson have undergone.
After a freshman season as the Bruins’ closer, 2012 is his first season as a starter in years.
While this past year was not the cleanest for Vander Tuig, Savage noted that Saturday’s performance was what crowds could expect from the pitcher in the future.
“(Vander Tuig) wasn’t completely back from surgery, and I think you’re starting to see him kind of get back to where he was.”
