Pitcher Griffin Canning leads baseball to windy win over Cal Poly
Junior pitcher Griffin Canning was just one strike away from completing a shutout when a dribbler up along the third base line gave Cal Poly its only run of the game. (Daily Bruin file photo)
By David Gottlieb
April 28, 2017 11:04 p.m.
The Bruin offense didn’t give Griffin Canning very much support Friday night, but he didn’t need it.
The junior ace tossed 8 2/3 innings on 110 pitches, allowing one run and striking out 10 without walking a batter in UCLA baseball’s (20-18) 2-1 victory over Cal Poly (18-22). The contest lasted just two hours and 19 minutes, with wind blowing in all game long.
“Extremely difficult night to hit,” said coach John Savage. “I haven’t seen many nights like that, where the wind was howling in. Every ball up in the air was an adventure.”
Canning said that the conditions made him a little more confident, and that he felt like he had a good four-pitch mix, though he was mostly attacking hitters with his fastball.
Savage said Canning was throwing all “major league average” pitches.
Fastball 92-94, curve ball 80-81, changeup 86, slider 84-86 #MLBDraft https://t.co/S4gvHBtf5v— David Gottlieb (@DGottlieb11) April 29, 2017
After cruising through the first eight innings, Canning ran into trouble with two outs in the ninth. The junior allowed three singles – including an RBI, infield hit – prompting Savage to pull the right hander in favor of Scott Burke. The senior closer struck out Cal Poly catcher Nick Meyer to earn his second save of the year.
Savage said he didn’t consider pulling Canning prior to that at-bat, but chose to pull his ace because Meyer caught Canning when they were high school teammates at Santa Margarita Catholic High School and the fact that he had already seen Canning three times that night.
“I think you got to give Meyer a different look,” Savage said. “He’s caught him his whole career, he knows him well. And three at bats, game on the line, that guy doesn’t strike out. … That was a big-league curve ball to end the game.”
UCLA got its runs in the bottom of the seventh. Freshman shortstop Ryan Kreidler reached base on a hit by pitch, sparking a two-out rally. Gavin Johns singled in the next at bat. The sophomore catcher would score from first on an opposite-field double off the bat of senior left fielder Brett Stephens.
“He was kind of pitching me similarly the whole day, so I thought I might get a fastball away,” Stephens said. “I just happened to square that one up and find a hole. It was good; it was a tough night to hit. Tough conditions and a tough pitcher.”
Prior to the seventh, Mustang starter Erich Uelmen held UCLA to just four hits. He finished the night with 6 2/3 innings pitched and six strikeouts on 95 pitches. He was pulled right after giving up the RBI double.
Backstop blunder
Johns was unable to make a play that would have preserved Canning’s shutout. A foul pop-up landed on the warning track behind home plate in with two outs in the ninth inning.
“He’s made some mistakes, let a couple balls get by him,” Savage said. “But he’s doing pretty darn good. What we like about him is his physicality. Bigger target, Division I size.”
The transfer catcher has been taking most of the catching duties because of redshirt sophomore Daniel Rosica’s injured left labrum. Savage said that Rosica can play defense, but he’s had trouble swinging the bat.
