Maryland baseball has long needed its starting pitching rotation to step up, and one of the key players it elevated in the hopes of getting that was pitcher Logan Hastings.
That move has come with mixed results. Having allowed 15 runs over his previous three starts, Hastings needed a strong outing against Rutgers. For three innings, he provided it, not allowing a hit.
For some time, it appeared that Saturday’s rain-delayed game would become a pitcher’s battle. But as Hastings faded and the Terps’ bullpen
disappointed, Rutgers pitcher Vincent Barghese turned his hot start into a fiery outing, allowing just one hit as the Terps fell to a series-clinching, 10-0 defeat in New Jersey.
The damage dealt by Rutgers came from unexpected sources lower in its batting order. Freshman outfielder Ryan Wiltsey entered the game with seven hits and one RBI on the season and added two hits and two RBIs.
Most critical for the Scarlet Knights was production from shortstop Jomar Carreras. The sophomore hadn’t gotten on base in four straight games before Saturday. In the 10-0 victory, he went 4-for-5, knocking in three RBIs and crossing home plate himself twice.
Only one ball was batted into play through three innings, when Maryland second baseman David Mendez fielded a slow bobbler and elected to put the lead runner out on a fielder’s choice. Barghese and Hastings each struck out two batters in the first frame — the Scarlet Knight finished with eight total strikeouts, and the Terp finished with five.
The first hit of the game finally came in the fourth inning, when Carreras slid a double through Maryland’s shift. However, replays showed the Rutgers player popped off the bag briefly after tagging it with Ty Kaunas’ glove squarely between his shoulder blades. The Terps didn’t challenge the call.
Hastings issued a walk to the next batter, presenting the first scoring chance of the game for either team. Wiltsey sent a ground ball into left-center field four pitches later, allowing Carreras to come racing home from second. He narrowly avoided the tag after a strong throw home from Crosland.
The Terps’ first hit of the game finally arrived in the fifth inning, when Paul Jones II laced a grounder beyond Rutgers first baseman Ryan Jaros. However, that was it — Maryland couldn’t find another hit in its next 13 at-bats.
Rutgers doubled its lead after Chase Krewson doubled and then advanced on two sacrifice bunts. A hit by pitch and a walk put two more Scarlet Knights on the bases, and they came home on a Yomar Carreras triple.
Ryan Bailey took the mound for Maryland in the sixth inning and gave a mixed display. While he forced two quick outs, he hit two batters in his first 10 pitches and loaded the bases. A strikeout when it mattered helped the Terps escape without further damage.
Looking to escape the seventh inning with two outs and runners on first and second, head coach Matt Swope brought Landon Edwards to the mound. Chase Krewson tracked the second pitch, which came off-speed, and launched a rocket over the left-field wall to push Rutgers’ lead to eight runs.
Barghese had the chance to record the final out of the game in the eighth inning, but a potential third strike on his 114th pitch just slid outside the box and struck the elbow of pinch hitter Michael Iannazzo. Reliever Jordan Saviñon entered the game and needed just three pitches to strike out Brayden Martin in what became the Terps’ final at-bat.
Singles for four consecutive batters in the bottom of the eighth inning, capped off by Carreras’ final RBI of the night, triggered the run rule and sent the Terps back to the hotel slightly early.
Three things to know
1. Power hitting missing. Between the fourth and seventh inning, just one of Maryland’s 12 outs came on a ball that made it to the outfield. The Terps struggled for solid contact against Rutgers’ pitching staff, with many weak hits dribbling to the infield.
2. Brayden Martin’s bad weekend. One of the Terps’ best batters on the season, Martin has seriously struggled in New Jersey. Through two games against Rutgers, he hasn’t gotten on base once.
3. Series defeat. Rutgers has now taken the series win over Maryland in consecutive years for the first time ever.
