Clemson looks to settle pitching rotation after turnover
A season ago, Matthew Crownover was one of the top pitchers in the ACC. Along with Zack Erwin, Clemson had one of the best 1-2 punches in the league. Brody Koerner got off to a fast start as the No. 3 starter, and when he began to struggle, Jake Long stepped in and filled that role admirably down the stretch.
Not a single one of those pitchers, who combined for 51 of Clemson’s 61 starts, will be in the rotation in 2016. Because of that, Monte Lee has a lot of figuring out to do in his first season as the Tigers’ head coach. But he’s got a plan and time to see if it pans out before opening day against Maine on Feb. 19.
“What you do this time of the year, especially with a young and unproven pitching staff outside of a handful of guys, is we want to match these guys up and force them to compete against each other to win jobs,” Lee said.
Clate Schmidt and Charlie Barnes are squaring off as those are the two main options fighting for the Friday and Saturday roles. Those two pitchers also combined to start eight games last season; only one other pitcher on this year’s roster (Paul Campbell) recorded a single start in 2015.
There’s not only a lack of production, there’s a big loss of leadership as well.
“We have all been taking the leadership role, whether it’s been Pat Krall, Charlie Barnes, I. We’ve all pushed each other as hard as we can,” said Schmidt, a senior who went 2-3 with a 4.67 earned run average in 18 appearances last season. “I’ve started on the weekend so at least having some experience I can help the guys. I’ve been trying to push everyone to where we can be a better staff. It’s been an effective offseason.”
Schmidt won a battle with cancer last summer, and said he feels good and his stamina on the mound is not an issue heading into this season.
He’s the favorite to win the Friday job, but Lee believes Barnes, who was 1-2 with a 3.38 ERA in 12 appearances as a freshman in 2015, has the stuff to make it a close competition. There are several other pitching roles to define. Lee is looking, first and foremost, for a third starter and arms to take the mound in weekday games.
A pair of freshmen, Jake Higginbotham and Brooks Crawford, appear to be the leaders battling for that Sunday role, although Lee mentioned redshirt freshman Alex Eubanks and junior Alex Bostic as potential candidates.
“Those two guys (Higginbotham and Crawford) are highly touted and have pro-level stuff, but they’re true freshmen, so we want to see those guys compete against each other, against our hitters and see how they do,” Lee said. “That’s what this time of the year is for, to see who emerges out of that group to become the No. 3 starter.”
This story was originally published February 8, 2016 at 9:54 PM with the headline "Clemson looks to settle pitching rotation after turnover."