EAST BOSTON – EJ Birch shoved a complete-game, six-hit, no-walk, shutout with a career-high eight strikeouts to lead Suffolk baseball to a 6-0 victory in the CCC doubleheader opener at East Boston Memorial Park Friday afternoon.
THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 6 | Gordon 0
RECORDS: Suffolk (9-8, 3-4 CCC) | Gordon (6-12, 3-8 CCC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Gordon tested Birch in the second and third as the Fighting Scots had runners in scoring position in each inning.
In the second, with runners on second and third, Birch came up with a huge strikeout as Evan Paquette went down swinging. Rich Giandrea converted a routine ground out at third to keep the visitors off the board.
The next inning Jalen Coyne-Martin waited on second with no outs. Dalton Cody's ground out to second advanced the runner to third and yet again a punchout out by Birch came into play. The right-hander's fourth swinging strikeout of the day secured the second out of the stanza. The junior went on retire the side from there as Tim Brigham gloved a fly ball in left to keep zeros on the board.
Suffolk punched on the scoreboard in the home half of the third. An error allowed Steven Shamnoski to reach and then chug into third on another Fighting Scots misplay during Rich Giandrea's single. With Rams runners in the corners, Christian Seariac grounded into a double play, but Shamnoski scored on the 643 to make it a 1-0 Suffolk score.
Following a three-up, three-down inning by Birch in the top of the fourth, Suffolk doubled the distance in the bottom of the inning. Gordon got the first two outs on back-to-back ground outs to third. Marc Birbiglia sent a high fly ball to center field that was too much for the Fighting Scots fielder Ben Chase to handle. That bobble and eventual drop let Birbiglia take second standing up. Birbiglia was then brought in courtesy of Luke Harder's second through the left side.
The Rams put the game away in the sixth as four runs came with two outs. Zack Aresty's base hit to right field brought in the first in Blase Cormier, who led off with a walk. Pinch hitter Gino Desimone worked a walk to juice the bags for fellow pinch hitter Timothy McCarthy. McCarthy barreled the ball deep to left field. The Fighting Scots outfielder Josh Popovitch gloved the rock, but then dropped it, which allowed the bags to clear and push the score to 6-0 Rams.
Birch fanned the final three hits, the first two looking and the third swinging to seal the deal for Suffolk.
PITCHERS PICTURE
- Birch finished the 7.0 inning with just six hits allowed, no walks, and eight punchouts.
- Gordon's starter Mike Oley let up one run on one hit and three walks with a pair of strikeouts in 2.2 innings of work.
- Paquette allowed five runs, one earned, on four hits and two walks with one K in 3.1 innings.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
- Suffolk's five hits came off different batts with Birbiglia, Harder, Aresty, Shamnoski and Giandrea each producing one knock.
- Aresty and Harder both had one RBI.
- Birbiglia, Cormier, Harder, Aresty, Shamnoski and Desimone scored one run apiece.
NOTEWORTHY
- Suffolk defeated Gordon for the first time in program history.
- The Rams hosted the Fighting Scots in Boston for the first time.
- Birch fanned a career-high eight batters in 7.0 innings, also a career-high for the junior.
- Birch tossed his first complete-game shutout.
POST-GAME PIC
SUFFOLK'S SCHEDULE
The Rams and Gordon will conclude CCC doubleheader tonight.
