Baseball Preview: Northeastern at Clemson

Friday 2:00 PM, Saturday 3:00 PM, Sunday 1:00 PM. TV: ACCNX.

STARTING PITCHERS

• Friday – RHP Cam Schlittler (NOR) vs. RHP Mack Anglin (CU)

• Saturday – RHP Sebastian Keane (NOR) vs. RHP Nick Hoffmann (CU)

• Sunday – RHP Wyatt Scotti (NOR) vs. RHP Nick Clayton (CU)

After the big sweep last weekend, a postponed Tuesday game with East Tennessee State, and a nice Wednesday 4-2 win in Greenville over Michigan State, the undefeated Clemson Tigers host another team from the Great White North. Yep, the Northeastern Huskies ship down from Boston for a three game tilt. So, who are these Huskies? Well, they come from a small private school in Boston, because apparently there aren’t enough of those. They’re also the defending CAA champs and were a third seed last year in the Fayetteville, Arkansas regional. They’re coached by Mike Glavine, the brother to Braves legend Tom Glavine, and usually have an exhibition game with the hometown Boston Red Sox, but didn’t this year because of the MLB work stoppage. For a program that operates in an area of the country that is pro baseball obsessed but kind of oblivious to college ball, they’re doing pretty well for themselves.

So, what of the Huskies this year? Well, some inconsistency. They swept NC State, who was #8 in the nation at that point, in Raleigh. But the bad? They got a win over Penn State in the Penn State Invitational, but they also have losses to the likes of LIU, Marshall, Minnesota, and are coming off a 1-1 tie with UMass. So, this is a team Clemson should beat and a team that Clemson can beat handily. But, this is a team that you have to take seriously or they’ll punch you in the mouth. Just ask NC State.

Weather wise, it’s going to be a bit chillier this weekend compared to the great weather we saw all of last weekend. Naturally that favors Northeastern, who probably sees this as shorts weather. Today’s game has been bumped to 2:00 PM due to inclement weather, so I’m not expecting a great turnout, but Saturday, Clemson students, I’m challenging you. The crowd was awesome against South Carolina, and while Northeastern isn’t a rivalry game, what better way is there for you to cap off your Ain’t Patty’s Day bar crawl than to head over to the ballpark Saturday afternoon. I know, leaving the warm bar of TTT’s or TD’s or whatever your watering hole of choice is may be tough, but finish that pitcher and get down to the Doug and get loud! This team is playing awesome baseball and they deserve an awesome crowd.