7th Inning Stretch: Keg of Nails, Baseball Style (Week 9)

After one of the wilder weeks in Louisville baseball history, the Cardinals prepare for a rivalry matchup against the Bearcats before heading back on the road.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Well, that was one of the more interesting weeks in the history of the Louisville baseball program.

The road leg of their annual Battle of the Bluegrass home-and-home series against Kentucky had to be postponed, but the Cardinals still took part in one of the wilder series I've ever seen. After dropping their opener against North Carolina, Louisville then proceeded to walk off the Tar Heels in two straight games to take the series.

Game two nearly went the other direction thanks to a fielding error by Isaac Humphrey, but was saved by a walk-off homer from Ben Metzinger. Humphrey was able earn redemption, collecting the walk-off hit that claimed the series in game three - which lasted over seven hours due to extra innings and a bomb threat.

Hitting continued to be Louisville's calling card in the series, combining for 24 runs on 38 hits. Starting pitching was hit or miss, but the bullpen shined in both games one and three. Overall, this continues to be a team not only worthy of a potential regional host site, but maybe even a top eight national seed.

Louisville might not have gotten a rivalry game in last week, but they have one this week, as Cincinnati comes to the Derby City. The weekend has in store a reeling Florida State squad, but as Dan McDonnell knows, life in the ACC never comes easy - especially on the road.

Last Week's Recaps:

• Game 29: Louisville Falls to North Carolina in Series Opener
• Game 30: Metzinger, Louisville Walks Off North Carolina in Extras to Even Series
• Game 31: Louisville Walks Off North Carolina in Bomb Threat-Delayed Extra Innings Rubber Match

News & Notes

• Louisville ranks as high as No. 3 (Collegiate Baseball Newspaper) among the six major collegiate baseball polls.
• Ben Metzinger and Christian Knapcyk were both named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List
• Metzinger ranks eighth in the nation in home runs with 13, 12th in walks with 31 and 17th in RBIs with 41.
• Knapczyk ranks second in the nation in runs with 46.
• Michael Prosecky is 23rd in the nation in saves with six.
• Levi Usher ranks ninth in the nation in stolen bases with 21.

The Week Ahead

Home (Jim Patterson Stadium - Louisville, Ky.)

• Tuesday, Apr. 12 at 6:00pm vs Cincinnati
• ACC Network Extra
• 93.9 The Ville

Away (Dick Howser Stadium - Tallahassee, Fla.)

• Thursday, Apr. 14 at 7:00pm vs. Florida State
• ACC Network Extra
• 93.9 The Ville
• Friday, Apr. 15 at 7:00pm vs. Florida State
• ACC Network Extra
• 93.9 The Ville
• Saturday, Apr. 16 at 1:00pm vs. Florida State
• ACC Network Extra
• 93.9 The Ville

Know The Foe

Midweek

School: University of Cincinnati
Nickname: Bearcats
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Total Enrollment: 28,657
Head Coach (school record): Scott Googins (108-110)
2022 Record (conference record): 13-17 (3-3 American)
All-Time Series Record: Louisville leads 49-20

Top Performers (Hitters):

• OF Paul Komistek (30 GP, 30 GS): .397/.485/.595, 5 HR, 19 RBI, 6 2B, 3B, 18 BB
• C Joe Powell (24 GP, 22 GS): .368/.479/.750, 5 HR, 20 RBI, 8 2B, 3 3B, 15 BB
• OF Griffin Merritt (28 GP, 27 GS): .333/.404/.735, 10 HR, 30 RBI, 9 2B, 3B, 10 BB

Top Performers (Pitchers)

• LHP Evan Kemp (7 APP, 0 GS): 2.70 ERA, 1.95 WHIP, 6.2 IP, 4 K, 6 BB, .280 B/AVG
• LHP Conner Linn (4 APP, 4 GS): 3.60 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, 20.0 IP, 15 K, 8 BB, .316 B/AVG
• RHP Beau Ketahley (9 APP, 4 GS): 4.93 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 38.1 IP, 50 K, 17 BB, .270 B/AVG

Weekend

School: Florida State University
Nickname: Seminoles
Location: Tallahassee, Fla.
Total Enrollment: 32,543
Head Coach (school record): Mike Martin, Jr. (61-42)
2022 Record (conference record): 18-13 (7-8 ACC)
All-Time Series Record: Florida State leads 12-8

Top Performers (Hitters):

• OF Reese Albert (28 GP, 23 GS): .355/.440/462, 0 HR, 11 RBI, 10 2B, 13 BB
• C/OF Jaime Ferrer (31 GP, 31 GS): .320/.428/.541, 5 HR, 25 RBI, 10 2B, 3B, 10 BB
• 1B/OF James Tibbs (30 GP, 24 GS): .302/.402/.573, 6 HR, 17 RBI, 8 2B, 11 BB

Top Performers (Pitchers)

• LHP Bryce Hubbart (8 APP, 8 GS): 2.98 ERA, 45.1 IP, 60 K, 11 BB, .220 B/AVG
• LHP Parker Messick (8 APP, 8 GS): 3.33 ERA, 48.2 IP, 80 K, 12 BB, .203 B/AVG
• RHP Davis Hare (10 APP, 0 GS): 2.12 ERA, 17.0 IP, 24 K, 8 BB, .164 B/AVG

Opponent Breakdown

Rankings:

	Cincinnati	Florida State	Louisville
D1 Baseball Ranking	NR	NR	9th
RPI	34th	172nd	29th
SOS	6th	94th	58th
Home Record	15-7	11-7	17-4
Away Record	3-5	2-8	5-3
Neutral record	0-1	0-2	1-1

Hitting:

	Cincinnati	Florida State	Louisville
Base on Balls	73rd (148)	108th (138)	10th (181)
Batting Average	81st (.284)	172nd (.268)	8th (.320)
Home Runs	36th (44)	73rd (34)	11th (54)
On Base Percentage	93rd (.381)	162nd (.367)	5th (.430)
Scoring Average	64th (7.2)	187th (5.8)	4th (9.8)
Slugging Percentage	31st (.494)	118th (.433)	4th (.551)

Pitching:

	Cincinnati	Florida State	Louisville
Earned Run Average	232nd (6.57)	36th (4.02)	110th (4.96)
Hits Allowed/9 Innings	216th (10.41)	27th (7.85)	88th (8.75)
Strikeouts/9 Innings	174th (8.4)	2nd (12.1)	68th (9.6)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio	220th (1.62)	13th (3.37)	104th (2.20)
WHIP	234th (1.73)	27th (1.27)	97th (1.46)
Walks Allowed/9 Innings	226th (5.17)	49th (3.58)	148th (4.39)

(Photo via Jared Anderson - State of Louisville)

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