Rob Evans takes the mound as the Miami Hurricanes look to snap a 17-year championship drought against a dangerous Stanford Cardinal lineup in this high-stakes postseason showdown.
Miami, FL. – After undergoing a Day 1 bye, the Miami Hurricanes will face the Stanford Cardinal in the second round of the ACC Tournament. The West Coast program is coming off a convincing victory over the in-state rival California Golden Bears. The University of Miami hasn’t won an ACC Baseball Championship since 2008, but an opportunity presents itself to end a 17-year drought.
Game Notes:
The Hurricanes are in Charlotte, North Carolina, hours away from stepping into Truist Field. Coach J.D. Arteaga confirmed in Tuesday’s media availability that senior left-handed pitcher Rob Evans will start against Stanford. The 22-year-old had a strong outing against the Cardinal this past regular season: 7.2 innings pitched, giving up just three hits and two earned runs, and striking out eight batters.
Evans has played in the ACC Tournament, but this will be a first-time experience as a starter. Despite the bigger stage, the New York native remains confident.
“I trust myself to get the job done,” he said. “It’s just like any other game.”
Evans finished the regular season as one of the most prolific pitchers in the ACC: 14 total games, including 13 starts, a 9-3 record, and a 3.21 ERA.
Both the Hurricanes and Cardinal’s pitching staff finished the regular season among the bottom half in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Given how close they were offensively, there will be opportunities to run up the scoreboard.
The victory could come down to which pitchers execute better.
The Hurricanes are one of six teams in the ACC to have a .300 or better batting average. A big piece of the offense is fifth-year senior right fielder Derek Williams. He finished the regular season in the top 10 in batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS among conference players. Regardless of the stage, he looks to take the same approach in the ACC Tournament.
“Just being as disciplined as I can,” he said. “Not trying to do too much and passing the torch on the lineup–trying to impact the game as much as possible. I come in, have as much focus as I can, know what I want to swing at, know what I want to do in that situation, and make sure that I can do it each and every time.”
Freshman first baseman Teddy Tokheim poses as a big threat in the Cardinal’s lineup. He finished the regular season with a .349 batting average and a 1.105 OPS, including 16 home runs. However, against Evans, Tokheim didn’t get a hit in four at-bats, including a strikeout.
Injury report:
According to the ACC Student Athlete Availability Report, the Hurricanes have ruled out junior All-American third baseman Daniel Cuvet and junior right-handed pitcher TJ Coats.
Stanford ruled out sophomore right-handed pitcher Dominic Panella.
How to Watch:
The matchup will be streamed on the ACC Network and the ESPN app at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
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