University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels Wrap Fall World Series at DAP
October 24, 2014 | Baseball
NOTE: This article originally appeared in CAROLINA, the official digital magazine of Tar Heel athletics.
By Turner Walston
The Carolina baseball team wrapped up their fall practice period with the annual intrasquad Fall World Series on Sunday. Unlike in previous years, when the Series was played over seven games, Mike Fox and his staff opted to play three series of three games each on consecutive weekends. Sunday night, the team played the finale in a chilly Durham Athletic Park in front of devoted fans, family and friends.
Playing the game in the historic stadium was cause for a bit of a throwback, Fox said.
“It's hard to come to a ballpark that was built in 1926 and not wear stirrups and use a wood bat,” he said with a smile. “I think that would be doing an injustice to all the players that have played here before.”
Behind a strong six innings of work from senior right-hander Benton Moss, the Navy squad defeated the Blue team, 6-1, on Sunday evening. Moss and fellow seniors Trevor Kelley and Chris McCue drafted the teams in early October, but the coaches constantly mixed the rosters in an attempt to craft close games. “We go back and look at the nine we played, but only two of them were really competitive, but that's OK,” Fox said. “We just want to see our guys compete in the best competitive atmosphere we can. That's all we can do without playing outside competition, so we accomplished what we set out to.”
The Tar Heels have added a boatload of talented newcomers to a handful of proven veterans, and there appears to be competition all around the diamond. Returning starters Skye Bolt, Tyler Ramirez and Wood Myers continued to impress this fall, but this time is critical for sophomores like Adrian Chacon and Adam Pate, who will battle for larger roles in 2015. Junior Alex Raburn has been a utility player though his first two seasons. He made hustle plays and swung a hot bat in the fall. Fellow junior Michael Massardo continued his tradition of having a standout fall practice period. Newcomers standing out included junior college transfer Elijah Sutherland, a crafty infielder, catcher Ryder Ryan and infielder Logan Warmoth.
“I'm trying to see who competes and who can make plays, and who's still got energy, that sort of thing,” Fox said. “It's very important to me, because I'm watching every player. Obviously we're moving guys around who can make plays. For the young guys, it's all about who can play defense, because the hitting part of it's going to come and go at times.”
Carolina's weekend pitching rotation of Trent Thornton, Moss and Zac Gallen returns intact, but there will be competition on the Tar Heel staff as well. Several pitchers, like Gallen, McCue and bullpen stopper Reilly Hovis, were shut down for the fall, so the Fall World Series offered a chance for younger players to step forward. “Jason Morgan, Hunter Williams, Brett Daniels, Hansen Butler and those freshmen guys we've got have been, for me the most impressive part of what I saw this fall, and those are just four,” Fox said. “We've got some good young talent that have feel for more than one pitch and can command the strike zone.”
Jacob (JB) Bukauskus would very likely have been a first or second-round pick in June's Major League Baseball draft had he not been so adamant about keeping his commitment to North Carolina. Bukauskus did not throw in the fall, but he will be a big part of pitching coach Scott Forbes' plans when the season rolls around.
On February 13, the Diamond Heels will hit the field for a three-game series against Seton Hall (they open the season with a 15-game homestand). Between now and then, Fox and his staff will try to find the right combination to take the program back to Omaha and the College World Series. “[It's a] good problem,” he said of the task ahead. “They'll figure it out some, we'll figure it out. But they'll determine who plays, not us.”
