Two of the ACC’s best baseball teams will square off this weekend in Winston-Salem when Clemson heads to Wake Forest.
Wake Forest Outlook
The Tigers (37-10 overall, 17-7 conference) will face a Demon Deacons (33-16, 12-12) team that entered the year as a preseason No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll and other various Top 25 rankings — the first time in school history that had happened.
Things didn’t go quite as according to plan for coach Tom Walter’s team early on. Wake Forest struggled right out of the gate in conference play, losing three of their first four weekend series, including a three-game sweep to North Carolina that dropped them to 2-7 in ACC play. They’ve since turned things around, losing only one conference series (at Notre Dame two weeks earlier).
Wake Forest enters this weekend having won six straight games to climb to No. 12 in D1Baseball’s Top 25 poll. They scored a season-high 24 runs in a 24-7 midweek victory over North Carolina A&T on Wednesday.
Seaver King (.332) and Jake Reinisch (.326) are a big reason for the team’s recent turnaround. They lead Wake Forest in hitting and have combined for 31 home runs and 123 RBIs. After missing a few games due to injury, first baseman Nick Kurtz has shown no drop in production, batting .319 with a team-high 19 home runs. As a team, the Demon Deacons have averaged 8.6 runs per game.
Clemson Outlook
Despite a few hiccups, Clemson has (generally) kept rolling along in ACC play. The Tigers have won all but one of eight series in conference action. The bullpen has been a concern of late with the team coughing up big leads in recent contests against Georgia Tech and Charlotte.
The bullpen squandered a pair of five-run leads last Friday in the second game of a doubleheader split against Georgia Tech that spoiled a seven-RBI game for senior slugger Blake Wright. On Tuesday against Charlotte, the Tigers blew a 9-2 lead and needed a four-run ninth inning rally to down the 49ers in midweek play, 14-12.
Clemson’s 4.24 ERA as a pitching staff is third in the ACC behind North Carolina and Duke. Freshman right-hander Aidan Knaak has yet to lose a game, going 4-0 with a team-best 2.57 ERA through 11 starts.
Left-hander Tristan Smith has struggled since returning to the rotation after being out a month with an ankle injury. He has allowed 10 runs (six earned) in eight innings in his three starts since the injury. Fellow southpaw Ethan Darden had an impressive bounce-back against Georgia Tech, going six innings and allowing three runs for a quality start his last time out.
At the plate, Wright has played in all 47 games and leads the Tigers in hitting with a .332/.367/.673 slash line. The senior second baseman and reigning ACC Player of the Week also leads the team with 19 home runs and 65 RBIs. Jimmy Obertop has 16 homers and 38 RBIs while batting .301, and Jacob Hinderleider recently became the third Tigers player to reach double figures in home runs with 11 for the season.
Alden Mathes (.332) and Hinderleider (.331) are practically tied with Wright for the team lead in hitting. Center fielder Cam Cannarella has come on strong of late and is up to .328 with a team-high 15 doubles. Clemson is batting .298 as a team while averaging 8.3 runs per game.
Pitching Matchups
Darden will start Friday’s opener against Wake Forest’s Chase Burns. A transfer from Tennessee, Burns has been one of the top pitchers in the nation this season. He is 9-1 with a 3.00 ERA in 12 starts. Burns leads all of Division I baseball with 140 strikeouts in 75 innings pitched.
In his last start (against Western Carolina on May 4), Burns tossed six no-hit innings and struck out 13 of the 20 batters he faced to earn ACC Pitcher of the Week honors for the fourth time this season. The right-hander has struck out 10 or more batters in nine of his 12 starts this season and is the No. 7 overall 2024 MLB Draft prospect as ranked by MLB.com.
Smith will face Wake Forest right-hander David Falco (2-2, 4.85 ERA) in Game 2 Saturday with Knaak starting Sunday’s finale against left-hander Josh Hartle (6-2, 5.40).
Series History
Clemson leads the all-time head to head series, 142-63-1. The Tigers were swept by Wake Forest a season ago when the two teams met at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
Where to Watch/Stream/Listen
Here’s how Clemsons fans can watch, stream, and listen to this weekend’s series against Wake Forest.
When: May 10-12
Where: David F. Couch Ballpark
Start Times (ET)
Friday, 6 p.m.
Saturday, 4 p.m.
Sunday, 12 p.m.
Broadcast Info
Live Video Stream: ACC Network Extra (Friday), ESPN+
TV: ACC Network (Saturday), ESPN2 (Sunday)
Radio: Clemson Athletic Network | TuneIn App
Broadcast Teams
ACC Network Extra (Friday): Stan Cotten, Lary Sorensen
ACC Network (Saturday), ESPN2 (Sunday): Clay Matvick, Kyle Peterson
Clemson Radio: Don Munson, Bob Mahony