Tag: ND Baseball

MLB All-Star MVP Guerrero gives special shout out to former Notre Dame star

What a gesture!

The conclusion of the MLB All-Star festivities last night saw the Toronto Blue Jays slugging first-baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a massive home-run, the 200th total in the All-Star game. The blast, along with an RBI groundout was enough for the Dominican native to be named MVP of the contest.

[lawrence-related id=30380]

During the middle of the game, there was a pause for the many people who have had the difficult battle with cancer. The segment saw everyone in the stands, including the All-Star’s holding up signs with a loved ones name on it, as they Stand Up To Cancer. In a heartfelt moment for many, the eventual MVP’s card was flashed on screen.

His card was dedicated to former Notre Dame star and All-Star teammate Trey Mancini. Guerrero Jr. wasn’t the only one either, as Baltimore teammate Cedric Mullins did the same.

Mullins dedication should come as a surprise, but for Guerrero Jr. to recognize Mancini is special. They aren’t teammates, aside from this game, and there’s a language barrier as well, with the MVP not being very comfortable with his English.

[listicle id=30400]

That didn’t matter at all as the sentiment from Guerrero Jr. speaks much louder than the fact that they can’t fully communicate with each other. In a night full of stars, this was a very touching moment.

Kohlhepp first off the board for Notre Dame in MLB Draft

The first Irish baseball player is off the board!

It has been a long wait for many of the Notre Dame baseball players as they waited for their names to be called in the MLB Draft. It definitely helped that this years draft was much longer than last years, twenty rounds instead of just five, but the wait was still on through four rounds.

The wait finally came to an end as with the 145th overall pick in the 5th round, the Detroit Tigers selected right-handed pitcher Tanner Kohlhepp. The Tigers have invested heavily in pitching over the most recent drafts and the Irish pitcher goes to a team that is in the middle of a rebuild.

It has been a very pitching-heavy draft for the Tigers, as five of their first six selections have been hurlers. It remains to be seen where Kohlhepp will start his professional career, but what we do know is it’s another feather in the baseball programs hat as they send yet another player to the big leagues.

FIW Exclusive: Get to know Notre Dame’s newest dual-sport athlete Jack Lausch

Get to know the next dual-sport Irish athlete, Jack Lausch

Over the weekend dual-sport Chicago Brother Rice High School athlete Jack Lausch committed to the Irish, to play both baseball and football in South Bend.

[lawrence-related id=29611]

The impressive athlete was relatively under the radar prior to his pledge, but that will no longer be the case. Watch the interview Lausch and I had yesterday to get to know what to expect from Notre Dame’s next dual-sport star.

[mm-video type=video id=01f8rg3m6wscms7y07v5 playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01f8rg3m6wscms7y07v5/01f8rg3m6wscms7y07v5-e374aadf202bf1c13978347051ce7616.jpg]

Notre Dame double-dips with their latest commitment

Yet another impressive athlete will matriculate to South Bend

It was a good day for both the Notre Dame football and baseball program as today, Illinois dual-sport athlete Jack Lausch has committed to the Irish.

I’ve seen Lausch multiple times at football camps, the quarterback has a strong as and a great frame at six-foot-three-inches and 195-pounds. He’s cerebral with his reads and will give the Irish yet another option as a signal caller.

As for his exploits on the baseball field, the left-handed hitting outfielder will bring his impressive skill set to Link Jarrett’s squad. We have seen plenty of dual-sport athletes for the Irish, Cole Kmet and Jeff Samardzija are two of the more successful ones. Hopefully we will be able to add Lausch’s name to that list in the future.

Mississippi State outlasts Notre Dame, eliminate Irish in NCAA tournament

Even with the loss, it was a great season for the Irish

After the top of the first inning, it looked like Notre Dame had the momentum after a dominating game two win. It just wasn’t meant to be for the Irish, as Mississippi State posted double digit runs en route to a berth in the College World Series.

Starter Will Mercer didn’t bring his A-game and it seemed like every time the Irish would answer MSU, the Bulldogs had an answer of their own.

After falling behind 7-1 after two innings, the Irish offense faced their largest deficit of the NCAA tournament and just couldn’t dig themselves out of it. You have to love the fact that they didn’t ever fold, Link Jarrett’s team played their hearts out to the end. It just wasn’t enough, as the Bulldogs used their 6-run second to cushion their way to the CWS. Tanner Allen hit two homers for MSU,

Jarrett tried to keep his team within striking distance, even bringing back game one starter John Michael Bertrand, who was magnificent in his three innings. The Irish tried to mount a comeback but it was all for naught.

The highlight of the game for the Irish was undoubtedly their best players efforts, Niko Kavadas. He absolutely crushed a ball off Landon Sims that left Dudy Noble Field.

[lawrence-related id=29545]

It has been a fantastic first full season under Link Jarrett, that shouldn’t be lost after getting eliminated tonight. This team won’t be the same next year, but if this is the kind of effort and results behind Jarrett squads, its going to be a very prosperous era of Notre Dame baseball.

Must see: Notre Dame’s Kavadas massive blast leaves Dudy Noble Field

WOW

It has been a tough series for Notre Dame first baseman Niko Kavadas. After hitting 5 homers during regional play, the single-season home-run leader in Irish history was held in check for the majority of the super regional series against Mississippi State.

Kavadas took out all of his frustrations on this pitch, as he blasted it out of Dudy Noble Stadium.

The homer brought the Irish two-runs closer to the Bulldogs as they try and keep their season alive in the elimination game of the Starkville super regional.

Ryan Cole’s solo homer gives Notre Dame lead in first inning

The Irish strike first on a long ball by Ryan Cole

Once again the Notre Dame offense has gotten off to a great start. Even though it wasn’t the lead-off batter, the Irish have scored every time they’ve gotten on, it was the second hitter of the inning, Ryan Cole. He blasted a fastball to the opposite field for a solo homer and an early lead.

With so much on the line, a trip to the College World Series, the ending of the season, it seems like Notre Dame does not want to go home.

The Irish will not turn to starting pitcher Will Mercer to guide them through the early stages of this game and hopefully continue their season in Omaha next weekend.

Tyrell magnificent as Notre Dame forces an elimination game three

The Irish battle back to force game three

With the Irish’s backs against the wall, head coach Link Jarrett looked to left-hander Aiden Tyrell to take the mound and stave off elimination for Notre Dame. It wasn’t pretty, after two batters Mississippi State held a 1-0 lead, but Tyrell settled down held the Bulldogs offense in check before getting pulled in the top of the seventh with one out and two on.

Reliever Alex Rao would get out of the jam but the story was the offense this afternoon. While Tyrell was holding the MSU offense down, the Notre Dame offense continued to stay hot. They immediately answered the run allowed in the top of the first with two of their own on a Zach Prajzner infield single.

The Irish offense would add an unearned run in the bottom of the fourth before starting to pull away. Catcher David LaManna blasted a three-run shot to left as the lead grew to 6-1.

Two innings later in the sixth, Jack Brannigan got into the action as well with a two-run blast of his own to give the Irish a 8-1 lead.

The scoring wasn’t over for the Irish as they added another run when Ryan Cole scored on an RBI single from Carter Putz.

Even though the Irish bullpen didn’t get the job done yesterday, Tyrell made sure they got some rest with his long outing. Rao finished off the Bulldogs, forcing the elimination game tomorrow.

Regardless of how tomorrow turns out, we should all be proud of the effort the Irish displayed this year. Hopefully Notre Dame’s season doesn’t end tomorrow and they head off to Omaha and the College World Series next weekend.

Errors doom Notre Dame, drop game 1 in Starkville super regional

The Irish drop game 1 in Starkville

In a back and forth affair, host Mississippi State ultimately came out on top against Notre Dame in the first game of the three game super regionals. There were a lot of good omens for the Irish; 24-3 when scoring first, 33-3 when scoring more than three runs, but it wasn’t meant to be.

After leading 7-3 after the middle of the fifth, the Irish would only score one more time. The hosts hit three homers with Logan Tanner’s in the bottom of the 7th being the winning blast. John Michael Bertrand wasn’t as effective as he was last week, going four innings while allowing five run, four earned. Tanner Kohlhepp took the Irish the rest of the way but was the losing pitcher, while Preston Johnson was the winner for the Bulldogs.

[lawrence-related id=29450]

MSU closer Landon Sims went through the heart of the Irish order in the bottom of the eighth and then closed the door in the ninth after the Bulldogs took the lead in the bottom of the seventh. For a majority of the game, Notre Dame had the momentum, shutting down the MSU crowd while answering everything the Bulldogs sent to them.

What ultimately doom the Irish was their defense, which has been stellar all year. Uncharacteristic errors, four on the day, were the most the defense has made in a single game all season.

The offense did exactly what they needed to do, but unfortunately it just wasn’t enough for the Irish to scratch out an opening game win. Zach Prajzner was the star of the offense going three for four, with two doubles, a homer and four RBI.

[lawrence-related id=29446]

The series is not over by any means, as game one proved that these two teams are evenly matched. Game two of the series is scheduled for tomorrow at 6pm CST.

Prajzner again, ties game for Notre Dame baseball vs MSU

Prajzner ties up game 1 late

The Irish saw their 7-4 lead evaporate into a 8-7 deficit after the end of the sixth inning. If we have seen on thing this spring from the Notre Dame baseball team is that there is no quit with this group. They showed that once again as Zach Prajzner hit a double down the left field line to score Jack Brannigan and even up the score.

The back and forth battle continues as this has been an extremely entertaining first game against Mississippi State in the Starkville super regionals. With 16 combined runs scored midway through 7 innings, expect more fireworks and hopefully the Irish end up on the right side of this show.