Butler, Bohm Help Michigan Complete Perfect Weekend

Sunday, March 28

Ann Arbor, Mich.

Noon

Michigan

8-9

Detroit

2-13

Detroit

Michigan

3/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Ray Fisher Stadium)
Event: Michigan Classic
Scores: Michigan 10, Detroit 5; Michigan 9, Oakland 3
Records: U-M (9-9), Detroit (2-13), Oakland (5-11)
Next U-M Game: Friday, Apr. 2 -- vs. Minnesota (Ray Fisher Stadium), 3:00 p.m.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Led by juniors Matt Butler (Lombard, Ill./Driscoll Catholic) and Kyle Bohm (Stevens Point, Wis./Area HS), the University of Michigan baseball team collected its second sweep of the weekend, beating Detroit, 10-5, and Oakland, 9-3, on Sunday afternoon (March 28) to close out Michigan Classic action in Ray Fisher Stadium.

The Wolverines (9-9) finished the four-game weekend classic with a 4-0 mark, while Oakland (5-11) and Detroit (2-13) both were 1-3 for the weekend.

Butler was 3-for-5 vs. Detroit with a grand slam homer, the game-winning hit in the opener, and had seven RBI in the doubleheader to grab the team lead with 18 for the season. Meanwhile, Bohm was 3-for-3 in the nightcap against Detroit and had three doubles and scored four runs in the two Sunday wins. Bohm had five doubles on the weekend and leads the team with 11.

The Wolverines scored 42 runs on the weekend and had 56 hits in the four wins, the third four-game winning streak for Wolverine head coach Rich Maloney in two seasons.

While the offense clicked, the starting pitchers each collected a win, with senior RHP Bobby Garza (Southgate, Mich./Anderson HS) working five innings for the win over Detroit and junior RHP Michael Penn (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Christian) going 7.2 innings in the win over Oakland with seven strikeouts. Garza and Penn allowed a total of just three earned runs in the wins.

Butler provided another all-around game in the opener as he made a key play on defense, making a catch and a strong throw to the plate that ended up as part of a 9-2-6-2 double play in the top of the second inning to keep the score 2-2, and then he hit his slam in the bottom of the second for the 6-2 lead.

In the second inning of a scoreless tie vs. Oakland in the second game the defense came through again. The Golden Grizzlies collected two hits in the inning but only had three batters reach the plate as redshirt freshman catcher Matt Rademacher (Bay City, Mich./Central HS) cut down a runner attempting to steal second.

With two outs in the second inning the relay combo of junior LF Chris Burhans (Alpharetta, Ga./Marist School) and sophomore shortstop Jeremy Goldschmeding (Allegan, Mich./Allegan HS) turned a potential triple into a double with sophomore 3B A.J. Scheidt (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Lahser HS) making the tag on a 7-6-5 play.

In the bottom of the second inning Goldschmeding singled and took second on an error, Rademacher walked and with two outs freshman CF Eric Rose (Blissfield, Mich./Blissfield HS) used his speed to force an infield error that allowed the first run to score, and Butler followed with a two-run single.

The Wolverines scored eight of their nine runs against Oakland with two outs, and the last five runs came in innings that included two outs before a runner reached base. Burhans had a two-out, two-run single in the fifth inning against Oakland and senior DH Brandon Roberts (Arlington, Texas/Martin HS), who collected three doubles on Sunday, had three two-out RBI in the twin victories.

The Wolverines, third-place finisher in the Big Ten a year ago, open conference action by hosting defending champ Minnesota next weekend (April 2-4).

N O T E S

Junior/sophomore LHP Paul Hammond (Mason, Ohio/Mason HS) worked two shutout innings and recorded three strikeouts in Sunday's opening win vs. Detroit. In five outings this season, his first action since 2002, Hammond has 11 strikeouts in 6.2 innings.

Matt Butler's grand slam homer was his first homer in Fisher Stadium. Butler's slam, which provided the game-winning RBI in Sunday's 10-5 win over Detroit, was the first Wolverine grand slam at home since Brandon Jominy's slam against Purdue in 2002 (May 18). The last U-M slam overall was Nate Wright's blast vs. Rider in Savannah, Ga., in 2003 (Feb. 23).

Kyle Bohm had his nine-game hitting streak snapped in Saturday's opener vs. Oakland, but he bounced back and went 8-for-11 (.727) for the rest of the weekend with five doubles to push his team-leading total to 11 doubles in 18 games. He scored six runs and drove in three during the weekend. Bohm has hits in 16 of the 18 games this season.

Michigan's hitting leaders after 18 games are: 1B Kyle Bohm at .429 (30-for-70), Jeff Kunkel (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest HS) at .404 (19-for-47), 3B A.J. Scheidt at .394 (28-for-71), Jeremy Goldschmeding at .378 (17-for-45), Matt Butler at .368 (21-for-57), OF Eric Rose at .344 (11-for-32) and Brandon Roberts at .328 (19-for-58).

Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423