Putnam Leads Wolverines Over Wildcats in Season Opener

Friday, February 23

Port St. Lucie, Fla.

7:00 PM

Michigan

1-0

Bethune-Cookman

5-5

Bethune-Cookman

Michigan

Putnam Leads Wolverines Over Wildcats in Season Opener

2/23/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Sophomore RHP/DH Zach Putnam (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS) pitched 5.1 innings, allowing one earned run and striking out six batters to record the win, while going 2-for-3 with a triple to lead the University of Michigan baseball team to a 5-3 season-opening win over Bethune-Cookman Friday (Feb. 23) night on Tradition Field in the New York Mets spring training complex.

The win for the defending Big Ten champion Wolverines (1-0) gave fifth-year head coach Rich Maloney his 150th victory at the helm of the U-M program, and is Maloney's second season-opening win in the past three years.

Putnam collected his seventh career win, matching his single-game high with six strikeouts.

The game was 0-0 after two innings as both pitchers, Francisco Rodriguez of BCC (5-50 and U-M's Putnam, recorded three strikeouts apiece.

The Wolverines -- which never trailed in the game -- broke the ice by scoring without a hit in the bottom of the third inning. Freshman RF Alan Oaks (White Lake, Mich./Divine Child) walked in his first at bat as a Wolverine. He was forced at second on a fine fielding play by pitcher Rodriguez on a sac bunt attempt by sophomore 2B Kevin Cislo (Novi, Mich./Novi).

Cislo stole second base, advanced to third on a balk and scored the first run of the year on a sac fly by senior co-captain Eric Rose (Blissfield, Mich./Blissfield). It was the fifth career game-winning RBI for the veteran Rose.

BCC bounced back with a threat against Putnam in the top of the fourth with a pair of singles by DH Angel Negron -- his second of the game -- and SS Chris Henault. However, Putnam got out of the jam, fanning 1B Alejandro Jimenez to end the inning with Putnam's sixth and final K of the game.

Michigan scored twice in the fourth, as junior 1B Nate Recknagel (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion/Oakland University), U-M's leading hitter a year ago, singled up the middle. He scored one batter later on Putnam's first career triple. Sophomore 3B Adam Abraham (Grosse Pointe Park, Mich./South HS) then hit a sac fly, scoring Putnam to make the score 3-0.

BCC scored an unearned run in the fifth off Putnam, as LF Justin Hoyte reached first on a one-out error and moved to third on a hit-and-run single by 2B Jose' Almonte. The run scored on a rare 3-6-3-4 double play, as Ortiz grounded to Recknagel at first for the first out, and 2B Cislo made the third out on a tag play after Hoyte scored the Wildcat run.

The Wolverines chased starter Rodriguez in the fifth inning on a single by Cislo, who then recorded his second stolen base, and a bunt single by Rose. Felix Machado came in for Rodriguez. Before Machado's first pitch in relief, he caught Rose breaking to second on a steal attempt; Cislo scored while Rose was retired in a rundown, making the score 4-1.

Putnam retired the first batter in the sixth inning, but when Negron collected his third hit of the game, freshman LHP Eric Katzman (Harrington, N.J/Northern Valley Old Tappan HS) made his career debut at the mound in relief of Putnam. He had a rough outing with a wild pitch, two hit batters and a walk to force in a run -- the only tally that was earned against Putnam. Senior/junior Michael Powers (St. Clair Shores, Mich./South Lake HS) faced one batter and got an inning-ending ground out to end BCC's bases-loaded threat.

Michigan got the run back in the sixth to make it 5-2, as Abraham was hit by a pitch and moved to third on a hit-and-run single by junior catcher Doug Pickens (West Bloomfield, Mich./Brother Rice). Abraham scored on a sac fly by sophomore SS Jason Christian (Loveland, Ohio/Loveland).

Powers allowed a leadoff single by Almonte in the seventh, and there were BCC runners on first and third after a wild pitch and a single by Ortiz. Almonte scored on a sac fly, but Powers got out of the inning with a fly to left and a strikeout.

Senior/junior LHP Brad Seddon (St. Clair, Mich./St. Clair), making his first appearance since 2005, worked a scoreless eighth inning to set up closer junior/sophomore Ben Jenzen (Grosse Pointe, Mich./South HS) for his seventh career save. Jenzen worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

The BCC-Michigan series continues Saturday (Feb. 24) on Field #2 at the Mets Tradition Field Baseball Complex at 1 p.m. Junior/sophomore Chris Fetter (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS) is scheduled to start on the mound. Fetter was 5-2 with a Big Ten-leading 2.22 ERA overall last season.

NOTES

During Friday's (Feb. 23) morning practice at the New York Mets complex, members of Michigan's baseball team met former Wolverine pitcher and Mets owner Fred Wilpon (1956).

Freshman RF Alan Oaks was the only Wolverine in the season-opening starting lineup without a career hit; he drew a walk in his first career at bat.

Pitcher/DH Zach Putnam collected the first Wolverine hit of the season with a single to lead off the second inning. Putnam is 2-0 in his U-M career when starting as pitcher/DH.

Senior CF Eric Rose, making his 146th career start, opened the season with his 57th career stolen base. Rose ranks third on U-M's career stolen base list. Steve Finken (65, 1986-88) is second on the list.

The Wolverines opened the 2007 season with co-captain SS Leif Mahler (Columbus, Ohio/St. Charles Prep) out for the season with a leg injury, junior/sophomore RHP David Nykerk (Holland, Mich./West Ottawa HS) out with a potential career-ending arm injury and junior OF/1B Derek VanBuskirk (St. Clair, Mich./St. Clair HS) on the shelf for several weeks with a leg injury.

Michigan's leading hitters after the opener are: P/OF Zach Putnam (2-for-3, .667), OF Brad Roblin (Wayland, Mass./Rivers School) at .500 (2-for-4), OF Eric Rose (1-for-2, .500), 2B Kevin Cislo (1-for-2, .500) and SS Jason Christian (.1-for-3, .333).

Contact: Jim Schneider (734-763-4423)