Harvard Hosts League Rivals

The oft-repeated repeated saying in sports is to go “Win one for the Gipper.” This weekend, the “Gipper” will be Alex Wawrzyniak, a three-year-old listed as a shortstop and right-handed pitcher on the Harvard baseball team’s roster.

The Crimson’s adoption of Wawrzyniak will be celebrated on Saturday, dubbed “Friends of Jaclyn Day” in support of a charitable organization that serves children with pediatric brain tumors.

“It’d be a kind of nice occasion to go out on Saturday and win for him,” Harvard coach Joe Walsh said.

But in order to honor the team’s youngest freshman with victories in the first of the weekend's two doubleheaders, the Crimson (8-15, 2-2 Ivy) will have to hold off a Penn squad that is one of two Ivy teams with a 3-1 conference record.

The next day, it will have to face the other—Columbia.

“Really this is a crucial weekend for us,” junior captain Tyler Albright said. “It’s our last series against the teams from the opposite division, our chance to get ahead against teams in our division. It should be an exciting weekend.”

Against the Quakers (12-11), Harvard’s main concern will be keeping in check formidable hitters like seniors Tom Grandieri and William Gordon, who have combined for 61 hits on the year.

“With our starting pitchers and our relievers, we should be able to shut them down,” Albright said. “I have a lot of trust and faith in our starting pitchers, and we’ll have our best relievers.”

Getting the start against Penn will be sophomore Conner Hulse. The right-hander kicked off his season with seven strikeouts in a win over Notre Dame and recently registered a complete game without an earned run in a 1-0 loss to Sacred Heart.

“Conner’s had some nice starts for us,” Walsh said. “His experience from last year—being a freshman in the Iy League—will pay off this year, I think. He’s working on his breaking ball this year—hoping to see a little bit more of that this weekend. Last weekend he was fastball, change. If we get those three pitches going for him, I think he’s got a chance for a real good outing.”

Up next against the Quakers will be junior Eric Eadington, coming off a strong weekend against Princeton in which he held the Tigers to two earned runs.

“We are usually starting to watch his pitch count in the fifth or sixth inning; he’s usually approaching 100+ pitches,” Walsh said. “He got through eight innings last week right around that 100 mark. That just means that he’s throwing a lot more strikes, and he’s using his off speeds and inviting contact from the hitters, not going after the strikeouts. So I’m hoping to get a little bit more of that from him.”

The next day, the Crimson will take on a Columbia squad that shut out Brown in its first game last Sunday.

“Columbia is more balanced,” Walsh said. “They’ve got some guys that can run, they’ve got a bullpen, and I really like Columbia’s catcher, he’s tough to get a running game on.”

With senior Dean Forthun keeping Harvard’s baserunning in checking, the Crimson will need to get its bats going, something Walsh said that team has been working for all season.

“I’ve got confidence in the hitters,” Walsh said. “We just haven’t been getting that clutch two-out hit or having that big inning, scoring three or four runs, and you know that could happen this weekend, and I’m sure hoping it does.”

Harvard saw signs of the long-awaited offensive outburst last weekend against Cornell, especially from freshman Kyle Larrow, who exploded for five RBI.

But while the Crimson works to get its offense going against the Quakers and Lions, it will be able to fall back on strong pitching. Walsh plans to start a resurgent sophomore Brent Suter in either the third or fourth game.

“Last Sunday, Suter really got through his lower back problems,” Walsh said. “[He] really got the giddy-up back on his fastball and mixing that with a good change and curve, I’m more excited about using him on Sunday.”

Meanwhile, Walsh hopes to plug in junior right-hander Max Perlman as well as freshmen Joey Novak and Andrew Ferreira. Perlman, recovering from Tommy John surgery, pitched a scoreless first inning against the Big Red, and Walsh hopes he sees more action this weekend.

“He’s a guy that we’d like to have at the top of our rotation,” Walsh said.

And in the clutch, Walsh plans on turning to sophomore Will Keuper.

“This year, when the game’s on the line, he’s the one I want closing the game for us,” Walsh said. “He’s not your usual closer being a left-hander and more of a curveballer, but you just don’t seem to get a good piece off him, and he’s been pitching real well for us.”

And if Keuper and Harvard deliver, the team may be able to celebrate its youngest teammate with victory.

“Having Alex on the team brings a lot of joy,” Albright said. “We are looking forward to having a day for him. It’ll be a great day.”

—Staff writer Christina C. McClintock can be reached at ccmcclin@fas.harvard.edu.