The James Madison bats were cold in a 10-0 loss to conference foe Georgia State in the second game of a three-game Sun Belt Conference matchup. The Dukes got only one hit in the power outage. The game shows the value of good pitching. However, it was a costly conference loss for the Dukes.
The game between James Madison and Georgia State on April 11 was a costly and embarrassing 10-0 loss for the Dukes. They got only one hit as they were shut down by the Georgia State starting pitcher, Jack Hembree. He pitched seven strong innings. Do you think the Dukes will be able to bounce back in the third game of this series on Sunday?
James Madison and Georgia State Game Summary
In this game, James Madison got only one hit and scored no runs. They walked four times, so they did have some baserunners. There was even a wild pitch by Georgia State. However, that was it. Georgia State scored in the second, third, fourth, sixth, and eighth innings. They slowly pulled away, and the game was ended by the ten-run rule in the eighth inning.
Georgia State did not hit a home run in this game. They scored on singles, a double, a sacrifice fly, and a groundout. This was a costly loss for the Dukes, apart from it being a blowout. This was a conference game, and with the Dukes having lost the first game of this three-game series as well, this loss gave them losses in the first two games of the series.
Good Pitching Beats Good Hitting
It is often said that the hardest thing to do in sports is to hit a round ball with a round bat. James Madison has good hitters up and down their batting order. In this game, the Dukes started several batters who were hitting over .300. They were dominated in this game.
Cooper Lewis came on to pitch the eighth inning, striking out two and walking one. The game ended there, because he did not surrender any runs.
Blowouts
Blowouts are a funny thing in baseball. This game, a 10-0 victory for Georgia State, definitely qualifies as a blowout. However, in baseball, momentum is said to be only as good as your next starting pitcher. That is a good thing if a team finds itself on the short side of a blowout. They count the same as one-run losses. The fact that a team can easily bounce back gives them some hope. We will see how Sunday plays out for the Dukes.
Pitching Changes
In this game, James Madison used five pitchers. They tend to use a bunch of pitchers in every game. They choose to mix and match relief pitchers with various batters coming up. This strategy can be effective, as matching up pitchers with hitters does increase a team’s likelihood of getting an out. On the flip side, that strategy runs the risk of wearing out a bullpen, with pitchers basically pitching every game.
Important Player Statistics From This Game
James Madison player Clay Thompson gets respect in this game because he did not strike out. It was just that kind of a game for the Dukes. There were several great pitching performances for Georgia State.
Hembree pitched well and was probably more responsible than anyone for Georgia State winning this game. However, it is worth pointing out that Sam Silas was 4-of-4 in the game. He also had a run batted in on a sacrifice fly. He also scored two runs.
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