Sylvester, Balzan Lead Pirates Past Butler, 7-3

[Halldan1]

Tough season to date for the men

Sylvester, Balzan Lead Pirates Past Butler, 7-3 - Seton Hall University Athletics

Zack Sylvester (Montville, N.J.) went 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI and Jackson Balzan (Medford, N.J.) threw five innings and tied a seaso...

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Indianapolis, Ind. — Zack Sylvester (Montville, N.J.) went 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI and Jackson Balzan (Medford, N.J.) threw five innings and tied a season high with seven strikeouts as Seton Hall defeated Butler, 7-3, in the series opener on Friday afternoon.

Seton Hall (20-22, 3-7 BIG EAST) posted 15 hits, a season best for the Pirates in a BIG EAST game this season, and hit four home runs as a team. Five Pirates registered multi-hit games. Out of the bullpen, Nate Espelin (Belmont, Mass.) three a scoreless sixth inning and Michael Gillen (Rochelle Park, N.J.) allowed only two baserunners in a three-inning save with four strikeouts.

How It Happened

Seton Hall looked to shake out of their offensive slump early as Devin Hack (Somerville, N.J.) and Aiden Robbins (Yardley, Pa.) led off the game with back-to-back base hits but they were both left stranded. It was Butler that scored first, going ahead 1-0 on a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning.

Balzan worked scoreless frames in the second and third innings before the offense found life. Sylvester led off the fourth inning with a single and Cole Zak (Cleveland, Ohio) followed him with his fourth home run of the season that put the Pirates in front, 2-1. Danny Melnick (Hamilton, N.J.) was the next batter and he doubled down the left field line that kept the rally going. Staus Pokrovsky (Pittsgrove, N.J.) then stepped to the plate and mashed his 19th career home run that extended Seton Hall's lead to 4-1.

After Balzan worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the fourth, Sylvester hit his first home run of the afternoon over the left field fence that scored Max Viera (Greenwood Lake, N.Y.) and made it 6-1 Pirates. The Bulldogs cut into their deficit in the bottom of the fifth with two runs that trimmed the Seton Hall lead to 6-3 before Balzan retired the side and prevented further damage.

Espelin kept it a 6-3 game in the sixth and Gillen came on in the seventh where he retired the side. After Gillen blanked the Bulldogs again in the eighth, Sylvester added an insurance run in the ninth with a solo home run that led off the inning.

Up Next

Game two of the three game series between Seton Hall and Butler will take place tomorrow afternoon at 2 p.m.

 

[Halldan1]

Complete Effort Lifts Pirates In 13-1 Win Over Butler - Seton Hall University Athletics

Seton Hall put forth a complete effort in all phases of the game as Ryan Reich (Sellinsgrove, Pa.) allowed just one run and struck out eight batters in s...

shupirates.com

Complete Effort Lifts Pirates In 13-1 Win Over Butler​

Indianapolis, Ind. — Seton Hall put forth a complete effort in all phases of the game as Ryan Reich (Sellinsgrove, Pa.) allowed just one run and struck out eight batters in seven innings and the top three batters in the order drove in nine runs in the Pirates' 13-1 win over Butler on Saturday afternoon.

Seton Hall (21-22, 4-7 BIG EAST) clinched its first BIG EAST series win of the season. Devin Hack (Somerville, N.J.) had another strong game going 3-for-5 with a home run, a double, three RBI and three runs scored. Aiden Robbins (Yardley, Pa.) had a monster showing as he went 3-for-4 with a home run, four runs scored and three RBI.

How It Happened

After going 3-for-4 with three RBI yesterday, Sylvester got the scoring started in the top of the first inning with a two-out RBI single. Reich retired the side in order in the home half of the first and he struck out the side in the second before Hack's first home run of the season extended Seton Hall's lead to 2-0 in the top of the third inning.

Reich continued to overwhelm the Bulldogs as he retired the next nine batters he faced. In the top of the fifth inning, Robbins added to the lead with a two-run home run that made it 4-0 Pirates. Butler made it a three-run game in the sixth inning, 4-1, that served as Reich's lone run surrendered. The Pirates answered with a four-run seventh inning that featured an RBI double by Hack, a run-scoring single from Robbins and an RBI base hit off the bat of Max Viera (Greenwood Lake, N.Y.).

With the Pirates now leading 8-1 in the bottom half of the seventh, Reich recorded the first two outs of the inning and induced a fly out to center field with a runner on to the retire the side in his final frame of work. An RBI single from Jonathan Luders (Lynnfield, Mass.) kicked off a five-run top of the eighth from the Pirates that put the score at 13-1 and put the game out of reach. Jayson Torres (East Islip, N.Y.) came out of the bullpen and tossed two scoreless frames, retiring five of the seven batters he faced.

Up Next

The Pirates will look to complete the sweep tomorrow at 1 p.m. as Seton Hall wraps up its series with Butler.

 

[catholicman]

The team is having one of it's worst seasons in years. It has a losing record overall and in conference. The downward trend had been a slow march. But it's turning into a sprint to the bottom.

 

[shu09]

The team is having one of it's worst seasons in years. It has a losing record overall and in conference. The downward trend had been a slow march. But it's turning into a sprint to the bottom.

Rob Sheppard doing yet another bang up job. Knowing SH, he'll keep his job as long as he wants it.

 

[NYC Pirate]

I may have missed this, but did Columbia beat SHU 31-0 this week?

 

[catholicman]

I may have missed this, but did Columbia beat SHU 31-0 this week?

Yes. On our home field. New low for SHU baseball. The AD needs to step in.

 

[Halldan1]

Baseball vs Columbia on 4/24/2024 - Box Score - Seton Hall University Athletics

The official box score of Baseball vs Columbia on 4/24/2024

shupirates.com

 

[NYC Pirate]

I guess the Protests are working????

 

[CT Pirate]

Missed the sweep. Mo Vaughn, John Valentin, Jason Grilli, Craig Biggio, Morton et all aren't walking through the gates at Owen Carroll any time soon. How do you lose to Columbia 31-0.? That is epic bad. The Shep leagcy needs to come to an end. Is anyone paying attention? Hope NIL monies aren't being directed here. Maybe time to drop the program like Providence.

 

[CT Pirate]

Yes. On our home field. New low for SHU baseball. The AD needs to step in.

Or step down.

 

[Halldan1]

This is what bad teams do. Dominate the stats and still lose.

Hansen's 9 Ks Not Enough At Butler - Seton Hall University Athletics

Despite a career-high nine strikeouts in a six-inning start from Cole Hansen (Skillman, N.J.) Seton Hall could not complete a three-game sweep of Butler ...

shupirates.com

Hansen's 9 Ks Not Enough At Butler​

Stats

Baseball vs Butler on 4/28/2024 - Box Score - Seton Hall University Athletics

The official box score of Baseball vs Butler on 4/28/2024

shupirates.com

Indianapolis, Ind. — Despite a career-high nine strikeouts in a six-inning start from Cole Hansen (Skillman, N.J.) Seton Hall could not complete a three-game sweep of Butler on Sunday as the Bulldogs topped the Pirates, 3-2.

Seton Hall (21-23, 4-8 BIG EAST), who outhit Butler 10-5 and left 12 runners on base, returns to South Orange with a series victory. After a productive day from the top three batters in the order yesterday, the bottom half of the Pirates' lineup had a strong afternoon with Danny Melnick (Hamilton, N.J.) going 2-for-3, Jonathan Luders (Lynnfield, Mass.) going 2-for-3 with an RBI and Pat D'Amico (Lynnfield, Mass.) going 2-for-4 with two runs scored, a double and a home run.

How It Happened

It was a pitcher's duel through the first four innings and Hansen started off his outing by retiring the first 10 batters he faced. Of those 10 outs, four went down by strikeout. The Pirates offense put two runners on in the second and two more in the fourth but couldn't get a run across. Butler took advantage of The Hall's missed opportunities and went ahead on an RBI double in the bottom half of the fourth that gave the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead.

The Pirates countered immediately in the top of the fifth inning where the first batter was D'Amico and he tied the score up at 1-1 with one swing on a solo home run. Hansen worked another 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the fifth but Butler pulled ahead on a solo home run in the sixth and made it a 3-1 lead with another round tripper that led off the bottom of the seventh.

Nate Espelin (Belmont, Mass.) prevented further damage in the seventh by retiring the side and recording two strikeouts. He worked another scoreless frame in the eighth that kept it a two-run game. D'Amico reached to lead-off an inning again in the top of the ninth where he smacked a double to left center field. Luders was the next batter and he sent D'Amico home on a run-scoring single down the left field line that trimmed Seton Hall's deficit to one, 3-2. Despite getting two runners into scoring position with one out, the next two Pirates were sat down in order.

Up Next

The Pirates return to Mike Sheppard, Sr. Stadium this week starting with a midweek contest against Hofstra on Wednesday at 4 p.m.

 

[SHUisNJsTeam]

What the hell happened this season!? Also, how the hell do you lose 31-0 in baseball!? 😳

 

[SHUisNJsTeam]

Missed the sweep. Mo Vaughn, John Valentin, Jason Grilli, Craig Biggio, Morton et all aren't walking through the gates at Owen Carroll any time soon. How do you lose to Columbia 31-0.? That is epic bad. The Shep leagcy needs to come to an end. Is anyone paying attention? Hope NIL monies aren't being directed here. Maybe time to drop the program like Providence.

So your answer is to quit instead of fix the problem!? No, we should NOT drop baseball! We should actually be expanding our athletic offerings. We need to fix baseball. There is no reason we should not be competitive and challenging for a Big East championship every year!

 

[silkcitypirate]

What the hell happened this season!? Also, how the hell do you lose 31-0 in baseball!? 😳

The question is if Sheppard gets a pass every year or does the athletic department care enough about baseball to make a change.

 

[silkcitypirate]

Also the softball and volleyball teams made great strides with coaching changes !!

 

[Spirit*of*89]

Missed the sweep. Mo Vaughn, John Valentin, Jason Grilli, Craig Biggio, Morton et all aren't walking through the gates at Owen Carroll any time soon. How do you lose to Columbia 31-0.? That is epic bad. The Shep leagcy needs to come to an end. Is anyone paying attention? Hope NIL monies aren't being directed here. Maybe time to drop the program like Providence.

Call Ricky Cerone. Maybe he’ll stop by. The Shep legacy will never end. Dropping the program is a little overreaction, don’t ya think?

 

[NYC Pirate]

So right now they are 4-8 with 9 to go in conference. Two tough series against UConn and SJU at home and Creighton on the road. They probably need 7-2 maybe 6-3 to have any chance to qualify for The BigEast Tournament and even that may not be good enough. I don't follow as much as I did. The program is stuck in the mud. The facilities are fine and the weather is the same for all the Northeast schools. The inability to attract one future pro or major league level pitcher is at the core of the problem. For a few years now you have been disguising fourth and fifth options as the ace of the staff. Also, relying too much on hitting mechanics can only go so far. You must go to the plate with passion bordering on anger even if not outwardly projected. You need that type of intensity and focus. So it is possible the coach has not been able to get his players into that mindset. They should still be a better team even with the talent they do have albeit not what it once was. The next few weeks are important or the coach should definitely be on the hot seat.

 

[silkcitypirate]

It is amazing how a once top eastern baseball program that was at one time only second to men's basketball on campus has become irreverent .

 

[SHUisNJsTeam]

The question is if Sheppard gets a pass every year or does the athletic department care enough about baseball to make a change.

The athletic department should care but more often than not just seem to be going through the motions.

 

[TheHall87]

It's no secret that many quality prospects in the Northeast leave the area to play college baseball. You have a much better chance of being noticed if you go to a program in an area where the weather is conducive to outdoor play for more than a couple of months.

I have a friend from South Jersey whose son was one of the top players in the state several years ago. As I understand it, he didn't really consider any Northeast schools and ended up first at Old Dominion and later South Alabama. And, this young man isn't a MLB prospect.

Recently I had a conversation with a former Seton Hall player who went on to work as a scout for several major league teams. He brought what he felt was a can't miss prospect to the attention of his GM. After listening to my friend's presentation, the GM basically dismissed it out of a hand because the player in question was from New Jersey. Said player is making a nice living playing major league baseball.

The point is that MLB organizations will look first to the year-round baseball areas before they'll consider players from the Northeast. This has become especially true now that MLB cut the entry draft to 20 rounds and eliminated a layer of minor league baseball.

 

[CT Pirate]

Call Ricky Cerone. Maybe he’ll stop by. The Shep legacy will never end. Dropping the program is a little overreaction, don’t ya think?

No - what is an overreaction is to continue to settle for mediocrity year over year hoping for different results. Hope is not a strategy and this is what we're "settling" for with the Shep legacy. Watch the beat down the Huskies put on us this weekend. If you strive for 500 or worse, it is an indictment on settling for average - at best. Why continue to bring this level of performance? It is throwing good money after bad

 

[PJVegas]

I may have missed this, but did Columbia beat SHU 31-0 this week?

SH held Columbia scoreless - in the 4th inning. 🤮

 

[PJVegas]

What the hell happened this season!? Also, how the hell do you lose 31-0 in baseball!? 😳

Apparently easily if you’re SH. And to think Columbia didn’t score in 1 inning. 👏