On Monday, the Cleveland State Cougars traveled to Harriman, Tennessee to take on the Roane State Raiders.  The game was the season opener for both teams.  There was not a lot of offense in this game and I plan on seeing both teams again, so the next game report for these teams will look at their hitters.  Below are notes on select sophomore and freshman pitchers (check out Twitter for video!): 

Cleveland State Sophomore Pitchers

LHP Corey Linz: FB (78-79), SL (71), CH (74-75)

-       1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

Linz had a solid freshman year last year, posting 48 strikeouts in 49 innings, pitching mostly as a starter.  The 6’4, 207 pounder pitches from a low ¾ slot w/ a compact, repeatable delivery.  A 3 pitch finesse lefty, he worked a FB w/ arm side run and occasional sink, a ¾ tilt SL w/ above average spin and a CH w/ arm-speed and occasional sink.  Due to the slot and SL, he is extremely tough on lefties.  Threw 7 of 10 pitches for strikes while generating a 50 % swing and miss rate (1 of 1 on SL, 1 of 3 on FB). 

LHP Ryan Lloyd (UT-Martin commit): FB (85-86), SL (76-80), CH (79)

-       1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

Lloyd, a 6’4, 193 pound sophomore, had a strong freshman year, allowing just 29 hits in 43 innings, while striking out 51 against just 16 walks.  Attacking from a ¾ slot, he attacked hitters w/ a FB w/ arm side run, a short ¾ tilt SL and buried the only CH he threw.  Easy to repeat delivery allowed him to pound the fastball for strikes (6 of 9) and worked an easy 1-2-3 inning.

RHP Greg Tye – FB (82-83), CB (71-73)

-       1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K 

Tye recorded 5 saves as a freshman last year to lead the staff.  Recording 16 strikeouts in 11 innings last year, the 6’2, 176 pounder pitches w/ a rhythmic delivery w/ above average extension to allow his stuff to play up.  Pitching nearly exclusively to his glove side, he came at hitters with a FB w/ short arm side run and an above average CB w/ tight spin, above average depth.  Threw 7 of 10 pitches for strikes while generating a 60 % swing and miss rate (2 of 4 on FB, 1 of 1 on CB).

RHP Tyler Zak – FB (82-86, T 87), CB (69-73)

-       0 IP, 0 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 0 K 

Zak, a 6’1, 240 pounder, showed some of the best pure stuff of the day, touching 87 on his FB and mixing in a CB that flashed above average depth.  Still developing consistency to his delivery, has a tendency to get moving too quickly towards the plate and having his arm slightly behind, as most of his misses were elevated.  Generated 50 % swing and miss rate on his FB (2 of 4).

Cleveland State Freshman Pitchers

RHP Jackson Etter – FB (83-85), CB (72), CH (77)

-       1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

Etter, a 6’1, 180 pounder, needed just 5 pitches to record 3 outs.  Pitches w/ a slow-paced, deliberate, repeatable delivery and H ¾ slot.  He attacked w/ a FB w/ short arm side run, a medium downer CB and a CH w/ arm-speed, fade and sink that he used as an out pitch on a righty.  All 5 pitches were strikes and generated a 40 % swing and miss rate (2 of 5).

RHP Gunnar Norwood – FB (82-85, T 86), CB (70-71)

-       1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K 

Norwood, a 6’4, 200 pound redshirt freshman, needed just 10 pitches to complete his first collegiate inning.  Pitches w/ a high effort, over the top release w/ some head violence.  FB showed occasional run while he also mixed in a short downer CB.  Filled the strike zone (9 of 10 for strikes) while generating a 20 % swing and miss rate on his FB (1 of 2).

Roane State Freshman Pitchers

RHP Lincoln Bowman – FB (82-86), CB (75-78), CH (76-80)

-       4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

Bowman, a 6’0, 195 pound redshirt freshman, pounded the strike zone w/ 3 pitches while throwing nothing straight.  Pitches w/ repeatable, low effort delivery and ¾ arm slot.  FB shows varying degrees of cut, occasional cutter, occasional short cut.  Mixes in a short downer CB and CH w/ occasional sink and cut.  Filled the strike zone (37 of 52) while generating a 20 % swing and miss rate on his FB (4 of 20). 

RHP Eric Kuster – FB (83-86), CB (70-75), CH (78-80)

-       4 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K 

Kuster, a 5’9, 175 pound true freshman, showed an ability to miss barrels while pounding his FB for strikes.  Pitches from ¾ arm-slot w/ repeatable delivery.  Mixed 3 pitches, showing a FB w/ occasional ride through the zone, a CB that flashed as a medium downer w/ late bite and a CH that resulted in 2 hit batters.  Threw a lot of strikes, primarily w/ FB (35 of 50) while generating 25 % swing and miss rate overall (7 of 28) on his FB/CB mix.