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Thursday, June 20, 2019
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SPORTS

Henry untouchable in complete-game shutout against FSU

OMAHA, Neb. – Nine innings. 
100 pitches.
Most starting pitchers reach 
that number in five, maybe six 
innings. Seven or even eight, on a 
really good night. 
Not Tommy Henry. And not in 
Omaha.
In the biggest game of the 
Michigan baseball team’s season, 
the junior left-hander pitched 
a complete game of three-hit 
baseball Monday, shutting out 
Florida State in a 2-0 victory for 
the Wolverines.
“We got the best pitching 
performance of Tommy Henry’s 
career,” said Michigan coach 
Erik Bakich. “We needed a strong 
performance, and he gave us 
something magical tonight. I 
think we’re all just in awe.”
Facing a Seminole lineup that 
has been especially dangerous 
with the long ball, to which Henry 
has been notably susceptible all 
season – the Seminoles have 81 on 
the season so far – pitching coach 
Chris Fetter helped come up with 
a plan to mix up Henry’s pitches 
and keep the ball low and around 
the plate all night.
The 
plan 
required 
nearly 
flawless 
execution. 
And 
that 

was exactly what Henry gave 
Michigan. It was a testament to 
the consistency and dedication 
that Henry has shown all season, 
all while battling bicep tendonitis 
in the second half of the season 
that saw him struggle with his 
consistency.
“The first thing I think about 
when I think of Tommy is his 
discipline 
and 
consistency 
and how truly consistent he is 
throughout the year,” catcher 
Joe Donovan said. “That’s been 
Tommy the entire year. The 
discipline to keep the balls low in 
the zone, to not miss. If he does 
have a miss, the next pitch was – I 
think he shook me off after a hung 
breaking ball, and the next one 
was one of the dirtiest ones I’ve 
ever caught from him.
“That’s him in a nutshell: 
keeping the ball low in the zone, 
pounding it, discipline, taking 
breaths, the whole nine yards on 
it, and that’s been what we’ve seen 
from him this entire time. That’s 
just Tommy Henry for you.”
For Henry, the execution and 
mindset Monday were routine. 
Coming off a dominant start in 
the Wolverines’ eventual 4-2 
victory over No. 1 UCLA, Henry 
was confident in the plan, and 
more importantly, in his pitching.
“We just tried as a pitching 

staff to come out here and do 
what we’ve done all year – attack 
the strike zone and play the 
numbers,” Henry said. “A great 
hitter is going to get out seven out 
of ten times, so if you attack the 
strike zone, you force the issue, 
and let the defense work, and you 
saw that tonight.”
Henry also got plenty of help 

from his defense, which seemed 
to be exactly where the ball fell all 
night, as well as from sophomore 
center fielder Jesse Franklin, who 
crushed the first pitch he saw in 
the top of the first inning for a 
towering home run that ensured 
Henry pitched the whole game 
with a lead.
Pitching from ahead changed 

his mindset completely.
“Pitching with a lead is much 
easier than pitching behind or in 
a tie game,” Henry said. “It gives 
you the freedom to just attack and 
to watch the defense work and let 
them make the plays, not have to 
do too much. So to be able to do 
that from the first time you step 
on the mound is fun.”

ABBY SNYDER
Daily Sports Writer

Michigan one win away from CWS Final after 2-0 shutout

OMAHA, Neb. — As the number 
of innings played marched closer 
to nine, the Michigan baseball 
team found itself in another close 
pitching duel.
The Wolverine offense was 
sputtering, but Tommy Henry 
was there to give them every 
chance they needed under the 
lights.
The junior left-hander went 
all nine innings for Michigan 
(48-20 overall, 2-0 World Series) 
Monday, totalling nine strikeouts 
in just 100 pitches en route to a 
2-0 win over Florida State (42-22, 
1-1).
Henry was given the benefit 
of playing with a lead thanks to 
early fireworks as sophomore 
center fielder Jesse Franklin 
swung at the first pitch offered to 

him, launching a rocket to right 
field that sailed over the bullpen 
and into the upper deck for a 1-0 
lead in the first inning.
“Going into the game we 
weren’t 
necessarily 
thinking 
to swing at the first pitch or 
anything like that,” Franklin 
said. “As hitters in general we 
were just trying to look for 
fastballs early in the game to hit 
hard.”
Added Michigan coach Erik 
Bakich: “I think any team that 
scores first has a little bit of 
a confidence and a looseness 
about them that allows our — 
the freedom of being able to take 
chances on the bases, to employ 
some different types of plays, 
whether it be first-and-third 
plays or just being aggressive on 
the bases.”
The Seminoles attempted an 
answer with a leadoff double to 

center field in the bottom of the 
first. A diving Franklin couldn’t 
make the highlight reel catch, and 
Mike Salvatore was in scoring 
position with no one out. But 
their offense floundered as three 
straight batters were retired.
They wouldn’t get another 
baserunner until the fifth inning, 
as Henry shut down Florida State, 
barely breaking a sweat. Of the 
five batters he allowed on base, 
two were hit by a pitch.
“It’s easy when you can trust 
those guys behind you and just 
kind of watch them work and let 
them make the highlight plays,” 
Henry said.
When the Seminoles made 
contact, though, it would seem 
to always go to a Wolverine 
defender. 
Junior 
left 
fielder 
Christian practically stood still, 
letting fly balls nestle into his 
waiting glove.

“Coach Schnabel and Coach 
Brdar, the defensive positioning 
tonight I thought was fantastic, 
as well,” Bakich said. “It seemed 
like we had a lot of at ‘em balls 
tonight and that’s because our 
guys were standing in the right 
spot.”
Seminole right-hander CJ Van 
Eyck countered with his own 
magic, striking out nine batters 
and 
stifling 
any 
momentum 
Michigan could gain.
“Tommy covered up a lot of 
mistakes 
offensively 
tonight,” 
Bakich 
said. 
“Not 
making 
adjustments to some tricksters 
out of the bullpen, the sidearm 
guy and then the backwards 
mixer lefty.”
But the Wolverines fought 
through their at-bats. Bullock 
had a nine-pitch at-bat, and the 
team had six at-bats with six 
pitches or more against Van Eyk. 

All the work tired him out, and 
Michigan found success against 
him again in the fifth inning as 
he surpassed 100 pitches.
Two straight singles from 
sophomore 
designated 
hitter 
Jordan Nwogu and Franklin put 
runners on the corners with one 
out and the game saw its first 
scoring opportunity since the 
second inning. Van Eyck struck 
out junior right fielder Jordan 
Brewer, but senior first baseman 
Jimmy Kerr hit a two-out single 
to put the Wolverines up 2-0.
It was all that they needed 
with Henry on the mound.
It didn’t matter that they 
struck out 17 times, it didn’t 
matter that Bullock had to make 
plays in left field and it didn’t 
matter that Nwogu’s fifth-inning 
slide into third will make its 
rounds all over the internet.
Henry was just that good.

KENT SCHWARTZ
Daily Sports Writer

ALEC COHEN/Daily
Junior left-hander Tommy Henry threw a complete game shutout en route to a 2-0 victory over Florida State on Monday.

