Clemson baseball continues to be the hottest team in the nation
The prevailing thought around this Clemson Tigers baseball program right now seems to be that this train has to slow down sometime...doesn't it? Maybe it's because of the very slow start to the 2023 campaign but each passing series makes this Tiger turnaround seem that much more improbable. This weekend, Clemson went into Blacksburg, Virginia, and took all 3 games which added to the impressive numbers starting to stack up in the last month.
This series win not only made it 8 victories in a row - by far their longest streak of the season - but also 13 of their last 14, and 19 of their last 23 games, since getting swept by No. 1 ranked Wake Forest. That stretch dates all the way back to April 4th, nearly 6 weeks ago. Their RPI has risen all the way to No. 8 nationally and there's a safe bet that with the third toughest strength of schedule in the country amidst that type of production the new rankings this week will have the Tigers even higher.
Clemson now sits at 37-15 overall, 17-10 in ACC play. (Clemson Athletics)
This particular sweep-clinching win actually saw Clemson behind, 3-2, heading into the 3rd inning. That's when Billy Amick came up clutch with an RBI single to start a 4-run rally before relinquishing their turn at the plate. Blake Wright, Ben Blackwell, and Caden Grice all chipped in with the other RBIs in that same inning. Cooper Ingle and Amick came back with solo blasts later in the game to ensure the lead stood and the bullpen pitched a scoreless last two innings to finish the job. Another complete team effort for the orange, purple and white.
Coach Erik Bakich, clearly pleased, spoke to reporters afterward and shared this: "Proud of our team, proud of the way we competed all weekend. We've been on the road for 5 days now and it would have been real easy to not come out and leave something on the table and our guys didn't. They emptied the tank, they showed a lot of toughness, a lot of grit and it's hard to sweep. Especially on the road."
The Tigers will host their final non-conference regular season opponent on Tuesday in South Carolina Upstate. That game will be followed by a series against North Carolina starting on Thursday.