Sept. 29, 2004

Just two days remain in the Notre Dame baseball team’s 2004 fall season. The team played its annual spirited “Four-Man” competition (complete with a colorful array of costumes) on Wednesday while the rosters were announced for Thursday’s Blue-Gold intrasquad scrimmage, which is set to start at 4:00 p.m. at Eck Stadium. Information on both rosters is included below, as is a fall practice report from assistant coach/pitching coach Terry Rooney.

Rooney – whose Blue-Gold series debut in the fall of ’03 included guiding his squad to victory – will serve as the skipper of the Gold, which will get the last turn at-bat as the home team. His position players include three returning starters from the junior class – outfielder Cody Rizzo, outfielder/catcher Steve Andres and corner infielder/catcher Matt Bransfield – plus sophomore outfielder Danny Dressman and junior catcher Nick Mainieri. Freshman shortstop Ross Brezovsky will look to bolster the Gold team’s middle defense and offensive punch while two freshman walk-on candidates – infielder John Seabaugh and outfielder Robbie Rhinesmith – round out the Gold position players.

Rooney’s four-man pitching staff will be fronted by freshman lefthander Wade Korpi, who will draw the start for the Gold and log a maximum of three innings. The Gold relievers include senior righthander Tyler Jones, sophomore lefthander Matt Whittington and freshman righthander Tony Langford (who also will serve as the team’s DH).

Third-year assistant David Grewe will match wits with Rooney from his spot in the first-base dugout, as leader of the Blue team. Grewe’s top veteran position players include senior DH Brent Weiss, junior outfielers Craig Cooper and Alex Nettey, sophomore catcher Sean Gaston and sophomore first baseman Mike Dury. Freshman infielder Brett Lilley also could play a key role for the Blue, with the rest of the lineup including three walk-on candidates: infielder Ed Smith, outfielder Pat Robinson and catcher Kevin O’Connell.

A freshman also will start on the mound for the Blue, in the form of righthander Joey Williamson. The Blue bullpen will include senior lefthander Scott Bickford, sophomore righthander Rico Bertucci and freshman lefthander David Gruener.

Rooney’s comments follow below.

Q:You are a man of many theories and philosophies. Give us your take on fall ball as it impacts the growth of a pitching staff.

A:“The overall goal for the fall season from a pitching standpoint is to: (1) put the pitchers into competitive environments and get a gauge as to where the strengths/weaknesses of each individual is; and (2) implement as much as possible our pitching philosophy and mental approach and use it as a springboard into the spring season.

“We want to see how quickly the rookie pitchers can grasp our style while allowing them to trust their stuff and compete for a role on the staff and allow the veterans to demonstrate their improvements since last year.”

Q:How does your evaluation on the performance of last year’s staff affect the approach for this season?

A:“I was very pleased with our pitching staff and how it developed throughout last season. Statistically, we accomplished many of our goals with a great staff ERA and low walk totals. Our pitching staff then and now can be described as ‘offensive.’ What that means is a staff that focuses on first-pitch strikes, throwing 2/3 of the pitches for strikes, tempo, forcing the action of advantage counts and 10-pitch innings.

“As a staff, every day we focus on the things we can control. We have a tremendous blend of different styles of pitchers but they all need to have the universal trait of an offensive-minded approach and bulldog mentality.

“Obviously, when you lose two top-10 rounders (Grant Johnson and Chris Niesel) and a guy who pitched in 30 games (Joe Thaman), that is hard to replace. But we truly feel that with the continued development of our veterans and the excellent fall of our rookie pitchers, we are in position to have another successful year on the mound.”

Q:Give us some updates on your staff.

A:“This fall, many of our top pitchers have not thrown for various reasons. It is imperative that at some point during the year, all pitchers go through a recovery time. With a few of our pitchers who throw a surplus of innings over the summer/spring, we have decided to shut them down and focus on strength and conditioning, plus Jeff Samardzija obviously is playing football.

“Three members of the staff – John Axford, Jeff Manship and Derik Olvey – are progressing tremendously. Each of them stayed on campus in the summer and continued their rehab and worked with our strength coach Mike Joseph. That is an element that most people do not see, but the role that Mike Joseph and our trainer Mike Bean play is a valuable component to our staff. These two support staff members are the best in the country and every day it is a collective effort amongst them and me to make sure these arms are performing to their capability. All three of the pitchers undergoing rehab are on their own individual programs and are working extremely hard and we look forward to having all three of them back in the Irish uniforms this spring.

Q:And you have been very encouraged by several of the veterans who have thrown in the fall.

A: “Yes, one that jumps out is Ryan Doherty, who has had a great fall. We looked at this fall as an instructional-league setting for our 7-footer. He also took the summer off, got stronger and this fall has focused on the elements of his game that needed to continue to improve, namely his off-speed pitches and controlling the running game. We look forward to having the best closer in the country back with us this spring. The remaining returners all have pitched well. Tyler Jones, Scott Bickford, Matt Whittington, Rico Bertucci and Mike Dury – all of these guys pitched in summer leagues and their experiences and success the past summer is evident in their strong fall outings.

Q:And finally, you are excited about the freshmen.

A:“The rookies all have done extremely well. It is a big transition from high school to college. The daily throwing routine, along with learning our pitching philosophy, makes it a busy fall for these four guys.

“Wade Korpi has shown great command an advanced knowledge of the game. Joey Williamson has show a great sinker/slider combination along with a bulldog mentality, similar to that of Chris Niesel. David Gruener has some electric pitches and a tremendous upside. He will need to continue to developing his command. And Tony Langford is an athletic, spunky pitcher with a great fastball. As he gains more feel for the game, he will only get better. All four will play a role on our spring staff.

“As we conclude fall ball and head to winter, I feel very confident in our staff. The winter workouts will be crucial in the development of our arms and staff. Irish fans will see some new faces this spring and some familiar favorites. The main thing that I can promise is that this will be a pitching staff that will be offensive and fun to watch!”