Clemson vs Auburn - NCAA Regional Championship Baseball Recap

Clemson 13, Auburn 7 - Clemson advances to super regionals

The Clemson Tigers are coming home for a chance to make the College World Series after putting up 13 runs on 14 hits to defeat the Auburn Tigers 13-7 for the Auburn Regional championship. Clemson hosts the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2010 NCAA Super Regionals at Doug Kingsmore Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina, starting on Saturday at 6 Eastern.

Leads were tenuous all weekend long in Auburn, Alabama, and Clemson’s 11-7 ninth inning advantage was no different – the ACC-flavored Tigers needed more insurance against their SEC-based Tiger doppelgangers.

With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Clemson’s hottest hitter all weekend, third basemen John Hinson, delivered with a double. Auburn righty Michael Hurst walked Clemson first basemen Richie Shaffer next and promptly got the hook in favor of lefthander Cole Nelson to face the left-handed bat of Clemson centerfielder Wilson Boyd. He got across one strike before senior Clemson centerfielder Wilson Boyd laced a double to the gap in left-center field for a 13-7 Clemson lead going into the bottom of the ninth inning.

Clemson righty reliever Kevin Brady got the ball just three outs from the finish line and struck out the first Auburn batter with ease. But life was not right in the Auburn Regional without some late-inning drama, and Monday was no different. Brady surrendered three straight singles to load the bases with one out. Auburn’s Tony Caldwell worked a 1-2 count by fouling off a pitch before Brady blew the next one by his swing for a strikeout. Designated hitter Trent Mummey came to the plate next as the potential third out – the third out that Clemson could not get the night before in the 11-10 loss to force Monday's winner-take-all contest. After getting ahead in the count, Mummey slapped a grounder down the third-base line that Clemson’s Shaffer grabbed and took to the bag for the regional-clinching out.

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Clemson Tiger pitching gave up 7 runs in 6 innings before Brady entered in the seventh to shut the door on the homestanding Auburn Tigers in the late the final three innings. Brady was spotless in the process of ringing up the final nine outs of a pitching-poor series. He allowed no earned runs, got 3 strikeouts, and surrendered 5 hits. Brady relieved righthander Alex Frederick who earned the win by pitching 3 innings himself, striking out five Tigers, and limiting the Auburn damage to two solo home runs. Frederick stabilized a Clemson pitching staff that had given up 5 runs in the first three innings of play.

Monday’s game was the third time in the Auburn Regional that Clemson scored double-digit runs. Clemson rightfielder Kyle Parker had a night he is sure to never forget as he hit a three-run home run in the first inning at Plainsmen Park and - around that very point in time - was drafted 26th overall by the Colorado Rockies in the 2010 MLB Draft. Clemson leftfielder Jeff Schaus redeemed himself from making the last out in Sunday’s loss to Auburn with a 3-for-5 day that included 2 RBIs.  

Auburn actually out-hit Clemson 18-14, but the visiting Tigers from the ACC got out of several jams. Clemson turned two inning-ending double plays and made a non-traditional twin killing to end an inning. This unconventional double play was the "strike 'em out, throw 'em out" double-dip in which a strikeout of an Auburn hitter was immediately followed by a gunned-down runner at second base on a steal attempt. Clemson worked its way out of two bases-loaded situations as well.  

By: Brandon Rink
DFN Sports Guest Writer