CLEMSON – The 2024 Baseball season is upon us and The Clemson Insider is continuing its look at Clemson’s Atlantic Coast Conference opponents for this coming year.
The sixth weekend set in ACC play will be against the University of Pittsburgh. The Tigers will host the Panthers at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on the weekend of April 19-21.
COACHING
Head Coach Mike Bell, in his sixth season with Pittsburgh, is trying to bring Pitt back to the forefront of ACC baseball play. He joined Pitt in 2018 after spending seven years with Florida State as their associate head coach and pitching coach. Bell has guided the Panthers to 107 victories over his five seasons as head coach. Pitt has tallied four all-region honorees, 10 All-ACC selections and seven MLB Draft picks during the Bell era.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS
Pitt finished last season with a losing record of 24-31 (10-18 ACC, 7th Coastal Division) while making the ACC tournament as the No. 12 seed. During the tournament they defeated Notre Dame to open, but eventually lost and was eliminated by #1 seed Wake Forest. They did not make a regional.
PITCHING STAFF
Senior Jack Sokol returns to the starting rotation after making 14 starts in the previous season where he earned a 7.45 ERA. Ryan Andrade and Ryan Reed will be looking to assume starting roles to pick up some slack after holding down the bullpen in the previous season.
Ryan Andrade – transfer from Rhode Island, finished with a 4.09 ERA, 38 strikeouts and seven saves through 33 innings. He can run his fastball up to 97 with an advanced feel for his slider and high-quality changeup.
POSITION PLAYERS
The Pitt offense is looking to be bolstered from guys outside of their program last year. Three of their four infield position are likely to be manned by new incoming transfers.
First baseman Luke Cantwell – Fairleigh Dickinson, was one of the most productive players in the 2023 season slashing .331/.490/.709 with 14 homeruns and 51 RBI’s. Second baseman Tyler Bischke – Kent State & New Orleans, hit a whopping .309/.397/.530 with 12 homeruns and 54 RBI’s throughout the 2023 season.
Josh Spiegel – Penn State, who began his career at Oklahoma State is looking to be in the lineup everyday, he took a hit offensively last season .276/.351/.375. He is looking to find time at catcher, first base, or DH.
—photo courtesy of Pitt Athletics
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