UNC baseball utilizes bullpen in win over Winthrop

Tate Parrish warmed up in North Carolina’s bullpen in the third inning and watched as starting pitcher Cody Stiles allowed a career-high three walks.

UNC coach Mike Fox had a predetermined pitch count for Stiles, and when he didn’t deliver, Fox did not hesitate to replace Stiles on the mound.

“He didn’t get anywhere near (the pitch count) cause he wasn’t very good tonight.” Fox said. “He walked a batter in all three innings and gave up a couple of hits. We want a strike thrower in there.”

But Stiles was unfazed by his early substitution because of his confidence in the depth of the bullpen behind him.

“I knew I had a good bullpen behind me,” Stiles said. “I was trying to be too perfect with it instead of just going out and attacking the hitters.”

UNC pitchers continued to cycle on and off the mound as Fox worked with what Winthorp was giving him.

“We don’t mind using a lot of pitchers, we have to keep them fresh,” Fox said. “Some of it’s situational. We brought in R.C. (Orlan) to face a lefty.”

The pitching did not immediately improve after Parrish as UNC gave up two runs in both the fourth and sixth.

“A couple of our guys had way too many walks and we did not throw enough first-pitch strikes,” Fox said.

UNC made it seven-deep into the bullpen, also playing Orlan, Shane Taylor, Greg Holt, Michael Morin, Andrew Smith and Hobbs Johnson.
But several substitutions are not unusual for Tuesday tilts for the Tar Heels.

“These midweek games, there’s going to be a lot of pitchers used because if we haven’t used guys on the weekend we are going to try and get them on the mound,” Fox said.

Despite the sketchy pitching, UNC still came away with the 12-6 win.
“You work too hard not to be dialed in during a game. That game was ugly,” Fox said.

Matt Roberts had his first career start as catcher for the Tar Heels. From behind the plate, he had a unique angle for each of the eight pitchers.

“We had a few more walks than we really wanted to have,” Roberts said. “We know they are not up there to throw balls. They are there to get strikes.”

Johnson closed the game for the Tar Heels with a strikeout of Winthrop’s T.J. Olesczuk — a convincing finish to a game that started slowly.

“Confidence for us was pretty high, but sometimes we play a little low during a week game,” Roberts said. “We just have to make sure we stay up because they are just as important as a weekend game.”

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@dailytarheel.com.