Georgia Tech Baseball: Previewing Boston College

After winning the series over Virginia and having a midweek game against the in-state rival dwags, the No. 24 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (24-12, 9-9 ACC) head to Beantown to take on the Boston College Eagles.

The Eagles' offense has been pretty solid so far this season and is a big reason that they are 9-3 at home this season. Leading that offense are four players who are all hitting above .300.

Their best offensive player, by far, is junior outfielder/first baseman Chris Shaw. Shaw is currently hitting .339 with 11 home runs (not a typo) and 41 RBI. Those 11 home runs account for nearly half of the team's 23 total home runs.

Sophomore utility player Michael Stern (.309), junior outfielder Logan Hoggarth (.302) and freshman outfielder Donovan Casey (.301) are the other three players. Among the three of them, they have a grand total of three home runs and 39 RBI. That should show you how much better Shaw is than the rest of these guys.

Another offensive threat for the Eagles is freshman outfielder Jake Palomaki. His .267 batting average isn't very impressive, but his on-base percentage is second-best at .422 (Shaw is team-best at .433) and has stolen 10 bases in 12 attempts.

The Eagles also have some good pitchers in their bullpen. They've got two guys with three or more saves in sophomore right-hander Justin Dunn (four) and junior right-hander John Nicklas (three).

Game 1: Friday, April 17 @ 2:30 p.m.

Redshirt sophomore Jonathan King will be going to the mound for the Jackets in Game 1. King has struggled a bit recently and is now 2-2 with a 4.64 ERA. In his 54.1 innings pitched, King has struck out 32 batters and walked 16. He is holding opposing batters to a .280 batting average.

His opponent will be sophomore right-hander Mike King. King is 0-2, but has a 2.61 ERA in his nine appearances (three starts). In his 31.0 innings, King has struck out 28 batters and walked eight and is holding opposing batters to a .227 batting average.

Game 2: Satruday, April 18 @ 1:30 p.m.

Starting Game 2 will be redshirt junior Cole Pitts. Pitts is 0-3 with a 5.68 ERA. In his 25.2 innings pitched, Pitts has struck out 19 batters and walked 20 and has held opposing batters to a .265 batting average.

Matching up against him will be senior right-hander John Gorman. Gorman is 3-2 with a 5.70 ERA. In his 47.1 innings pitched, Gorman has struck out 42 batters and walked 15. He is holding opposing batters to a .313 batting average.

Game 3: Sunday, April 19 @ 1:00 p.m.

Sophomore right-hander Brandon Gold will be starting the series finale. Gold is 5-1 with a 2.89 ERA this season. In his 53.0 innings pitched, Gold has struck out 50 batters and walked 15 and is holding opposing batters to a .211 batting average.

Boston College has not yet announced a starter for the series finale.

How does Tech do in this series?