austen swankler

never bunt hit dingers [JD Scott]

Base meet ball. This may not be how it works. Baseball plays for a spot in the championship series at 2 today. Michigan will start Karl Kauffman and has authorized extreme measures if and when Kauffman doesn't turn in a CGSO:

Texas Tech risked their third starter against the punchless FSU bats and got five innings out of him before burning out Tyler Floyd, their top reliever, in four scoreless innings. Michigan will get freshman Micah Dallas again. Dallas got chased after three innings on on Monday in his worst start since he emerged from the bullpen. He also pitched against Michigan in March, where he was much better but not particularly long-lived. He struck out 7 and walked none as he gave up one ER in five innings.

For the season Dallas has a 3.6 ERA, a WHIP of 1.37, and 84 Ks in 75 innings. He went 7 innings in 3 of his 12 starts and usually gets to 5 or 6 so the bullpen will very likely get a significant amount of action. Even if Floyd is out, Tech has another couple of guys who made a ton of appearances in Dane Haveman and John McMillon—seems like everyone in the tournament has a much deeper bullpen than Michigan.

FWIW, Texas Tech's leadoff hitter returned from a broken finger against FSU. He's not healthy. He's wearing what his coach called "a contraption." He had a single in five plate appearances.

Come to the library! Tonight at 7:

The Shutdown Fullcast LIVE

When

Friday June 21, 2019: 7:00pm to 8:30pm

Where

Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

Description

Billed as “the internet’s only college football podcast,” the Shutdown Fullcast has been entertaining and antagonizing college football fans worldwide since 2013.

This summer, for the very first time, they’re venturing into the wild heart of Big Ten country in celebration of the internet’s only college football team: Michigan. Join Spencer Hall, Jason Kirk, Ryan Nanni, and Holly Anderson for an evening of only the most dignified and sporting giggles at lesser teams’ expense.

The MGoBlog podcast crew will also be there, so this is going to be a chaotic hydra of a thing. Do you like coherence, reason, and order? If so I recommend the Sushi Demo & Workship, which goes from 6-7:30 at the downtown branch. Come to our thing if you go to the zoo and think "I wish the monkeys threw more poop."

[After the JUMP: it rattles home!]

if we have enough stories using this as the lead seth can make all the boxes it [Marc-Gregor Campredon]

Matthews on the shot. Via Orion Sang:

Matthews was standing in the left corner. As Brazdeikis had drove past him, Matthews held both hands out, ready to catch and shoot just in case the ball found him.

He was also ready to crash the boards.

“I know Iggy. That’s my little brother. He’s like a bull in the china shop when he’s going to the rim," Matthews told reporters. "So he ain’t looking to kick out. So I just said, ‘You know what, he might miss this one, let me try to just go get the rebound.'

"And thank God I was in the right position for it. Gotta know your teammates. Know your personnel."

Matthews' eyes – along with every other pair of eyes in Crisler Center – followed his teammates' shot.

As he saw the ball tipped toward him, he darted forward with a couple quick steps. Then he got the ball.

"(Charles is) always around the basket," Beilein said, "and he mopped up.”

"You know, he might miss this one" is a good thought when the pronoun in question is 4/17 on the night.

A couple of blips on the freshmen who aren't playing. Andrew Kahn gathers a little data on the three guys who haven't seen much time:

Nuñez is a 6-foot-6 shooting guard who has yet to score on the season in limited action. His teammates talk up his shooting in practice. "Adrien's shot is phenomenal." Livers said recently. "He has the most perfect form I've ever seen out of a shooter."

There have been times this season Michigan could use another shooting threat on the floor, but it seems unlikely Nuñez will get that chance this season.

Castleton is also a year away from contributing. Like the other players unlikely to see the court, he’s been hitting the weights hard, even on game days. Strength coach Jon Sanderson said he’s put on 17 pounds since arriving on campus, a priority for the 6-foot-11 center.

DeJulius got some mention from Beilein as a guy who's battling Brooks and that "tonight" it was Brooks who got the playing time. With Brooks locked in a pretty gnarly slump I'd like to see DeJulius get a shot.

[After THE JUMP: uh mostly hockey recruiting?]

Previously: 2018 and 2019.

w7MGNnZ

Bakanov is a sniper

2020 and beyond

War. War with the OHL never changes. Michigan has returned to their Berenson heyday ways, picking off super high-end OHL prospects and watching some of them defect. London already signed Antonio Stranges, one of the four(!) five-star types who'd announced commitments to Michigan by the time the OHL draft rolled around. That particularly sucks because he had supposedly already signed with the NTDP, and none of the other three guys are Americans who can shelter under USA Hockey's wing until it's time to matriculate.

The big-timers, in order of likelihood to actually arrive:

Andrei Bakanov. Bakanov moved from Moscow to play AAA in the States a couple years ago and immediately drew notice thanks to his 6'2" frame and skill to pair with it. He didn't go in the OHL draft because he wasn't eligible; he probably wasn't eligible because he didn't bother applying to overturn whatever bylaw kept him out. Another Russian immigrant was technically ineligible but the OHL swiftly repaired that once he indicated he was interested in the league.

Bakanov subsequently signed a USHL tender with Cedar Rapids and will likely play there for two years before matriculating. He is a big, scoring wing.

His 13-10-23 line in 18 games led the HPHL, a six-team league of major AAA teams in the Midwest, in PPG. They play relatively few games because at that age group there's a ton of going around to various showcase events; the league fills downtime between them. His full season stats are eyepopping:

Bakanov, a six-foot-two, 192-pound forward, spent the 2017-18 season with the Oakland Jr. Grizzlies, totaling an impressive 112 points (57G, 55A) in 77 total games between the program's HPHL schedule and U16 AAA schedule.

Before the draft a couple of OHL scouting sites were touting him as a potential top five pick, with Priority Selection ranking him fourth amongst OHL draft eligibles. OHL Prospects:

You don’t have to watch too long before you see his best trait, a deadly accurate, hard shot that probably gives goalies at this level nightmares. Bakanov has the Russian patience for sure, taking his time to read plays at times and then striking exactly when you least expect it, often drawing peer-to-peer comparisons to famous NHL player Evgeni Malkin. Footwork is a little heavy for Bakanov, but his smooth puck handing and decent smarts help mitigate this issue. … His goal scoring capabilities, his patience with the puck, and his NHL sized frame will be highly coveted.”

Some guy on HF Boards who seems to know what he's talking about:

…really made strides since last year when I saw him. Big kid that gets through the neutral zone with a lot of speed and he has some hands to match. He had a really nice breakaway goal against York Simcoe. Whoever gets him has a player on their hands.

Tenders skip the draft and sign with a USHL program; in exchange the USHL team forfeits their first rounder and commits to playing the tendered player for a majority of the season. The USHL is a brutal league for 16 year olds; most tenders struggle to put up points. If Bakanov can that'll be a great sign for his future.

[After THE JUMP: Swankler.]