Tag Archives: Spencer Turnbull

Five and two-thirds innings with 12 strikeouts. Five innings with 11 strikeouts. Both statlines belong to Alabama starting pitchers, Charley Sullivan and Jon Keller, respectively, and both were losing efforts, despite the high strikeout numbers.

The starting pitching for the Crimson Tide (8-4) has fallen off for Alabama at the worst time, having lost three of its last four games before taking to the road to meet No. 5 Louisville (9-2) for a three-game series over the weekend.

“That’s been the one area that I was expecting more than what we’ve seen up to this point, and I think they know that,” Alabama coach Mitch Gaspard said. “They’ve got to take us deeper into games, the command has to improve from where it’s out right now.”

But improve to where? Gaspard has his own idea. But so do his pitchers.

“We’re 100 pitches, and if a guy is going really good, we can go a touch more than that,” Gaspard said. “But realistically, a good outing, what we’re looking for is 100 pitches in seven innings. A guy could go six innings and it could still be a good outing: it’s the control of the game that we’re looking for.”

Gaspard’s pitchers, however, have higher expectations for themselves.

“Seven innings, 80 pitches, 85,” Keller said. “You’ve got to get ahead early, attack with the fastball, throw two or three pitches for a strike, try not to show all of your pitches early, just keep attacking hitters. If they get a hit, that’s all right, just know you’re going to get the next guy.”

And maybe that is some of the problem. Keller theorizes that the desire to be so-close-to-perfect might be what has drove the pitching staff away from it.

“I try to be too fine sometimes instead of just going and getting that guy,” Keller said. “Sometimes you try to do too much.

“We’re throwing way too many pitches. I know with me, I’ll get up 0-2, 1-2 and try to be too perfect to get that strikeout and get back to 2-2, 3-2. Then that guy gets a hit and now you have to start over. Now you’ve thrown 25 pitches in an inning because you didn’t go after that guy.”

As the Tide travels to the Bluegrass State with the same staring lineup as it has had the previous two weekends (Sullivan, Keller and Spencer Turnbull, in that order), the staff hopes to get the expected, and needed, improvement with minimal changes.

“Same mindset. We know what we need to do to get better. We just have to stick to the plan,” Keller said.

Easier said than done, as the Cardinals sport a team on-base percentage of .423, almost 100 points higer than Alabama’s, and is 50-for-66 in stolen base attempts in just 11 games.

I want to try to get deep in the game, minimize my pitch count and attack the other team. That way we can get some momentum rolling and get things going for our hitters.