Big Green Looking for Ninth Straight Rolfe Division Title

Second Playoff in Three Years
For the second time in three years, Dartmouth and Yale posted 11-9 records in league play to force a one-game playoff for the right to play in the Ivy League Championship Series, which will be hosted by Princeton next weekend.

The difference this time is that the Bulldogs are hosting the contest thanks to winning the four-game series in Hanover. The three Yale victories were only by a combined four runs, however. Over the previous seven seasons, the Big Green had gone 39-4 at home against the other three Rolfe Division teams, including 12-1 against Yale. Dartmouth has won its last five games in New Haven, sweeping the four-game set here last year while scoring a total of 35 runs.

	ROLFE DIVISION PLAYOFF Dartmouth (18-24, 11-9) at Yale (17-26-1, 11-9) Saturday, May 7 • 2:30 p.m. Yale Field (5,000) • New Haven, Conn.
	Ivy League Digital Network \| Live Stats Starting Pitchers: RHP Duncan Robinson (4-5, 3.08) vs. RHP Scott Politz (6-3, 3.61)

Last Week in Review
•   Dartmouth was two games behind Yale with four to play, but with some help from Brown, the Big Green were able to catch the Bulldogs on the final day of the season to force this playoff game.
•   Yale split a doubleheader a week ago Friday at Brown before dropping two at home to the Bears the next day, opening the door for Dartmouth.
•   The Big Green put themselves in position to win the division crown outright after sweeping two games at Harvard last Saturday, 3-1 and 2-1. Another sweep at home and Dartmouth would have earned its ninth straight title.
•   The Crimson spoiled those plans, however, taking the first game in Hanover on Tuesday (following two days of rain), 3-1, before the Green returned the favor with a 3-1 win of their own.
•   Duncan Robinson came within one strike of a seven-inning shutout in the first game at Harvard, but settled for the 3-1 win having allowed five hits and struck out four without a walk.
•   Beau Sulser matched Robinson almost exactly in game two, going seven-plus stanzas and giving up one run on five hits, but with five strikeouts. Chris Burkholder shut the door with two scoreless innings to earn the save in the 2-1 victory.
•   Harvard rode the pitching of Kevin Stone in the first game in Hanover, who like Robinson allowed his only run one strike shy of a seven-inning shutout in the 3-1 Crimson win, spoiling a solid effort by Michael Danielak.
•   Three pitchers held the Crimson to one unearned run in the finale, while Thomas Roulis, the Ivy League co-Player of the Week, had three hits and scored a run in the 3-1 victory to clinch the tie.

Last Time Against the Bulldogs
Yale, which had lost 27 of its last 33 games in Hanover, took three of four from the Big Green at Red Rolfe at Biondi Park on April 23-24.

Dartmouth fell behind, 3-0, in the opener, then rallied for five runs in the fourth. But the Green could not hold the lead as the Bulldogs scored twice in the fifth on a Benny Wanger home run, and two unearned runs in the sixth. Rob Emery went 4-for-4 whle Dustin Shirley drove in two runs, but Dartmouth came up a run short in a 7-6 loss.

In the second game, Yale put four runs on the board in the second, then held on for a 5-3 victory. The Big Green bullpen gave up just one run over 7.2 innings, but Chasen Ford's seven solid stanzas was enough to subdue Dartmouth, despite an Emery solo homer.

Duncan Robinson engaged in a pitcher's duel with Wanger the following day, with the latter getting the better of the deal. Yale broke open a 1-1 game in ths sixth with three runs, two unearned, but the Green rallied in the final frame on a pinch-hit, two-run homer by Joe Purritano. Bulldog reliever Mason Kukowski nailed down his third straight save, however, by stranding the tying run at second in the 4-3 game.

Dartmouth salvaged the final game as the bats came alive with a 10-4 triumph. Michael Ketchmark was the biggest offensive star, going 4-for-5 with two doubles, a homer — a three-run shot to break a 4-4 tie in the seventh — and five RBIs. Thomas Roulis and Shirley each had three hits with the former driving in three runs and the latter scoring three times.

The Overall Record vs. Yale
•   The two teams have met 223 times on the diamond with the Bulldogs leading 123-99-1. Only two other opponents have played more games against Dartmouth (Harvard and Brown), and only Harvard has won more games (130).
•   Yale has hosted the Big Green for 97 games since the steel and concrete structure was built in 1928, with Dartmouth going 37-59-1 in that time.
•   Since the divisional format was instituted in 1993, the Green are 23-25 in New Haven against Yale, earning their first four-game sweep here last year.
•   Big Green head coach Bob Whalen enters this game with a 57-46 mark versus Yale.
•   The first game in the series took place 135 years ago in 1881 when the Big Green defeated Yale, 6-3.

Scouting the Bulldogs
•   Since starting 0-9-1 (with its first eight games against projected regional teams), Yale is an even 17-17. But the Bulldogs lost their last three games of the regular season to Brown, costing them the outright Rolfe Division title.
•   Yale is hitting .262 as a team (.279 in league play) and averages 4.52 runs. Third baseman Richard Slenker has been the best hitter with a slash line of .315/.423/.469 to go with 16 doubles, two homers and 22 RBIs. Leadoff hitter Nate Adams owns a .333 batting average, and Harrison White leads the team with four long balls and 23 RBIs.
•   The Bulldogs lead the league with 54 stolen bases four more than Columbia. Simon Whiteman has 16 to top the squad while Tim Degraw has 10.
•   The Bulldog pitching staff ranks sixth in the league with a 5.96 ERA and is seventh in walks per nine innings, but the top of the rotation has been quite good. Mason Kukowski leads the bullpen with four saves, three coming against Dartmouth.
•   Yale owns the best fielding percentage in the Ivy League at .977, with Dartmouth second at .972. But the Bulldogs have allowed more than 80 percent of base stealers to succeed and have a league-high 19 passed balls.

Probable Starting Pitchers
•   No surprise for Dartmouth as RHP Duncan Robinson (4-5, 3.08) gets the ball to start the playoff game. The senior leads the Ivy League with seven complete games, 65 strikeouts and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 9.3, but has received little run support all year with the Big Green scoring 2.6 runs per nine innings while he's been on the mound. Robinson is 3-1 with a 1.54 ERA over 23.1 career innings against Yale, but that lone Bulldog victory came two weeks ago, 4-3.
•   While Dartmouth is going with experience, Yale is sending a rookie to the mound in freshman RHP Scott Politz (6-3, 3.61). He has been the Bulldogs' most successful and consistent pitcher this year with opponents hitting just .231 against him. The Big Green roughed him up a bit in Hanover two weeks ago, tagging him for six runs on nine hits and three walks in 5.2 innings, but he still managed to earn a 7-6 victory.

What's Up Next
Whichever teams wins this game will be the Rolfe Division champion and advance to the Ivy League Championship Series next weekend at Princeton. The Tigers won the Gehrig Division with a 13-7 record.

Big Green Playoff History
Since divisional play was instituted in 1993, Dartmouth has finished the regular season in a tie for first in the Rolfe Division three times. Back in 2001, the Big Green defeated Brown in Hanover, 7-2, before losing the Ivy League Championship Series against Princeton at home, two games to one. Two years ago, Dartmouth hosted Yale in the playoff game and handed the Bulldogs an 11-4 defeat. But the Green faltered in the ILCS at Columbia in two games. This year, Dartmouth is on the road for the playoff for the first time. Can the Big Green continue their success?

Ivy League Player of the Week
Senior shortstop Thomas Roulis picked the right time to get hot, going 10-for-18 (.556) with three doubles and three RBIs over the final five games to help Dartmouth tie Yale in the standings and garner Ivy League co-Player of the Week honors. The last time a Big Green player took home this award was two years ago when none other than Roulis was selected.

Long Win Streak vs. Harvard Ends
Entering the doubleheader in Hanover against the Crimson on May 3, Dartmouth had defeated Harvard 15 straight times, dating back to the 2012 season. But in the opener, the Crimson handed the Big Green senior class its first taste of defeat against them in a 3-1 game. Thankfully Dartmouth started a new streak by turning the tables in game two for a 3-1 win, clinching the tie with Yale. Since dropping a twinbill at Harvard in 2010, the Green are 24-2 against the Crimson.

Pitchers Clamping Down
When UMass Lowell beat Dartmouth, 11-6, on April 12, the staff ERA was 5.38. But over the 15 games since then, the ERA is a scintillating 2.42. After all but one of those 15 games, the team ERA was lower than the previous one, and now sits at 4.36, third in the Ivy League. The conference ERA is even better at 3.32, nearly half a run better than any other Ancient Eight squad.

1,900 All-Time
With the two wins at Harvard on April 30, Dartmouth posted its 1,900th victory since the varsity program was started 150 years ago in 1866. The all-time record entering the playoff game is 1,901-1,870-24 (.504).

Offense Blossoming in April
When the calendar flipped to April, things started to click a little better for the Big Green as they have gone 13-10 since the start of last month. Let's delve into some fun stats, shall we?
•   Dustin Shirley leads the team in hitting over those 23 games at .389, though Thomas Roulis is right behind at .388.
•   Nick Ruppert, who was hitting .170 at the end of March, is back to his old self with a .295 average and .429 OBP since then.
•   Michael Ketchmark has produced the most with 12 runs and 20 RBIs in the 23 games.
•   As a team, Dartmouth has hit 21 points higher than its opponents (.279 to .258) and posted an OBP 40 points higher (.363 to .323).

Swiss Baseball Robinson
As in making Swiss cheese out of baseball bats. Eh, it's a stretch, but I'm sticking with it. Right-hander Duncan Robinson once again is one of the top pitchers in the Ivy League, leading the circuit with 65 strikeouts. The only Big Green pitcher to amass more whiffs in a season since Conor Brooks had 91 in 2000 is current Chicago Cub Kyle Hendricks, who had 70 punchouts five years ago. And the only two pitchers over the last 23 years to strike out more batters per nine innings (9.54) were Hendricks in 2011 (10.16) and Brooks (9.94 in 1999). Those two also had terrific control, but Robinson has bested both of them in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 9.29, which is currently the sixth-best mark in Division I.

Where is My 8-Game Win Streak?
Yes, this is all about me. My first year at Dartmouth was 2009, when Red Rolfe Field added Biondi Park to the mix. In each of the first seven years I've been here, the Big Green have had at least one eight-game winning streak (two in 2011 and '13, with a long of 14 games last year). Well, here we are readying for a playoff game and the longest winning streak this season has been just four. Apparently, Dartmouth is going to beat Yale, sweep Princeton and win a regional in the NCAA Tournament to keep my streak alive. Because that is what it would take to get to eight. I can't wait!

League Leaders
Let's take a look at some of the top Big Green players in various Ivy League statistical categories:
•   Dustin Shirley is tied at the top with five triples.
•   Duncan Robinson leads with his 65 strikeouts and 9.29 strikeout-to-walk ratio, as well as fewest walks per nine innings (1.03, 14th nationally), most games started (10) and complete games (7, second in the nation).
•   In Ivy League games alone, Dartmouth has three players among the top 10 in both batting average (Shirley .405, second; Thomas Roulis .384, fourth; Rob Emery .341, 10th) and ERA (Robinson 2.36, third; Cole O'Connor 2.62, fifth; Beau Sulser 2.88, seventh).
•   Shirley also is tied for the lead with 32 hits, and Robinson leads with 36 strikeouts.
•   As a team, Dartmouth boasts a 3.32 ERA in league play, well ahead of Harvard's 3.76.

300th League Win
Dartmouth head coach Bob Whalen recorded his 300th conference win when the Big Green handed Yale a 10-4 defeat on April 24. That is more than double the next Big Green coach (Tony Lupien won 127 from 1957-77, albeit with a shorter schedule). Just don't call them 300 Ivy wins — the first three seasons of Whalen's tenure came during the Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League era, so of his 303 wins, 278 have come since the Ivy League took over the EIBL in 1993.

MLB Watch
Ed Lucas, a member of the Dartmouth Class of 2004, made his major league debut with the Miami Marlins on May 30, 2013 just nine days after his 31st birthday. The utility man played in 163 games for the Marlins over two seasons, and is currently with the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers in the Seattle Mariners organization.

A little more than one year later, Kyle Hendricks '12 made his MLB debut with the Chicago Cubs and finished his rookie year with a 7-2 record over 13 starts with a 2.46 ERA. Last year, Hendricks was in the rotation all season and went 8-7 with a 3.95 ERA. He also became just the fourth Ivy Leaguer to start a postseason game on the mound. He is 2-2 this season with a 3.10 ERA, and in 50 career starts boasts a 17-11 record with a 3.45 ERA and 237 strikeouts in 289.1 innings.

On the Farm
Several Dartmouth alumni are toiling away in the minor leagues right now. Both Michael Johnson '14 and Chris O'Dowd '13 are playing at the AA level. Johnson is pitching out of the bullpen for the Tulsa Drillers in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization, while O'Dowd was recently promoted to the Birmingham Barons in the Chicago White Sox organization. Meanwhile, Mitch Horacek '14 is starting on the mound for the Frederick Keys in High-A ball in the Baltimore Orioles system, and Cole Sulser '12 is a reliever for the High-A Lynchburg Hillcats in the Cleveland Indians organization.

Schedules