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College  | Story  | 5/8/2016

Hurricanes storm back in Game 2

Matt Czechanski     
Photo: Richard Lewis-Miami Athletics




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No. 4 Miami 12, Georgia Tech 2

In almost a total reversal from Saturday’s action, the Miami Hurricanes powered their way to evening the series behind four home runs that netted them the 12-2 victory. The rubber match will take place on Monday night.

The biggest standout in the game was Miami outfielder Willie Abreu who showed off an array of tools collecting four hits in five trips to the plate as well as a standout defensive play in right field. He clobbered home runs in both the third and seventh innings to collect his three RBI on the day.

Abreu stands at a very athletic 6-foot-4, 225-pounds with long limbs and a good amount of strength throughout. He showed off plus bat speed with a line drive plane at times, but it varied throughout the game. He utilizes a quick toe-tap timing mechanism with a medium hand load into contact. Abreu’s hands explode to the ball and he showed enough barrel feel against a lower velocity band, but has not been challenged in this series.

Both home runs he hit in the game were not cheap. The first was a deep fly ball that landed well into the trees beyond the right field fence, and the second was a line drive off of a center-cut 90 mph fastball that got out in a hurry. He used a very pull heavy approach and that’s where the power will continue to come from given his hand path. His fourth hit of the game in the ninth inning was hit to the opposite field and he showed good extension and patience on a pitch located on the outer third of the plate.

In the field he had shown off a very strong arm in warmups pre-game and on a play in Saturday night’s game that easily grades as plus. He also made a spectacular play to rob Georgia Tech freshman Tristin English of a home run in the first inning, back peddling to the wall and leaping to make the catch. His range is average in right field with a decent first step, but the athleticism shows.

Fellow lefthanded masher, Zack Collins tagged a couple balls on Sunday, collecting a hit and earning a walk in five trips to the plate. Collins’ was profiled in Saturday’s recap, but showed the impressive strength in raw power in Sunday’s game.




In his second plate appearance, he showed an effortless swing and ripped a double over the center fielder’s head. He dropped the head of the barrel and showed off his plus bat speed to drive the ball to center. In the very next at-bat, he ripped another ball to nearly the same spot, but was robbed of a home run by center fielder Ryan Puerifoy.

Collins displayed good patience at the plate and saw 4.8 pitches per plate appearance on the afternoon. He was susceptible to soft stuff thrown low and out of the zone as he had a pair of swings and misses on changeups thrown early in the count when he tried to jump on a fastball.




I was able to get a better look at Collins behind the plate in Sunday’s game and believe he can stick there in pro ball at least for the first couple years. He has average receiving skills, but certainly won’t cost any pitchers strikes. The blocking skills are a work in progress, but he is worth sticking there for the offensive potential behind the plate.

Senior shortstop Brandon Lopez also showed well in Sunday’s game. He showed good first-step instincts up the middle with an average arm and footwork. His instincts were above average. At the plate he collected two-run singles in both the first and third innings. He showed average bat speed at the plate with good extension to the outer third. Lopez displayed patience and some ability to recognize spin and lay off when needed. He had a simple weight shift to the ball with a toe-tap trigger and medium hand load.

For Georgia Tech, left fielder/third basemen Matt Gonzalez collected three hits including a first inning home run. Gonzalez has a lot of strength in his 5-foot-11, 193-pound frame with really strong wrists. He has average bat speed, but makes up for it with above average barrel feel and timing.

Gonzalez had a really simple approach and shortened up his swing with two strikes and looked to take the ball where pitched. He had good hand speed and lower half incorporation with every swing and showed the ability to match plane with barrel turn.

Besides Abreu, there may not have been a pair of better swings than that of Georgia Tech first baseman Tristin English. English showed excellent extension and raw power in the first when he was robbed of a for-sure home run by Willie Abreu, as detailed above. Then in the third he showed off the pull power on a deep fly ball to left field that Jacob Heyward tracked down deep in the gap at full speed.

The freshman is in the midst of a very promising season and looks to continue to improve and become a key cog in the order for the next couple years for the Jackets.
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