Henry Keeps U-M Undefeated in CWS With Pitching Performance Masterful by Definition
6/18/2019 10:56:00 AM | Baseball, Features
By Steve Kornacki
OMAHA, Neb. -- Tommy Henry had the Florida State hitters smack dab in the middle of his palm all night long. The University of Michigan left-hander had it all going -- low 90s fastball, swing-and-miss slider and a rejuvenated changeup -- to approach total domination.
Henry struck out 10 while allowing three hits and zero walks over nine innings Monday night (June 17) to win, 2-0, and become the third Wolverine to register a shutout in the College World Series, joining fellow left-handers Steve Howe (1978, Baylor) and Marvin Wisniewski (1953, Stanford).
Michigan has started the CWS with a 2-0 record, and accomplished that feat only twice before in seven previous trips here. Those came in 1953 and 1962, when it claimed the program's two national championships.
The Wolverines (48-20) next face the winner of Wednesday's elimination game between FSU and Texas Tech (which Michigan beat, 5-3 in the opener) on Friday afternoon in a game that could advance the Wolverines to the championship series next week.
Jesse Franklin's deep homer on the second pitch from CJ Van Eyk gave him the team lead at 13, and provided Henry the only run he needed before he even took the mound.
"I knew we were facing a good pitcher with three good pitches," said Franklin, "and I was just hoping to get a good fastball to hit and do some damage. I got one and hit it as hard as I could.
"Tommy was at times untouchable on the mound. Also, he seemed to throw the pitches none of them thought was coming. He had such a good tempo."
First baseman Jimmy Kerr's two-out RBI single in the fifth provided insurance, and Kerr also made one of two exceptional defensive plays. His diving stop of a grounder in the hole with a runner on first finished the sixth, and second baseman Ako Thomas' sensational diving stop with one out in the ninth kept the tying run from coming to the plate. Left fielder Christan Bullock also made some good plays among the six balls he caught.
The word "masterful" can be overused, but Henry's performance fit the strictest definition of that word. He kept the Seminoles off-balance and off the bases so well that the Tomahawk Chop was being chopped and chanted very infrequently, if at all.
Michigan head coach Erik Bakich said: "Well, in the biggest game in Michigan baseball history in a long, long time, we got the best pitching performance of Tommy Henry's career. He was the entire storyline tonight. We needed a strong performance, and he gave us something magical tonight. I think we're all just in awe and very appreciative of holding down a very good Florida State team tonight, who's been extremely hot and finding every single way to win. Tommy was just -- I don't even know if there's an adjective to describe how good he was, but he was better than that."
Yes, he was.
Henry
Henry surrendered a leadoff double in the first inning to Mike Salvatore, a two-out double in the seventh to Matheu Nelson and an infield single to Salvatore on a comebacker that hit the heel of his glove with two out in the eighth. He also hit two leadoff batters, but stranded them at first base.
The strikeouts were rally-killers. He got six on batters flailing at outside breaking balls, one on a low inside pitch, one on a low pitch down the middle, one on a blazing outside fastball that came in belt high and another on a high, inside heater.
When struck out J.C. Flowers -- the hero of FSU's 1-0 win over Arkansas in its opener -- for the final out, Henry shouted and spun around while thrusting both arms downward before catcher Joe Donovan reached him near the mound to hug.
"Pure joy," said Henry. "I mean, it didn't matter what role you played in the game. I'm sure everyone was feeling the exact same way. You know, we just show up to the field one day at a time, just trying to win games for each other, for the Block M on our hat, for the eight letters on our chest. And, so, whether you were in the bunker all game or you hit a home run the second at-bat of the game, everyone is feeling that pure joy just because it's a special team, we're playing for each other. So, we're all just pumped up that we get to be here a few more days to play another baseball game."
Bakich said he'll decide whether to start Karl Kauffmann, the winner with a strong performance in the CWS opener, or Jeff Criswell on Friday. Criswell pitched two shutout innings Monday and struck out four while earning the save.
Michigan has advanced to the championship game in its four-team bracket without using a true reliever or over-working a starter. They couldn't be in a better position pitching-wise.
What second-year pitching coach Chris Fetter has done with this staff can't be emphasized enough. Henry (11-5) said Fetter "drew up a great game plan tonight" and credits him for the success and helping him develop into the No. 74 overall pick in the MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks, noting that he's incorporated meditation into work on mechanics and knowledge of the game and hitters.
Donovan shook his head and smiled when asked to describe what Seminole coach Mike Martin, the winningest coach in any college sport, termed as both a "beautiful" and "masterpiece" performance by Henry.
"Tommy just did Tommy," said Donovan. "It's what we've come to know. We just expect this out of him. None of his stuff was better than it normally is. His discipline was probably a little bit better. When he missed, it wasn't in a spot where they could hit it really hard. But the real difference-maker was his strike zone command and getting ahead in counts. That puts batters on their heels."
That Henry was so efficient with his pitches while striking out 10 -- which can run up pitch counts -- was perhaps his most amazing accomplishment.
"He was getting ahead of the hitters all night," said Fetter. "He kept his pitch count down by throwing the fastball for strikes, and when he got ahead he'd throw the changeup or slider. He just had everything working. Their lineup, one through nine, guys weren't going after the first pitch. So, once he established he was throwing strikes, they had to come out of their game plan and start attacking the ball. But because he was getting ahead and keeping his fastball down, when they swung at the first pitch they either got weak contact or missed.
"When he has his changeup going, it's a game-changer for Tommy, and there were times this season when he may have lost touch with that changeup. It made it easier to get after a two-pitch pitcher. With all three working, he's a tough matchup. He elevated when he wanted to, but kept all three pitches down the rest of the time. The slider goes one way. The changeup goes another way. The fastball's getting in on them.
"After about the fourth inning, you saw the frustration. There weren't a lot of comfortable at-bats and they started to swing and get down in the counts. Being able to attack the strike zone did it for him. He was masterful and it was so fun to watch a kid who pitched his heart out last week (at UCLA). 'Is he emotionally spent after that?' But for him to be able to come back and do this speaks a lot to who he is not only as a player but as a person. I'm so blessed to be able to work with kids like Tommy."
Bakich added, "It would be incredibly difficult to do what he did on a back field at Port St. Lucie (Florida) on the opening weekend for us. For him to do it on this stage, in this game, makes it one of the more special things I've seen in my time watching baseball."
Henry, a junior from Portage (Michigan) Northern High, stayed cool and never flinched.
"It just goes back to what's inside this kid," said Bakich. "His parents, Tom and Mary Beth, have done just an unbelievable job of raising an incredible man. We're so lucky to have him, to watch him mature and grow, and just see him come into his own in the postseason, where everybody gets to see what's inside him and his intangibles, character and makeup, and see why he was a unanimous team captain selection.
"I couldn't be happier for him to shine on this stage like he did tonight. He's incredibly deserving of everything he gets, and he put the team on his back tonight."
Henry also credited Fetter for his calm.
"We started meditating this year with Coach Fetter," said Henry. "It's helped me a lot with the mental game and in moments like tonight, taking a deep breath, and learning to control what comes into your mind. Get rid of the bad ones and put the good ones on repeat. So, just getting back to that and clearing the head after the first inning and throughout the night.
"When you're in the College World Series, you are facing teams that are absolutely stacked. So, you've just got to focus on yourself at that point and try and do what makes you good."
Henry beat UCLA in the NCAA Super Regional eight days prior after being bed-ridden in the days leading up to the game, and Donovan likened it to the "Michael Jordan flu game" in an NBA championship series. Bakich said Henry had "the flu and a touch of pneumonia" but pitched seven innings and allowed just two runs against the power-hitting Bruins.
How was he feeling in this outing?
"I'm good," said Henry, smiling, "and thankful for that. I'm hydrated, feeling good and happy as can be."
Henry on Monday set the Wolverine single-season record with both 115.2 innings pitched (surpassing Fritz Fisher's long-standing mark of 113 set in 1962) and 127 strikeouts shared at 119 by former teammate Oliver Jaskie (2017) and Jim Burton (1970). Henry joined Fisher (11 strikeouts in 1962) as the only Michigan pitchers with at least 10 whiffs in a CWS game.
Kauffmann (11-6) and Henry are one win shy of the Michigan record for single-season wins held by Rich Stoll with 12 in both 1982 and 1983.
Henry was cruising early in the season, and was 6-1 with a 0.76 ERA on March 29. However, he then allowed 13 runs over 10.1 innings in two starts against Minnesota and Ohio State, and by May 17 his ERA ballooned to 3.69. He's had three quality starts in the NCAA Tournament, though, against Creighton, UCLA and now FSU.
"He was battling a little bit of biceps tendinitis in the middle part of the season and just misfiring a little bit up in the zone," said Bakich. "But what you've seen the last few weeks is this guy opening up his chest and seeing his character and seeing his makeup. He's an incredibly consistent person. ... That's why he's elected captain. He does all the right things all the time, in the classroom, in the community. He's an unbelievable teammate."
Fetter said, "He started to overthrow the ball a bit in the first UCLA game (which he also won) and was starting to do some things mechanically that may have caused some pitches to go awry. So, we just had to go back to work, and to his credit he didn't give up. He kept working. By the time he started against Maryland (on May 24) in the Big Ten Tournament, he was back to himself.
"He's once again the Tommy from earlier in the season."
And he put on a show against Florida State.
"It was a blast," said Henry, "but there were zero errors on the scoreboard, teammates are making diving plays on hard-hit balls. (Jack) Blomgren is making a backhand (stop with a) laser (throw) in the hole. Ako making that stop and Christan Bullock running miles out there in left field making catches. All that contributes to keeping the pitch count down as well.
"We're excited and will enjoy tonight, but we'll be right back to business tomorrow."
Michigan is now 2-7 against the Seminoles, and both wins have been in Omaha. The 1962 team with Kerr's grandfather, John, a big part of the pitching staff, beat them, 10-7, in a game in which Grandpa didn't pitch.
"That's incredible," said Kerr. "It is spooky, but we've got to play one of two very good teams who play Wednesday, and we've got to play them again and they're going to have to a chip on their shoulder."
The Wolverines also are going to have Kauffmann or Criswell on the mound. Henry will be ready to go on Saturday, too, if needed.
Pitching is what it's all about in the national championship tournament, and Michigan is getting all they could ask for on the mound from its three starters.
