North Carolina’s Saturday baseball game against N.C. State looked like a tough matchup from the start.
Carlos Rodon, a left-handed strikeout artist, was pitching for the No. 13 Wolfpack. The No. 1 Tar Heels have a lefty-heavy lineup with Skye Bolt still out with a broken foot. So it figured that Rodon would give the North Carolina hitters a hard time.
But UNC’s righties were the ones that had the hardest time. Rodon struck out the first seven right-handed hitters he faced — Michael Russell and Matt Roberts twice and Landon Lassiter three times — dominating the Tar Heels’ righty bats with an almost-untouchable slider.
“He’s tougher on righties,” coach Mike Fox said. “There is no doubt about it.”
Here’s a rundown of every right-handed at-bat against Rodon in the 7-3 UNC loss:
1st inning, Landon Lassiter: takes called strike three on an inside fastball.
2nd inning, Michael Russell: chases slider in the dirt for the third strike.
3rd inning, Matt Roberts: chases slider in the dirt for the third strike.
3rd inning, Landon Lassiter: strikes out swinging on a slider.
4th inning, Michael Russell: swings over three low sliders, the last on 3-2 for the third strike.
5th inning, Matt Roberts: chases slider in the dirt for the third strike.
5th inning, Landon Lassiter: after getting ahead in the count 3-1, swings over a low slider on 3-2 for the third strike. At this point, UNC right-handed hitters are 0-for-7 with seven strikeouts against Rodon.
6th inning, Michael Russell: beats out an infield single to shortstop. The first batter to not strike out.
6th inning, Matt Roberts: gets pinch-hit for by Tom Zengel, a left-handed hitter. Rodon says after the game that he has “no idea” why UNC would pinch-hit a lefty for a righty in that spot. Zengel strikes out.
7th inning, Landon Lassiter: lines a single to right-center field with Rodon’s pitch count up around 120. Rodon comes out of the game after two more batters. As soon as he exits, reliever Grant Sasser gives up a three-run homer to Cody Stubbs.
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