During his first two years at UH, left-hander Donnie Joseph struggled to establish the consistency that would have made him a valuable asset to the Cougars’ pitching staff.
Joseph, however, has been Mr. Consistent this season, showcasing his skills in a number of roles. He is 2-1 with one save and a 3.43 ERA after a team-leading 12 appearances (one start). Entering Tuesday, he led Conference USA in appearances and was second in strikeouts (32). Opponents are batting only .218 against him.
Joseph’s roughest outing of the season came in a 14-8 loss to Texas-San Antonio on March 4, when he surrendered five runs (one earned) on four hits in only 2/3 innings of relief. In six appearances (one start) since, he has recorded 24 strikeouts, and a 1.76 ERA.
He earned his first win after allowing two runs in 6 1/3 innings in a 4-2 decision against Lamar on March 17 and picked up the second win after surrendering only one run in three innings of relief during Saturday’s 6-5 victory over Alabama-Birmingham. For those two outings, Joseph was named C-USA Pitcher of the Week on Monday.’
This recent stretch of efficiency has allowed Joseph to shake off the memory of his 2007 and 2008 campaigns, when he posted ERAs of 6.42 and 5.72, respectively. It also has gained him considerable favor with head coach Rayner Noble, who doesn’t hesitate to summon Joseph from the bullpen in tight ballgames.
‘It’s definitely different from last year,’ Joseph said. ‘I feel like I’m kind of one of the leaders on the team, and I feel like coach (Noble) should count on me more since I’m an upperclassman. I like him counting on me like that because I’d like to come in and help the team in any way possible.’ ‘
Joseph relies primarily on a fastball and a slider to stymie batters. He struggled a bit with command during his last two outings, issuing a combined eight walks, but managed to pitch his way out of trouble.
Fortunately for the Cougars (7-16, 2-1 C-USA), other pitchers are starting to come around. Closer Chase Dempsay earned back-to-back saves by allowing zero runs on two hits in his last outings, and Chris Wright, who began the season as a setup man, has allowed only one run on four hits in his last three appearances.
‘Donnie can only carry so much of the load out of the pen, and Chase is going to have to do a lot of it himself, along with Chris Wright,’ Noble said.
Joseph will find no bigger compliment from anyone than a pitcher whose shadow he once stood in.
‘He’s been pitching great ball all year,’ Dempsay said. ‘He’s found a groove, and every time he comes out, he’s just so confident. You know every time Donnie gets the ball, he’s going to do something good with it.’
Slugging Sammy
Tulane first baseman Sam Honeck continues to light up the skies with his power display.
Honeck recorded his third grand slam of the season in Tuesday’s 15-2 win over Nicholls State, upping his home run and RBI totals to 10 and 39, respectively. Entering Tuesday, he was C-USA’s leader in home runs, RBIs and slugging percentage.’
After 24 games, Honeck is batting a team-leading .414 with an .885 slugging percentage and .514 on-base percentage. That’s a nice improvement for a guy who hit only .275 with eight homers last season.
Recession hits home
C-USA was stripped of two of its most talented beat writers when the Houston Chronicle released Michael Murphy (UH) and MoiseKapenda Bower (Rice) during a massive round of layoffs Tuesday. Both writers handled their beats well and will no doubt be missed by many.
