On March 12 against Toledo, the Michigan baseball team won a 12-inning thriller, 7-6. Even though late-game theatrics resulted in the walk-off victory for the Wolverines, they shouldn’t have been in this conundrum in the first place. And a lot of this can be chalked up to sophomore center fielder Jonathan Kim’s third-inning departure with an injury.
After registering a single, Kim seemed to jam his hand as he approached first base. He was removed from the game, causing a plethora of inexperienced players to replace him in the field and at the plate. A career .314 hitter with an ability to hit for extra bases, Kim’s presence at the plate was surely missed. Between Kim’s exit and the final frame, Michigan registered just five hits — all of which were singles. Hence, runners in scoring position were limited, arising just from stolen bases or defensive errors, rather than expertise at the plate.
“(Jonathan) is gonna be out for a little bit,” Wolverines coach Tracy Smith said Tuesday. “I know that I don’t have the exact (details) of what we’re dealing with, but I would not anticipate he will be out there this weekend (against San Diego).”
Over the weekend against the Toreros, the offensive impacts of Kim’s injury remained present. Michigan employed numerous lineups at the plate, with varying degrees of success. Overall, though, the Wolverines were a step behind offensively and failed to cash in with runners on base. This led to yet another series loss, as experienced San Diego arms roughed up Michigan’s bats.
“Those are some good arms that (the Toreros) ran at us,” Smith said Sunday. “Not just today but all weekend, guys with a lot of college experience under their belt. … One of my favorite sayings in this thing and sometimes it’s not what you’re not doing it’s just somebody’s doing it a little bit better. I thought they pitched the heck out of it this weekend, which kept us in check.”
Kim’s absence hasn’t just been an issue for the offense, but caused defensive changes as well. Throughout the three-game series against San Diego, the Wolverines’ defense drastically shifted as seven players played in the outfield to fill in for Kim. Additionally, fielders were required to switch into other positions they typically don’t play, such as graduate left fielder Stephen Hrustich playing in center and right field.
“(Smith) can tell me to pitch and I’d be fine with it,” Hrustich said Friday. “I mean, he says jump, I say how high. So whatever he needs me to do.”
Hrustich wasn’t the only example of players playing out of position during the weekend. Other fielders were asked to fill in where they could, as sophomore first baseman and right-hander Mitch Voit started Saturday in left field and junior outfielder Joe Longo played in both left and right field at times over the weekend. Voit’s absence from first base subsequently shifted alignments throughout the diamond, as Longo also made an appearance at third base.
And on Saturday, these defensive switches proved problematic, as mental mistakes and communication failures by Michigan’s fielders drove in additional runs for the Toreros. Culminating in a disastrous 16-7 loss, the Wolverines’ pitching issues were exacerbated by fielding problems — the changing defensive organization did them no favors.
“I know we’ve got a lot of stuff working against us right now,” Smith said Saturday. “But that doesn’t negate the fact that we can still do what we’re supposed to do from a philosophy program standpoint and not deviate from that and give us a chance to win, because it’s hard enough with where we are on the skill level and injuries.”
And with the struggles Michigan has had in Kim’s absence, something must change. On Sunday, Michigan knocked off San Diego with the combination of defensive cohesiveness and freshman designated hitter Collin Priest’s breakout day. However, Kim’s presence could’ve helped the offense as the Wolverines struggled to generate baserunners.
With the unknowns regarding his injury, Kim could be back shortly or face an extended absence. Regardless, a veil concealing a Michigan weakness dropped — exposing its lack of depth when injured. And with a key piece like Kim going down, the Wolverines need to show they can avoid compounding their mistakes into losses.