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Needing to push back pitching Jason Hammel further as he continues to recover from a stomach virus, the Orioles announced they will recall left-handed pitcher Zach Britton to make Tuesday’s start in Detroit.

After right-hander Jake Arrieta was awarded a spot start against the Tigers on Monday, Britton was held out of his scheduled start for the Tides with the thought that Hammel might need more time to regain his strength after a virus required him to have intravenous fluids and kept him away from the ballpark for two days over the weekend.

Britton will be making his second start of the season for the Orioles after suffering a loss in Seattle on April 29. The 25-year-old allowed six earned runs and 10 hits in six innings of work before being optioned back to Norfolk after that start.

In his last five starts for the Tides, Britton is 2-1 and has allowed only seven earned runs in 31 innings while striking out 26 and walking 11. He is 3-2 with a 3.28 earned run average in 11 starts in Triple A this season.

One of Britton’s best starts in an otherwise disappointing 2012 season for the Orioles came against the Tigers on Aug. 18 when he pitched seven shutout innings to earn the victory in a 3-2 final. In two career starts against Detroit, Britton is 2-0 with a 3.75 ERA in 12 innings of work.

Reports from Detroit indicated right-hander pitcher Miguel Gonzalez received word that his wife was ready to give birth to the couple’s daughter and he departed for California on Monday evening.

The Orioles optioned Arrieta to Norfolk following Monday’s loss to presumably make room for Britton on the 25-man roster before Tuesday’s game. If the club wants to bring rookie Kevin Gausman back to Baltimore for further starter reinforcements, they could recall him prior to the 10-day waiting period’s conclusion if he were to replace Gonzalez, who is expected to be placed on the paternity leave list.

SKERRY NAMES JIM MCCARTHY TO TOWSON BASKETBALL COACHING STAFF
McCarthy Helped Guide Northeastern to CAA Regular Season Title in 2012-13
TOWSON, Md. – Former Northeastern assistant coach Jim McCarthy will join the Towson University men’s basketball coaching staff, Tiger head coach Pat Skerry announced on Wednesday.

McCarthy, who helped guide the Huskies to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) regular season title in 2012-13, joins Skerry’s staff as an assistant coach.

“We’re excited to get someone of Jimmy’s caliber who will improve our already strong staff,” said Skerry. “He has a very intelligent basketball mind and has worked for some outstanding head coaches in Bill Coen (Northeastern),Tom Murphy (Hamilton), Dave Paulsen (Williams) and James Jones (Yale). He’s a proven recruiter who will not only help us in the Northeast, but will also benefit our program with his ability to evaluate and recruit on a national level.

“We’re excited to bring Jimmy, his wife Katie and their family here to Towson,” he added. “We are looking forward to Jimmy contributing great things for us as we continue our quest for a CAA Championship.”

McCarthy joined the Northeastern staff as assistant coach in 2006 and distinguished himself as a dedicated recruiter and on-court coach. One of his primary duties at Towson will be off- and on-campus recruiting. He will also be heavily involved with scouting report preparations for Towson’s opponents as well as video breakdowns of games and practices for current Tiger players.

During the final year of McCarthy’s tenure at Northeastern, the Huskies enjoyed one of the best seasons in program history. NU collected 20 wins, equaling its best win total in eight years, and returned to the postseason for the third time in five years with a NIT berth in 2013.

At Northeastern, McCarthy worked closely with the team’s perimeter players and helped two-time All-CAA first-team selection Chaisson Allen, as well as Matt Janning, who left Northeastern as one of its all-time greats, including back-to-back All-CAA first-team awards. Under McCarthy’s watch, NU guard Joel Smith earned All-CAA first-team honors in 2012-13.

In his tenure off the court, McCarthy served as a liaison for Student-Athlete Academic Support Services, scheduled non-conference games and worked on NCAA compliance.

Before joining the NU staff, McCarthy spent three years as an assistant coach at Yale, where he was active in recruiting, scouting and game preparation. He was also responsible for the development of the team’s perimeter players, two of whom were named All-Ivy.

Before Yale, McCarthy spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Williams College, helping lead the team to the 2002-03 NCAA Div. III national title. During those two years, the Williams staff produced an All-America player, a Final Four Most Outstanding Player and three all- conference performers, while posting a combined record of 53-7. The team won consecutive NESCAC championships and was the first NESCAC and New England school to win a Div. III national title.

Professionally, McCarthy is the CAA representative for the NABC’s Assistant Coaches Committee. For the past four years, he has participated in the prestigious Villa 7 Consortium for assistant coaches across the nation.

A 2001 graduate of Hamilton College, McCarthy played for Northeastern assistant coach Tom Murphy and was an All-UCAA selection in 2000. Murphy is one of the all-time winningest NCAA Division III coaches. McCarthy earned the school’s Ned Doyle Award for leadership, athletic success and academic achievement.

McCarthy and his wife, Katie, reside in Lutherville with their two-year old son, Nathan, and 10-month old daughter, Hannah.

TIGER INTERCOLLEGIATE PROGRAMS EXCEL ON APR SCORES

Tigers Show Significant Progress In NCAA Report

TOWSON, Md. – According to the Division I Academic Progress Report released by the NCAA on Tuesday, every one of Towson University’s 20 intercollegiate athletic programs received a score that is significantly above the NCAA’s “cut score.”

All but one of Towson University’s 20 intercollegiate sports has a multi-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) score of at least 930. The Tiger women’s soccer and cross country programs each earned a perfect multi-year APR score of 1,000.

Most significantly, the Tiger men’s basketball program, which was the recipient of a post-season ban last year, has had the ban lifted and the Tigers will be eligible for post-season play again in 2014.

The Tiger field hockey team earned a 997 APR score while the women’s outdoor track team posted a mark of 992. The Colonial Athletic Association champion women’s swimming team earned a 991 while the indoor track squad had a 990 APR score.

In addition, the softball squad had a 987 APR while the Colonial Athletic Association champion women’s lacrosse team posted a 986 APR score. The Tiger men’s swimming team earned a 982 APR score and the CAA champion baseball team compiled a 978 score.

The NCAA holds Division I institutions accountable for the academic progress of their student-athletes through the Academic Progress Rate, a team-based metric that accounts for the eligibility and retention of each student-athlete, each term. The APR is calculated by allocating points for eligibility and retention — the two factors that are identified as the best indicators of graduation. Each player on a given roster earns a maximum of two points per term, one for being academically eligible and one for staying with the institution. A team’s APR is the total points of a team’s roster at a given time divided by the total points possible. Since the result is a decimal number, the Committee on Academic Performance (CAP) decided to multiply it by 1,000 for ease of reference. Thus, a raw APR score of .925 translates into the 925 that will become the standard terminology.

The Committee on Academic Performance oversees the Academic Performance Program, with sets policies and recommends legislative changes to the Board of Directors, which has the final say on rules changes in Division I.

Beginning with 2012-13 championships, teams must earn a minimum 900 four-year APR or a 930 average over the most recent two years to be eligible to participate. For 2014-15 championships, the cut off numbers increase as teams must earn a 930 four-year average APR or a 940 average over the most recent two years to participate. In 2015-16 and beyond, teams must earn a four-year APR of 930 to compete in championships.

“Our APR scores are a credit to our student-athletes,” said Tricia Brandenburg, the Interim Director of Athletics at Towson University. “It is also a credit to the cooperation our students receive when working with the faculty on the difficult task of balancing academic and athletics responsibilities. In addition, our coaches deserve credit for establishing a culture for academic achievement. Our strong academic services staff has provided outstanding support for student-athletes in need. It is truly a team effort.”

Towson University’s sport-by-sport APR scores:

                                                      Team APR                          

Baseball -                                                        978                  

Men’s Basketball -                                             871                  

Football -                                                          953                  

Men’s Golf -                                                      932                  

Men’s Lacrosse -                                               945                 

Men’s Soccer -                                                  957                  

Men’s Swimming -                                             982                 

Women’s Basketball -                                        953                  

Women’s Cross Country -                                   1000                

Field Hockey -                                                   997                  

Women’s Golf -                                                  944                 

Gymnastics -                                                     976                  

Women’s Lacrosse -                                           986                  

Women’s Soccer -                                              1000                

Softball -                                                          987                  

Women’s Swimming -                                         991                   

Women’s Tennis -                                              992                  

Women’s Indoor Track -                                     990                  

Women’s Outdoor Track -                                   992                  

Volleyball -                                                       973   

I know well that Baltimore Orioles fans weren’t REALLY mad that a pitcher was thrown out of a game for hitting a batter on the first pitch after giving up three straight home runs.

I know very well that Baltimore Orioles fans were mad about late Saturday afternoon was THEIR pitcher getting thrown out of a game for hitting a batter on the first pitch after giving up three straight home runs.

As much as I wasn’t interested in fighting with baseball fans on Twitter, I was certainly happy to see the passion. The passion has been perhaps my favorite part of the Birds’ resurgence over the last 14 months.

I was up close and personal (okay, ten rows back) from that very passion Friday night. I had a great friend invite me down to Oriole Park at Camden Yards after our live broadcast of “The Reality Check” at Hooters Friday afternoon. My fiancé and I spent the evening wandering through the ballpark with our friends, taking in the Centerfield Bar, the Orioles’ corporate suite and our fantastic lower level seats at the sold out game against the Detroit Tigers. (I don’t say those things to rub in how great my night was, but instead to offer another thank you to my friend Mike-who might very well be reading this. He was a tremendous host. Indulge me for his sake, please.)

When Nick Markakis came to the plate to lead off the 9th inning, I couldn’t find a single person that wasn’t standing. By the time Chris Dickerson sent everyone home happy, the 40,000 or so in attendance were whipped into an absolute frenzy.

It was one of the more amazing moments I could ever remember as a baseball fan…and it might not have even been the most exciting victory the O’s had all week.

There was more passion inside OPAC Y Friday night than any sunrise Easter service I’ve ever attended in my life. It was a night full of fire, a night full of madness and a night full of, well, Orange Fever.

Dickerson perhaps supplied the final act of “Orioles Magic” with his three run, two out walk-off jack; but the displays of “Orioles Magic” were bountiful from the time I hit President Street at 1pm and couldn’t get to Harborplace until 1:55 because the city was packed.

There were displays of “Orioles Magic” as fans came by to see Larry Sheets while we were sitting at Hooters. There were displays of “Orioles Magic” as a group of Orange and Black supporters shouted down Tigers fans who came to visit at Hooters and declared they had made the trip because “the Tigers were winning the World Series and they wanted to see as many games during the World Series year as possible.” They also couldn’t believe Luke Jones would describe the Orioles as having the American League’s best offense. I’m so glad the Birds were able to make them second guess by Sunday evening.

There were displays of “Orioles Magic” as we walked to and from the stadium. They were of course more after the game, including many who wanted to go out of their way to throw high fives or start a “Seven Nation Army” chant back up.

“Orioles Magic” was everywhere. The passion was real.

The passion was real again Saturday, but I wasn’t necessary as close to the action for it. I had to attend an ex’s wedding in Pikesville Saturday night and watched the better part of the game from my couch.

I’ll admit, it didn’t give me quite as good of a view of Matt Tuiasosopo’s shoulder as home plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt did when Jason Hammel plunked it. My view also included a MASN broadcast where Mike Bordick wasted no time in letting me know the pitch was a slider and barely more than 80 miles an hour. Obviously no pitcher could ever purposefully hit a batter with such a pitch.

Obviously.

I took to Twitter to say the following…

It lead to a 30 minute back and forth that included legitimately ANGRY responses from 20-30 Orioles fans absolutely bullish about how disastrous of a decision Wendelstedt had made to toss Hammel without a warning.

Because apparently giving up three straight home runs suddenly needs to come with a warning.

Hendelstedt of course had every right to toss Hammel from the game. He didn’t have a radar gun available behind the plate, but even if he could tell the ball wasn’t thrown with Nolan Ryan heat, he had the right to decipher the pitch may well have been thrown with frustration.

Warnings come when an umpire fears retaliation. Ejects come when an umpire fears a pitcher throw a ball merely out of frustration.

Sometimes those decisions come with collateral damage. Hammel (and just about everyone connected to the organization) wanted to let you know after the game that there was no intent involved in the pitch. Of course, if you can remember the time a pitcher admitted intent after a game I’d love to have you forward it to me. (It’s glenn@wnst.net by the way.) (Edit from GC: I absolutely meant to say “admitted intent after a game and wasn’t suspended. I did not. It’s my fault and I apologize. Thanks to those of you who reminded me that Cole Hamels had indeed admitted intent after plunking Bryce Harper.)

Sadly, no umpire has the time to stop the game and conduct a full trial to determine intent on a pitch. I don’t necessarily think Jason Hammel intended to plunk Matt Tuiasosopo, but I don’t know for sure he didn’t, either.

Neither does anyone else, despite how many of you angrily Tweeted otherwise.

But I get it. It’s passion. It’s magical.

It’s way better than everyone getting together to ignore Eric DuBose’s most recent start together.

-G

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BALTIMORE — Contrary to what many will say following Kevin Gausman’s home debut in a 4-2 win over the Detroit Tigers Sunday, his six strong innings against a powerful lineup don’t yet prove the Orioles’ decision to promote him after eight Double-A starts was the right one.

In the same way, definitive proclamations that the Orioles had made a mistake calling up the 2012 first-round pick after an 11.00 earned run average in his first two starts were premature with Gausman just getting his feet wet in the big leagues.

But Sunday’s outing against arguably the best offense in the major leagues showed the kind of talent that had the Orioles so giddy and willing to see if he could help their winning cause despite the 22-year-old still being in the midst of his first full professional season. A day after the Tigers pounced on Jason Hammel and the Orioles bullpen for five homers and 10 runs, Gausman held Detroit to just one earned run and five hits for the first quality start of his career.

“I felt comfortable,” said Gausman, who credited a bullpen session with pitching coach Rick Adair in which they tinkered with his mechanics and focused on keeping the ball down in the strike zone as the main reason for the turnaround. “Today was probably the most polished and calm I’ve been out there since I’ve been up.”

In addition to not walking a batter over six innings, Gausman recorded 12 ground-ball outs including two double plays induced with Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera at the plate. Working with a fastball consistently hitting 95 miles per hour for most of the afternoon, Gausman found another gear in his final inning of work when he threw several sinking fastballs clocked at 97 against Cabrera, retiring the 2012 Triple Crown winner on a called strike three to end his day after six.

It was all part of his revised plan after pitching up in the zone far too often in his first two starts, especially against Washington when he surrendered three home runs.

“Get on top more, have more of a downward plane on my ball, and get back to getting ground-ball outs,” Gausman said. “That was something big for me. It’s huge to get ground balls, double plays, and quick innings.”

The early concerns about Gausman weren’t eliminated entirely with the strong performance as the right-hander only had four strikeouts and seven swinging strikes over the course of the outing. His slider was improved from his first two starts but remains more of a novelty than the impact breaking pitch needed to go along with an exceptional fastball-change combination.

Gausman appeared to be heading toward a shorter outing early in the game as Tigers hitters continued to foul off pitches and work deep counts at an alarming rate despite the rookie facing the minimum number of hitters over his first two innings. In the second, a nine-pitch at-bat that resulted in a swinging strikeout of Prince Fielder and a eight-pitch battle with Jhonny Peralta that ended with a groundout contributed to Gausman’s pitch count standing at 42 after two frames.

You can certainly argue that Gausman’s command was so good that hitters weren’t able to do much damage aside from Fielder’s solo home run in the fourth, but he still appears to lack that put-away pitch necessary for collecting strikeouts and keeping his pitch count a bit lower in those situations. The power pitcher has only nine strikeouts in his 15 innings of work in the majors after striking out 49 in 46 1/3 innings at Double-A Bowie.

However, it would be difficult to dispute that Gausman got stronger as the game went on, evident by his increased velocity and two strikeouts in his final inning of work. He retired the final six batters he faced before turning the game over to the bullpen for the seventh inning.

“I look at the positive side that his stuff was so good that they fouled a lot of balls off,” manager Buck Showalter said. “You go back through how many fouls balls there that they couldn’t quite square him up. You can tell by body language of the other team. I say a lot of times, they’ll tell us how he’s doing. You can tell by the body language.”

Showalter said in the aftermath of Gausman’s poor showing against the Nationals last week that you can’t hide it for long if you’re good enough to play in the big leagues and the rookie rewarded the Orioles’ confidence by bouncing back against a lineup known for crippling opposing pitchers. The manager credited the Louisiana State product’s confidence and reminded us once again that what Gausman lacks in professional experience is complemented by his time pitching in the highly-competitive Southeastern Conference.

That doesn’t necessarily mean that Gausman is ready to swim at this level and the talk of him being sent back to the minors is gone for good, but Sunday showed more than enough to see why the Orioles and talent evaluators are so high on the 6-foot-3 pitcher.

An uneven major league debut against Toronto and an ugly start against the Nationals weren’t going to change their opinion that easily.

“He’s talented — that’s the thing,” Showalter said. “As much as you talk about a lot of other factors that affect guys, he’s talented. He’s got a good hand, which allows him to do some things with the baseball. I’ve got a lot of confidence in him.”

His six innings of work not only gave the Orioles a chance to stage a late comeback with a three-run seventh inning but prevented a repeat of Saturday’s blowout in which the bullpen needed to work six innings following Hammel’s ejection.

It was a critical factor in the Orioles’ series win over the defending American League champions and sent them to Monday’s off-day at seven games above .500 as they begin a six-game road trip. Perhaps even more exciting about the outing was the glimpse at what the future may hold as the Gausman experiment continues for at least another start or two.

“I just tried to put my team in position to win,” Gausman said. “I just tried to keep the ball down. This was a big series win for us.”

It sounds so simple, but Gausman gave the Orioles everything they could have reasonably asked for on Sunday.

Now, the challenge will be doing it again the next time out.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Freshman righthander Trent Thornton came out of the bullpen to record his eighth save of the season as No. 1 North Carolina (54-8) held off a comeback by the Tigers (30-29) to remain undefeated in the NCAA Regionals with an 8-5 victory over Towson at Boshamer Stadium on Saturday night.

The Tar Heels, who have won seven games in a row, are now one victory away from winning the Chapel Hill Regional and advancing to the Super Regionals next weekend. Towson, which had its five-game winning streak snapped, will play Florida Atlantic in an elimination game at Boshamer Stadium on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.

The winner of the Towson-Florida Atlantic game will face the Tar Heels at 6:00 p.m. in what could be the regional championship game.

Junior lefthander Kent Emanuel was virtually unhittable through the first five innings as the Tar Heels built a 5-0 lead. Through the first five innings, Emanuel faced the minimum 15 batters. He allowed a single to sophomore centerfielder Richie Blosser in the third inning and a single to third baseman Zach Fisher in the fourth inning. But, he immediately picked both runners off base.

“Give credit to Kent Emanuel,” said Towson Coach Mike Gottlieb. “He gave us absolutely nothing for five innings. He was throwing three pitches for strikes and he made us look bad a number of times. He did a great job mixing his pitches and got the big outs when he needed them.

“One of the biggest outs he got was in the sixth inning when we had two runners on base and two outs with Kurt Wertz at the plate. He struck him out on an off-speed pitch that froze Kurt. It was a big out at the time because a base hit by Wertz makes it a much closer game.”

Senior first baseman Cody Stubbs gave the Tar Heels a 1-0 lead in the second inning when he blasted a solo home run over the rightfield fence. It was the only hit that junior righthander Brandon Gonnella allowed over the first three innings.

In the fourth inning, Gonnella ran into trouble. Freshman Landon Lassiter, the Tar Heels’ designated hitter, opened the inning by drawing a walk. After he reached second base on a wild pitch, Gonnella retired senior third baseman Colin Moran on a fly ball to rightfield. When freshman rightfielder Skye Bolt also drew a walk, North Carolina had two runners on base with one out.

Lassiter and Bolt moved into scoring position when Stubbs grounded out to second base. However, sophomore shortstop Michael Russell gave the Tar Heels a 3-0 lead when he drilled a two-run single into left field. After junior catcher Brian Holberton followed with a single, senior catcher Andrew Parker came up with another big play. While Gonnella was pitching to sophomore second baseman Mike Zolk, he picked Holberton off first base to end the rally.

In the fifth inning, the Tar Heels extended their lead to 4-0. Zolk led off the inning with a double to rightfield. After junior leftfielder Jordan Parks reached base on a bunt single, the Tar Heels had runners at the corners. Senior centerfielder Chaz Frank lifted a foul ball down the left field line where sophomore leftfielder Peter Bowles made a sliding catch. Zolk alertly tagged up on the play and scored just seconds ahead of Bowles’ throw to the plate. After Lassiter singled, Moran grounded into a double play to end the inning as the Tigers turned their 80th double play of the season.

With two outs in the sixth inning, Russell singled through the left side. When Holberton doubled down the right field line, Russell came around to score from first base. Zolk grounded out to first base.

Emanuel took a two-out shutout into the sixth inning. With one out, Blosser doubled to left centerfield. After junior shortstop Hunter Bennett struck out. Fisher drew a walk to put runners on first and second. Junior second baseman Pat Fitzgerald followed with a single to right field, driving in the first run of the game for the Tigers. But, Emanuel struck out junior designated hitter on a 3-2 pitch to end the inning.

In the bottom of the seventh inning, the Tigers staged another rally against Emanuel. Bowles led off the seventh with a double to left center field. After junior rightfielder Dominic Fratantuono struck out, sophomore first baseman Brendan Butler lined a single to centerfield, scoring Bowles to make it a 5-2 lead. But, Emanuel got out of the jam by getting Parker to ground into double play to end the uprising.

With their lead trimmed to 5-2, the Tar Heels added two more runs in the eighth inning. Stubbs led off with a single, his second base hit of the game. Russell came through another clutch hit and doubled down the leftfield line, driving in Stubbs to give North Carolina a 6-2 advantage. Russell reached third base when Holberton grounded out to second base for the first out of the inning. With Russell on third base, the Tigers pulled their infield in to try and prevent another run from scoring. However, when Zolk hit a high chopper to Bennett at shortstop, Russell was able to score while Bennett threw Zolk out at first base.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, the Tigers continued to show the resilience they displayed all season. With one out, Bennett doubled to rightfield. After Fisher drew a walk, Fitzgerald was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Wertz. On a 2-0 pitch from Emanuel, Wertz singled to rightfield, driving in two runs to pull Towson to within 7-4. A sacrifice fly by Bowles enabled Fitzgerald to score and cut the lead to 7-5. When Fratantuono singled to centerfield, the Tigers had the tying runs on base.

At that point, Coach Mike Fox went to the bullpen and brought in his ace closer, Thornton. He pitched out of the jam by retiring Butler on a fly ball to centerfield.

In the ninth inning, the Tar Heels added a run off relief pitcher Nick Cioffi. With one out, Lassiter singled to rightfield. A single by Moran enabled Lassiter to reach third base. When Bolt hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield, Lassiter scored to give the Tar Heels an 8-5 lead. Cioffi finally retired the side by getting Russell on a fly ball to centerfield.

In the bottom of the ninth, Thornton retired the Tigers in order to prevent any comeback.

“Obviously, for us, it was a case of too little, too late,” added Gottlieb. “This is not a game we should have won – but it is a game we could have won. If we could have gotten one or two hits in the right spot, we might still be playing.”

Emanuel, now 11-3 on the season, earned the win for the Tar Heels. He pitched 7.2 innings and allowed five runs on nine hits. He walked two and had eight strikeouts. Thornton picked up the final four outs of the game to record his eighth save.

UNC outhit the Tigers by a 13-10 margin. Russell led the Tar Heels with three hits, two runs scored and three runs batted in. Lassiter had a pair of hits and scored two runs while Stubbs went two-for-four with a home run and two runs scored. Holbertson also had two hits and drove in a run.

Gonnella suffered his fifth loss of the season for the Tigers. He pitched 7.2 innings and allowed seven runs on 11 hits with three walks and one strikeout. Two of his walks were very costly as they led to a pair of Carolina runs in the fourth inning when the Tar Heels took a 3-0 lead.

Blosser led the Tigers with three hits and scored a run. He is batting .714 in the Tigers’ two NCAA Tournament games. He was the only Tiger with more than one hit. Fisher had a single and drew the only two walks that Emanuel allowed.

TIGER TALES: Wertz’s two-run single lifted his seasonal RBI total to 65, the top mark on the team … When Fitzgerald singled in the sixth, it marked the 29^th consecutive that he reached base … Fitzgerald, who now has a .990 fielding percentage, played a solid defensive game with two putouts and five assists … He also started the double play in the fifth inning … Since the Tigers played the game on June 1, it was the first Towson University intercollegiate athletic event ever played in the month of June.

With the win, North Carolina beat Towson for the 13^th game in a row … The Tar Heels lead the all-time series, 26-2.

Sophomore righthander Paul Beers will try to keep the Tigers’ season alive on Sunday afternoon when the Tigers face Florida Atlantic at 1:00 p.m. … Florida Atlantic beat Canisius on Saturday afternoon to remain alive in the NCAA regional.

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BALTIMORE — Needless to say, the main topic of conversation following the Orioles’ 10-3 loss to the Detroit Tigers was the fourth-inning ejection of starting pitcher Jason Hammel.

The right-hander had just surrendered three consecutive home runs before plunking left fielder Matt Tuiasosopo in the left shoulder on the first pitch of the at-bat. Home plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt immediately tossed Hammel — the first ejection of his career — despite objections from the pitcher, manager Buck Showalter, and catcher Matt Wieters arguing that he had thrown a slider.

Many fans were infuriated by the decision with it commonly accepted that pitchers will use their fastball to drill hitters intentionally, but allowing three straight homers eliminates most benefit of the doubt in that instance. The Orioles’ position was predictable, acknowledging where the umpire was coming from but maintaining Hammel’s innocence as the pitcher expressed there was “zero intent” to drill the Tigers outfielder after the game.

Truthfully, I don’t believe Hammel was throwing at him intentionally and a warning probably would have been as effective considereing it was a breaking pitch, but the starter’s own ineffectiveness eliminated most benefit of the doubt and put Wendelstedt in a difficult position that can escalate quickly and become very emotional if not treated with assertiveness.

“I understand his position; I still don’t understand why he threw me out,” Hammel said. “That was the quickest toss I’ve ever seen. It was almost immediate, so, he didn’t have time to asses the situation.”

Unless you talked to the Tigers fan base, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who is 100-percent convinced that Hammel was intentionally throwing at the batter in frustration. His command was poor throughout the short outing and both he and Showalter mentioned that several sliders had slipped out of the pitcher’s hand on a 90-degree day in Baltimore.

But, ultimately, no one knows for sure whether Hammel was trying to hit Tuiasosopo on purpose other than the pitcher himself, so it’s a tough call to make with almost two-thirds of the game remaining. In most situations like these, umpires are instructed to err on the side of order before an altercation can potentially take place later on.

“It’s tough on umpires trying to judge intent, but they get a lot of pressure from the major league offices,” Showalter said. “But obviously we’re biased, very biased. I understand what the umpire’s trying to do, but it’s very tough for them to judge intent.”

The decision in this case was more about taking a preventative measure than it was about disciplining Hammel. And in the heat of an emotional moment, the umpire threw him out even though Tigers manager Jim Leyland told reporters after the game his club didn’t feel Hammel hit Tuiasosopo on purpose.

The Orioles were understandably unhappy, but there’s no way of proving the general rule of using the fastball to hit someone intentionally as an absolute. And it’s likely the hometown fans would have been calling for the same outcome if opposing starter Justin Verlander had done the same exact thing.

“I know you’ve seen guys trying to get by with doing that with a breaking ball,” Showalter said, “but most guys that I’ve ever seen do it want to make sure everyone knows. If you’re doing that, you’re going to throw a fastball — not a breaking ball.”

As for the impact of Hammel’s ejection on the game, it didn’t really matter as the right-hander was clearly unable to command his fastball like he had in each of his last two starts — both victories — and T.J. McFarland, Troy Patton, and Tommy Hunter went the rest of the way for the Orioles.

Showalter said after the game he felt the bullpen should be in decent shape for Sunday’s series finale in which rookie Kevin Gausman goes against the Tigers’ powerful lineup. Steve Johnson only threw four pitches on Friday night and should be available in a long-relief role while Hunter was appearing in his first game since Wednesday and threw only 12 pitches in a scoreless ninth.

A day off on Monday should do the trick in providing the necessary rest to get the bullpen back on track, regardless of how Gausman fares.

After the game, Hammel was angriest about the position his ejection put on the bullpen — telling Showalter after the game he could pitch in relief on Sunday if needed — but he put himself in position to be judged harshly.

“You can issue a warning there,” Showalter said. “Obviously, three balls left the park and then a breaking ball hits the guy. You put yourself in their shoes and put yourself in our shoes. That’s what I try to do. I can’t speak for the umpire. I understand the intent of what they were trying to do.”

And maintaining control of the game was more important than giving Hammel a break in that situation.

Even if it might have been the wrong call.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Riding a five-game winning streak, the Tigers face their toughest challenge of the season when the Colonial Athletic Association champions play the top-ranked team in the nation, North Carolina, in the second round of the NCAA Regionals at Boshamer Park on Saturday evening at 6:05 p.m.

The Towson-UNC game can be seen on ESPN3 http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_/id/950913/ncaa-baseball-regionals-presented-capital-one-site-1-game-4 and will also be broadcast on www.TowsonTigers.com with Spiro Morekas, Damon Lewis and Dan O’Connell calling the action.

The Tar Heels, who won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship last week, are seeking their 12th NCAA regional title this week. North Carolina has made five appearances in the College World Series since 2006. Veteran Coach Mike Fox led North Carolina to second place in the College World Series in 2006 and 2007 as well as a third place showing in 2009.

The Tar Heels seem to have a complete team. The Tar Heels lead NCAA Division I in scoring, averaging 8.2 runs per game. At the same time, UNC’s pitching staff has a 2.52 E.R.A., a mark that ranks the Tar Heels fourth in the nation.

Senior first baseman Cody Stubbs and junior third baseman Colin Moran are the Tar Heels’ top offensive players and they are both All-Americans. Stubbs was the MVP of the ACC Tournament last week and is batting .362 with 22 doubles, four triples, seven home runs and 72 runs batted in. Moran is hitting .357 with 13 homers and a school record 84 RBI’s.

Junior lefthander Kent Emanuel is expected to pitch for the Tar Heels. He has a 10-3 record with a 2.11 E.R.A. In 110.2 innings of work, he has 22 walks an 79 strikeouts. Emanuel has pitched five complete games, including two shutouts. He was named as the ACC Pitcher of the Year.

The Tar Heels, who are now 53-8 on the season, advanced to the second round of the NCAA Regional with a 6-3 victory over Canisius on Friday evening. North Carolina has won six games in a row.

When the Tigers face North Carolina on Saturday night, they will be playing against the number one-ranked team in the nation for the first time ever.

Towson is coming off a 7-2 victory over No. 23 Florida Atlantic in the first round of the NCAA regional on Friday afternoon. The Tigers are now 3-4 against nationally-ranked teams this season. Towson dropped three games to No. 30 Pittsburgh and a 7-1 decision to No. 5 Virginia. The Tigers won two of three games from North Carolina Wilmington inlate April when the Seahawks were ranked 21st in the nation.

Junior righthander Brandon Gonnella is expected to pitch for the Tigers on Saturday evening. The Tigers’ regular centerfielder, Gonnella has a 4-4 record and a 5.22 E.R.A. with two saves. In 69 innings of work, he has issued only 23 walks and has 56 strikeouts. Gonnella did not play in the NCAA opener on Friday.

After their 11-hit performance against FAU, the Tigers are batting .387 with 54 runs scored in five post-season games.

Junior rightfielder Dominic Fratantuono is swinging a hot bat in the post-season. He has a .556 batting average and a .682 on-base percentage. In the last five games, Fratantuono has scored seven runs and has eight runs batted in.

One of the heroes of the Tigers’ win over Florida Atlantic, senior catcher Andrew Parker is batting .471 in the post-season with three homers and nine RBI’s. Against Florida Atlantic, he blasted a monstrous three-run homer in the sixth inning.

The Tigers will be playing North Carolina for the 28th time. Towson has a 2-25 record against the Tar Heels, positing wins over UNC in 2000 and 2001. The teams played an annual two-game series in Chapel Hill from 1997 to 2007 as part of Towson’s spring trip. North Carolina has won the last 12 meetings.

The winner of the Towson-North Carolina game advances to Game 6 of the regionals on Sunday at 6:00 p.m. The loser of the Towson-UNC game plays the winner of the Florida Atlantic-Canisius which is being played at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.

VOLPE, PARKER LEAD TIGERS PAST FLORIDA ATLANTIC IN NCAA’S

Third-Seeded Tigers Snap FAU’s 11-Game Winning Streak

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Senior righthander Mike Volpe earned his tenth victory of the season and senior catcher Andrew Parker blasted a monstrous three-run homer as Towson University (30-28) continued its magical post-season with a 7-2 victory over No. 23 Florida Atlantic (39-21) in the first round of the NCAA Regional Tournament at Boshamer Stadium on Friday afternoon.

Volpe, who pitched the Tigers into the NCAA Tournament last Saturday with a 5-2 win over William & Mary in the Colonial Athletic Association championship game, pitched seven very strong innings as the Tigers ended Florida Atlantic’s 11-game winning streak.

Volpe, who has a 3-0 record in the post-season, scattered four hits and allowed one unearned run with two walks and four strikeouts as he improved his record to 10-3 on the season. After issuing a leadoff walk to senior centerfielder Nathan Pittman in the eighth inning, he turned the game over to the bullpen. Junior righthander Nik Nowottnick finished the game with a flourish, striking out the side in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Parker, who went one-for-four in the game, helped the Tigers offensively and defensively. He highlighted the Tigers’ five-run sixth inning with a three-run homer to left. He also threw out a runner trying to steal and ended a Florida Atlantic rally by picking off Mark Nelson with the bases loaded in the eighth inning.

“It is so great to be back in this environment,” said Towson Coach Mike Gottlieb, who guided the Tigers to their first regional appearance since 1991. “It is quite rewarding and I am so thrilled that these guys have the opportunity to experience this.”

The win over Florida Atlantic marked the first time in three NCAA regional tournaments that the Tigers won their opening game. Towson will play their second NCAA regional contest on Saturday evening at 6:00 p.m. against the winner of the first round game between host North Carolina and fourth-seeded Canisius.

“When you can get a pitching performance like we received from Mike (Volpe), you have a great chance to win,” added Gottlieb. “Obviously, the sixth inning was the turning point in the game. Up until that point, we had been struggling with the bats. But, we turned it around in the sixth inning and gave ourselves a nice lead.”

The Tigers’ first NCAA regional game in 22 years started off as a pitcher’s duel between Volpe and righthander Jeremy Strawn. Strawn shut out the Tigers on two hits through the first three innings before the Owls threatened in the bottom of the third inning. With one out, Pittman drew a walk on a 3-2 pitch to start the rally. Junior leftfielderGeoff Jiminez reached base on an infield single to shortstop to give the Owls two runners on base with one out. After a prolonged at-bat, Nelson was retired on a fly ball to right as Pittman advanced to third base. With Jiminez on first base and Pittman on third, the Owls tried a trick play by having Jiminez break for second base. However, Volpe wasn’t fooled and allowed Jiminez to steal second base while Pittman remained on third. Then, Volpe won a six-pitch battle with junior designated hitter Tyler Rocklein by getting him to fly out to rightfield where junior Dominic Fratantuono made the catch.

In the top of the fourth inning, the Tigers scored the first run of the game, thanks to junior designated hitter Kurt Wertz. Wertz led off the inning with a single to centerfield on a 3-2 pitch. Wertz stole second base while Strawn was striking out sophomore leftfielder Peter Bowles. With a runner on second base and one out, Fratantuono reached base when he was hit by a pitch. Wertz advanced to third base when sophomore first baseman Brendan Butler flew out to centerfield. With Wertz on third and Fratantuono on first base, the Tigers tried a delayed double steal. Junior catcher Levi Meyer threw down to second base but sophomore shortstop Mitch Morales cut off the throw and was ready to throw the ball home. But, Wertz had already scored to give Towson a 1-0 lead. Strawn pitched out of the jam by striking out Parker.

Once the Tigers gave Volpe a lead, he got tougher. He retired the Owls in order in the fourth and fifth innings as the Tigers took their 1-0 lead into the top of the sixth inning.

Junior second baseman Pat Fitzgerald led off the sixth inning with a single to centerfield, extending his on-base streak to 28 games in a row. When Wertz lined a double to right centerfield, Fitzgerald reached third base to give the Tigers runners on second and third with no outs. Bowles followed with a single to right centerfield, Fitzgerald scored while Wertz held up at third base.

Fratantuono upped the Tigers’ lead to 3-0 when he doubled to left centerfield as Wertz scored his second run of the game. After the double by Fratantuono, Strawn was relieved by junior righthander Kevin Alexander.

Alexander got Butler to hit a weak ground ball to first base where Nelson threw home to retire Bowles, trying to score from third base.

On a 2-2 pitch, Parker launched a long home run well over the left field fence, his 11^th homer of the season and the 23^rd of his college career. His three-run homer broke the game open and gave Towson a 6-0 lead.

Staked to a 6-0 lead, Volpe retired the Owls in the sixth inning without incident. In the seventh inning, he allowed a one-out single to Meyer, Florida Atlantic’s first hit since the third inning. But Volpe retired the next two hitters to preserve the shutout.

With one out in the eighth inning, Butler gave the Tigers a 7-0 advantage with a solo home run to left centerfield. It was his fifth homer of the season,

In the bottom of the eighth, the Owls came to life. After Volpe walked Pittman to lead off the inning, he was relieved by junior lefthander Kyle Paul. Paul got Jiminez to hit a ground ball to shortstop. In his haste to turn a double play, junior shortstop Hunter Bennett committed a rare error as Florida Atlantic had two runners on base with no outs. When Nelson was hit by a pitch, Florida Atlantic had the bases loaded with no outs.

While Paul was pitching to Rocklein, Parker made one of the biggest plays of the game. With Butler playing behind Nelson, the runner at first base, Parker threw down to first base when Butler snuck in behind the runner and he picked him off for the first out of the inning.

The pickoff play proved to be even more important when Rocklein singled to left field, scoring Pittman with the Owls’ first run of the game. Freshman second baseman Brendon Sanger followed by hitting a ground ball between first and second base. Fitzgerald ranged to his right and threw to Bennett at second base for the force play while Jiminez scored an unearned run. Senior rightfielder Corey Keller came through with a double down the left field line as Sanger reached third base.

After the double by Keller, Nowottnick came out of the bullpen to relieve Paul. He pitched out of the jam by getting Meyer to ground out to shortstop.

In the bottom of the ninth, Nowottnick nailed down the 7-2 win by striking out the side.

“Getting the big lead in the sixth inning helped me a lot,” said Volpe. “I concentrated on keeping the ball down and I was able to throw my curve ball for strikes. I knew it was a big game but I just tried to treat it like any other game and not get too excited. When we got the lead, I just tried to pitch to contact and get through the innings.”

Volpe, who became only the third pitcher in Towson baseball history, to win at least 10 games in a season, pitched seven innings and allowed one unearned run on four hits. He walked two batters and had four strikeouts. Volpe allowed only one hit after the third inning and retired 14 of the last 17 batters he faced.

The CAA champion Tigers outhit the Sun Belt Conference champion Owls by an 11-6 margin as all nine Tigers in the starting lineup had at least one base hit. Sophomore centerfielder Richie Blosser and Wertz each had two hits. Wertz was two-for-five with two runs scored while Parker had three RBI’s.

With the win, the Tigers reached the 30-win level for the seventh time in school history. The Tigers have now won five games in a row and seven of their last eight games.

TIGER TALES:  The Tigers faced Florida Atlantic with regular centerfielder Brandon Gonnella … Gonnella was sidelined with an injury but Coach Gottlieb hopes he will be available for the Tigers’ game against either North Carolina or Canisius … When Volpe was charged with an unearned run in the eighth inning against Florida Atlantic, it was the first run he allowed in 11 innings … While improving his record to 10-3, Volpe became the first Tiger pitcher to throw more than 100 innings in a season … He has started a school record 16 games and has thrown a school record 102.2 innings this season.

With the victory, the Tigers improved to 3-4 all-time in NCAA Tournament games … By beating 23^rd-ranked Owls, Towson is now 3-5 against nationally-ranked teams this season … Towson went 0-3 against No. 30 Pittsburgh before dropping a 7-1 decision to No. 5 Virginia … The Tigers won two of three games against No. 21 North Carolina Wilmington before beating the No. 23 Owls.

TOWSON, Md. – The 2013 Colonial Athletic Association champion Towson University baseball team, which swept through the CAA Tournament in four straight games, will open play in the NCAA Tournament at the Chapel Hill Regional this weekend.

Now 29-28 on the season, the Tigers are seeded third in the regional that will be hosted by North Carolina, the number one-ranked team in the nation. The Tar Heels, who won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship, have a 52-8 record and are the top seed. Joining Towson and UNC in the tournament field are Florida Atlantic (39-20) and Canisius (42-15).

Towson and Florida Atlantic will open regional play with a game on Friday at 12 noon at Boshamer Stadium. At 6:00 p.m.,

North Carolina faces Canisius.

Florida Atlantic earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament by winning its first Sun Belt Conference championship.

Towson and Florida Atlantic have never played a college baseball game. The Tigers have played Canisius twice and both games. In 2004, Towson swept a doubleheader from Canisius at Schuerholz Park by scores of 11-5 and 7-0. The Tigers have played 27 games against North Carolina through the years. The Tar Heels have a 25-2 all-time record against Towson. The teams last played in 2007. On March 21, 2000, the Tigers edged the Tar Heels, 9-8. One year to the day, on March 21, 2001, Towson beat North Carolina, 4-0.

Towson was one of three CAA teams to earn bids to the NCAA Tournament. William & Mary (37-22), the CAA runner-up, is the number three seed at the Raleigh regional while North Carolina Wilmington (37-21), the 2012 CAA champion and the top seed for the CAA Tournament, is the number two seed at the Charlottesville regional.

During the 2013, the Tigers had a combined record of 7-2 against William & Mary and UNCW. The Tigers beat the Tribe two out of three times in the regular season and handed William & Mary two losses in the CAA Tournament. Towson won two of three regular season games against UNCW and then beat the Seahawks, 13-11, in the CAA Tournament.

This is the third NCAA Tournament appearance for Coach Mike Gottlieb and the Tigers. In 1988 and 1991, Towson went to the NCAA regional tournaments. In 1988, Towson lost to Miami of Fla. and South Carolina with a win over Virginia Commonwealth. In 1991, the Tigers played in a regional at Maine and lost to Mississippi State and Maine while beating Princeton.