After the Maryland baseball team fell to Indiana on Saturday in the continuation of Friday’s suspended contest, left-hander Tyler Blohm and the Terps adhered to what they call “the 30-minute rule.”
Coach John Szefc and his staff challenge the team to move forward mentally about 30 minutes after each game. The policy was emphasized Saturday because 40 minutes after the Terps’ loss, they played the second game of a doubleheader.
But because Maryland used three relievers in game one, the squad needed Blohm to help it regroup from its earlier struggles. He delivered what Szefc considered his best start this season in Bloomington, Indiana.
“[Blohm] maintained his velocity throughout the entire outing,” Szefc said. “He had his best curveball, we thought. Ahead of hitters a lot more.”
After reviewing the scouting report on Indiana’s lineup with assistant coach Ryan Fecteau, Blohm planned to be aggressive with his fastball. However, he adjusted his strategy given the Terps’ bullpen usage in their game-one loss, instead pitching to contact so he could last deeper into the game.
Blohm retired five of the first six Hoosiers he faced via contact, and despite allowing a solo home run and an RBI single in the third, he maintained the lead the Terps built through the first three innings.
“After the first inning, I really established the fastball,” Blohm said. “That’s the most important pitch to have when you’re starting a game. … I couldn’t be as picky as I wanted to around the plate. I just pitched to contact and let the defense do its job behind me.”
While Blohm primarily used his fastball the first time through the order, he turned to his off-speed pitches the second time. The Hoosiers adjusted to the change in the third and fourth innings, so Blohm returned to his fastball during his final time through the lineup, keeping Indiana off balance.
Blohm retired the side in order in the fifth and sixth before departing with one out in the seventh. Over 6 ⅓ innings, he allowed two runs and two walks with five strikeouts. The display pushed his season ERA to 2.53, the third-best figure on Maryland’s staff among pitchers who have logged more than an inning.
“Physically, the stuff is better and he’s more consistent,” Szefc said. “He’s always trying to re-up himself from how it was the time before. He’s a perfectionist. That’s how you want your guys to be.”
Since making his first Saturday start on April 15 against Penn State, Blohm hasn’t pitched fewer than five innings. His ERA ranks 89th in the country, and his pitch-to-contact strategy has proven beneficial, allowing him to deliver another quality start in Maryland’s lone win of the three game series at Indiana.
“Just establishing the fastball early and having confidence,” Blohm said. “When I have good command of my fastball, that’s when I’m at my best because I can get guys to roll over to weak contact. If my fastball is working, that’s usually when I can tell if I’m going to have a successful start.”
