April 27, 2011

Bronx, N.Y. - The Fordham baseball team returns home for a brief stay before hitting the road once again this weekend. Today, the Rams revisit one of the longest Metropolitan baseball rivalries still in play, as the team hosts the Columbia Lions in a doubleheader at Houlihan Park.

The series dates back to 1884, but since 1902, Fordham has a 66-49-2 record against the Lions. However, Columbia has gotten the better of the Rams lately, winning five of the last six meetings.

PROBABLE STARTERS:
Game 1 - Fordham - RHP Brian Thompson (2-0) vs. Columbia - RHP - Zack Tax (1-0) |
Game 2 - Fordham - RHP John Flanagan (1-0) vs. Columbia - LHP - Max Lautmann (0-1) |

SCOUTING COLUMBIA: The Lions are 17-21 on the season with a 7-9 mark in the Ivy League. The team is batting .274 with a 3.80 team ERA.

The Lions are led offensively by Dario Pizzano, while is hitting .364 with 13 doubles, six home runs, and 31 RBI, while Nick Cox is right behind him at .353 with 32 runs scored, 11 doubles, and 16 RBI. Jason Banos is also having a solid campaign, batting .303 with eight doubles, five home runs, 22 RBI.

John Flanagan gets the nod for Fordham in game two today.

On the hill, Columbia will send RHP Zack Tax to the hill in game one and LHP Max Lautmann in game two. Tax is 1-0 with a 4.24 ERA in eight appearances, while Lautmann is 0-1 with a 4.41 ERA in six appearances, two of which were starts.

WE'RE GOIN' STREAKIN': Ryan David is currently on a 10-game hitting streak, batting .324 (12-37) with six RBI in that stretch... Chris Walker is hitting .333 with seven runs scored and six RBI in his last ten games... Ryan Lee and Stephen McSherry each have six RBI in their last 10 games... Nick Martinez has a seven-game hit streak going, where he's hitting .429 in the stretch with multi-hit games in his last four outings... On the hill, Chris Pike has three saves and a 4-1 record in 12 appearances to go with a 2.55 ERA, 55 strikeouts, and .235 opponent batting average... Rich Anastasi is 4-0 in 16 appearances, posting a 1.52 ERA and 29 strikeouts... Tim Swatek has 22 strikeouts, four saves, and a 2.45 ERA in 25.2 innings of work to open the year... Jonathan Reich has still yet to allow an earned run in 19.2 innings of relief, while posting a 3-0 record... Brian Thompson is 2-0 with a 1.38 ERA in his last four appearances with 10 strikeouts in 13.0 innings pitched.

FORDHAM AMONG THE "TEAMS OF THE WEEK" FOR COLLEGEBASEBALLINSIDER.COM (4/19): CollegeBaseballInsider.com released its "Team of the Week" awards for April 19th with Fordham listed as an Honorable Mention selection. The Rams were 4-0 on the week with a three-game sweep of George Washington and a mid-week win over LIU.

UPCOMING GAMES: Following this doubleheader, the Rams return to the road for a three-game set at Saint Louis (Apr. 29-May 1) and a mid-week game at Manhattan on May 3rd. Fordham will return home on Friday, May 6th to begin a three-game series against the Saint Joseph's Hawks at Houlihan Park.