All-American ace lefty Nathan Kirby went down to injury on April 17, and all hope for UVA baseball was lost. Enter Connor Jones, who is showing the promise that he had when he arrived on Grounds in 2014.
Jones, a sophomore righty, has just one win in his four starts since Kirby went on the shelf with a strained lat muscle, but it’s not for lack of productivity on the mound.
Jones has gone at least seven innings in each of the four starts, all of which ended with Virginia wins. His numbers over that span have been All-American-worthy: a 1.82 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, with 39 strikeouts, 12 walks and 23 hits allowed in 29 and two-thirds innings pitched.
The rundown:
- The 5-2 win over Miami on April 19 saw Jones get a no-decision despite going seven and two-thirds innings, striking out 11 and giving up three runs, two earned, on six hits.
- In an 8-3 win at N.C. State on April 24, Jones got the win, giving up three runs on five hits in seven innings, with 11 strikeouts and three walks.
- His next outing resulted in a 3-1 win over Duke on May 8, in which Jones got a no-decision in a nice effort, giving up a run on five hits in seven innings, striking out eight and walking six.
- Thursday night at North Carolina had Jones going eight innings and a career-high 126 pitches, giving up a run on seven hits, with nine strikeouts and one walk, an intentional walk, in a 2-1 extra-inning UVA win.
– Story by Chris Graham
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