Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer
Photo by DSPics.com
Photo by DSPics.com
Posted: Feb 11, 2020

2020 Baseball Preview: Pitchers

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University baseball team opens its 2020 season on Friday February 14 in Wilmington, North Carolina. BryantBulldogs.com previews the 2020 team leading up to Opening Day.

Position: Pitchers
Returners: Tyler Mattison (Fort Ann, N.Y.), Will Treuel (Wolfeboro, N.H.), Tyler Schoff (Lee Center, N.Y.), Matthew Stansky (Douglas, Mass.), Jack Ipsen (Eatontown, N.J.), Mason Palmieri (Lincoln, R.I.), Jack Owens (Scituate, R.I.), Nash Eppard (Essex, Conn.), Jackson Harrigan (Acton, Mass.), John MacDonald (Stamford, Conn.), Mike Randazzo (Fairfield, Conn.), Jack Halbruner (Seaville, N.J.), Luke Garofalo (Middlefield, Conn.), Vito Morgese (Warwick, N.Y.)
Newcomers: Liam LeVangie (East Bridgewater, Mass.), Nick McDonald (Paxton, Mass.), Parker Hansen (Granby, Conn.)

The Breakdown

Bryant will have to replace some key pieces of its pitching staff this spring. Gone to graduation is the program's all-time wins leader Steve Theetge and gone to the draft is one of the regions premier relievers in Chris Wright.

The Bulldogs, however, return one of its deepest pitching staffs in recent memory, with nearly 60 percent of last year's innings back. Headlining the group will be Friday night starter Tyler Mattison. One of the nation's top 150 pro prospects according to D1Baseball.com, Mattison tied for the team lead with nine wins and posted a 3.47 ERA in 80.1 innings. He was his best down the stretch, allowing three runs or less in each of his final 10 starts, including a career-high nine-strikeout performance in the Northeast Conference Tournament. Mattison is 14-3 in his career, having struck out 120 batters in 133.1 innings.

Schoff and Treuel will both see increased roles this spring as both are expected to move into the weekend rotation. Last spring, Schoff made 17 appearances, seven starts, and posted a 5.84 ERA in 37.0 innings. His seven starts came during the midweek, including a career-high six-inning performance against Quinnipiac.

Treuel will make the jump from the bullpen to the starting rotation. He finished second on the team with 22 relief appearances in 2019, going 1-1 with a save and a 9.13 ERA in 22.2 innings. Treuel has enjoyed a strong preseason but has thrown multiple innings in eight of his 27 career outings.

The Black and Gold will also welcome back a group of veteran relievers that is headlined by Matt Stansky, Jack Ipsen and Jack Owens. Stansky tied the DI program record with his miniscule 1.11 ERA in 2019, allowing just three earned runs over 24.1 innings. He was ranked one of the top New England-born pitching prospects by the New England Baseball Journal.

Ipsen leads all active players with 52 career relief appearances. He made a career-high 21 appearances last spring, posting a career-low 4.15 ERA in 21.2 innings. Ipsen struck out 19 and walked just eight. Owens enjoyed a breakout season in 2019, allowing just 11 hits while striking out 22 in 18.0 innings.

Also back for the Bulldogs is grad student Mason Palmieri, redshirt junior Nash Eppard, sophomores Jackson Harrigan, John MacDonald and Mike Randazzo, and redshirt freshman Jack Halbruner and Luke Garofalo. Palmieri will see time as a long reliever this spring and is coming off a season in which he struck out 11 batters in 8.1 innings.

Harrigan and MacDonald both played key roles last year. A walk on, Harrigan worked his way into key situations, including a five-strikeout performance in the NEC Championship game. He finished the year with a 2.08 ERA, 17 strikeouts and just five walks in 17.1 innings. MacDonald posted a 6.03 ERA and went 2-2 in 14 appearances, six starts, as a freshman. He was dominant in his first-career win, going six innings and allowing just two hits against Rhode Island.

Randazzo and Halbruner are currently the only healthy lefties on the roster, with Vito Morgese expected to miss the season with an injury. Randazzo struck out four in two appearances last spring, while Halbruner returns after missing his freshman season with an injury. Garofalo also missed last spring with an injury and has shined during Bryant's preseason workouts. Eppard made eight appearances last spring, striking out seven batters in 6.1 innings.

Bryant's incomers on the mound including Liam LeVangie, Parker Hansen and Nick McDonald. LeVangie enjoyed an outstanding prep career at East Bridgewater and gained valuable experience last summer in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League. Hansen struck out 98 batters in 48.2 innings as a junior and has pitched well during the winter.