By Denny O'Brien
©2009 Bonesville.net
All Rights Reserved.

It’s too soon to measure the significance of East Carolina’s impressive 4-1 stretch in baseball last week. Too many games against quality opponents still remain.

But if last week was a taste of what will come – and not some flash in the pan – the Pirates could be setting themselves up for their best postseason run since they flirted with Omaha in 2004.

With victories against NCAA Tournament lock Elon and No. 1-ranked North Carolina, and a 2-1 series win over Conference USA rival Southern Miss, ECU greatly improved its postseason seeding potential. Instead of hovering near the three line in some NCAA Regional projections, the Pirates now look like a solid two seed with a chance for better.

Much of that can be attributed to some key performances East Carolina received from its starting pitchers last week. Out of five games, Pirate arms logged four quality starts, two of which were downright dominating.

Only it wasn’t ECU’s top two hurlers who registered shutdown efforts. Staff aces Chris Heston and Seth Maness were good in victories over Southern Miss, but it was Kevin Brandt and Brad Mincey who have suddenly raised the ceiling on the Pirates’ season.

All these unlikely arms did was log 15 1/3 innings and surrender a combined two earned runs during the week. That occurred against No.1 North Carolina (a 4-0 ECU win) and against a Golden Eagles club that plates eight runs per game.

Against the Heels, Brandt logged perhaps the best pitching performance since Ricky Brooks hurled a no-hitter against Memphis in 2005. Brandt, a freshman southpaw from Fuquay-Varina, displayed excellent command with all of his pitches en route to a 10-K night.

Mincey’s effort against Southern Miss, though not quite as dominating, was no less encouraging. After hurling an inning and two-thirds on Friday, he started Saturday night and was nearly unhittable for more than five stanzas.

If Brandt and Mincey can multiply those efforts down the stretch, the Pirates will be dangerous in almost any NCAA Regional and a serious threat to make it to the second week of postseason play. With four quality starters, that would be more front-end pitching depth than ECU had during its record run in 2004.

But if Brandt and Mincey can’t build on their recent starts, the Pirates’ postseason plans could derail early. Because even despite the emergence of Brandt and Mincey, ECU still is a club that lacks elite arms.

That ultimately is the key ingredient missing from the East Carolina staff, and it often is a requirement for making a run at Omaha. Programs with overpowering pitchers who can register outs even when they make mistakes generally are better equipped to navigate the postseason.

Brandt, Mincey, Heston, and Maness have a much smaller margin for error. When you can’t intimidate hitters with velocity and presence, you depend almost solely on your ability to locate each pitch in your repertoire.

Given some recent showings by ECU offensively, that could prove critical as the Pirates jockey to position themselves for seeding and a deep postseason run. ECU hitters have shown a propensity for pounding mediocre pitching, but also have struggled of late against better arms.

The most alarming performances have occurred against North Carolina midweek starter Patrick Johnson. He fanned 19 hitters in two starts and was untouchable for most of the 12-plus innings he hurled against the Pirates.

Southern Miss No. 3 starter Todd McInnis was no less dominating in his two-hit performance Saturday night. Against McInnis, the Pirates were especially impatient, often finding themselves in a hole because they swung at pitches out of the zone.

And neither McInnis nor Johnson is reflective of the caliber of ace the Pirates might face in a regional match-up. That only emphasizes the importance of ECU’s ability to match opponents on the mound.

With three weeks remaining in the regular season, the Pirates’ pitching staff still has plenty to prove. The back end of the rotation and the bullpen must become more consistent for ECU to have a chance to advance in June.

Given the performance of the pitching staff last week, the Pirates at least have taken a huge step in the right direction.