May 18, 2011
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By John Denton
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - All former starting pitchers earlier in their baseball careers, UCF's Joe Rogers, Nick Cicio and Johnny Sedlock have undergone major mentality makeovers now that they pitch primarily in relief for the Knights.
And to pinpoint a key reason why the Knights - 34-19 overall and winners of five-straight games heading into the regular season-closing home series against Marshall - are playing their best baseball, it's been the impressive work of the three lefties out of the bullpen.
Sedlock, who is described as ``a strike machine'' by manager Terry Rooney, realized early on that he could no longer ease into games because his role as a reliever now requires him to come in with runners on base in tense moments.
Cicio, the crafty lefty who survives on guile, location and a sneaky changeup, had to get used to sitting around for six innings in the bullpen while also staying sharp and ready to enter a game on a moment's notice.
Rogers was a dominant, front-line starter much of his high school and travel ball days, but was moved to the closer role for the Knights not long after Rooney got a first look at his oozing confidence, fearlessness and ability to take over games with his blazing fastball.
Put them all together and UCF has come up with a talented trio that has helped UCF finish games better than it has at any point this season. All three were major factors in UCF's recent sweep of UAB with each pitcher closing out the Knights' three victories. And again on Tuesday night, Cicio and Rogers were on the mound as the Knights shut down Stetson and racked up another victory against a nationally-ranked team.
``We talk about winning the last three innings all of the time, and I'd say 95 percent of the games that we've lost early in the year is because we've struggled in seven, eight and nine,'' Rooney said. ``But a big part of the reason for our success lately is we've been pitching well late in games now, and those three guys are a big part of it.''
UCF's improved bullpen work has allowed the Knights to secure a spot in next week's Conference USA Championship presented by Trustmark and have put them in a favorable position for a berth into the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004. UCF swept two games from Florida and Stetson, beat Rice twice and whipped Florida State and Alabama once apiece.
Now, the Knights are looking at the Thursday-Saturday series against Marshall as a way to keep their momentum rolling before postseason play begins next week. And they are hoping to get a little payback along the way too, Rogers said.
``We made a plan a couple of weeks ago where we had to take two of three or sweep to end up above .500 in the conference and that's something that we really want to do because I've never done it here and a lot of my teammates haven't done it either,'' Rogers said. ``The Marshall series is a huge one for us. They swept us last year at their place, so there's a little bit of bad blood there. We want to even the score.''
UCF's lefty-heavy bullpen has done a good job of keeping the score even or holding onto leads of late. Rogers threw 2.1 innings of relief in UCF's first win at UAB, keeping the Knights in position to rally for two ninth-inning runs of a 5-3 victory. Then the next day, Cicio threw 3.2 innings of scoreless relief and UCF exploded for nine runs in the 10th inning for another victory. Then, the Knights closed out the three-game sweep with Sedlock throwing two scoreless innings of an 18-6 rout.
``We've grown close in the last two years, the three of us in the bullpen,'' said Sedlock, a junior from Avon Park who has a 2.28 ERA and has walked just one batter in 23.2 innings this season. ``Me and Cicio have similar roles and we just try to get the ball to Joe. We work together and try to get the job done and close out those last three innings. We have a great offense and they're going to put up runs, so it's important for us to do well in those last three innings so that we can make a comeback, hold a close lead or put somebody away.''
What Rooney likes most about his bullpen is the diversity there and the flexibility. All three pitchers are statistically better against right-handed batters as opposed to left-handed hitters. Rogers is the power arm who can get strikeouts in tough spots. Sedlock pounds the strike zone, while Cicio has limited hitters to a .236 average this season while also having four saves.
``Early in the year, I was looking for a lefty who could get lefties out. The second half of the year, I've been looking for a righty to get righties out. But statistically our lefties are just as good against righties as they are against lefties and that's why Rogers, Cicio and Sedlock are our best guys,'' Rooney said. ``All three have gotten better since last year. Joe had a great (freshman) year, but he's better this year with better command and better pitches. Cicio has flourished in his role. With Sedlock, we've messed around with his armslot and he's throwing some sidearm and some over the top, but he's pitched well.''
Rogers is the unquestioned star of the group, giving the team confidence with his powerful left arm and his carefree attitude. The Winter Haven native was a Freshman All-American last season and he's followed that up with four wins and eight more saves this season.
Rogers experienced both the highs and lows of being a closer back on April 20 against No. 5 Florida. In a game that UCF once led 8-0, Rogers gave up a grand slam to Florida's Preston Tucker that got the Gators within 8-6.
After yielding another hit, Rogers struck out the next two batters and breezed through the ninth inning for UCF's biggest victory of the season.
``It was tough because I gave up that home run to Preston with the bases loaded and it was kind of a gut check for me. I had to step off the mound and erase what had just happened from my mind,'' he remembered. ``In high school, I probably couldn't have done that. But I broke them tempo, forgot about it and let it all go. I went after them and it worked out for us.''
Rooney loves Sedlock and Cicio's willingness to attack the strike zone and rely on a UCF defense that has not made an error in eight games. Both faced several 3-2 counts against UAB and went at hitters with strikes that forced them to put the ball in play. Sedlock and Cicio know that when pitching in relief as opposed to starting there is often little room for error and neither can afford walks.
``Coach Rooney has told us that a key to the season is us being solid in those last three innings,'' Sedlock said. ``We need to put up zeroes late in games. Myself and Cicio have to be strong between innings five and seven and get the ball to Joe.''
With so much waiting before entering games, UCF's bullpen crew tries to keep things light by dancing to music from the PA between innings and cracking jokes. And teammates are enamored with the curly mustache that Rogers has grown of late during UCF's most recent winning streak. It's all working right now for the Knights, and Rogers isn't about to buck the system.
``The mustache is a part of the team bonding thing that we have. We got in a little winning streak and everybody just kind of grew what they could, and, well, the mustache is all that I've got,'' Rogers said with a chuckle. ``You have to keep (the facial hair) clean, but don't shave until we lose. It's a nice thing we have going on, and we just want to ride this as long as we can.''
John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFAthletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.