By Andrew Martin The Lantern

April 22, 2008

Columbus, OH (UWIRE) -- Little details make a huge difference in baseball.

Something as minor as a fingernail or the brand of bat used can help determine wins and losses. That was the case this past weekend, as Ohio State lost three of four to Purdue. The series defeat left the Buckeyes (19-14, 8-6 Big Ten) firmly behind the Boilermakers (19-17, 11-4) in fourth place in the Big Ten standings.

Jake Hale, the Buckeyes top starter, had been drafted by two major league baseball teams coming into the season. He had been flawless this season; Friday's loss was his first. Missing his usual pitches, Hale's control was off because of a broken fingernail.

"I have soft skin here (fingertips) and I get blood blisters, so keeping long finger nails keeps the skin from rolling up," Hale said.

"I couldn't throw my changeup anymore after about the fourth inning," said the junior right-hander. In the fifth inning Purdue scored two more runs and Hale's night was nearly done. Hale was charged with the loss Friday night. It was the first time all season Ohio State has lost a series opener.

"I super-glued it back on for the Michigan State game," Hale said. "But it finally broke off in the fourth inning and it was all downhill from there.

"I just didn't feel good, I didn't have my stuff. I was trying to fight through it for the team," Hale said.

Little things like what brand of bat a team uses can make a difference as well. In the first inning Hale gave up a home run to Ryne White.

"One off the handle, out of the park and the other off the wall," Hale said.

Coach Bob Todd was not making excuses, he was full of praise for Purdue's players, but he took issue with their superior equipment.

OSU uses Nike bats. Meanwhile, Purdue uses Louisville Slugger.

"The ball just jumped off their bats. When you take a look at it, there is something to it. They're using Louisville bats and we aren't," Todd said.

Saturday the Buckeyes waited through a two-hour rain delay and lost 8-0. The scheduled second game of the double header was delayed until Sunday. OSU closed the series splitting a Sunday double header. In the first game, freshman Dean Wolosiansky pitched five innings in which he allowed four runs, only two of them earned.

"I got a couple of huge double plays behind me and you can't ask for anything more," Wolosiansky said.

Later in the second game, OSU lost a heartbreaker, when in the ninth inning Purdue took the lead with a three-run homer.

"We didn't do enough during the game to neutralize what happened in the ninth," Todd said.

Justin Miller, the Buckeyes' junior captain and first baseman, continued his hot streak during the series. Miller went 11-of-18 while the Bucks lost four of five games during the week.

"I need to start going one-for-three," he said of his hot bat in the recent losses.

Next up for the baseball team is a doubleheader with Akron Wednesday on "Buck-A-Burger" night.

Andrew Martin can be reached at martin.1633@osu.edu.

(C) 2008 The Lantern via UWIRE