Erik Bakich is making a change to his starting rotation. However, it isn’t the one many were expecting or hoping for.
Redshirt freshman Dane Moehler will get the start on Friday when the Tigers welcome No. 20 Boston College to town. The right-hander has made seven starts, but he is still on a strict, limited pitch count. Moehler has yet to go more than two-plus innings this season after missing all of 2025 with an elbow injury.
Moehler has an ERA of 4.91 and has struck out 14 in 11 innings of work.
Knowing he’s not going to go deep into a game, it will be intersting to see what the plan behind him is on Friday.
Veteran left-hander Michael Sharman stays in the same role he’s been in all season, going on Saturday, while Aidan Knaak moves to Sunday, a role he excelled in during a stellar freshman campaign in 2024.
Knaak has suffered through an up-and-down junior season. The right-hander did not throw in the fall, and missed one start early in the season due to what Bakich described as an effort to ensure he was as fresh as possible down the stretch.
After going 14-2 across his first two seasons, Knaak is just 2-5 this season, with an ERA of 4.98. In 10 starts, he’s pitched just 47 innings, with 74 strikeouts and 19 walks. He’s also hit nine batters.
With Clemson sitting dead last in the ACC standings (6-15), Bakich is obviously trying to shake things up. The Tigers are on pace to turn in one of the worst conference records in program history and in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time since Bakich’s hiring.
SERIES SETUP
• Who – Boston College (34-14, 16-8 ACC) vs. Clemson (26-19, 6-15 ACC)
• Best Ranking – BOC – No. 13 Perfect Game; CU – NR
• When – Friday (6 p.m.), Saturday (1 p.m.), Sunday (Noon)
• Where – Clemson, S.C. (Doug Kingsmore Stadium)
• Watch – ACC Network Extra (Friday, Sunday), ACC Network (Saturday)
SERIES HISTORY
• Overall Record – Clemson leads 48-11 (2006-24)
• Record at Clemson – Clemson leads 25-5 (2007-24)
STARTING PITCHERS
• Friday – LHP A.J. Colarusso (BOC) vs. RHP Dane Moehler (CU)
• Saturday – LHP Brady Miller (BOC) vs. LHP Michael Sharman (CU)
• Sunday – LHP Tyler Mudd (BOC) vs. RHP Aidan Knaak (CU)
CLEMSON OVERVIEW
• Clemson, which has a 17-7 home record, was swept in three games at Louisville last weekend.
• The Tigers are averaging 6.6 runs per game and hitting .286 with a .463 slugging percentage, .396 on-base percentage and 48 steals.
• The pitching staff has a 4.44 ERA, .234 opponents’ batting average and 2.95 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and Clemson is fielding .964.
BOSTON COLLEGE OVERVIEW
• Boston College, which has a 12-8 road record and is averaging 7.3 runs per game, is led by third-year Head Coach Todd Interdonato.
• The Eagles won at UMass Lowell 7-6 on Tuesday. They are hitting .286 and have a 4.21 ERA and .975 fielding percentage.
• Julio Solier is hitting .356 with 24 steals, Nick Wang has 14 homers and 56 RBIs and Gavin Soares and Kyle Kipp have four saves apiece.
QUICK HITS
• Clemson is 21-0 when holding its opponents to less than five runs.
• Clemson is 24-5 when outhitting its opponents in 2026.
• Clemson’s on-base percentage in ACC games (.383) is 13 points higher than its opponent.
WHIP
• Clemson has been among the league’s best in WHIP (walks and hits divided by innings pitched) in 2026.
• Clemson’s pitching staff has an ACC-best 1.28 WHIP, with 343 hits allowed and 151 walks allowed in 387.0 innings pitched.
• The 1.28 WHIP is down from recent years, including 1.39 in 2025, 1.38 in 2024 and 1.40 in 2023.
• The 1.28 WHIP is Clemson’s best mark (excluding the 2020 season) since 2017, when it had a 1.24 WHIP.
• Hayden Simmerson (0.93) and Michael Sharman (1.06) lead the team in WHIP.
Clemson Athletics contributed to this story