The Irish take on Western Michigan on Wednesday afternoon.
AT NOTRE DAME: One-year monogram winner that enters sophomore season with a 2.38 career ERA and 1-2 record with five saves, plus 25 strikeouts, seven walks and 27 hits allowed (.218 opponent batting average) in 23 appearances (no starts) and 34.0 innings (two hit batters, one wild pitch, three home runs allowed) ... in BIG EAST games, owns a 1.64 career ERA and 1-1 record with five saves, plus 14 strikeouts, two walks and 16 hits allowed (.203 opponent batting average) in 13 appearances (no starts) and 22.0 innings (one hit batter, no home runs allowed) ... averaging 6.62 strikeouts and 1.85 walks per 9.0 innings pitched as well as a 3.6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his career ... pitched exclusively out of the Irish bullpen as a freshman ... candidate for weekend starter this season ... polished and owned a moxie on the mound that made him ready to pitch at the college level right away ... great movement on all of his pitches, especially his fastball, and throws a ton of strikes ... extremely athletic pitcher who can field his position ... rated as the No. 33 MLB prospect in the BIG EAST by Perfect Game ... carried a 3.022 cumulative GPA into the `12 spring semester.
FRESHMAN SEASON (2011): Made 23 appearances out of the Irish bullpen ... served as top setup man and co-closer ... his 23 appearances were tied for the most by any pitcher on the staff ... went 1-2 with a 2.38 earned run average and five saves in 34.0 innings of work ... allowed 27 hits as his opponents batted .218 ... struck out 25 and walked seven ... his five saves were tied for the fourth-most in BIG EAST games only ... ranked first in saves, tied for first in relief appearances, second in games finished and sixth in strikeouts ... averaged 6.62 strikeouts and 1.85 walks per nine innings ... posted a 3.6 strikeout-to-walk ratio ... Notre Dame posted a 9-13-1 record when Fitzgerald pitched ... did not allow a run in 14 of 23 appearances ... did not issue a walk in 18 of 23 appearances ... went 5-for-5 in save opportunities ... inherited 18 base runners upon entering the game and only allowed three to score ... retired 19 of the 23 first batters he faced ... went 1-1 with a 1.64 ERA in 13 appearances (all in relief) in BIG EAST action ... allowed 16 hits in 22.0 innings of work as his opponents batted .203 ... struck out 14 and walked two ... went 0-1 with a 3.75 ERA in 10 appearances (all in relief) in non-conference action ... allowed 11 hits in 12.0 innings of work as his opponents batted .244 ... struck out 11 and walked five ... went 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA in two appearances (all in relief) in the month of February ... allowed no hits in 1.0 inning of work as his opponents batted .000 ... struck out one and walked two ... went 0-0 with a 2.57 ERA in four appearances (all in relief) in the month of Mar. ... allowed six hits in 7.0 innings of work as his opponents batted .231 ... struck out nine and walked none ... went 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA in nine appearances (all in relief) in the month of Apr. ... allowed 11 hits in 14.0 innings of work as his opponents batted .208 ... struck out six and walked one ... went 0-2 with a 3.00 ERA in eight appearances (all in relief) in the month of May ... allowed 10 hits in 12.0 innings of work as his opponents batted .238 ... struck out nine and walked four ... went 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA in nine appearances (all in relief) in home games ... allowed 11 hits in 16.0 innings of work as his opponents batted .196 ... struck out 13 and walked one ... went 0-2 with a 2.52 ERA in eight appearances (all in relief) in away games ... allowed 13 hits in 14.1 innings of work as his opponents batted .232 ... struck out 11 and walked two ... went 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA in nine appearances (all in relief) in Irish victories ... allowed seven hits in 15.0 innings of work as his opponents batted .137 ... struck out seven and walked two ... went 1-1 with a 2.66 ERA in 18 appearances (all in relief) in day games ... allowed 19 hits in 23.2 innings of work as his opponents batted .218 ... struck out 15 and walked six ... went 0-1 with a 1.74 ERA in five appearances (all in relief) in night games ... allowed eight hits in 10.1 innings of work as his opponents batted .216 ... struck out 10 and walked one ... left-handed hitters batted .054 (2-for-37) ... right-handed hitters batted .287 (25-for-87) ... batters hit .185 (10-for-54) with runners on base ... batters hit .243 (17-for-70) with the bases empty ... batters hit .095 (4-for-42) with two outs (over 100 points lower than the Irish as a team) ... tossed a season-high 4.2 innings and struck out five in the 13-inning loss at Rutgers on May 8 ... allowed two hits, one unearned run and struck out six in 4.0 innings of relief against UIC on Mar. 28 ... picked up the victory with 3.0 scoreless innings of relief versus Seton Hall on Apr. 30 ... registered six consecutive appearances without allowing an earned run against Iowa on Mar. 18 (1.0 IP), Gonzaga on Mar. 20 (0.1 IP), UIC on Mar. 28 (4.0 IP), Pittsburgh on Apr. 2 (0.2 IP), Pittsburgh on Apr. 3 (3.0 IP) and Western Michigan on Apr. 6 (1.2 IP) ... recorded four straight scoreless outings against West Virginia on Apr. 15 (0.1 IP), West Virginia on Apr. 17 (1.0 IP), St. John's (1.1 IP) and Seton Hall (3.0 IP).
PREP & PERSONAL:Lettered four years in baseball for head coach John Thomas ... posted a career ERA of 1.69 with a record of 28-9 ... registered a career 1.02 WHIP and 4.6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 219.1 innings pitched ... owned a career batting average of .390 with over 100 hits and 100 RBI ... first player in Virginia AAA Northern Region history to have over 20 career wins and both 100 hits and 100 RBI ... three-time Most Valuable Player ... three-time first team all-district ... two-time Liberty District Pitcher of the Year ... two-time Washington Post first team all-metropolitan ... selected as McLean High School's Outstanding Male Athlete of the Year following his junior year ... honored with the Craig J. Fielder Award following his senior year, the school's most prestigious athletic honor ... owns the school record for career victories ... as a junior, was named first team all-district, Liberty District Pitcher of the Year, first team all-region, honorable mention all-state and first team all-metropolitan ... member of the National Honor Society ... went 8-1 with a 1.46 ERA in 57.2 innings on the mound ... struck out 69 and walked 10 in 10 appearances and nine starts, including eight complete games ... at the plate, batted .470 with 10 doubles, 23 RBI, 23 runs scored and eight stolen bases ... as a sophomore, was named first team all-district and second team all-region ... went 6-3 with a 2.20 ERA in 60.1 innings on the mound ... struck out 62 and walked 17 in 13 appearances, including four complete games and two saves ... at the plate, hit .423 with four doubles, two triples, 23 RBI, 17 runs scored and 14 stolen bases ... as a freshman, was named second team all-district ... went 4-3 with a 1.82 ERA in 42.1 innings on the mound ... struck out 27 and walked nine in nine appearances, including a pair of complete games ... at the plate, hit .364 with five RBI, 10 runs scored and four stolen bases ... born December 24, 1991 in Arlington, Va. ... son of Joe and Michelle Fitzgerald ... has a brother, Eric, and sister, Mia ... full name is Sean Ryan Fitzgerald ... enrolled in Mendoza College of Business but major remains undecided.
