While the bats have been a hot topic on West End, and deservedly so, one of Vanderbilt Baseball's best returns this season has been on the rubber. Sophomore right-hander Cody Bowker has been dominant in his first two starts with 9.0 IP, 12 strikeouts, four walks, two hits, and zero earned runs.

Bowker's ascension has been a welcome addition to the pitching staff, which has not had a top-end Sunday starter in multiple seasons. While Bowker's numbers are impressive, the way he has been mowing through lineups has been especially noteworthy, given the strength of Vanderbilt's early season schedule.

Bowker is not six and a half feet tall. He's not throwing triple digits. He doesn't need a map to find the plate. Movement and two seams. That's what Cody Bowker does. In an era of baseball with too many throwers and too few pitchers, Bowker's approach of heavy movement, strike-throwing, changing eye levels, and "dipping into the well" on two strikes have been precisely what the doctor ordered.

Here's an inning-by-inning breakdown of Bowker's two starts:

February 16 vs. UC Irvine

First Inning

Bowker wasted little time with the leadoff hitter, sending him back to the dugout with a nasty two-seam paint job on the inside corner for his first strikeout. After giving up a single to right field, Bowker buckled down and secured out number two with a breaking ball that had the hitter flailing at bees as it dove off the outside corner. To secure the third out, Bowker humped up and elevated a four-seamer to strike out the side and get out of the inning.

Second Inning

After the leadoff hitter reached on an error, Bowker once again elevated his four-seamer for his fourth strikeout. Efficient as ever, he got out of the inning following a double-play ground ball.

Third Inning

Bowker wasted little time with a 1-2-3 inning, forcing two weak ground balls and a fly out to right field.

Fourth Inning

How about the old number one? The leadoff hitter had no chance as Bowker blew a four-seamer by him up in the zone for strikeout number 5. After giving up a single to the right, Bowker returned to the heater again for his sixth strikeout, causing the batter to whiff so severely that the bat flew into foul territory on the first base side. After walking the next hitter, Bowker finished the day by inducing a line out to short.

Start Number One: 4 IP, two hits, 6 ks, and one walk on 68 pitches—an excellent debut.

February 23 vs Saint Mary's

First inning

Bowker's second start began on a rocky note with a walk of the leadoff hitter. Many pitchers melt in these situations and waste a lot of pitches. With ice in his veins, Bowker buckled down and got three straight outs: the first, a pop out to shallow left. Next, Bowker threw a filthy inside corner 93 mph two-seamer for out number 2, a pitch so nasty that it would make Pedro Martinez raise an eyebrow. With two outs and St. Mary's cleanup hitter at the plate, Bowker dug deep and ripped a 94-mile-per-hour four-seam fastball by him upstairs for out number three.

Second Inning

Bowker was surgical in his second inning, retiring the side 1-2-3 with a pop-up to left field, another two-seam paint job on the inside corner for his third strikeout, and a ground out to third base.

Third Inning

In the third, Bowker wasted little time with a 92 mph paint job on the outside corner and sent the leadoff hitter back to the dugout for his fourth strikeout. After walking the second hitter, Bowker returned to his two-seamer again for another paint job K on the inside corner. Bowker forced a weak pop-up to the shortstop for the last out of the inning. Easy come, easy go.

Fourth Inning

Bowker got his second 1-2-3 inning in the fourth, thanks to a Brodie Johnston special: a groundout to third, a popout to third, and another groundout to third.

Fifth Inning

Bowker overcame adversity to preserve his no-hitter in his final work-frame. After hitting the leadoff batter and walking the second hitter, Bowker forced a pop out to left field. His sixth strikeout came on a nasty cutter for our number two. Bowker induced a weak ground ball to second base to complete his day.

Start Number Two: 5 IP, zero hits, six strikeouts, three walks, 79 pitches.

With his feel for the strike zone, ability to force ground balls, and his combination of movement and timely two-strike velocity, Bowker has given Vanderbilt's pitching staff a weapon on Sundays. Bowker's arrival on West End could not have arrived better in a gut-check year for Vanderbilt Baseball.

His next start comes against UCONN on Sunday. As Hall of Famer Terrell Owens once said, "Get your popcorn ready."