Notes from KSU Series

[utisdabomb12]

Texas won 2 of 3 this weekend against K-State. Couple of thoughts. 

1-Cooper is arguably our best pitcher right now. Texas should not be afraid to use this guy for 3 or 4 innings in relief. Crazy that he's only a Freshman.

2-French has really struggled in the last month. Thinking we need to make Hollingsworth our number 3 starter and move French to the bullpen. 

3-Barrera is really swinging the bat right now. Another Freshman that's playing well. Barrera hit two homers today that were no doubters. 

4-Still think Texas is going to be dangerous come tournament time. It's very difficult to score runs off Peters and Thornhill, so they give us a chance to win every game. Pitching wins come tournament time. 

5-I think people forget how young this Texas team is. 6 of 8 players in the field are underclassmen. Some of our best arms IMO in Hollingsworth, Cooper, Duke and Culbreth are underclassmen. 

6-Schiraldi and French better not even think about going pro. Not even close to ready. There will be money, but they would be well served to come back and develop more. Like I said a while back, I don't think either go pro. 

7-Texas needs to do something about Disch Falk. Texas has hit much better on the road this year. Need to move the fence in a good bit. I honestly want to play on the road, we are a better team. 

8-After watching college baseball all weekend I've come to the conclusion that patience at the plate can win you most games. College pitchers really have a difficult time throwing strikes. In all honesty you can generate offense 3 or 4 innings by being patient and just working walks. 

9-My buddy travels to all the away games. He said Clemens was screwing around in the bullpen throwing to some our hitters. Said he struck out 3 of the 4 guys he pitched too. Don't be surprised if this guy starts next year. 

10-Gurwitz is hitting to deep in the batting order IMO. He's only a Freshman but has been arguably our best hitter for a while. Think he needs to move up. 

11-Like I said at the beginning of the year, Texas only needs 3-5 runs a game. If Texas can get 3 runs a game Thornhill and Peters are going to give us a chance to win. Regular season baseball and postseason baseball are different animals. 

12-Augie and Skip stick with our pitchers entirely too long. I understand letting pitchers work around innings, but sometimes pitchers are off. No reason they should have stuck with French and Cooper as long as they did today. 

13-Texas opens up the Big 12 tournament against Tech. Good matchup for us IMO, but you never know in tournament play and Tech is hot. 

14-The only time our pitching gets in trouble is when we walk batters. Throw strikes. Bullpen struggled this weekend, but have been good the entire year. 

 

[streettopeschel]

Watching today's game was exhausting. After blowing 4-2 last night we did our best to piss away 7-3.

That being said a win is a win. I'm with you about playing on the road. We had three homers today. Have we hit 3 at home all season?

 

[utisdabomb12]

Watching today's game was exhausting. After blowing 4-2 last night we did our best to piss away 7-3.

That being said a win is a win. I'm with you about playing on the road. We had three homers today. Have we hit 3 at home all season?

Bullpen struggled a little bit this weekend, but that won't continue. They've been good all year. Today is a little bit odd too because Augie/Skipp were clearly trying to save the bullpen. I agree though, we need to close games out better. 

 

[Matt Cotcher]

• It hasn't been easy at any point in the 2nd half of the season for the Texas baseball team, and they stayed true to that theme today. With the KSU series tied 1-1, the Horns blew a lead and were forced to play extra innings. After taking a 2-run lead in the T10th, the Horns had to hold on for dear life, finally winning, 10-9 with the tying run on third for KSU.

• Texas scored 25 runs this weekend (12, 4, 9) and did an excellent job of scoring two-out runs (something they did effectively throughout the first half of the season). In fact, on Friday night 7 of 12 runs came with 2 outs, including a 3-run rally in the 3rd and another 3-run rally in the 4th that broke the game open.

• Dillon Peters had to shake off a few weeks of rust, but once he found his rhythm on Friday evening, he cruised. A little late season rest may pay big dividends for Peters and the Horns.

• Wild pitches, passed balls & balks all cost the Longhorns runs this weekend. Going back to the WVU series, those types of miscues are a troubling trend. Considering that the team didn't play a full game for 12 days, those bumbles could be nothing more than a lack of focus. Keep an eye out in OKC.

• Looking back, the Longhorns controlled the first 17 innings of the series. With a 2-run lead in the B9th on Saturday, KSU got to John Curtiss - a rarity this season. It took a 2-run double that hit the chalk line on the LF line to boost the Wildcats to the win. That "luck" really impacted the way KSU played on Sunday.

• Texas allowed both KU and OkStU to have one big half inning in the rubber match of both those series. KSU threatened to make it three times this season, but the Horns were able to limit the damage all afternoon.

• Another good sign for the Horns - Clemens, Gurwitz & Barrera all homered this weekend. If the team gets extra base/slugging production from their freshmen, the entire offense will reap benefits.

• If you're looking for troubling signs, the bullpen struggled this weekend. That's uncharacteristic for this season. French, Peters & Thornhill don't need any extra pressure, so that is a storyline to watch in OKC.

• Speaking of the long ball, Ben Johnson's dinger in the T10th on Sunday was a no-doubt line drive that was smoked over the LF fence.

• Big 12 Championship bracket - The Horns play Tech on Wednesday in the dreaded final game of the day. The game is slated for a 7:30 start and will be televised on FCS, but the last game of the day rarely starts on time, so be prepared.