Big 12 Coaches Tab No. 11 Baseball 2nd
1/22/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Jan. 22, 2004
WACO, Texas - No. 11 Baylor baseball was picked second in the Big 12 Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, released Thursday by the league office. The Bears garnered 67 total points, three more than Nebraska and four more than Texas A&M.
2003 Big 12 Conference Tournament winner Texas led all teams with 81 total points and eight of nine first-place votes. Defending regular season Big 12 champion Nebraska received the lone dissenting first-place nod (coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams).
Oklahoma State was picked to finish fifth, followed by Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Kansas, Missouri and Kansas State. This is the second consecutive year in which Texas and Baylor have been selected 1-2, respectively, in the preseason poll.
In the league's eight-year history, five schools have claimed Big 12 titles in baseball: Baylor (2000); Nebraska (2001, 2003); Texas (2002); Texas A&M (1998, 1999); and Texas Tech (1997).
Senior reliever Zane Carlson, junior third baseman Michael Griffin and sophomore starter Mark McCormick, all three preseason All-America selections, lead the Bears in 2004. Griffin earned first-team honors from the NCBWA and Collegiate Baseball and was named to the third team by Baseball America. Carlson earned third-team honors from the NCBWA and Collegiate Baseball, while McCormick was named to the third team by Baseball America.
Baylor, the only Big 12 school to have appeared in each of the past six NCAA Tournament fields, opens its 2004 season Feb. 13, hosting Loyola Marymount at 6 p.m. for the first game of a three-game weekend series at Baylor Ballpark. The Bears play 35 home games this season.
BIG 12 CONFERENCE PRESEASON COACHES' POLLSchool (No. 1 votes) 2003 Record Points1. Texas (9) 50-20 812. BAYLOR 45-23 673. Nebraska (1) 47-18 644. Texas A&M 45-19 635. Oklahoma State 34-24 496. Oklahoma 23-31 377. Texas Tech 30-25 328. Kansas 35-28 279. Missouri 36-22 2110. Kansas State 15-27 9
