Baseball Hosts TCU

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Radio: KRZI-AM (1580/1660)
Internet Audio: Click here.
Internet Video: Click here.
GameTracker:

BAYLOR (9-17)
vs.
TCU (17-9)

6:00 p.m. CST
March 30, 2004
Baylor Ballpark
Waco, Texas

Baylor returns to action Tuesday, hosting TCU at Baylor Ballpark. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. CST. Baylor (9-17) dropped all three games of a weekend series at Oklahoma, losing all three games by one run including Sunday's finale 5-4. The Bears are 4-6 in their last 10 games. TCU (17-9) has won nine of their last 10, including taking two-of-three at Houston over the weekend. The Frogs defeated Houston 18-7 in Sunday's finale. This is the first of two meetings between Baylor and TCU this regular season. The Bears and the Frogs also meet April 27 at Lupton Stadium in Fort Worth. Live streaming video for Tuesday's game is available at www.BaylorBears.com. All Baylor baseball games are carried via radio in Central Texas on KRZI 1660/1580 AM. GameTracker also is available for all home games and most road games at www.BaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor Athletics and a member of the Official College Sports Network.

PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUP

BU     LHP   Jared Theodorakos (2-0, 0.00)TCU    LHP   Ryan Weems (3-0, 7.53)

QUICK NOTES
* Baylor and TCU meet for the 226th time Tuesday. The Bears lead the series 127-98. This is the third most-played series in Baylor baseball history behind only Texas (309 meetings) and Texas A&M (249 meetings).
* The Bears are hitting .332 in their first six Big 12 Conference games with a staff ERA of 3.86.
* With seven hits Sunday at Oklahoma, the Bears were held to under eight hits for the first time in nine contests and for the first tim in Big 12 Conference play this year.
* Baylor is eight games below .500 this season; however, ironically, the Bears have outscored their opponents 122-115.
* Opposing batters are 5-for-43 (.116) with 12 strikeouts and five double plays in first at bats against Baylor relievers. Baylor's bullpen has stranded 37 of 51 inherited runners this season (72.5 percent); last year, the Bears stranded 81 of 150 inherited runners (54.0 percent).
* First batters are 1-for-10 against RHP Abe Woody with three double plays and two strikeouts. Woody has walked the first batter he has faced twice; both times, he recorded an out on the next batter.
* Opposing batters are 1-for-9 in first at bats against RHP Ryan LaMotta, 1-for-8 in first at bats against RHP Zane Carlson, 0-for-7 in first at bats against RHP Andy Pape and 1-for-5 in first at bats against LHP Russell Reichenbach (relief situations only).
* RHP Zane Carlson recorded career strikeout No. 200 in Saturday's game at Oklahoma.
* LF Reid Brees has hit safely in seven straight, the longest active streak for the Bears. He also has reached safely in nine straight and in 10 of the last 11 games.
* DH Josh Ford has reached safely in 11 consecutive games. Currently, Ford is riding a four-game hitting streak.
* 3B Michael Griffin currenlty is riding a season-long five-game hitting streak. Griffin has hit safely in 20 of 26 games this season without consecutive hitless games. He has reached base safely in 23 of 26 games, including each of the last 17 contests. In the other three games, he reached by virtue of an error once and on a fielder's choice once and scored both times.
* RF Mike Pankratz ended his career-long 10-game hitting streak Sunday. It was the longest streak of the season for the Bears. Pankratz has hit safely in 15 of the last 17. He has reached safely in 18 of the last 20 games and in 22 of 26 games this season.
* The Bears have three shutouts this season after three shutouts all of last season and none in 2002.
* After hitting just three home runs in their first 17 games, the Bears have knocked 12 homers in their last nine games.
* Baylor is hitting .312 over the last 10 games with 18 doubles, four triples, 12 home runs, 57 RBI and a .487 team slugging percentage. The Bears have scored 6.1 runs per game in that time.
* The Bears have played 10 errorless game in 26 games this season. Last year, Baylor played 18 errorless games all season. Ironically, the 2004 Bears are 2-8 this season when not committing an error but 2-1 when committing four or more.
* Since the start of the Big 12 in 1997, the Bears have the league's best conference record at 126-75 (.627). Baylor leads all conference schools in both first-team all-Big 12 selections (21) and first-team Academic all-Big 12 selections (35), and the Bears are the only Big 12 Conference program to have ranked in the top 10 nationally during each of the past six seasons (1998-2003).

THE TCU SERIES
Baylor and TCU meet for the 226th time Tuesday; the Bears hold a 127-98 advantage in the all-time series, which dates back to the 1904 season. This is the third-most played series in Baylor Baseball history behind only Texas (309 meetings) and Texas A&M (249 meetings).

THE TCU HORNED FROGS
TCU (17-9) is under the direction of first-year head coach Jim Schlossnagle, who took over the reigns of the Frogs' program last summer after two seasons as head coach at UNLV. Schlossnagle has a career record of 94-56, all coming in the past three years.

TCU Notes: The Horned Frogs have won nine of 10 since dropping a 5-2 decision March 11 against 15th-ranked Arizona at the Dell Diamond College Classic in Round Rock, Texas. TCU took two of three games at Houston over the weekend, winning Friday (1-0), losing Saturday (9-2) and winning Sunday (18-7). ... The Frogs hit .321 as a team with 35 home runs, 56 doubles and 31 stolen bases in 47 attempts. TCU averages 7.5 runs per game. ... 1B Chad Huffman (.455, 7 HR, 25 RBI) leads the team in average, doubles (10), slugging percentage (.762), on base percentage (.556) and runs scored. Huffman also ranks second on the team in home runs and third in RBI. 3B Shelby Ford (.347, 9, 26) leads the Frogs in home runs, while DH Chris Neuman (.301, 4, 30) paces the squad in RBI. Huffman and Ford are both freshmen; Neuman is a first-year transfer from Texas. 2B Roman Moses (.306, 3, 15) is TCU's speed threat with 10 steals in 14 ventures. ... The Frogs tote a 4.89 staff ERA with two complete games (both shutouts), seven saves, 181 strikeouts in 230.0 innings pitched and a .281 opponents' batting average. ... LHP Ryan Weems (3-0, 7.53 ERA) gets Tuesday's start, his sixth in nine appearances this season. Weems has 23 strikeouts against eight walks in 28.2 innings of work with an opponents' batting average of .328. RHP Robbie Findlay (0-0, 7.04) bears closer duties for the Frogs with five saves. While he has a propensity for strikeouts (17 in 15.1 innings), Findlay has been hit this season with a .323 opponents' batting average and 20 hits surrendered. ... TCU fields at a .960 clip with 40 errors and 23 double plays in 26 games.

BEARS LOOK TO EXTEND MIDWEEK HOME STREAK
Entering Tuesday's game, Baylor has won 11 consecutive midweek home games, including three such wins this season. The Bears' last loss at home in a midweek game was a 9-7 loss to Texas State in the 2003 season opener. Baylor is 85-15 (.850) in such games during head coach Steve Smith's tenure. The Bears enjoyed 32 consecutive victories in midweek home games from April 8, 1997 to April 26, 2000. That streak was ended by a 6-1 defeat at the hands Texas Wesleyan in the Bears' final home game of the 2000 season.

BATS WARM WITH ARRIVAL OF SPRING
The Bears are hitting .327 (106-for-324) over their last nine games with 17 doubles, four triples, 12 home runs, a .515 slugging percentage and 6.8 runs per game. In that time, Baylor has averaged 11.8 hits per game, collecting 10 or more hits six times. Baylor managed just three home runs in its first 17 games, but the Bears have hit 12 in the last nine contests with homers in seven of those games and two homers in five of those games. The Bears have seen their team batting average raise from a season-low .228 (March 2) to .276 at present.

BAYLOR SOLVES BIG 12 PITCHING
It appears Baylor's tough pre-conference slate, filled with teams bearing quality pitching staffs, has paid dividends. The Bears are hitting .332 in Big 12 Conference games as opposed to .257 in non-conference contests. Baylor's slugging percentage is nearly 100 points higher against Big 12 pitching. The struggles for Baylor in conference games has been fielding, where in six games the Bears have committed 15 errors. Baylor has committed just 20 errors in 20 non-conference games. The Bears are collared with a .934 fielding percentage in league play.

CARDIAC KIDS
Baylor has played 15 one-run games in its first 26 contests this season; the Bears are 3-12 in such contests. The 12 losses is the most in 10 seasons under the direction of head coach Steve Smith. Five of the Bears' last seven games have been one-run affairs, going 1-4 in those games. Last season, Baylor played 16 one-run games, posting a 9-7 mark in such contests. Baylor has played 153 one-run games during Smith's tenure, going 81-72 in such contests. The 2002 season saw the most one-run games in that time as the Bears went 11-11. Baylor's best record in one-run games during Smith's time at Baylor was his first season, 1995, when the Bears went 12-4. In 2000, Baylor was 10-5 in one-run games, winning each of their last seven.

BEARS OPPONENTS DOING JUST FINE, THANK YOU
Baylor's 9-17 record is quite deceiving, considering the Bears have played one of the nation's toughest schedules. The Bears' first 12 opponents have a combined record of 190-116-3 (.620) this season and three are ranked in this week's Baseball America Top 25 (No. 7 Long Beach State, No. 9 Texas A&M and No. 17 UC Irvine). The records could be even better; as the 12 opponents have played each other 16 times this season. Only one of Baylor's 2004 opponents - Houston (9-17) - has a sub-.500 record. Baylor and Houston have played two of the the nation's five toughest schedules, according to Boyd's World.

SMITH CLAIMS WIN No. 350
The Bears' March 19 victory at ninth-ranked Texas A&M was career win No. 350 for head coach Steve Smith, all coming at Baylor. Now in his 10th season at the helm of the Baylor program, Smith is 352-220-1.

BEARS BEST IN THE BIG 12
Baylor has the best conference record of any team in the Big 12 Conference since the league's start in 1997. At 126-75 (.627), the Bears are ahead of Texas Tech (121-79-1; .604). Included in the first seven-plus seasons for Baylor are one Big 12 championship (2000) and a pair of runner-up finishes (1998, 1999). On top of that, Baylor is the only Big 12 Conference school to have ranked in the top 10 nationally during each of the past six seasons (1998-2003). Baylor joins Oklahoma State as the only schools to have never finished below .500 in Big 12 play. Including the 2003 totals, Baylor leads all conference schools in Big 12 history in both first-team all-Big 12 selections (21) and in first-team Academic all-Big 12 selections (35).

CARLSON EYES NCAA SAVES MARK
With a three-inning save March 12 against Vanderbilt, senior RHP Zane Carlson needs 13 saves to break the NCAA Division I career record. The nation's active career saves leader starting the year, Carlson has 37 during his four-plus seasons at Baylor. Former Southern California closer Jack Krawczyk currently owns the record; he tallied 49 saves from 1995 to 1998. Carlson already owns the Baylor and Big 12 Conference records for career saves. As a freshman in 2000, he established Baylor's single-season saves record with 15, ironically also the school career mark at that time. On top of that, Carlson owns the Cape Cod League career saves record with 24. Carlson currently is tied for sixth in NCAA history and needs one save to move into a fifth-place tie.

2004 SCHEDULE AMONG NATION'S TOUGHEST
Baylor's 2004 schedule ranks as the nation's 10th-toughest, according to the preseason schedule rankings released by BoydsWorld.com. The Bears' 2003 schedule was ranked first in the preseason rankings and was deemed the fifth-toughest by season's end. One component of schedule strength is the strength of one's opponents' schedules. Baylor plays 13 teams ranked the preseason top 30 in the strength of schedule rankings: Arizona (2nd), Cal-Irvine (4th), Texas (5th), Long Beach State (7th), Texas A&M (13th), Houston (14th), Oklahoma (19th), Rice (20th), Texas Tech (22nd), Oklahoma State (23rd), Texas State (25th), Loyola Marymount (26th) and Nebraska (28th).

BAYLOR AMONG ALL-TIME WINNINGEST PROGRAMS
With 1,780 all-time wins in 102 seasons of collegiate baseball, Baylor ranked 39th nationally in total victories at the beginning of the 2004 campaign, according to the NCAA Baseball Records Book. Baylor is sixth in the Big 12, trailing Texas (2nd/2,760); Texas A&M (19th/2,094); Oklahoma State (22nd/2,057); Oklahoma (26th/2,006); and Missouri (36th/1,834). Fordham, which first fielded a team in the 1850s, leads all schools with 3,174 victories in 145 seasons. Baylor also ranks 23rd nationally in total victories through the first four seasons of the 21st century with 163. That ranks third in the Big 12 behind Nebraska (5th/195) and Texas (7th/189).

BAYLOR BALLPARK NO. 3 STADIUM IN AMERICA
Baylor Ballpark was named the No. 3 collegiate baseball park in the country in a nationwide survey of college coaches released by Baseball America in January. In voting by the nation's coaches, Baylor Ballpark placed third, just behind Auburn's Plainsman Park and Arkansas' Baum Stadium. Nebraska's Haymarket Park and LSU's Alex Box Stadium rounded out the top five. College media relations contacts were also asked to vote on their favorite stadiums. Baylor Ballpark finished fourth in that survey, behind Auburn, Mississippi State's Dudy Noble Field and Arkansas. The survey asked coaches and media relations contacts to rank their top 10 parks based on aesthetics, facilities (dugout, locker rooms, extra cages/bullpens, etc.), fan amenities, playing conditions and tradition. Baylor Ballpark also was featured as the January Stadium of the Month in Baseball America's 2004 Great Parks Calendar. The Bears' home was the only collegiate park featured in the calendar.

HEAD COACH Steve Smith
Head coach Steve Smith is in his 10th season as head coach at Baylor; in that time, he has compiled a 352-220-1 record. Smith led the Bears to their first-ever 50 win season in 1999 and a Big 12 Championship in 2000, and has piloted the team to six straight NCAA appearances. His Bears have the best conference record in the Big 12 since the league began and are the only Big 12 team to have appeared in each of the past six NCAA tournaments. Through the 2003 season, Smith ranked 37th nationally among active coaches in winning percentage with a .628 mark, fourth among Big 12 coaches. The 2000 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Smith came to Baylor from Mississippi State, where he was an assistant under Ron Polk for five seasons. Prior to that, he served as a graduate assistant at Texas A&M. A former standout pitcher at Baylor in 1982-1983, Smith led the Southwest Conference with a 1.72 ERA as a junior. He was drafted in the fifth round of the 1983 Major League draft by the San Francisco Giants and played four years of pro ball before moving into the coaching ranks. An accomplished pitching coach, Smith has tutored six pitchers in the last 12 years who were selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft. He also had at least one pitcher named to the all-conference first team for 11 straight years (1992-2002). In Smith's nine seasons as head coach, the Bears have produced four first-round draft picks, 10 all-Americans, six Academic All-Americans, one National Player of the Year, one GTE/CoSIDA Academic all-American of the Year, 25 first-team all-conference performers, nine freshman all-Americans, and three conference players of the year. Baylor has also placed 35 players on the Academic all-Big 12 first team in the past seven seasons, a number that leads the Big 12.

BAYLORBEARS.COM
Baylor's official athletic web site can be found at www.BaylorBears.com. The comprehensive site, which includes releases, photos, biographical sketches and audio broadcasts, is part of the Official College Sports Network. OCSN currently hosts sites for more than 100 universities, including four Big 12 schools.

STREAMING VIDEO AVAILABLE FOR SELECT GAMES
Live streaming video is available for select games during the 2004 season. In all, live streaming video of 26 Baylor games during will be available through an Internet webcast package with New Media Networks. Eighteen of the 26 webcasts will be against Big 12 Conference opponents, including the Bears' series at Oklahoma and at Kansas State, along with home games against Nebraska, Texas and Texas A&M. Fans may purchase the games for $5.95 per game ($154.70 if each of the 26 games were purchased individually), $8.95 for a series ($89.45 for every series and three single games) or $39.95 for the entire season. The video and audio for each game will be provided by the home team. Visit http://BaylorBears.nmnathletics.com for access to streaming video. For a list of selected games, visit www.BaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor Athletics and a member of the Official College Sports Network.

BAYLOR BASEBALL RADIO NETWORK
Catch every inning of Baylor baseball in 2003 on the flagship station for Baylor athletics, News/Talk Radio KRZI 1660/1580-AM. Tom Barfield and Lark Smith are in their second season together as the primary play-by-play and color men for Baylor baseball. Barfield, the operations manager for KRZI/KRZX and KLRK-FM in Waco, is best known as co-host of the afternoon "You Make the Call" call-in show. Barfield saw his first action calling Baylor baseball last season, when he and Smith called the Bears' sweep of Southern California at Dodger Stadium. Smith, whose attachment to Baylor baseball dates back to the days of coach Dutch Schroeder, was Sports Director for the Baylor campus radio station in the late 1970s and served as play-by-play voice for the Bears' 1977 and 1978 College World Series teams. After nearly two decades in broadcasting, Smith now works for the Heart O'Texas Federal Credit Union in Waco. All Baylor Baseball games in 2003 will be available on the internet at www.BaylorBears.com. BU baseball is also a staple of the daily "Baylor SportsBeat" hosted by Morris and airing weekdays at 7:25am and 5:25pm on KRZI 1660/1580-AM.

INSIDE BAYLOR SPORTS TV SHOW
Inside Baylor Sports, a half-hour look at the world of Baylor athletics, airs weekly throughout Central Texas and the region. The program, co-hosted by John Morris and Lori Scott-Fogleman, airs on KCEN-TV Channel 6, Fox Sports Net Southwest and the College Channel (Waco cable channel 18). KCEN carries the show at 10:30 p.m. Sundays, and it airs at 1 p.m. Wednesdays on FSN Southwest.

UP NEXT ...
Baylor travels to Columbia, Mo., this weekend for a three-game series at Missouri. The Bears and the Tigers meet Friday at 6:30 p.m. CST, followed by a 2 p.m. meeting Saturday and Sunday's 1 p.m. finale.

Baseball Hosts TCU

Players Mentioned

Ryan LaMotta

Mike Pankratz

Andy Pape

Footer

Baseball Hosts TCU

Related News

Players Mentioned

Ryan LaMotta

Mike Pankratz

Andy Pape

Related Videos

Promotional Background Photo

Footer