Baylor
TCU
Baseball Blanks TCU 11-0 in Seven
3/30/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 30, 2004
WACO, Texas - Michael Griffin and Drew Sutton drove in three runs each, and Jared Theodorakos started Baylor's fourth shutout of the season as the Bears defeated TCU 11-0 in seven innings Tuesday night at Baylor Ballpark.
Baylor (10-17) has won 12 consecutive midweek home games, dating back to the 2003 season opener. TCU falls to 17-10 with its fourth straight loss to the Bears.
The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the fourth when Tyler Bullock laced a two-run double to left-center. The Bears added four runs on five hits and a TCU error in the fifth. Drew Sutton had the big hit in that frame, a two-run double just fair down the line in right.
Baylor stretched its lead with three runs in the sixth, thanks to a Griffin RBI double, a Mike Heldoorn RBI ground out and a Sutton run-scoring single. The Bears brought the game to a close in the bottom of the seventh as Griffin's RBI single up the middle plated two runs and invoked the mercy rule.
Theodorakos (3-0) scattered four hits and a walk with a season-high five strikeouts in 5.0 innings. He has not allowed an earned run in three starts and 13.0 innings this season. Andy Pape surrendered a scratch hit in the sixth, and Cory VanAllen tossed the seventh perfectly with one strikeout.
TCU had but two legitimate chances to scratch the scoreboard, but in both innings the Bears came up with outstanding defensive plays to end the threats.
German Duran led off the fourth with a double down the leftfield line. One out later, Shelby Ford singled into the hole at short; however, a heady Kyle Reynolds gloved the ball on the edge of the grass and threw out Duran at third. Bo Cogbill followed with a single to left-center, putting runners at the corners, but Paul Witt's diving stop on a grounder that appeared destined to sneak through the right side ended the inning.
In the sixth, Chad Huffman doubled down the line in right with two outs and moved to third on a throwing error. Witt came up big again, though, snagging a Shelby Ford liner up the middle.
Witt finished 2-for-3 at the plate with three runs scored, an RBI and a double. Griffin, Reynolds, Sutton and Josh Ford also collected two hits each as the Bears tallied 14 knocks as a team. Every starter had at least one hit.
Baylor travels to Columbia, Mo., this weekend for a three-game Big 12 Conference series against Missouri at Taylor Stadium at Simmons Field. The Bears and the Tigers meet Friday at 6:30 p.m. CST, followed by a 2 p.m. start Saturday and a 1 p.m. first pitch Sunday.
Notes: Baylor holds a 128-98 advantage in the all-time series. This is the third most-played series in Baylor baseball history. ... Michael Griffin's game-ending two-run single was the 200th career hit. His sixth-inning double was the 40th career two-bagger. ... Baylor's four shutouts this season is the most since the 2001 squad had five blankings. ... Reid Brees extended his career-long hitting streak to eight games. Griffin (six games), Ford (five games) and Witt (three games) also extended hitting streaks. Griffin's is a season-long for the junior third baseman. ... Jared Theodorakos registered his fourth consecutive victory.
