Bears Begin Brief Road Trip at Texas State
3/21/2005 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
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GAME 23 •
No. 10 BAYLOR (15-7)
at
BOBCAT FIELD •
THE SERIES
Overall Record: Baylor leads 33-13
Neutral Site: Never Met
Smith vs.
Last Meeting: TXST 7, at Baylor 4 [
COACHES
BAYLOR: Steve Smith
Alma Mater: Baylor, 1986
Career Record: 387-241-1 (11th season)
Record at Baylor: 387-241-1 (11th season)
Alma Mater:
Career Record: 184-137 (6th season)
Record at
BAYLOR RADIO NETWORK
ESPN/KRZI 1660 AM (
Tom Barfield, play-by-play
Lark Smith, color
INTERNET FEEDS
GameTracker: www.BaylorBears.com
Audio: www.BaylorBears.com
Video: None
BAYLOR NATIONAL RANKINGS
Baseball
Sports Weekly/ESPN/Coaches 11th
NCBWA 12th
Collegiate Baseball 13th
PROJECTED STARTERS
BU - RHP Sean Walker (2-2, 4.50 ERA)
TXST - RHP Scott Moore (3-0, 0.86 ERA)
Baylor begins a four-game road trip Tuesday, traveling south on Interstate 35 to
Baylor (15-7) has won seven straight after sweeping top-ranked
All Baylor baseball games are broadcast live on ESPN/KRZI 1660 AM in
LEADING OFF
BAYLOR CLIMBS IN POLLS FOLLOWING SWEEP OF
On the strength of seven consecutive wins -- all coming against nationally ranked opponents and culminating with a sweep of top-ranked
Cal State Fullerton ascended to the nation's top spot this week after taking two of three from
The Bears are a national-best 10-1 this season against ranked opponents. Baylor has won as many games against ranked opponents this season as any other ranked team has played.
In the other polls, Baylor moved from 19th to No. 11 in the Sports Weekly/ESPN Coaches Poll, from 27th to No. 12 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 35, and from 26th to No. 13 in the Collegiate Baseball Top 30.
QUICK NOTES
• Baylor is 6-0 this season on Sunday.
• At 10-1, Baylor owns the nation's best record against nationally ranked opponents.
• The Bears have won a program-best nine consecutive games against Top 25 teams. The previous program best was a six-game streak in 1999.
• Baylor has won a program-best six consecutive games against teams ranked in the top 10 nationally. The previous program best was five in 1999.
• 21 of Baylor's first 26 games this season are against teams ranked in one of the four major polls at some point this season, including 20 consecutive weekend games after the season-opener against as yet unranked
• In 22 games, Baylor has faced one starting pitcher with a losing record -- UTSA starter Ryan Crew (0-1 at the time when UTSA was 0-10). 16 of the other 20 starters had a record above .500.
• The
• Baylor's sweep of
• It also was Baylor's first sweep of
• Baylor is 24-16 against
• Baylor is 6-16 all-time against the nation's top-ranked team. Four of those wins have come against
• Baylor has won six straight road games for the first time since early in the 2003 season.
• The Bears are 14-2 this season when the starting pitcher goes at least 5.0 innings.
• Baylor is 9-1 this season when scoring first.
• Baylor is 6-2 this season in one-run games after going 7-16 in such contests last season.
• Baylor is 14-2 this season when the starting pitcher lasts at least 5.0 innings.
• Baylor is 7-0 when leading after three innings,
• After going winless win trailing later than the sixth inning last season, the Bears already have won four games in such situations this season.
• Last season, Baylor did not score an eighth-inning run until the 22nd game of the season. Through 22 games this season, the Bears have scored nine eighth-inning runs.
• RHP Mark McCormick has allowed only four runs, two earned, on 14 hits and eight walks with 28 strikeouts over his last 26.0 innings. In that time, he has posted a 0.69 ERA and held opposing batters to a .154 average.
• Sunday was LHP Trey Taylor's 17th consecutive start without allowing more than four earned runs. In that time, he has allowed three or fewer 14 times and two or fewer 12 times. Baylor is 11-3 in
• C/DH Josh Ford has reached safely in 17 consecutive games (a career-long streak) and in 21 of 22 games this season.
• DH/C Zach Dillon has hit safely in seven consecutive games, a career-long streak. Dillon has hit safely in each of his last 12 starts.
• 1B Kyle Reynolds has reached safely in 11 straight games and in 21 of 22 games this season.
• 2B Michael Griffin played in 211th career game Sunday, tying Mike Malinak (1984-87) for 10th all-time at Baylor.
•
•
• LF Reid Brees has reached safely in 10 consecutive games and in 17 of 20 games this season.
• RHP Ryan LaMotta has pitched scoreless ball in 10 of 12 appearances this season.
• Baylor's infield of Reynolds, 2B Michael Griffin, 3B Kevin Russo and SS Paul Witt has a fielding percentage of .982, committing only nine errors in 506 chances. ...
• Baylor's main bullpen trio of LaMotta, RHP Jeff Mandel and RHP Abe Woody have a combined ERA of 2.37 with 37 strikeouts in 37.1 innings and a .191 opponents' batting average.
• Baylor's leadoff batter has reached base in 80 of 199 innings this season (40.2 percent); 45 times that base runner has scored (56.3 percent). The Bears have scored in 66 innings this season; the leadoff batter reached base safely in 45 of those innings (68.2 percent).
• Entering the 2005 season, 2B Michael Griffin is the NCAA active career leader in games played (189), at bats (782) and hits (243). He also is third and one shy of the lead in doubles (50), second and two shy of the lead in RBI (166), and third and four shy of the lead in total bases (405).
• Since the start of the Big 12 in 1997, the Bears have the league's best conference record at 141-83 (.629). Baylor leads all conference schools in both first-team All-Big 12 selections (21) and first-team Academic All-Big 12 selections (47), and the Bears are the only Big 12 Conference program to have ranked in the top 10 nationally at some point during each of the past eight seasons (1998-2005).
BAYLOR STARTER
RHP Sean Walker (1-2, 4.50) earns his fifth start of the 2005 season Friday. In 14.0 innings this season,
Tuesday is the 38th start of
THE
Baylor and
The teams first met
THE
ARSENAL OF OPPOSING ARMS CONTINUES
In fact, the 22 opposing starting pitchers Baylor has faced this season had a combined line of 29-7 with a 2.19 entering their starts against Baylor. However, the Bears have not necessarily left the opposing starter in the best shape. Baylor opposing starting pitchers are 5-11 with 4.15 ERA.
Baylor's opposing starters over the past 10 games have entered the games with combined records of 21-1 (the lone pitcher with a loss was
Additionally, Baylor has faced three of the nation's five returning 12-game winners, doing so in successive weekend series against Oral Roberts (Dennis Bigley),
SCHEDULE AGAIN AMONG NATION'S TOUGHEST
Baylor's 2005 schedule ranked fourth nationally preseason and was listed as the nation's 12th-toughest in the March 15 rankings by BoydsWorld.com. That tough schedule should come as no surprise; Baylor has ranked 13th or better in strength of schedule each of the past six seasons.
Following its sweep of top-ranked
This weekend's series at
The 2005 Bears play 25 games against nine teams ranked in the Baseball America Preseason Top 25. Baylor also plays 36 games against 13 teams that appeared in the 2004 regionals. Baylor ranked 10th nationally in strength of schedule last season. In 2003, Baylor's schedule was deemed the nation's toughest in the preseason and was ranked fifth by season's end.
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 140-83 (.629), the Bears are ahead of Texas Tech (139-87-1; .614) and
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 eight seasons (1998-2005). Baylor joins
Including the 2004 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 (41).
FORD, REYNOLDS ON WALLACE AWARD WATCH LIST
1B Kyle Reynolds and C Josh Ford represent Baylor on the watch list for the Wallace Award, which is presented to the nation's top collegiate player by the College Baseball Foundation. Cal State Fullerton catcher Kurt Suzuki won the initial Brooks Wallace Award last season.
The Wallace Watch will be trimmed to 12 semi-finalists by May 24. The selection committee then will narrow the list to three finalists following the NCAA Super Regionals.
The selection committee for the Wallace Award is comprised of a national panel of coaches, sports information directors, former winners and media. Screening Committee members will evaluate the candidates and will continue their review throughout the entire baseball season. Additional Wallace Watch candidates may be added as the season progresses. Voting for the three finalists and the Wallace Award winner will be conducted by confidential balloting, with totals tabulated by the J.W. Anderson & Associates accounting firm in
WOODY NAMED TO STOPPER WATCH LIST
RHP Abe Woody has been named to the initial watch list for the 2005 National Stopper of the Year Award, sponsored by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association. One of 30 Division I closers from across the nation in the running for the first-year award, Woody joins Texas junior J. Brent Cox as the only Big 12 Conference closers on the list.
A product of Round Rock [
At the end the regular season, the Division I leader in saves and four other relief pitching standouts will be selected as the award's finalists. These finalists will be released June 1, just prior to the beginning of NCAA regional play. From the list of finalists, the NCBWA's All-America Committee will select a winner. The inaugural winner will be announced on June 8, two days prior to the beginning of NCAA Super Regional action.
RHP Mark McCormick is among 42 pitchers named to the initial watch list for the 2005 Clemens Award, presented July 14 to the nation's top collegiate pitcher by the Greater Houston Baseball Association.
McCormick, who is projected to be a first-round draft pick in June's First-Year Player Draft, was 2-4 with a 4.70 ERA in 46.0 innings covering 11 appearances and 10 starts last season. However, he missed six weeks of the season due to a shoulder injury. McCormick was named first-team preseason All-America by Baseball
The list is comprised of all Division I pitchers who were named as pre-season All-Americans by either Baseball America or Collegiate Baseball, in addition to those pitchers who have been honored so far this season as National Pitchers of the Week by the National College Baseball Writers Association. Weekly winners of the writer's award will be added to the list until the start of the first round of voting at the end of April. Additional nominees will be added to the ballot based on notable performances and rankings in the NCAA statistical rankings.
HEAD COACH Steve Smith
Steve Smith begins his second decade as head coach at Baylor in 2005. In his first decade, Smith guided the program to near unprecedented heights, including the most successful six-year run in the program's 100-year history.
Smith has compiled a 387-241-1 (.616) career record, all at Baylor. He holds the best winning percentage of any coach in Baylor baseball history, and he ranks second among the program's 18 head coaches in career victories. Smith has led Baylor to six NCAA Regional appearances, two NCAA Super Regional appearances and the 2000 Big 12 Conference title. He also has coached 12 All-America selections and seven USA Baseball National Team members while at Baylor.
In January 2005, Smith was named head coach of the USA Baseball National Team for the upcoming summer. Smith is just the second Big 12 Conference coach to serve as head coach of the national team. He also previously served as an assistant coach under his former
Smith led the Bears to their first-ever 50-win season in 1999 and a Big 12 championship in 2000, and piloted the team to six straight NCAA appearances from 1998 to 2003. His Bears have the best conference record in the Big 12 since the league began. Through the 2004 season, Smith ranked 47th 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
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 10 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 a league-leading 41 players on the Academic All-Big 12 first team in the past eight seasons.
STREAMING VIDEO AVAILABLE FOR SELECT GAMES
Live streaming video is available for select games during the 2004 season. A total of 24 games will be available online at www.BaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor athletics and a member of the College Sports Online network. Seventeen of the 24 webcasts will be against Big 12 Conference opponents, including the Bears' three-game league sets against Oklahoma, Kansas State, Texas Tech, Texas A&M and Missouri, as well as the home portion of the Texas series.
Fans may purchase the games for $4.95 per game or $9.95 for a three-series. Fans also have the option of purchasing monthly ($6.95) or annual ($49.95) subscriptions which include all BearCasts in that time period. These remaining games will be available in the BearCast package:
April 1, 2 and 3 -
April 5 -
April 8, 9, 10 -
April 29, 30, May 1 -
May 13, 14, 15 -
May 20, 21, 22 -
BAYLOR BASEBALL RADIO NETWORK
Catch every inning of Baylor baseball in 2005 on the flagship station for Baylor athletics, ESPN/KRZI 1660 AM Waco.
Tom Barfield and Lark Smith are in their fourth 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
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
Live streaming audio for all 2005 Baylor baseball games are available on the Internet at www.BaylorBears.com. BU baseball is also a staple of the daily "Baylor SportsBeat" hosted by John Morris and airing weekdays at
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 College Sports Online network, which currently hosts sites for more than 100 universities, including four Big 12 schools.
INSIDE BAYLOR SPORTS TV SHOW
Inside Baylor Sports, a half-hour look at the world of Baylor athletics, airs weekly throughout
UP NEXT ...
Baylor plays its first complete road Big 12 Conference series, traveling to
