Friday, February 28
Minute Maid Park (Houston, Texas)
11 a.m. CT
Baylor
vs
University of Missouri
Baseball Travels to Houston for Shriner's Hospitals for Children College Classic
2/27/2020 9:23:00 PM | Baseball
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Baylor senior first baseman Andy Thomas remembers walking out on the field at Minute Maid Park for the first time three years ago as a wide-eyed freshman.
"It was like, 'Oh my gosh!''' said Thomas, who will return to the Houston Astros' ballpark when the Bears (5-3) play in the Shriner's Hospitals for Children College Classic this weekend. "You get on the field, and your heart's racing. But, this will be the third time for us seniors. It's going to be fun, a lot of good competition, but it does take away the awe factor, for sure."
Beyond playing on the same field as the 2017 World Series champions, the Bears get a little taste of Omaha in facing Missouri (4-4) at 11 a.m. Friday, 11th-ranked LSU (6-3) at 3 p.m. Saturday and No. 6 Arkansas (7-0) at 7 p.m. Sunday. Texas (9-0) and No. 22 Oklahoma (7-2) are also in the field for the 20thannual tournament that pits the Big 12 vs. the SEC.
"I wouldn't be surprised if you see any of these teams in Omaha (for the College World Series)," Baylor coach Steve Rodriguez said. "This is as close as you can get to Omaha without being in Omaha. Just a big-time environment, big-time teams. If you can't get excited to go down there and play, there's something wrong with you.
"Not many people get this opportunity. The fact that we get invited to it and we're able to play in it, that gets me excited for all of our guys to be able to experience that."
Three years ago, when Thomas was a senior, the Bears split games with Ole Miss and LSU before beating Texas A&M, 6-3, on Tucker Cascadden's walk-off grand slam. Returning last year, the Bears dropped games against A&M and Rice before rallying with two runs in the ninth to beat Texas State, 5-4.
"We have to play well, we have to pitch well, we have to execute, and we have to play good defense," Rodriguez said. "To be honest, I think we're going to see a lot of low-scoring games, and it's going to be a matter of execution at the end of the game that's going to determine who wins and who's losing."
After losing two of three in a weekend series against Oral Roberts, Baylor bounced back to knock off UT Rio Grande Valley, 2-0, Tuesday night at Baylor Ballpark. Freshman Will Rigney made his collegiate debut and combined with Jimmy Winston, Ryan Lekich, Daniel Caruso and Luke Boyd on a six-hit shutout.
"Pitchers did a heck of a job," said Thomas, who's hitting .286 with two homers and six RBI. "(The scoreboard) says six hits, but it felt like two or three. We might have had some people on at times, but we did a really good job commanding the zone and the defense did a really good job."
Winston, who sat out the ORU series, bounced back from a rough outing in the season-opening 19-9 loss to Nebraska when he didn't record an out. He threw 2 1/3 shutout innings, giving up three hits and two walks with four strikeouts.
"I don't know if any of them are ready to jump back in there and start for us right now, just because of the buildup that we've got to get to," Rodriguez said of Rigney and Winston.
The scheduled rotation has Paul Dickens (0-0, 6.75 ERA) going Friday against Missouri, freshman left-hander Evan Godwin (1-0, 4.15) versus LSU on Saturday and senior right-hander Hayden Kettler (1-1, 4.50) facing Arkansas in Sunday's primetime finale.
"It's something that we're going to talk about, but as of right now I think (the rotation) is going to stay the same."
Missouri is coming off a pair of midweek losses after winning two of three at the Kleberg Bank College Classic in Corpus Christi. The Tigers lost to Kansas State, 5-1, before coming back to knock off Utah and A&M-Corpus Christi.
Friday starter Ian Bedell is 1-1 with a 5.25 ERA. Belk Brandt leads the Tigers' offense, hitting .480 with two homers and eight RBI.
Baylor freshman first baseman Kyle Nevin, whose dad, Phil, was drafted by the Astros in 1992 with the first overall pick, said "it's always fun to get to play in a big-league park, especially with the good competition we'll be facing. We just have to go, play it as normal and handle our business."
The games this weekend will be streamed by AT&T SportsNet, with Brett Dolan and former Baylor pitcher Pat Combs calling the action.
GAME INFO
Date: Saturday, Feb. 29
Game Time: 3:00 p.m. CT
Site:Houston, Texas/Minute Maid Park
TV:AT&T SportsNet
• Talent: Brett Dolan (pxp), Pat Combs (color)
Radio: FOX Sports Central Texas 93.9fm
• Talent: Hoot Johnigan (pxp), Jacob Zolman (color)
Streamed:MLB.com, Astros Twitter (@Astros), Astros Facebook Live, Astros.com, Astros YouTube, AT&T SportsNet App
Live Stats: BaylorStats.com
Twitter Updates: @BaylorBaseball.com
Series History: 2-9
Streak: Loss 1
First Meeting: April 15, 1960
Last Meeting: March 4, 2017 (Bears lost 4-0 to the Tigers in the Shriner's College Classic)
History: The Bears defeated the Tigers 3-0 on April 15, 1960. In 2003 the Bears defeated LSU, 4-1 in the 2003 Baton Rouge Super Regional Game 1 (Bears dropped the series, 2-1)
PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRI (vs. Mizzou)| SR LHP Paul Dickens (0-0, 6.75 ERA) vs. JR RHP Ian Bedell (1-1, 5.25 ERA)
SAT (vs. LSU)| FR LHP Evan Godwin (1-0, 4.15 ERA) vs. SO RHP Landon Marceaux (1-0, 2.19 ERA)
SUN (vs. ARK)| SR RHP Hayden Kettler (1-1, 4.50 ERA) vs. JR RHP Kole Ramage (1-0, 2.85 ERA)
STORY LINES
• The Bears head to Houston for the Shriner's Hospitals for Children College Classic where they are set to play Missouri on Friday at 11 a.m. CT, LSU on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT and Arkansas at 7 p.m. CT on Sunday. All games will be played at Minute Maid Park.
• The Bears are 1-0 in the Shriner's College Classic after defeating Missouri 4-2 on Friday.
• The Bears are now 17-17 all-time in the Shriner's College Classic and 4-3 in the tournament under head coach Steve Rodriguez, who has been to the tournament three times in his five years in Waco.
• Senior OF Mack Mueller tallied a single-game high two home runs, both solo shots to break the 2-2 deadlock as the Bears defeated the Tigers 4-2. Nick Loftin and Esteban Cardoza Oquendo also each drove in a run. Senior reliever Logan Freeman pitched a career-long 2.1 innings in relief to earn his first career win.
• Baylor has finished its home schedule with a .500 record or better in all 20 seasons at Baylor Ballpark (since 1999) and is 459-205 all-time at the park after starting off the 2020 season 5-3 at home.
• The Bears return all members of its pitching staff from 2019 with the exception of All-American closer Kyle Hill. That includes Friday and Saturday starters Jimmy Winston and Paul Dickens. The Bears also add six talented newcomers to the pitching staff (five freshmen, one junior college transfer), highlighted by RHP Will Rigney, drafted in the 38th round by the San Francisco Giants in 2019 and LHP Evan Godwin.
Baylor Bear Insider
Baylor senior first baseman Andy Thomas remembers walking out on the field at Minute Maid Park for the first time three years ago as a wide-eyed freshman.
"It was like, 'Oh my gosh!''' said Thomas, who will return to the Houston Astros' ballpark when the Bears (5-3) play in the Shriner's Hospitals for Children College Classic this weekend. "You get on the field, and your heart's racing. But, this will be the third time for us seniors. It's going to be fun, a lot of good competition, but it does take away the awe factor, for sure."
Beyond playing on the same field as the 2017 World Series champions, the Bears get a little taste of Omaha in facing Missouri (4-4) at 11 a.m. Friday, 11th-ranked LSU (6-3) at 3 p.m. Saturday and No. 6 Arkansas (7-0) at 7 p.m. Sunday. Texas (9-0) and No. 22 Oklahoma (7-2) are also in the field for the 20thannual tournament that pits the Big 12 vs. the SEC.
"I wouldn't be surprised if you see any of these teams in Omaha (for the College World Series)," Baylor coach Steve Rodriguez said. "This is as close as you can get to Omaha without being in Omaha. Just a big-time environment, big-time teams. If you can't get excited to go down there and play, there's something wrong with you.
"Not many people get this opportunity. The fact that we get invited to it and we're able to play in it, that gets me excited for all of our guys to be able to experience that."
Three years ago, when Thomas was a senior, the Bears split games with Ole Miss and LSU before beating Texas A&M, 6-3, on Tucker Cascadden's walk-off grand slam. Returning last year, the Bears dropped games against A&M and Rice before rallying with two runs in the ninth to beat Texas State, 5-4.
"We have to play well, we have to pitch well, we have to execute, and we have to play good defense," Rodriguez said. "To be honest, I think we're going to see a lot of low-scoring games, and it's going to be a matter of execution at the end of the game that's going to determine who wins and who's losing."
After losing two of three in a weekend series against Oral Roberts, Baylor bounced back to knock off UT Rio Grande Valley, 2-0, Tuesday night at Baylor Ballpark. Freshman Will Rigney made his collegiate debut and combined with Jimmy Winston, Ryan Lekich, Daniel Caruso and Luke Boyd on a six-hit shutout.
"Pitchers did a heck of a job," said Thomas, who's hitting .286 with two homers and six RBI. "(The scoreboard) says six hits, but it felt like two or three. We might have had some people on at times, but we did a really good job commanding the zone and the defense did a really good job."
Winston, who sat out the ORU series, bounced back from a rough outing in the season-opening 19-9 loss to Nebraska when he didn't record an out. He threw 2 1/3 shutout innings, giving up three hits and two walks with four strikeouts.
"I don't know if any of them are ready to jump back in there and start for us right now, just because of the buildup that we've got to get to," Rodriguez said of Rigney and Winston.
The scheduled rotation has Paul Dickens (0-0, 6.75 ERA) going Friday against Missouri, freshman left-hander Evan Godwin (1-0, 4.15) versus LSU on Saturday and senior right-hander Hayden Kettler (1-1, 4.50) facing Arkansas in Sunday's primetime finale.
"It's something that we're going to talk about, but as of right now I think (the rotation) is going to stay the same."
Missouri is coming off a pair of midweek losses after winning two of three at the Kleberg Bank College Classic in Corpus Christi. The Tigers lost to Kansas State, 5-1, before coming back to knock off Utah and A&M-Corpus Christi.
Friday starter Ian Bedell is 1-1 with a 5.25 ERA. Belk Brandt leads the Tigers' offense, hitting .480 with two homers and eight RBI.
Baylor freshman first baseman Kyle Nevin, whose dad, Phil, was drafted by the Astros in 1992 with the first overall pick, said "it's always fun to get to play in a big-league park, especially with the good competition we'll be facing. We just have to go, play it as normal and handle our business."
The games this weekend will be streamed by AT&T SportsNet, with Brett Dolan and former Baylor pitcher Pat Combs calling the action.
GAME INFO
Date: Saturday, Feb. 29
Game Time: 3:00 p.m. CT
Site:Houston, Texas/Minute Maid Park
TV:AT&T SportsNet
• Talent: Brett Dolan (pxp), Pat Combs (color)
Radio: FOX Sports Central Texas 93.9fm
• Talent: Hoot Johnigan (pxp), Jacob Zolman (color)
Streamed:MLB.com, Astros Twitter (@Astros), Astros Facebook Live, Astros.com, Astros YouTube, AT&T SportsNet App
Live Stats: BaylorStats.com
Twitter Updates: @BaylorBaseball.com
Series History: 2-9
Streak: Loss 1
First Meeting: April 15, 1960
Last Meeting: March 4, 2017 (Bears lost 4-0 to the Tigers in the Shriner's College Classic)
History: The Bears defeated the Tigers 3-0 on April 15, 1960. In 2003 the Bears defeated LSU, 4-1 in the 2003 Baton Rouge Super Regional Game 1 (Bears dropped the series, 2-1)
PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRI (vs. Mizzou)| SR LHP Paul Dickens (0-0, 6.75 ERA) vs. JR RHP Ian Bedell (1-1, 5.25 ERA)
SAT (vs. LSU)| FR LHP Evan Godwin (1-0, 4.15 ERA) vs. SO RHP Landon Marceaux (1-0, 2.19 ERA)
SUN (vs. ARK)| SR RHP Hayden Kettler (1-1, 4.50 ERA) vs. JR RHP Kole Ramage (1-0, 2.85 ERA)
STORY LINES
• The Bears head to Houston for the Shriner's Hospitals for Children College Classic where they are set to play Missouri on Friday at 11 a.m. CT, LSU on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT and Arkansas at 7 p.m. CT on Sunday. All games will be played at Minute Maid Park.
• The Bears are 1-0 in the Shriner's College Classic after defeating Missouri 4-2 on Friday.
• The Bears are now 17-17 all-time in the Shriner's College Classic and 4-3 in the tournament under head coach Steve Rodriguez, who has been to the tournament three times in his five years in Waco.
• Senior OF Mack Mueller tallied a single-game high two home runs, both solo shots to break the 2-2 deadlock as the Bears defeated the Tigers 4-2. Nick Loftin and Esteban Cardoza Oquendo also each drove in a run. Senior reliever Logan Freeman pitched a career-long 2.1 innings in relief to earn his first career win.
• Baylor has finished its home schedule with a .500 record or better in all 20 seasons at Baylor Ballpark (since 1999) and is 459-205 all-time at the park after starting off the 2020 season 5-3 at home.
• The Bears return all members of its pitching staff from 2019 with the exception of All-American closer Kyle Hill. That includes Friday and Saturday starters Jimmy Winston and Paul Dickens. The Bears also add six talented newcomers to the pitching staff (five freshmen, one junior college transfer), highlighted by RHP Will Rigney, drafted in the 38th round by the San Francisco Giants in 2019 and LHP Evan Godwin.
Players Mentioned
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