Baylor
Central Michigan
BSB Begins Thompson Era Against Central Michigan
2/16/2023 1:00:00 PM | Baseball
Bears return 15 letterwinners, welcome 23 newcomers in 2023
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BAYLOR BEARS (0-0, 0-0 Big 12) Location: Waco, Texas Conference/Affiliation: Big 12 Head Coach: Mitch Thompson (Fort Hays St., 1988) Roster | Stats | Game Notes (PDF) |
BAYLOR (0-0, 0-0) vs CENTRAL MICHIGAN (0-0, 0-0) Feb. 17, 2023 • 3:00 p.m. CT Feb. 18, 2023 • 2:00 p.m. CT Feb. 19, 2023 • 1:00 p.m. CT Waco, Texas • Baylor Ballpark (5,000) LIVE STATS: BaylorStats.com WATCH: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ (Friday Only) Talent: Lincoln Rose (Play-by-Play), Richard Cunningham (Analyst) LISTEN: Learfield / ESPN Central Texas 1660 AM & 92.3 FM (Fri. & Sun.) Talent: Derek Smith, Ryan Boyd LISTEN: Learfield / FOX Sports Central Texas 1330 AM & 93.9 FM (Sat.) Talent: Ryan Boyd, Tyler Thomas Baylor Social Media:    |
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CENTRAL MICHIGAN CHIPPEWAS (0-0, 0-0 MAC) Location: Mount Pleasant, Mich. Conference/Affiliation: Mid-American Head Coach: Jordan Bischel (St. Norbert, 2003) Roster | Stats |
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
For the first time in the eight months since Mitch Thompson was hired as Baylor's head baseball coach, the Bears will face someone other than themselves with Friday's 3 p.m. season opener at Baylor Ballpark versus Central Michigan.
"For a lot of them, this is their first college baseball experience," said Thompson, who won the 2021 JUCO World Series at crosstown McLennan Community College after an 18-year stint as an assistant at Baylor. "We'll have several guys in the lineup that have never had a college at-bat yet."
With 23 first-year players and only eight that have been at Baylor for more than one year, "the whole thing is going to be brand-new," Thompson said.
"We try to simulate some of it as much as we can, but you can't simulate game day, the pregame BP, the whole thole thing is going to be a new experience for so many of them. But it is for Central Michigan, too. They're not a team that returned everybody off of last year's team. So, we're all kind of going through that."
The only returning starter in the field from last year's 26-28 team is junior catcher Harrison Caley, who hit .276 while splitting time behind the plate with sophomore Cortlan Castle (.262). Sophomore first baseman Casen Neumann is the only returning player who hit a home run last year, hitting .292 with two homers, four doubles, 15 RBI and a .431 slugging percentage.
"It's all going to be a work in progress," Thompson said. "I've said all along, roles are going to change. What we stuck out here (Friday) versus a left-handed pitcher is going to be different than what we stick out here two weeks from now, three weeks from now, when they start to solidify their spots or other guys get their opportunities. It's not the starting lineup on the first game of the year that you remember, it's the one at the end of the year."
In addition to the 15 returning players, nine of Baylor's 13 transfers have previous Division I experience: Austin Stracener (Texas A&M), Hunter Teplanszky (TCU), Daniel Altman (Lamar), Cole Posey (Boise State and New Mexico), Will Pendergrass (Houston), Casey Sunseri (Texas State), Cole Tremain (Sacramento State), John Ceccoli (Auburn) and Gabe Craig (A&M).
"This group of guys is amazing," said Stracener, penciled in as a starter at either second base or shortstop. "Being in the locker room with them every day, we have a bunch of team guys. We've been practicing all fall, and I think all of us are just ready to go out there and compete."
While there is limited returning experience among the position players, fifth-year senior right-hander Blake Helton has made 34 appearances with 21 starts. Last year, he battled through injuries to make five starts late in the year, compiling a 2.61 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 20.2 innings.
Helton gets the start in Friday's season opener and will be opposed by veteran left-hander Garrett Navarra, who was 10-3 with a 5.15 ERA last season. The other matchups will have Baylor junior lefty Cam Caley (4-0, 6.68) versus sophomore left-hander Adam Mrakitsch (7-1, 2.37) for Saturday's 2 p.m. game and BU sophomore right-hander (Mason Marriott (2-3, 5.96 five saves) versus junior transfer Keegan Batka in Sunday's 1 p.m. series finale.
"We have a ton of trust in him," junior right-hander Cole Stasio said of Helton, who struck out a career-high seven batters versus TCU in the opening game of last year's Big 12 Championship. "And he's so qualified for the Friday night job. Every time he goes out, you know he's going to compete and he's going to compete hard. That's our guy."
Central Michigan has made three-straight NCAA regionals and won a combined 132 games in the last three full seasons (2019, 2021-22). The Chippewas were 43-19 last season, winning the MAC tournament and going 1-2 in the Gainesville Regional beating Liberty, 3-2, in 12 innings.
"They're not the name that everybody goes, 'Oh yeah, this is an Omaha (College World Series) team,''' Thompson said. "But this is a program that for 40, 50 years has been a really strong, competitive Division I baseball program. And they've got a lot of tradition, a lot of really good coaches. And they're not coming in here to tip-toe around, I'll promise you that. They'll come out to compete."
Friday's game will be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with Lincoln Rose and former Baylor outfielder Richard Cunningham calling the action.
STORYLINES
LEADING OFF
• Baylor Baseball opens its 2023 season with four-straight home games, including a three-game series against Central Michigan this weekend before hosting HCU next Tuesday, Feb. 21, at Baylor Ballpark.
• The Bears are celebrating the 25th season at Baylor Ballpark with a special logo and planned promotions throughout the 2023 campaign.
• Eighteen of the Bears' first 21 games this season are home games. The Bears leave the state of Texas just three times this year, all before April 3 (at Duke, at Oklahoma State, at Kansas).
• Baylor returns just 15 players from its 2022 roster and welcomes 23 newcomers, including 10 true freshmen and 13 transfers.
• Nine of the 13 transfers have previous Division I experience in Austin Stracener, Hunter Teplanszky, Daniel Altman, Cole Posey, Will Pendergrass, Casey Sunseri, Cole Tremain, John Ceccoli and Gabe Craig.
• Of the 15 returners, just one position player starter returns while eight newcomers are expected to round out the starting nine.
• Fifth-year senior RHP Blake Helton was named No. 123 on D1Baseball's list of the top-200 starting pitchers in the nation.
• Fourth-year junior RHP Will Rigney was named one of the top-50 seniors, regardless of position, by Perfect Game.
SERIES HISTORY VS CENTRAL MICHIGAN
• Baylor leads the all-time series over Central Michigan, 5-1, though the two sides have not met since 1989.
• BU and CMU first faced off in 1977, where the Bears won both meetings on a March 17 doubleheader in Waco by tallies of 7-3 and 16-3.
• The Chippewas returned to Waco in 1978 for a midweek matchup in which the Bears claimed a 4-3 decision.
• After an eight-year hiatus, the series resumed in 1986 with Central Michigan earning its lone win over Baylor, 5-2, in a neutral site battle as part of the Citrus Tournament in Edinburg, Texas.
• Then in 1989, the Bears won each of the last two meetings against the Chippewas with 5-4 and 8-2 wins in the renamed Palm Valley Tournament held in Edinburg.
BASEBALL IS BACK - BY THE NUMBERS
• Baylor is 64-36 all-time in season openers, with wins in six of its last nine Opening Days.
• BU is 76-26 all-time in home openers, having won eight of its last 11 games at home to start the year.
• The Bears have won 10 of their last 15 opening weekend series, dating back to 2008.
PROBABLE STARTERS*
• Friday, Feb. 17 • 3:00 p.m. • RHP Blake Helton (0-1, 2.61 ERA) vs. LHP Garrett Navarra (10-3, 5.15 ERA)
• Saturday, Feb. 18 • 2:00 p.m. • LHP Cam Caley (4-0, 6.68 ERA) vs. LHP Adam Mrakitsch (7-1, 2.37 ERA)
• Sunday, Feb. 19 • 1:00 p.m. • RHP Mason Marriott (2-3, 5.96 ERA) vs. RHP Keegan Batka (5-3, 4.50 ERA)**
*Stats from 2022 season | **At Kellogg Community College
BROADCAST INFORMATION
• Friday's game will be available on Big 12 Now on ESPN+. Lincoln Rose will provide the play-by-play, while former Baylor outfielder Richard Cunningham will join the broadcast as the color analyst.
• Fans can also tune in to ESPN Central Texas 1660 AM or 92.3 FM for the Baylor radio broadcast on Friday and Sunday, featuring Derek Smith (play-by-play) and Ryan Boyd (analyst) on the call.
• Boyd will shift over to the play-by-play role for Saturday's game, which will be carried on FOX Sports Central Texas 1330 AM and 93.9 FM. Former Baylor pitcher Tyler Thomas will make his broadcast debut as the color analyst.
2023 AT A GLANCE
• 36 of Baylor's 55 regular-season games in 2023 will be played at home at Baylor Ballpark, including conference series against Kansas State, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia.
• BU will play a combined 21 games against eight NCAA Tournament teams and face off against four conference champions from a year ago.
• 14 30-game winners headline the 2023 slate, including six squads that won 40 or more games last season.
• Notably, 51% of the Bears' 2023 schedule will feature opponents who finished 2022 with a top-75 RPI, including five non-conference foes in Central Michigan, UTSA, Dallas Baptist, Mercer and Grand Canyon.
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