Baylor
Sam Houston
BSB Heads to Sam Houston For Midweek Contest
4/17/2023 7:05:00 PM | Baseball
Bears looking for first road win of 2023
 |
BAYLOR BEARS (13-23, 5-10 Big 12) Location: Waco, Texas Conference/Affiliation: Big 12 Head Coach: Mitch Thompson (Fort Hays St., 1988) Roster | Stats | Game Notes (PDF) |
BAYLOR (13-23, 5-10) at SAM HOUSTON (22-15, 14-4) April 18, 2023 • 6:30 p.m. CT Huntsville, Texas • Don Sanders Stadium (2,500) LIVE STATS: BaylorStats.com WATCH: ESPN+ LISTEN: Learfield / ESPN Central Texas 1660 AM & 92.3 FM Talent: Derek Smith, Max Calderone Baylor Social Media:    |
 |
SAM HOUSTON BEARKATS (22-15, 14-4 WAC) Location: Huntsville, Texas Conference/Affiliation: Western Athletic Head Coach: Jay Sirianni (Nebraska, 2001) Roster | Stats |
STORYLINES
LEADING OFF
• Baylor Baseball hits the road for what amounts to be its longest stretch of consecutive road games this season, with a midweek matchup at Sam Houston before heading to Texas Tech for a three-game weekend series.
• The Bears went 1-3 in four very close ballgames last week, having only been outscored 33-30 by No. 21 DBU and No. 12 Texas.
• Last Tuesday night, the Bears loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the ninth against DBU's potential All-American closer, who had struck out 31 of the 37 outs he had recorded entering the game. Junior OF Hunter Simmons' 105-mph line drive was caught by a leaping center fielder as BU dropped a 6-5 contest.
• On Friday, Simmons and junior RHP/OF Cole Tremain hit three home runs in the last two innings to lead a furious comeback that ultimately came up short. BU scored six runs in the bottom of the ninth, but left the tying run in the on-deck circle against UT to fall 11-9.
• BU's lone win on the week came in exhilarating fashion, as the Bears scored five runs in the bottom of the ninth on Saturday to come from behind and upset the Longhorns, 10-9.
• Finally, on Sunday, Texas took the finale by a final of 7-6 in a very competitive, back-and-forth affair.
• Over the last nine games, the Bears are 4-5; all five of those losses have come within a three-run margin.
• Baylor is 12-5 this season when scoring six or more runs and 5-0 when scoring 10 or more runs.
• BU is also 9-1 this year when leading the ballgame after six innings and 9-3 when out-hitting its opponent.
• Freshman INF Kolby Branch continues to produce offensively at a high rate, ranking sixth in the Big 12 with 50 hits, tied for third with 14 doubles, and 10th in the league with a .350 batting average.
• Sophomore INF Hunter Teplanszky leads the squad with a season-high 24-game on-base streak, and also boasts a 12-game hitting streak. He's slashing .354/.440/.549 over those 24 games.
• Junior RHP Will Rigney struck out a career-high nine in five innings against Texas on Sunday.
PITCHERS COMING UP BIG
• Over the last nine games, Baylor pitchers have inherited 32 baserunners and have allowed just four of them to score.
• Southpaws Ethan Calder (freshman) and Cam Caley (junior) gave the Bears great length out of the bullpen on Friday and Saturday, respectively, against Texas, going 4.1 innings with nearly identical statlines.
• Junior RHP Hambleton Oliver continues to come up clutch in big situations. He had a pair of saves last week against Oklahoma, then stranded the bases loaded with back-to-back strikeouts on Sunday against UT to keep the Bears within a run.
• Junior RHP Cole Stasio leads the team with 10 scoreless relief outings, including each of his last three appearances. Fellow juniors Brett Garcia and Anderson Needham each have nine scoreless outings, while Gabe Craig has eight.
ADD IT TO THE K-COUNTER
• The Bears have eclipsed double-digit strikeouts on the mound in 18 of their 36 games so far this season.
• BU has punched out at least 13 opposing hitters in 10 games this year.
• Furthermore, Baylor has racked up 15 or more K's in four games this season, including a program record for Big 12 games with 18 at Oklahoma State on March 24.
• Baylor ranks fourth in the Big 12 with 344 strikeouts, though BU's 9.62 strikeouts per nine innings ranks second in the conference.
AGAINST THE BEARKATS
• Baylor leads the all-time series with Sam Houston, 69-48, and won this year's earlier matchup in a thrilling 7-6 affair.
• The Bears scored three runs in their last two offensive innings to go in front, then used an 8-6-2-5 double play in the top of the ninth to prevent SHSU from scoring the go-ahead runs.
KERPLANK!
• Sophomore INF Hunter Teplanszky is on fire at the plate for the Bears, riding a 24-game on-base and 12-game hitting streak entering Tuesday's game against Sam Houston.
• Teplanszky came up big all series long against Texas, with three-straight two-RBI games.
• On Friday, he sparked the late rally with a two-run double down the right field line. Then on Saturday, he delivered the walk-off, two-run single to win it. Finally on Sunday, he hit a two-run double off the center field wall that put the Bears ahead, 5-3.
SHAPING UP TO BE ONE OF THE GREATS
• Through his first 36 career games, freshman INF Kolby Branch's stats compare very favorably to each of BU's last five Freshmen All-Americans:
2023 - Kolby Branch: .350 AVG, 4 HR, 31 RBI 2017 - Shea Langeliers: .273, 6 HR, 21 RBI
2020* - Jared McKenzie: .406 AVG, 0 HR, 5 RBI 2010 - Logan Vick: .323, 6 HR, 16 RBI
2018 - Nick Loftin: .271 AVG, 3 HR, 18 RBI 2010 - Max Muncy: .322, 10 HR, 39 RBI
PROBABLE STARTERS
• Tuesday, April 18 • 6:30 p.m. • RHP Jared Matheson (0-0, 5.09 ERA) vs. LHP Marshall Wales (1-4, 6.85 ERA)
BROADCAST INFORMATION
• Tuesday's game will be streamed on ESPN+.
• Fans can also tune in to the Baylor radio broadcast on ESPN Central Texas 1660 AM/92.3 FM, featuring Derek Smith (play-by-play) and Max Calderone (color analyst) on the call.
To stay up to date on all things Baylor baseball, follow the team on its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorBaseball.
-BaylorBears.com-
