Deep, Mature Lineup Leads TCU To Victory In Houston
HOUSTON – The first day of the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic at Minute Maid Park ended with a game between top-ranked Texas Christian and No. 4 Louisiana State. With Preseason All-American righthander Alex Lange starting for the Tigers against Horned Frogs senior righthander Brian Howard, who excelled on the event’s big stage last year, a pitchers’ duel to close out the night could have been expected.
Instead, two of the country’s most mature, experienced offenses struck to their game plans and took the night over. While LSU (8-2) struck for four runs in the first, TCU’s deep lineup ultimately prevailed, powering the Horned Frogs to a 9-6 victory.
The scouting report on Lange is to lay off his outstanding curveball and to force him to attack hitters with his fastball. TCU (8-1) was able to execute that plan and then took advantage when Lange struggled to command his low-90s fastball.
“You have to lay off his breaking ball because he throws more out of the zone than in the zone,” TCU coach Jim Schlossnagle said. “It’s really easy to sit in the stands or sit over here (in the dugout) and talk about it than stand in the batter’s box and do it. So when he started to stick a few of them for strikes, I got worried, but we laid off enough. And then the more you see a pitcher, the more comfortable you’ll be facing him.”
As a team, TCU has a consistent, mature approach at the plate, which was apparent throughout the game. The Frogs made Lange work for everything, even as he was able to strand runners on second and third go get out of the first inning with just one run allowed.
LSU scored four runs in the bottom of the first to take the lead, but TCU was ready for Lange in the second and made sure not to let him escape again. Following back-to-back one-out walks to the Frogs’ eighth and ninth hitters, outfielder Austen Wade drove a three-run home run into right field to tie the game. Three batters later, DH Luken Baker (2-for-5, 2 R) sent a towering two-run home run into the Crawford Boxes in left field. Baker’s fourth home run of the season gave TCU the lead for good and knocked Lange (2-1, 4.97) out of the game. He allowed six runs on three walks and five hits, and struck out two.
“Alex had outstanding control through the first two weeks of the season, but tonight he just couldn’t find his rhythm,” LSU coach Paul Mainieri said. “When he would get two strikes, he was having a tough time putting them away. TCU’s hitters are battlers, and that’s why they have such a good team.”
TCU catcher Evan Skoug, who was teammates with Lange this summer on USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team, singled in both of his plate appearances against the righthander and finished the game 4-for-5. He said because Lange’s curveball is so sharp and so often winds up in the dirt, it was imperative for the Frogs to stick to the game plan and make him work in the strike zone.
“We gave him a really hard time,” Skoug said. “We got one in the first and we really made him work. In the second we got a bunch off him. So it was really important and then we kept that approach throughout the whole game and had a really successful night.”
TCU continued to work counts after Lange exited the game and scored a run against each of LSU’s three relievers. The Frogs pounded out 12 hits, drew five walks and were aggressive on the base paths, stealing four bases. It was the kind of night TCU aims to produce. The Frogs are averaging 8.67 runs per game this season and have drawn an average of 6.3 walks per game.
Schlossnagle said he was pleased by the quality of TCU’s at bats throughout the game.
“It reminded me kind of the old Yankee-Red Sox playoff games where every single pitch was a battle,” he said. “I know on our end I was really proud of our guys’ at bats. Obviously against Lange, but even throughout the course of the game. When we didn’t get hits, we had really deep count at bats.”
Nick Lewis and Baylor shut down No. 20 Mississippi
Baylor righthander Nick Lewis opened the Shriners College Classic with a masterful performance against No. 20 Mississippi. The senior wasn’t overpowering, but shut down the Rebels’ powerful offense in one of the best starts of his career.
Lewis threw seven scoreless innings and Baylor upset Ole Miss, 4-0. With the victory, the Bears improved to 10-0, the second best start in program history.
Lewis pounded the bottom of the strike zone with his fastball, which sat around 90 mph. He struck out a career high nine batters and held the Rebels to two hits and four walks.
Lewis improved to 3-0, 1.42 and has a 22-to-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 19 innings this season. He has already passed his win total from last year, when he went 2-5, 6.41. Lewis said he worked this fall to find his changeup, which had been an important pitch for him, but was inconsistent last spring. He also worked through some mechanical changes with pitching coach Jon Strauss.
The changes have worked, and Lewis, like Baylor, is off to a strong start. He said the Bears have good team chemistry, which has helped them at the outset of the season.
“This is one of the coolest, best teams I’ve been around,” Lewis said. “Just from everything from how the guys play to the coaches and everything. It’s pretty special but we’ve still got a lot of work to do.”
Freshmen power Aggies offense Friday
No. 25 Texas A&M rolled to a 9-0 victory against No. 21 Texas Tech (9-2) behind a strong outing on the mound from junior righthander Brigham Hill (7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K) and the offensive firepower of freshmen Logan Foster and Braden Shewmake.
Hitting second and third in the Aggies’ lineup, sandwiched between seniors Nick Choruby and Joel Davis, Foster and Shewmake both homered and drove in two runs each in the victory. They provided back-to-back key hits in the Aggies’ three-run third inning, as Foster hit an RBI double to score Choruby and Shewmake (1-for-5) followed with a two-run home run down the right field line. Foster (4-for-5, 2 2B) added a solo home run in the sixth.
Texas A&M (9-1) has gotten off to an impressive start offensively this season after replacing six regulars from last year’s lineup, including Southeastern Conference player of the year Boomer White. Foster and Shewmake didn’t come to school with much hype – neither was drafted – but both have made an easy transition to the college game. Shewmake has started all 10 of the Aggies’ games and is hitting .422/.458/.733. Foster has played in all 10 games, starting six, and is hitting .441/.486/.853 with a team-high three home runs.
“Every time we take the field they’re growing a little bit more,” coach Rob Childress said. “We’ve still got a long way to go, but I’m proud of the job they’ve done so far. It’s a tribute to (assistant coaches) Justin (Seeley), Will (Boldt) and Jake (Carlson) having the position players ready to go.”
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