The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Louisiana Lafayette
Baseball preview: vs. No. 24 Louisiana [April 25]
04.25.2017 | Baseball
The Longhorns and Ragin' Cajuns will face off at Constellation Field in Sugar Land.
TEXAS (28-15) vs. LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE (26-14-1)
April 24, 2017
Where: Sugar Land, Texas (Constellation Field)
Time: 6:35 p.m. CT
TV: None
Radio: 104.9 FM The Horn/1260 AM—Craig Way (Play-by-Play), Keith Moreland (Analyst)
Live stats: Sidearmstats.com/Texas/Baseball
All-time series: Texas leads, 29-5
?PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
TUESDAY—Louisiana RHP Evan Guillory (2-2, 4.05) vs. Texas RHP Blair Henley (3-3, 4.07)
GAME NOTES
THE MATCHUP—Texas and Louisiana meet for the first time since the 2010 postseason when the Longhorns won, 4-2…Texas leads the all-time series, 29-5, though the Ragin' Cajuns have won both neutral site matchups.
A LOOK AT THE RAGIN' CAJUNS—Louisiana is led by Steven Sensley's .331 average and seven homers so far this season…he leads the team with 31 RBI and a .563 slugging pct.…in the bullpen, Dylan Moore has amassed eight saves while making a team-high 19 appearances on the hill…RHP Evan Guillory is scheduled to make his fifth start of the year.
A LOOK AT THE LONGHORNS—Texas has won five straight, with wins over Baylor, Texas State and a series sweep of New Orleans at home over the weekend…Kacy Clemens continues to pace the Longhorns offense, hitting at a .306 clip with a team-best eight home runs and 33 RBI…Travis Jones has picked up his offense lately, improving his average to .293 on the year with a team-best .430 OBP…he also is tied for the team lead with David Hamilton with 11.…on the mound, RHP Beau Ridgeway paces the bullpen, having made 24 appearances this year while compiling nine saves and a 1.34 ERA…RHP Blair Henley will make his second straight Tuesday night start.
NEXT UP—Texas heads to Oklahoma State for a three-game Big 12 Conference series against the Cowboys in Stillwater.
ONE-RUN WOES—With two one-run wins over the weekend against New Orleans, the Longhorns improved to 6-11 in one-run ballgames, although six of those one-run losses have come in conference action.
GOLDEN SPIKES—Texas right-handers Morgan Cooper and Nolan Kingham were both named to the Golden Spikes Award midseason watch list, announced by USA Baseball on April 12…Cooper and Kingham have compiled 1.61 and 1.98 ERAs, respectively, so far this season and lead the Longhorns staff.…the duo is among 40 players selected to the watch list which honors the nation's top amateur player… Texas is one of just six (Auburn, LSU, North Carolina, Oregon State, and Virginia) to land two athletes on the midseason watch list…the Longhorns have never had a Golden Spikes Award winner.
DEEEEFENSE—The Longhorns' defense has been sturdy so far this season…Texas is fielding at a .983 clip, good for fifth-best in the nation…the Horns have also turned 46 double plays, good for second-most in the country.
TEAM ERA—The Longhorns pitching staff has compiled a 2.85 team ERA, good for eighth-best in the nation and best in the Big 12…Texas pitchers have allowed 7.15 hits per nine so far this year, good for sixth- best in the country and also tops in the Big 12…the Longhorns have also registered six shutouts on the season, most in the conference and tied for ninth-most in the country.
SENIOR LEADER—Senior 1B Kacy Clemens has been a stalwart at first base for the Longhorns so far this season…he had reached base safely in 21 straight games before his ejection on April 9 vs. Oklahoma…he leads the team in BA (.306) and SLG (.556)…he hit his eighth homer of the season on Friday, a season-high for the Houston native after he hit five last season…he is tops on the team with 33 RBI.
#MOREOFTHOSE—Through 43 games, nine different Longhorns have gone deep giving Texas 33 total homers, one fewer than all of last season…both Travis Jones and Kacy Clemens homered on Friday night vs. New Orleans…Patrick Mathis homered in his first start in almost a month April 11 vs. Texas State…Kacy and Kody Clemens both homered on April 8, the second consecutive season that they both homered on April 8…Kody's tied the ballgame while Kacy's home run was a grand slam to break the game open…Ryan Reynolds hit two at Kansas…Tate Shaw hit a grand slam and Cantu homered in his hometown of Corpus Christi on March 28…Kacy Clemens hit a pair of homers on Feb 24 vs. UConn.
SNEAKY WHEELS CLUB—Michael McCann and Kacy Clemens have both added stolen bases to their respective resumes…combined, they're a perfect 10-for-10 on the basepaths, six for Kacy and four for McCann.
PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE—As a team, Texas has amassed 217 walks, good for eighth-most in the country…Kacy Clemens has walked a team-high 27 times, Travis Jones has walked 26 times and four other players have at least 20 BBs.
