The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Oklahoma
Baseball preview: vs. Oklahoma [Big 12 Tournament | May 24]
05.23.2017 | Baseball
The Longhorns will face off against the Sooners on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m.
TEXAS (34-20, 11-12) vs. OKLAHOMA (34-20, 12-11)
May 24, 2017
Where: Oklahoma City, Okla. (Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark)
Time: 7:30 pm CT
TV: FOX College Sports, FSSW+, FSMW+
Radio: 104.9 FM The Horn/1260 AM—Craig Way (Play-by-Play), Keith Moreland (Analyst)
Live stats: Big12Sports.com
Complete Game Notes
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
WEDNESDAY—Texas LHP Nick Kennedy (8-1, 2.36) vs. OU RHP Nathan Wiles (4-3, 4.47)
GAME NOTES
ALL BIG 12—Starting pitchers Morgan Cooper and Nolan Kingham picked up All-Big 12 First Team honors on Tuesday…1B Kacy Clemens was named to the second team while six Longhorns—Bret Boswell, Kyle Johnston, Travis Jones, Ryan Reynolds, Beau Ridgeway and Austin Todd—were awarded honorable mention…Todd and SS David Hamilton were both named to the All-Freshman team.
A LOOK AT THE LONGHORNS—Texas is coming off a series win over West Virginia last weekend which bumped the Longhorns to the No. 6 seed in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Conference Championship…Texas is led by senior first baseman Kacy Clemens, who tops the team in most offensive categories…on the hill, Cooper and Kingham lead the staff…out of the bullpen, Ridgeway has amassed 11 saves for the Longhorns.
ONE-RUN WOES—With a one-run loss on Saturday vs. WVU, the Longhorns dropped to 7-14 in one-run ballgames, with nine of those one-run losses coming in conference action.
2016 TOURNEY—Texas came within one win of reaching last year's championship game…after dropping their Tuesday game, the Longhorns rebounded to win three straight, including a 2-1 walkoff win over TCU on Saturday.
TEAM ERA—The Longhorns pitching staff has compiled a 3.14 team ERA, good for 9th-best in the nation and best in the Big 12…the Longhorns have also registered seven shutouts on the season, most in the conference and tied for eighth-most in the country.
DEEEEFENSE—Texas is fielding at a .984 clip, good for second-best in the nation and best in the Big 12…the Horns have also turned 58 double plays, the seventh-most in the country.
SENIOR DAY TO REMEMBER—Sunday was senior day at UFCU Disch-Falk Field…Cooper, Zane Gurwitz, Boswell, Kacy Clemens and Jon Malmin were recognized for their four seasons on the 40 Acres…in the game, Clemens his a first inning grand slam and reached base safely in all four plate appearances for the Longhorns…Gurwitz also had a memorable senior day, going 2-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI.
SENIOR LEADER—Senior 1B Kacy Clemens has been a stalwart at first base for the Longhorns so far this season…he leads the Longhorns in nearly every offensive category: batting average (.308), OBP (.429), SLG (.527), hits (56), home runs (9), RBI (32), runs scored (42), and walks (37)…he's also stolen 10 bases this season for the Longhorns while fielding at a .990 clip…among Big 12 hitters, Clemens ranks tied for seventh in homers, tied for fifth in walks, eighth in RBI, and eighth in OBP…his nine long balls are a career-high for the senior while is 10 steals are the first 10 of his Longhorns career.
COOPER HONORS—Morgan Cooper was named one of 21 finalists for the College Baseball Foundation's Pitcher of the Year award…on Thursday afternoon, he was also named one of 25 semifinalists for the Dick Howser Trophy, presented by the NCBWA to the nation's top collegiate player…earlier this year, Cooper, along with Kingham, was named to the Golden Spikes Award midseason watchlist.
STOPPER—Sophomore RHP Beau Ridgeway was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award Midseason Watch List…he has compiled 11 saves on the year, becoming the first Longhorn since Corey Knebel in 2011 to record double-digit saves.
INJURY BUG—The Longhorns were without the defense of CF Zane Gurwitz and RF Patrick Mathis for a month each while they recovered from a hamstring and a lower leg injury, respectively…both sustained injury in the March 14 game against Texas A&M…Gurwitz had also missed part of spring practice and the Longhorns first four games of the year while nursing that same tweaked hamstring…infielder Joe Baker underwent surgery in March and will miss the remainder of the season.
A TAIL OF TWO HALVES—After opening the season hitting just .148 in his first 23 games, sophomore Kody Clemens turned the corner…since March 22, he has hit .330 in his last 28 games, raising his average to .265 for the season…Zane Gurwitz has also turned it on late, compiling a .303 average since March 22, while Austin Todd has his .329 in that same stretch.
#MOREOFTHOSE—Ten different Longhorns have gone deep this season giving Texas 43 total homers, after hitting just 34 last year…Kacy Clemens leads the team with nine homers, including a senior day grand slam, while five different Longhorns have five homers apiece: Kody Clemens, Bret Boswell, Ryan Reynolds, Patrick Mathis and Michael Cantu…Cantu and Mathis each homered last Tuesday night against Incarnate Word…Austin Todd hit his first career dinger on May 5 at TCU…Travis Jones went deep vs. UTA…Bret Boswell stroked a pair of homers in game two on Friday at Oklahoma State.
SNEAKY WHEELS CLUB—Michael McCann and Kacy Clemens have both added stolen bases to their respective resumes…combined, they're a 14-for-15 on the base paths, 10 for Kacy and four for McCann…neither had recorded a stolen base before this season.
PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE—As a team, Texas has amassed 267 walks…Kacy Clemens leads the team with 37, whle Travis Jones and Bret Boswell have 32 and 30, respectively.
A NEW CHAPTER—February 17 marked David Pierce's first game at the helm of the Texas Baseball program…Pierce was named head coach on June 29, 2016, making him just the fifth Longhorn head coach since 1911 (with the exception of the war years of 1943-45 when Blair Cherry was at the helm) and the 13th head coach in 122 years of Texas baseball…Pierce—along with assistant coach Sean Allen, assistant coach Philip Miller and volunteer coach Phil Haig—came to Texas after two years at Tulane and three years at Sam Houston State.
HEAR 'EM—In partnership with IMG-College, Texas games will be broadcast on the Austin Radio Network, on 104.9 The Horn and AM 1260…Craig Way (play by play) and Longhorn legend Keith Moreland (analyst), whose No. 3 is retired at UFCU Disch-Falk Field, will be on the call for the tournament.
