The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Air Force
No. 10 Baseball preview: Air Force
04.18.2022 | Baseball
The Longhorns return to UFCU Disch-Falk Field for a five-game homestand
#10 TEXAS (26-12) vs. AIR FORCE (15-19)
April 19-20, 2022
Where: UFCU Disch-Falk Field
Time: Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.; Wednesday at 4 p.m.
TV: Longhorn Network
Radio: 104.9 FM The Horn/1260 AM
Live stats: https://texassports.com/sidearmstats/baseball
All-time series: First meeting
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
TUESDAY–Texas RHP Justin Eckhardt (1-0, 5.40) vs. Air Force RHP Dylan Rogers (0-0, 5.57)
WEDNESDAY–Texas TBA vs. Air Force TBA
THE MATCHUPS—Texas returns home for another five-game homestand at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. The week starts with two games against Air Force, marking the first meeting between the two programs. This is the second-consecutive season for Texas to host a Mountain West Conference program, after sweeping Nevada in a double midweek last season.
A LOOK AT THE LONGHORNS—The Longhorns have gone 15-12 over the last 27 games since starting the season 11-0. Texas still leads the Big 12 offensively with a .313 batting average and 61 homers. The Longhorns staff ERA of 3.62 also leads the league, while the .983 fielding percentage is second in the Big 12 and ranks seventh nationally.
BOMB SQUAD—Through the first 38 games this season Texas has launched 61 home runs, the most in the Big 12 and the 10th most nationally. Last season Texas hit 68 homers in 67 games, the third most by a Longhorn team ever. Texas has 17 multiple-homer games, including nine three-homer games and three four-homer games. Ivan Melendez is second in the nation with 16 homers, which surpasses his total from last season. Trey Faltine and Murphy Stehly each have 10 bombs.
HOME SWEET HOME—Texas begins another five-game homestand at the friendly confines of UFCU Disch-Falk Field, where the Longhorns have a 14-3 record this season. Through the first 38 games of the season, Texas has played a total of 21 games away from UFCU Disch-Falk Field and only 17 games at home. Of the final 18 regular season games, the Longhorns play 14 of them at home and just four on the road. In home games, Texas has a team batting average of .326 and a staff ERA of 2.47. The Longhorns have outscored opponents 146-45 in games at UFCU Disch-Falk Field.
TITANIC—Ivan Melendez has surpassed his home run total from last season with 16 bombs, upping his career total at Texas to 29. He now ranks in the top 10 at Texas in career home runs. The 16 homers this season are currently the second-most in the country. Melendez also ranks in the top-10 nationally in total bases (3rd), slugging percentage (3rd) and RBI (7th). He is second on the team, batting .388 and leads the team with a 1.366 OPS. Three of Melendez's home runs this season have cleared the batter's eye in center field, making him the first player to hit four career "Monster Shots."
MURPH DOG—Murphy Stehly has been unstoppable this season, batting .416 and leading the nation with 64 total hits and raking fifth with 111 total bases. Stehly also has 15 doubles, one triple and 10 homers. He has a hit in all but three games and has 20 games with multiple hits, including just the sixth three-homer game in Texas Baseball history. He had a 20-game hitting streak snapped last week, which is tied for the fourth-longest in program history. His versatility has also been on display, playing first base, second base, third base and right field throughout the season.
SWEET PETE—Pete Hansen was the back-to-back Big 12 Pitcher of the after tossing a gem against Oklahoma before throwing his first career complete game shutout against TCU. Against the Horned Frogs he allowed just two hits and one walk in his nine innings on the mound. For the season, Hansen leads the Big 12 with six wins and a total of 58.1 innings pitched. He ranks fourth in the league with a 2.78 ERA and fourth with 72 strikeouts, while his opponents batting average of .192 ranks third. His career earned run average of 2.00 ranks 10th among active NCAA Division I players.
IMMEDIATE IMPACT—Texas struck gold last season with the addition of graduate transfer Mike Antico from St. John's. The outfielder became the first player in Big 12 history to hit 10 homers and steal 40 bases in a season. This season the Longhorns added grad transfer Skyler Messinger from Kansas and he has produced. The similarities have been striking, as both players had a slow start to their Texas careers. Through Antico's first 26 games last season, he was batting just .202 before going on to bat .273 and landing on the All-Big 12 second team. For Messinger, he was batting just .192 after his first 16 games but over his last 19 games he has raised his batting average up to .362. He has also been great defensively at third base with only one error in 95 defensive chances this season.
TWO-OUT HITTING—Texas has had a knack for scoring runs with two outs this season, driving in 40% of its RBI with two outs. The Longhorns have 108 total two-out RBI of their 272 runs driven in. Ivan Melendez not only leads the team with 50 RBI, but leads the team lead with 21 two-out RBI. Douglas Hodo III has 17, while Murphy Stehly has 12, Trey Faltine has 11 and Eric Kennedy and Mitchell Daly have 10. Conversely, the Texas pitching staff has been tough with two outs and held opponents to a .226 batting average with two outs and only 40 two-out RBI allowed.
MARCH MADNESS—Texas Baseball started the month of March with a tough stretch of 11 games in the first 16 days of the month. Making it even tougher, the majority of those games were away from UFCU Disch-Falk Field, with 10 of 11 on the road. The road was grueling and the Longhorns started the month with a 6-5 record. The back end of the March schedule was tough as well, starting Big 12 Conference play by dropping the series at Texas Tech before falling to Texas A&M for a midweek game. In all, Texas went 11-8 in the month of March 13 games away from home.
INFIELD HIT MACHINE—Throughout his career on the Forty Acres, Eric Kennedy has used his speed as a means to get on base. With four infield singles (three bunt) this season, Kennedy now has 55 career infield singles (31 bunts). Last season he had 27 infield singles, including 16 bunt hits.
OWN THE DISCH—A large part of the Longhorns success under head coach David Pierce has come down to dominating at home. Since 2017 Texas has produced a 136-36 (.791) record at UFCU Disch-Falk Field, including a 14-3 mark this season. Since the stadium opened in 1975, Texas has gone 1567-396-3 at home for a .798 winning percentage. The fan base has also done a great job of making the Disch a difficult place to play. Through the first 17 home games this season Texas is averaging 6,913 fans in attendance, which would be a program record. With the exception of last season's limited capacity due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Texas has led the Big 12 in attendance for 15-consecutive seasons.
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS—It's an old adage that played out well in Texas' journey to a record 37th College World Series appearance in 2021. The Longhorns 2.93 ERA led the NCAA by nearly a quarter of a run and the Big 12 Conference by more than a run. Texas' .980 fielding percentage also led the Big 12 and was the 10th-best percentage in the nation. This season, the Longhorns rank 18th nationally with a 3.62 ERA and are seventh fielding .983.
FLASHING THE LEATHER—Trey Faltine and Mitchell Daly have formed an incredible middle infield duo, anchoring the top defense in the Big 12 with a .983 fielding percentage. This season, Faltine leads the league with 113 assists and Daly is second with 107. Last season Faltine led the Big 12 with 203 assists, while Daly was second with 178.
HEAR 'EM—In partnership with Learfield IMG College, Texas games will be broadcast on the Austin Radio Network, primarily on 104.9 The Horn and AM 1260. Craig Way handles primary play-by-play duties alongside Roger Wallace. This season fans will also hear analysis from Longhorn greats Keith Moreland, Ty Harrington and Nathan Thornhill throughout the season.
