Missouri Faces Nationally Ranked Baylor
3/22/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 22, 2002
COLUMBIA, Mo. - The University of Missouri baseball team will play a Big 12 Conference series this weekend with games scheduled against:
*8/9/10 Baylor, 6:30 p.m., Friday
*8/9/10 Baylor, 2 p.m., Saturday
*8/9/10 Baylor, 1 p.m., Sunday
Probable Starters: Here's a best guess of Missouri's starting pitcher rotation: Justin James, tonight, Abel Newton, Saturday and Garrett Broshuis, Sunday.
Last Time Out: Missouri suffered an 11-10 loss to Arkansas on Tuesday. Jayce Tingler and Luke Cassis each had three hits.
MU/Baylor Series: Baylor won two of the three meetings last season and leads, 16-6.
In 2001 vs. Baylor: Missouri suffered a 3-2 loss in the ninth inning of the first game of the three-game series at Baylor Ballpark in Waco. In game two, Baylor picked up a 12-2 win in the completion of a game suspended by fog. The Tigers recorded a 5-4 win in the 10th inning of the series finale when Jon Williams scored on a single by Mick Weiss.
Baylor Notes: The Bears, ranked as high as eighth by Baseball America, are 18-6 overall and 7-2 in Big 12 play. Baylor picked up three come-from-behind wins against Kansas last weekend in league action. The Bears have won six games this season in their last at-bat. Ross Bennett leads the Bears with a .417 batting average.
Who's Hot? Cody Ehlers is hitting .500 in the Tigers' last five games. Ehlers, who is 8-of-16 during that stretch, also leads the Tigers with his .439 batting average. Missouri center fielder Jayce Tingler is hitting .417 in his last five games.
Setting The Table: Missouri has several players who are dangerous when leading off an inning. Jayce Tingler is the Tigers' leadoff man, Tingler has reached base 15 times in 33 appearances (.465) when leading off an inning. But Tingler is not the lone threat in that situation. Infielder Luke Cassis has reached base 12 of 20 times (.600) when leading off an inning while outfielder Lee Laskowski has reached 10 of 15 times (.667). Cody Ehlers has reached base nine of 15 times (.600) when leading off an inning.
Bases Loaded: When the Tigers have the bases loaded, one probably does not want to face Jayce Tingler. Tingler is hitting .714 (5-of-7) when batting with the bases loaded. Jody Roughton is hitting .800 (4-of-5) when faced in bases-loaded situations.
Tough With Two: Ryan Rallo is the Tigers' top hitter when batting with two outs. Rallo is hitting .421 (8-of-19) when up in that situation. Jody Roughton and Cody Ehlers each have driven in 10 runs when batting with two outs.
Hits: Chris Julo had five hits in Missouri's 20-4 win over William Woods (Mo.) on March 6. Julo's performance were the most hits any MU player has had in a game since J.R. Warner had five hits against Centenary on Feb. 2, 2000.
Hit Men: As a team, Missouri is hitting .310. Cody Ehlers leads the regulars with a .439 batting average. Jayce Tingler and Lee Laskowski are hitting .384 and .351, respectively.
It's My Birthday: The Tigers celebrate several birthdays on game days this season. Here's a list of who's already had birthdays and who's next:
Feb. 15 - Tyrone Roberson (DNP in MU's 6-4 win over Portland)
Feb. 16 - Mick Weiss (0x4, 2 runs scored in MU's 11-7 win over Portland)
March 2 - Matt Hobbs (game with Youngstown State canceled due to weather)
March 10 - W.T. Hoover (DNP vs. Oklahoma) and Ryan Rothford (DNP vs. OU)
March 30 - Drew Endicott (MU vs. Texas Tech)
Among Big 12's Best: Missouri's .310 batting average ranks sixth in the Big 12 Conference. Cody Ehlers ranks third with his .439 batting average. Ehlers leads the league in slugging percentage (.848) and he ranks second in home runs (7) and in total bases (3.29/per game). Jayce Tingler is 14th in hitting (.384) and seventh in runs scored (26, 1.37 r/g). In per game averages, Ehlers is first in home runs/game while Tingler is second in runs scored/game.
Record Watch: Jayce Tingler ranks fifth with his 36 career stolen bases and is on the verge of cracking the program's all-time top 10 in walks, hits and runs scored.
Here's a look at where Tingler stands and who holds the mark is for 10th:
Walks - Tingler, 93 10th, Jon Williams, 1998-2001, 116
Hits - Tingler, 148 10th, Curt Brown, 1974-78, 210
Runs - Tingler, 119 10th, Greg Cypret, 1975-78, 156
Tough Start: Missouri's 0-6 mark to open the Big 12 Conference season is the program's slowest start to Big 12 play. The Tigers were 1-5 in 1999 and 2001. MU's 7-12 mark is the third time Missouri has been under the .500 mark after 19 games during Tim Jamieson's reign as head coach. Missouri was 9-10 in 1997 and 5-14 in 1995.
Preseason Talk: Jayce Tingler was named the Big 12 Conference's best baserunner by Baseball America while Abel Newton was named one of the league's top newcomers.
Top Class: Missouri had one of the nation's top recruiting classes this past year, according to Collegiate Baseball in its annual compilation of top recruiting classes. Missouri was listed in the "other top classes" category.
Coaching Staff: Head coach Tim Jamieson is in his eighth season with an overall mark of 233-177-1 and a record of 97-106 in Big 12/Big 8 play. He recorded his 200th career victory with a 9-8 win over Wichita State on March 7, 2001. A University of New Orleans graduate, Jamieson was an assistant coach for the Tigers for six seasons before taking over the top spot. He led the Tigers to the 1996 Big 8 regular season crown and a berth in the Midwest Regional. Jamieson is assisted by Chal Fanning (pitching coach, sixth season), Evan Pratte (hitting coach/infield, fifth season) and Chris Smith (outfield, second season). The Tigers have had 19 players enter professional baseball during Jamieson's tenure. Jamieson's milestone victories:
*1 - Missouri 12, Lincoln 2 - Feb. 27, 1995
*50 - Missouri 8, Nebraska 2 - April 24, 1996
*100 - Missouri 3, Eastern Michigan 0 - March 14, 1998
*150 - Missouri 5, Oklahoma 2 - April 17, 1999
*200 - Missouri 9, Wichita State 8 - March 7, 2001
30 Wins Again: In 2001, Missouri recorded its sixth-straight season with 30 or more victories and its 15th such season in the past 17 years.
Success: The Tigers opened the 2002 season ranked 36th among all NCAA Division I teams with 1,774 wins. In its 106 seasons of baseball, MU has won 60.5 percent of its games.
Broadcasts: The Tigers' games this season are carried on KWWC (90.5 FM) as well as on www.mutigers.com. Sean Kelley is in his fourth season as the play-by-play announcer.
Home Runs for Kids: Again this season, the Tigers have teamed with the University of Missouri Children's Hospital to develop a special program called "Home Runs for Kids." The program is geared to raise money for sick children at the Children's Hospital at University Hospital and Clinics. The fund-raising program will recruit baseball fans, individuals, businesses, clubs and organizations, to pledge 25 cents to $10 or more for every home run the Tigers hit this season. All of the money raised by the "Home Run for Kids" program will be used locally to fund equipment, research and programs for patients at Children's Hospital. The Tigers have hit 19 home runs in 2002.
Next Up: Following the Baylor series, Missouri is scheduled play Harris-Stowe (Mo.) Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Taylor Stadium/Simmons Field.
