March 10, 2004

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Missouri carries an 11-3-1 record into this weekend's Easton/USA Challenge Tournament in Millington, Tenn. The Tigers will open play in the tournament with two games on Friday. They will take on Wake Forest at noon, followed by a match up with Indiana State at 3 p.m. On Saturday, MU will face Memphis at 6 p.m. and close out the tournament on Sunday against Tennessee-Martin at 3 p.m. Last week, Missouri was 1-1-1 at Washington in its first road three-game series of the year. The Tigers moved into this weeks's NCBWA poll, coming in at No. 33. They are also receiving votes in the Sports Weekly/ESPN poll. Next week, the Tigers return home to face Illinois State at 4 p.m. on Wednesday at Taylor Stadium. They will then host Chicago State for a three-game series next weekend.

Last Time Out
The Tigers accomplished a rare feat last weekend as it split a three-game series with Washington. After taking game one by a score of 16-2, MU dropped game two 11-6 and then tied the Huskies in the final game of the series. In game one, MU pounded out 17 hits, as eight of its nine starters recorded at least one hit. Senior LF Ryan Rallo was 2-for-5 on the day with five RBI and four runs scored. The biggest hit of the game for Rallo was a three-run home run in the second inning. Senior DH Lee Laskowski also homered for MU in the win. Senior RHP Danny Hill recorded his first win of the season by allowing just one run on seven hits in 7.1 innings of work. He struck out six and walked one. Missouri did not have the same offensive firepower on Saturday, scoring only two runs through eight innings. The Tigers put four runs on the board in the ninth, but fell 11-6 as Washington evened the series. Rallo homered again on Saturday, extending his hitting streak to 11 games. The series finale on Sunday was called after 10 innings with the score tied at six. A curfew was placed on the game in order for Missouri to make its flight out of Seattle. The tie was the first for MU since the opening game of 2001. Junior RHP Garrett Broshuis started for MU and went exactly six innings for the fourth time in four starts. He allowed three runs on four hits and struck out seven Huskies. Rallo's single in the top of the seventh extended his streak to 12 games, the longest of the year for MU.

All Tied Up
For the just the 20th time in 3,069 games, Mizzou had a game end in a tie last Sunday against Washington. After the two teams split the first two games of the series, game three was to be the rubber game of the series. Due to Missouri's travel arrangements, a curfew was placed on Sunday's game. The game was called after 10 innings in order for the Tigers to catch their flight our of Seattle. The tie was the first time since the first game of the 2001 season against San Jose State. That game was called after the sixth inning due to rain with the score tied at zero. The Tigers have had back-to-back ties before, in 1914 when MU and Kansas State tied 9-9 and 2-2 in consecutive games.

Hello Rallo
Mizzou senior Ryan Rallo leads the Tigers with a .352 batting average and carries a 12-game hitting streak into this weekend's tournament in Millington. Rallo is also tied for the team lead with four home runs and is second on the team with 19 RBI. During the 12-game hitting streak, Rallo has a .372 batting average, four home runs, three doubles and 17 RBI. The streak is the longest by a MU player since Jayce Tingler put together a 14-game streak last season. Rallo had a nine-game hitting streak at one point during the 2003 season and opened the 2002 season with hits in the first five games of the year.

The Cosme Show
A transfer from Sante Fe Community College, junior Cosme Caballero has joined MU this season. Caballero, who can play third base or catcher for the Tigers, has a nine-game hitting streak in tact heading into this weekend. After going hitless in three of the first four games of the season, Caballero has recorded a hit in every game he has played in since Feb. 21. He was 1-for-4 and drove in three runs against Youngstown State on Feb. 28 and followed that with a 1-for-3 game with four RBI the next day. He is hitting .270 on the year with eight RBI and is second on the team with five doubles.

The Hits Keep on Coming
Six Tigers have multi-game hitting streaks in tact heading into the weekend, led by senior Ryan Rallo's 12-game hit streak. During the 12-game stretch, Rallo is hitting .372 with 12 hits, two doubles, three home runs and 17 RBI. Rallo's streak is the longest for any Tiger this season, ahead of junior Cosme Caballero, who carries a nine-game streak into the Easton/USA Challenge. A pair of Tigers (senior Lee Laskowski and sophomore Zane Taylor) have each had hits in the last six games. Senior Jeremy Hernandez has a four-game streak and senior Cody Ehlers has had a hit in each of the last three games.

Countdown to 300
MU Head Coach Tim Jamieson needs just three more wins to reach the 300 win total as he has compiled a record of 297-218-2 in his 10 seasons at the helm of the Tigers. He will become just the third coach in Missouri history to record 300 wins, joining John "Hi" Simmons (481 wins) and Gene McArtor (733 wins).

Dessau Sits 'em Down
A transfer from Forest Park Community College, junior RHP Erik Dessau has stepped into the Tigers' pitching rotation and been dominate this season. In his four starts, he has three wins and has allowed just three runs in 23.1 innings for a team-leading 1.16 ERA. The Tigers have had two shutouts this season and both have come in games that Dessau has started. Dessau joins junior Garrett Broshuis as the only three-game winners for the Tigers this season.

L2 Hits HR2
Senior OF Lee Laskowski, who was hampered by injuries and finished with just two home runs last year, has already match that mark in 2004. Actually, he matched that total in one weekend as he homered in back-to-back games against Youngstown State. His first was a solo shot well over the scoreboard in left field on Feb. 28, giving the Tigers their first runs of the day. He followed that with another solo home run which cleared the left field wall, ending up in the MU bullpen. Laskowski added his third home run of the year last weekend in the opening game of the series with Washington. His two-run home run was part of a seven-run seventh inning for MU last Friday night in Seattle. For the season, Laskowski is third on the team with a .326 batting average, has three home runs and nine RBI.

No Runs For You
Mizzou has recorded two shutouts this season, already half as many shutouts as it recorded all of last season. In each of the two shutouts, junior RHP Erik Dessau has started on the mound and senior RHP Mark Alexander has relieved Dessau and preserved the shutout. Mizzou's shutout of Portland (13-0) on Feb. 14 in Phoenix, Ariz. was the first shutout by a MU team since April 29, 2003 when the Tigers defeated St. Louis in the "Wood Bat Classic" by a score of 9-0. Dessau started and pitched six inning, allowing seven hits to record the win. Alexander came on in relief, giving up just one hit and striking out five in three innings of work to record the save. On Feb. 28, Dessau pitched seven innings of shutout work, giving up just three hits and striking out eight. Alexander came on for the final two innings and allowed just one hit in the 7-0 MU victory.

Brushing Batters Aside
Junior RHP Garrett Broshuis is nothing if not consistent. In each of his four starts this season, Broshuis has pitched exactly six innings. He took the win in the first three starts and was the starter in the game with Washington last week which ended in a tie, a game in which the Tigers' led with Broshuis left the game. He leads the Tigers with 28 strikeouts on the year and has had a season-high eight K's twice this year (vs. Portland and vs. Coastal Carolina). He has an ERA of 3.00 and has allowed just one run in two of his four starts. His start last Sunday against Washington was the 30th start of his career.

Now Appearing
Senior relief pitcher Mark Alexander is tied for the team lead in appearances this season. He has pitched in seven of the Tigers' first 15 games and has recorded three saves and has a 1.26 ERA. Alexander picked up his first save in the second game of the year, pitching the final three innings of MU's win over Portland in Phoenix. In that game, he allowed only one hit and no runs, while striking out five in the three innings on the mound. Save number two came against Coastal Carolina, when he came on in the seventh and held Coastal to just one run on one hit. He picked up his third save with another three-inning appearance, allowing no runs and just one hit against Western Illinios on March 2. The Tigers have had two shutouts this season with Alexander getting the save in both of those games (Portland and Western Illinois).

Taylor Made
Moving from third base to shortstop this season for MU, sophomore Zane Taylor continues to put up impressive numbers. He leads the Tigers in runs scored with 16 and has put together a six-game hitting streak. Taylor has had at least one hit in 12 of MU's first 15 games of the season and opened the season with hits in the first four games. Last weekend in Washington, he opened with a 2-for-5 night on Friday, added one hit on Saturday and was 2-for-4 in Sunday's finale.

Triple Play
Mizzou senior C Brad Flanders became only the second Tiger in school history to hit three home runs in one game, when he belted out three against Coastal Carolina on Feb. 21 in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Flanders was 4-for-5 and drove in seven runs. He also threw out two baserunners from behind the plate. The Tigers pounded out six home runs on their way to a 21-4 rout of Coastal Carolina. Flanders joins former Tiger Jerry Schoonmaker as the only players in MU history to hit three homers in one game. Schoonmaker did it against Kansas State in 1954 as part of that season's national championship team. In the four games of the Coastal Carolina Beach Blast, Flanders had seven hits, three home runs, one double, nine RBI, a 1.133 slugging percentage and a .471 on base percentage.

A Perfect Start
The Tigers opened the season with six straight wins before Albany handed MU its first loss of the year against Albany on Feb. 22. The 6-0 start was the best start since the 1987 team began the year 7-0. The 1986 team also opened with seven straight wins.

Opening Act
Missouri picked up its second straight win in season openers by defeating Nevada 8-7 on Feb. 13 in Phoenix, Ariz. Last year, the Tigers defeated UNC-Wilmington 12-1 to start the season. MU Head Coach Tim Jamieson is now 6-3-1 at MU in season openers.

Putting the Blast in the 'Beach Blast'
Missouri's 21-4 crushing of Coastal Carolina at the Beach Blast was the most runs the Tigers have scored since putting 23 on the board against Baylor last April in a 23-18 win. Against Coastal, Mizzou banged out 18 hits, six home runs, six doubles and one triple. Hidden behind the offensive output, was the strong pitching by MU starter Garrett Broshuis and reliever Mark Alexander. Broshuis went 6.0 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and striking out eight, as he picked up his second win of the season. Alexander pitched the final three innings, allowing just one hit and one run and striking out two. Two days before that, MU defeated Coastal 12-10 in 10 innings.

Tigers Picked Ninth in Big 12 Preseason Poll
For the second consecutive season, the Big 12 Conference Baseball Coaches have selected the Tigers to finish ninth in the conference. Last season, after being picked ninth in the preseason poll, Mizzou ended up with a fourth place finish, recording a 15-11 record in Big 12 play. Texas was picked by the conference coaches to win the Big 12. Baylor was second followed by Nebraska. Six of the top seven teams in the preseason poll are from the Big 12 South, with Nebraska the only North team in the top half of the predictions.

Up Next
Mizzou will return home next week for four straight games at Taylor Stadium. Illinois State will visit Columbia at 4 p.m. on Wednesday before Chicago State is in town for a three-games series starting at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.