April 28, 2004

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Missouri will continue the annual tradition of playing one game each season with wood bats in place of the normal aluminum versions with Wednesday's game against Saint Louis University. The game will be played at T.R. Hughes Ballpark in the St. Louis suburb of O'Fallon, Mo. Earlier this month, SLU defeated Mizzou 3-1 at Taylor Stadium. That win was the first for the Billikens in 13 meetings between the two teams. Mizzou is in the midst of four-game losing streak after dropping a pair of game to Texas A&M last weekend in College Station, Texas. The Tigers are now 24-16-1 on the year. Following Wednesday's game, MU will prepare for a three-game set against No. 1 Texas this weekend at Taylor Stadium. Game one of the series will get underway at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

Last Time Out
COLLEGE STATION, Texas-- Mizzou dropped two games last weekend against Texas A&M in College Station, Texas by scores of 1-0 and 7-1. The final game of the series was rained out and was the second cancellation of the season for MU. On Friday, Missouri starter Danny Hill turned one of his best performances of the year, but took the loss. He allowed just one run on three hits in seven innings of work. The Tigers out-hit the Aggies, but were unable to get any runners across the plate, leaving seven on base in the game. In the second game of the series, Mizzou again had trouble putting runs on the board, scoring just one run in the seventh inning. Texas A&M used a four-run fourth inning to build its lead and went on to the 7-1 victory. Sunday's game was washed out as heavy rains in the College Station area caused the field to become unplayable.

Flashback
COLUMBIA, Mo.-- The Missouri baseball squad lost its third game in a row as Saint Louis downed the Tigers 3-1 at Taylor Stadium on April 7. The win is the first for the Billikens in the last 13 meetings between the two teams. SLU got on the board first, putting a run across the plate before the first out was recorded. Freshman LHP Nathan Culp started on the mound for MU and after early troubles allowed the first run to cross, he settled down and struck out the next three batters. The score remained 1-0 until the Billikens added a run in the top of the seventh inning as Kyle Wort doubled to drive in Drew Eder. They would add a final run in the ninth inning. Mizzou scored its only run of the game in the bottom of the eighth inning as senior 1B Cody Ehlers homered to left field to lead off the inning. The Tigers matched Saint Louis with seven hits on the night, but left 12 baserunners on, as compared to the Billikens' seven left on. Sophomore RF James Boone extended his hitting streak to 16 games, as he went 3-for-4 on the night. The 16-game streak matched the longest this season by Mizzou. Earlier in the year, senior Lee Laskowski put together a 16-game streak. Culp pitched a strong six innings, allowing just three hits and one unearned run. He stuck out three and walked one. Only one of Saint Louis' three runs scored in the game was earned.

"The Wood Bat Classic"
For the past four years, Missouri has played at least one game in its season with wood bats. Wednesday, the Tigers will continue that tradition with the game against Saint Louis. The logic was that every player that will move on to play professional ball will need to adjust to the bat, the collegiate summer leagues utilize the wood bat, and the fans have enjoyed the novelty the bats have brought. This season's wood bat game agaisnt SLU marks the fifth straight year that the Tigers and Billikens have squared off under the unique circumstances. Mizzou has beaten SLU in each of the four previous meetings: 5-3 in 2000, 4-2 in 2001, 10-0 in 2002 and 6-0 last year.

Among the Nation's Best
In the latest NCAA statistics, released on Monday, the Mizzou pitching staff's ERA of 3.66 is the 26th best in the nation. Missouri is also ranked No. 26 in fielding percentage with a .971 mark.

Close Calls
Missouri has had its share of close games this season, as 14 of its 41 games have been one-run games and six more have been decided by two runs. Mizzou is 8-6 in one-run games and has a 2-4 record in the two-run decisions. Seven of the Tigers' last 10 games have been decided by one run, including, the opening game of last weekend's series at Texas A&M. Mizzou dropped that game 1-0 for its 14th one-run decision of the season.

A Tough Road Ahead
Not that there is ever an easy portion of the Big 12 Conference schedule, but for Mizzou, the stretch of conference games it is in the midst of is definitely not easy. This weekend's series against Texas will be the third straight conference series for MU against a team ranked in the top 15 in the nation. The Tigers got off to a good start taking two-of-three in its series with No. 15 Nebraska on April 16-18. After winning the first two games, MU could not record the sweep as the Huskers took Sunday's game 11-10 by scoring three runs in the ninth inning. Last weekend, Missouri dropped a pair of game against Texas A&M, which was ranked as high as No. 14 in the national polls. This weekend, the No. 1 Texas Longhorns will be at Taylor Stadium for a three-game series which begins at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

Checking the Record Books
A trio of MU seniors are making their way up the charts in the Mizzou Baseball record books. Cody Ehlers is currently tied for fourth place all-time in career doubles at MU with 48. He has 15 doubles this season, marking the third straight year he has had at least 15 doubles. Ehlers is also seventh on the career home runs lists with 31 heading into the week. His 12 home runs this season is a career best for Ehlers, who had nine in each of the previous two years. Ehlers is also fifth in career extra base hits (83) and seventh in career RBI (164). Fellow senior Ryan Rallo is also climbing the career home runs chart. He enters the SLU game 11th with 25 career homers and has tied his career high with nine this season. Relief pitcher Mark Alexander has recorded five saves this season and is in a tie for 10th for saves in a season at Missouri. He is in a tie with current teammate Travis Wendte who had five saves as a freshman in 2002.