Feb. 22, 2006

MIZZOU AT PEPSI BASEBALL CLASSIC
GAINESVILLE, FLA.
FEBRUARY 24-26, 2006

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MU Schedule: Friday: vs. Florida- 6:30 p.m. EST (5:30 p.m. CST)
Saturday: vs. Wake Forest- 6:30 p.m. EST (5:30 p.m. CST)
Sunday: vs. Ohio State- 10 a.m. EST (9 a.m. CST)
Stadium: McKethan Stadium (Capacity: 5,000)
Records: Mizzou: 4-2, Florida: 7-1, Wake Forest: 3-3, Ohio St.: 0-0
Rankings: MU: BA-No. 12/CB- No. 23/NCBWA- No. 25
UF: BA- No. 2/CB: No. 1/NCBWA- No. 1
OSU and WFU are not ranked
Series History: MU vs. UF: 0-5; MU vs. WFU: 1-0; MU vs. OSU: 0-1
Radio: KTGR 1580-AM, flagship. Also on 900-AM in Fulton and 950-AM in Jefferson City
Live Audio: KTGR.com
Live Gametracker: mutigers.com or gatorzone.com
On Tap: vs. Illinois State-- Wed. March 1, 4 p.m. at Taylor Stadium

The Tigers will travel to Gainesville, Fla. this weekend for the Pepsi Baseball Classic hosted by the University of Florida. Mizzou is 4-2 on the season after sweeping a doubleheader against Louisiana-Monroe last Friday. This weekend's Classic will open on Friday with Ohio State taking on Wake Forest, before No. 12 Missouri takes on No. 2 Florida. Mizzou will face Wake Forest on Saturday before concluding the weekend with a matchup against Ohio State on Sunday. Florida is ranked No. 2 by Baseball America, but is the top ranked team in the Collegiate Baseball and National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association Polls. Missouri is ranked in all polls, with the highest being a No. 12 ranking by Baseball America. This weekend will mark the end of a three-week road trip to open the year for the Tigers. They will begin an eight-game homestand by hosting Illinois State on Wed. March 1 at 4 p.m. at Taylor Stadium in the home opener.

QUICK HITS
• The Tigers have won two-straight games heading into the weekend and four of their last five.

• Junior Nathan Culp has not allowed an earned run in his first two starts. He has also not given up a walk in his 13.0 innings of work.

• Heading into the weekend, freshman David Cales has retired all 12 batters he has faced in his three appearances on the mound.

• With his three appearances this season, senior Taylor Parker has now played in 77 games as a Tiger, which is fourth most all-time at MU. His next appearance will put him in a tie with Justin Stine for third in the Mizzou record books.

• Senior J.C. Field hit his first career home run, and the only home run for MU so far this season, against Charleston Southern on Feb. 10.

• Brock Bond, Gary Arndt and Zane Taylor all carry five-game hitting streaks into the weekend. Arndt has an 11-game hitting streak in tact dating back to last season.

• Missouri's 2.04 ERA is the third best in the Big 12 Conference.

• The Tigers went 21.1 innings to open the season before allowing their first earned run of the year.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
The 2005 National Runners-Up, Florida is ranked either No. 1 or No. 2, depending on which poll you check. The Gators are 7-1 after defeating Florida A&M on Wednesday. Last weekend, Florida recorded its first-ever three-game sweep of Miami and Gator righthander Darren O'Day earned SEC Pitcher of the Week after recording a save in all three games against the Hurricanes. Among the returners from last year's College World Series team is junior Matt LaPorta, who was a first-team All-American last year and has been selected as the Preseason National Player of the Year by several publications. The Gators were 48-23 last year, falling to Texas in the National Championship series. Wake Forest is 3-3 after an extra-inning win over Charlotte on Tuesday. Demon Deacon junior 3B Matt Antonellis, who was selected a preseason All-American and is on the watch list for the Wallace Award, is hitting .333 heading into the weekend. WFU was 28-30 last year and finished eighth in the ACC with a 12-18 conference record. Ohio State will open its 2006 campaign with this weekend's action at the Pepsi Baseball Classic. The Buckeyes were 40-20 in 2005, finishing fourth in the Big Ten Conference. They return five position starters and nine pitchers from that squad. Among those returning for OSU is Rory Meister, the Buckeyes righthanded closer who has been named to the Watch List for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award.

SERIES HISTORY
Missouri has faced Florida five time in school history, dropping all five. The last time the two faced off, the Gators swept the Tigers in Gainesville in 1992. Missouri and Florida also met in the 1981 NCAA Regionals, with Florida taking a 7-3 win. The Tigers picked up a 5-4, 12-inning win over Wake Forest in the 2003 USA Baseball Classic in Millington, Tenn. in the only prior meeting between the two teams. Mizzou is 0-1 all-time against Ohio State, as the Buckeyes took the only meeting between the two clubs with a 10-6 victory in 1965 in Columbia.

ON TAP
The home opener for Missouri will be next Wednesday, March 1, against Illinois State. First pitch is slated for 4 p.m. at Taylor Stadium. The Tigers are 8-3 in home openers under Head Coach Tim Jamieson and have won four of their last five home debuts.

FAMILIAR FACES
Ohio State Head Coach Bob Todd and Assistant Coach Greg Cypret are familiar with Missouri Baseball. Both Todd and Cypret are alumnus of Mizzou and played and/or coached at MU. Todd was a letter winner from Mizzou in 1968 and graduated from MU in 1971. A native of St. Louis, Todd served as an assistant coach under Gene McArtor at Missouri from 1973-83, when he was the recruiting coordinator and worked with the Tigers' pitchers and catchers. He left MU in 1983 to become the head coach at Kent State, before taking over at Ohio State in 1987. Cypret lettered for MU in 1975-78 and earned All-America honors three times, including a first-team selection in 1978. He was elected in the MU Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in 1990. Cypret played for Todd, when Todd was an assistant at Mizzou.

LAST TIME OUT
Missouri swept a doubleheader against Louisiana-Monroe last weekend in Monroe, La., allowing just one run in the twin-bill. Juniors Max Scherzer and Nathan Culp showed why they are one of the top 1-2 pitching combinations in the nation, shutting down the Indians in the two games. Scherzer recorded the win in his first start of the 2006 season, striking out six in six innings of work. He allowed one run on just four hits. Culp struck out seven in seven scoreless innings to record his second win of the season. He faced the minimum in five of the seven inning he pitched, facing just four batters in each of the other two innings. The Tiger bullpen was also strong against ULM, allowing just one hit in five innings of work by MU relievers. In game one, sophomore John Thies pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings and freshman David Cales retired the Indians in order in the ninth, including a pair of strikeouts. In the second game, senior Travis Wendte came on to pitch a 1-2-3 eighth inning and senior Taylor Parker pitched a perfect ninth to seal the victory.

MIZZOU IN THE POLLS
The Tigers are in the top 25 in all four major college baseball polls, with the Baseball America ranking of No. 12 being the highest. They are No. 23 the Collegiate Baseball Top 30 and No. 25 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association Poll. Mizzou received its highest ever preseason ranking, when Baseball America picked the Tigers No. 10 in its poll. It marked only the second time MU had appeared in the preseason poll and the first since it was No. 19 in 1983. Missouri was No. 21 in the final Baseball America poll last year.

HE STOOD TALL
He Stood Tall is the story of former Mizzou coach John "Hi" Simmons as told by the men who knew him best. Dozens of players from dozens of players from the 1930s to the 1960s share their stories about their former coach in the recently released book. There are also chapters dedicated to Simmons' theories about the game, his colorful vocabulary and his enduring legacy at the University. To order the book, visit mutigers.com or call 913-219-0338. The book can also be purchased at the Tiger Team Store. All proceeds from the book sales will go the Tiger Bullpen, benefiting Mizzou Baseball.

ALL-ACCESS
Video webcast for all Mizzou Baseball home games in 2006 will be available at mutigers.com as part of the new All-Access. New to mutigers.com this year, All-Access is the Tiger fans home to live and archived games for Mizzou Athletics, along with coaches' shows, press conferences and much more. For more information, visit mutigers.com and click on the All-Access icon.