MUTigers.com at the Ballpark: Practice Day
5/31/2007 12:00:00 AM | Chat
MUTigers.com at the Ballpark: Columbia Regional Practice The four teams at the NCAA Division I Baseball Columbia Regional took to Simmons Field on Thursday for their final practices, and mutigers.com was here to chronicle the day.. First off, today's schedule: 10:00-11:15 a.m. - Missouri practice |
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| Fletch: (10:45) Alright folks, the Tigers are in the middle of BP on Simmons Field, and the dreariness of Thursday-morning overcast skies have yielded to a bright sun for the moment. We'll be here throughout the day, so send your questions in! | |
| Fletch: While we're at it, I can pass along that John McKee will be joining us following Mizzou's practice, sometime around 11:15. | |
Fletch: For those of you who are familiar with Taylor Stadium/Simmons Field, there is a definite postseason feel now. For starters, not too many media outlets (in fact, I feel safe in writing "none") show up for a morning practice; their schedules are much more nocturnal than yours and mine, so it's nice to see them get up for an early practice! A few other things:
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| Fletch: The Miami players have arrived, and are currently stretching on the infield of Walton Stadium, which just five days earlier was pierced by javelins during the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Mideast Regional. This Thursday morning, that space is empty, save for a grid of green and orange uniforms going through their routine. | |
| Fletch: The Tigers have finished their BP, and are going through some long-toss in left field. John McKee should be up here in the next 15 minutes, so get your questions sent in for Mizzou's senior first baseman. | |
| Fletch: (11:05) The Tigers have retaken the field for some defensive drills. | |
| Montgomery, Indiana: What is the full tourney schedule times, and are there plenty of seats available? | |
| Fletch: I should first point out that full information on the Regional can be found at this page and its off-shoots. You'll see there that the schedule is for games at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Friday through Sunday, with the "if-necessary" championship set for Monday at 1. | |
| Fletch: As for a ticket update, reserved seats (those are the chairbacks in the lower half of Taylor Stadium from dugout to dugout) are at a premium. There are still a number of GA tickets available for all sessions, but please take note that single-game ticket sales have been strong for Mizzou's opener tomorrow night at 6:30 vs. Kent. If you want to guarantee yourself a seat -- and just as importantly, no line for the walk-up crowd that will try to buy their tickets when they arrive -- I'd strongly urge you to get your tickets now. | |
| Fletch: (11:13) The guys have broken their huddle, the grounds crew is readying the field for Miami, the players are beginning to emerge from the dugout to meet with the assembled media, and we'll have John McKee up momentarily. Get your questions in now! He'll only be here for a few minutes. | |
| Fletch: While we're waiting for John, we'll try to sneak in another general question or two... | |
| Matt (Kansas City): How does Missouri stack up in this regional, especially against a traditional power such as Miami? | |
| Fletch: Matt -- As a few people have mentioned this week, Missouri's hosting and is the No. 1 seed for a reason. Your question is entirely valid, though, given Miami's history: This is the Hurricanes' 36th straight NCAA Tournament, and they've won their last 13 Regionals. And for folks looking for a comparison, Big 12 fans know that the 'Canes were a 2 seed sent to (if I remember correctly, a national seed, certainly a 1 seed) Nebraska recently, and came out of Lincoln with the title. Don't overlook Louisville and Kent State, either, particularly Tiger fans on Friday. Kent State has front-line pitching that every coach can appreciate. | |
| Fletch: Gang -- John has just walked in to the press box, and is ready for your questions. Keep them coming, and we'll try to get to them all. | |
| Fulton, Mo.: How will you handle the Kent State pitching staff in the first game? | |
| John McKee: I don't know too much about them, but we're going to try and keep the same approach we've had all season long: Just working the count, and getting good pitches to hit, and driving the baseball. | |
| Fletch: What do you know about their expected starter, Chris Carpenter? | |
| John McKee: He's a tall righty, throws pretty hard, with good command and a good slider. Other than that, I don't know a whole lot. | |
| Mason (Logan): John, congratulations on a great season and the well-deserved hosting bid. I hope that Columbia comes out in full force to support you guys. Can you please talk about what it means to host a regional, and maybe also talk about any challenges that playing at home might give you that we fans might not understand? Good luck!! | |
| John McKee: We expect a really good crowd, it's really exciting. This is a huge step for our program. We really haven't had great fan support during the regular season, but hopefully everyone that comes out will see just how hard we've worked all year. Probably the biggest challenge is staying within a routine and keeping things in perspective. We've had a lot of different things going on with media requests, etc., that we haven't had during the season, so we just need to stay in a routine. | |
| Fletch: Different things, like an online chat? | |
| John McKee: Exactly. | |
| Paul (Columbia): Thanks for this great coverage! Can't wait til gametime! Question for John: What sort of things do you tell the freshmen of the team in regards to their first NCAA tournament? Is there any advice you give from your own experience? | |
| John McKee: We've just been telling them to control their adrenaline, and not doing anything special. We got here by doing what we do, and not by doing what we're not. | |
| Mike, K.C: How you do feel about the chances of getting out of the regional and maybe have a chance of playing Oklahoma State again? | |
| John McKee: We can't worry about who we're going to face. Our focus is on Kent State, and after that, it changes to either Miami or Louisville. We're just taking one game at a time. | |
| Fletch: Allright folks, John has to get going, so we thank you for your questions, and John for his time. | |
| Fletch: (11:29) Miami is officially set to take the field in one minute. I'm going to step away for a moment to see whom from the 'Canes can stop by during their practice. Feel free to send in any Miami-related or general tournament questions in in the meantime. [You can actually send in questions on any team, and we'll hold them until that team arrives.] | |
| Fletch: We've received several questions regarding Blake Tekotte... the local media are understandably quite interested in talking to him as well, so we won't be able to have him join us after practice. | |
| Fletch: (11:59) Senior SS Roger Tomas will stop by around 12:45 p.m. following the conclusion of practice. You can read more about Roger from his official Miami baseball bio. | |
| Fletch: The 'Canes have wrapped up their fungo session, and are moving the cage in place for some batting practice. | |
| Fletch: Got word that the three Miami radio crews (that's right, three: Their student station that has traveled with them all year; their Spanish-language station; and their flagship that picks up coverage beginning in the postseason) won't be arriving into Columbia until tonight, so we won't have anyone close to the team joining us until Roger Tomas at the end of Miami's practice. | |
| Fletch: (12:24) As Miami continues with BP, Louisville is stretching on the football practice field past the left-field bullpen. Keep sending in those questions for Roger Tomas! | |
| Fletch: (12:39) The Hurricanes are huddled on the pitcher's mound at Taylor Stadium, getting final instructions from Head Coach Jim Morris. A throng of media are awaiting Columbia Hickman grad Blake Tekotte, and we'll have Roger Tomas up shortly! | |
| Fletch: (12:48) The Canes have emerged from the dugout, and Louisville is entering the left-field gate to occupy the third-base dugout. Miami players are getting media interviews out of the way, and Roger Tomas is on his way up. | |
| Roger Tomas (Miami): OK folks, I'm up in the press box, so fire away with your questions. | |
| Jamie (Columbia): Roger, thanks for taking questions and welcome to Columbia! Describe Miami's style of play for those of us who will be getting our first look at the Canes this weekend. What strengths have brought your team to the next level this season? Thanks again and good luck. | |
| Roger Tomas (Miami): This year has been a lot of the same things as last year. I don't want to say we play small ball, but our starting pitching has been a key for us, as well as our leadoff and No. 2 guys have been doing a good job of getting on base, and the guys behind them have been getting guys in all year. As long as our first two guys get on, we know we're going to have a good day. | |
| John (Springfield): Roger, last year you were a lower seed and won at Nebraska. This year, you're a 2 seed at Missouri. You've made it to Omaha twice in that span. How is it that the Canes are so comfortable winning without being the host or the 1 seed? | |
| Roger Tomas (Miami): I think last year had a lot to do with the 3 and 4 seeds knocking out the top seed [Nebraska]. We weren't scared of anybody, but it gave us a lot of confidence knowing that we were still in it. Just going on the road doesn't make us the favorite or not. Our guys love going on the road. They take pride in winning on the road and all the animosity from the fans and building on it. If you look back at our Regular season we won on the road against pretty good tams. | |
| coralgablesfan: Roger - How has the trip been so far? Any highlights? | |
| Roger Tomas (Miami): We had to take two different planes, because one couldn't fit everyone. The first plane went through Dallas, and that plane got delayed because of weather. I was on the second plane, and that got in an hour and a half before the first one. Plus traveling time zones doesn't make it easy. We got in late, and we had to come to practice this morning, so we haven't seen much yet. Hopefully after tomorrow's game, we'll see some more. We'll have dinner at Blake Tekotte's mom's house. | |
| Fletch: The 'Canes have to get going, so we'll let Roger get on his way, and again thank him for his time. | |
| Fletch: (12:59) Louisville is nearly ready to take the field; let's knock another question out while we can... | |
| Rich (Jefferson City): I wondered how ticket sales are going up there? North Carolina sold out entirely (3,500 seats a game) in less than a day. Would love to see full stands in Columbia this weekend. | |
| Fletch: Rich -- Can't agree with you more. While we certainly can't announce a sellout yet, we're expecting to have one by the time the first pitch is thrown at 6:30 on Friday. You mention UNC; there are a couple of differences between them and Missouri... first and foremost, the Tar Heels averaged over 1,500 a game during the regular season, while Missouri was about half that, give or take. So they've had more support on a consistent basis. I will say, though, that this community is getting excited about this weekend. We in the athletic deparment are obviously excited to host this event. I was the baseball SID in 2003 -- the first of the current run of five straight regionals -- when we went down to Mississippi State for regionals. In what they considered a "down" year attendance-wise, they still had around 7,000 fans, if I recall. Those numbers don't happen overnight; they come from sustained success. I think the baseball program has shown it the last five years; this is Columbia's chance to mirror the program's success in the stands for the first time. | |
| Fletch: From an apparel standpoint, Louisville is making the biggest mental statement of the day: In the heat and humidity of mid-Missouri, the Cardinals are outfitted head-to-toe in black. Right as I type that, the sun ducks behind a cloud to give momentary cover. | |
| Fletch: (1:53) Sorry for the delay, folks, have been setting up a couple of things for the webcasts this weekend. As a reminder, every game of the Columbia Regional will be streamed LIVE on mutigers.com. Best way to access the links is to go to the front page of the Regional sitehttp://mutigers.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/07-regional.html, and click on the WATCH links. | |
| Columbia, Mo.: Is there seating in the homerun area. | |
| Fletch: There is NOT seating behind the Taylor Stadium fences. The fence itself is about 8-10 feet high all the way around, and about 15-20 feet high in dead center to create a batters' eye.
One other note on seating: I mentioned the added bleachers in the area occupied by the batting cages at the beginning of the day; there is also covered bleacher seating under the third-base pavilion. They're GA seats, though, so it's first-come, first-served! |
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| Fletch: Another introduction to those of you new to Taylor Stadium: It's a symmetrical field, with dimensions of 340' down the lines, 370' in the power alleys, 400' to center, and, as visitors in the last decade will recall, 420' to hit the corner of the Devine Pavilion in right field. [That sign went back up overnight; it had been taken down prior to this season.] | |
| Fletch: (2:01) UL closer Trystan Magnuson, projected to be a high pick in next month's MLB Draft, will join us following the close of Louisville's practice in 15 minutes. Read more about him here. | |
| Tyler (Lansing, MI): The Cards have 2 of the best pitchers in the Big East. RHP Zach Pitts-Big East Pitcher of the Year & LHP Justin Marks-Big East Freshman of the Year. The offense can be explosive at times, but consistency is the key. Fear the Black...Go Cards! | |
| Fletch: Tyler -- No doubt. I know Miami fans have been clogging various message boards looking ahead to another trip to Omaha, but I know that the coaches of each of the other three teams here knows that once you get to this point of the season, there are no bad teams. I feel safe in saying that no one in orange will be overlooking UL come Friday at 1. | |
| Fletch: (2:09) Louisville is running an interesting BP drill that looks more like Friday night at your local dirt track. Guys were squaring to bunt, zipping to their right out of the cage while another came in behind them, and keeping things in motion. I'm more used to seeing a 3-4 pitch short-session in the cage before moving on, but this was a human pinwheel going in and out of the cage for a couple of minutes. They've since returned to a more common rotation in and out. | |
| Fletch: Kent State is stretching in the far-eastern football practice field, past the left-center field fence. They'll begin their practice at 2:30; UL is beginning their final hacks in the cage. | |
| Trystan Magnuson: OK folks, I'm ready to take your questions. | |
| John (Jeff City): Trystan -- Looking at your career stats, it looks like you started for your first couple of years before moving to the pen. What has your progession beem like at UL? | |
| Trystan Magnuson: The last couple of years was on and off in the pen and starting, and this year, it looked like we had a solid starting staff, and they needed someone to fill that role, so hopefully I've done that pretty well. | |
| Fletch: Do you prefer the pen or starting? | |
| Trystan Magnuson: They're different. I really enjoy being a closer. Coming in and shutting down a team for the last three outs is a lot of fun. | |
| Rich: What are your thoughts on the Draft? How do you feel about the new signing rules? | |
| Trystan Magnuson: I don't even know much about the new signing rule, but I'm excited to play pro ball and the draft. In high school I got cut and I never got recruited, so in a sense this is my first recruiting, so it's kind of fun. | |
| WilsonTheCard: What is the rotation for the weekend? | |
| Trystan Magnuson: I'm pretty sure that it'll be Pitts/Marks/Wark, and hopefully we don't need anybody beyond that. | |
| Don: How much do you know about Miami and Missouri? | |
| Trystan Magnuson: We played Miami last year, and a bunch of guys are from Florida, and one of our coaches is from Miami. They've got a great program with great history. Hopefully we can do some damage against them, and have some fun playing them. | |
| Fletch: Great questions for Trystan; we'll send him on his way so he can make the bus with the team. Kent State is set to take the field in four minutes. One of their radio guys is at the stadium, so send in your Kent State questions and we'll get them taken care of during their practice. | |
| Fletch: Kent State has wrapped up their practice, and we've got RHP Reid Lamport here to take a couple questions. | |
| Jeremy (Washignton DC): What are your initial impressions of Mizzou's facilities and playing surface? | |
| Reid Lamport: Really nice. The field's very well-kept. I haven't been anywhere except the baseball facility, but from what I've seen, it's really nice. | |
| Fletch: When did you guys get in town, and have you seen any parts of Columbia? | |
| Reid Lamport: We got in last night, just ate dinner and everyone was pretty tired from the flight, so we just sat around, watched the basketball game and went to bed. | |
| Thomas (St. Louis): Who are your best hitters and best pitchers? What's the rotation for the weekend? | |
| Reid Lamport: Our Friday guy is Chris Carpenter, he's a projected first-round draft pick next month. Our top hitter is our third baseman, senior Andrew Davis. He's our all-time leading hitter and RBI guy, and he's third all-time in our conference (Mid-American). | |
| Fletch: Well folks, we're wrapping up here. Once final plug for any information you need: Go to the Columbia Regional Web Site for all the information you need, and we'll see you at the park this weekend! | |
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