Mizzou Baseball Opens 2009 in Arizona
2/19/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 19, 2009
MIZZOU AT THE GRAND CANYON CLASSIC
Date: February 20-22, 2009
Location: Phoenix, Ariz.
MU Schedule:
Stadium: Brazell Stadium
Capacity: 1,500
Radio: KTGR 1580-AM
Live Audio: KTGR.com
More Information: mutigers.com
FIRST PITCH
The 2009 season opens for Missouri this weekend at the Grand Canyon Classic in Phoenix, Ariz. The Tigers will join Nevada and Gonzaga in the three-day tournament hosted by Grand Canyon University. MU will face both Nevada and Gonzaga twice this weekend, opening against Nevada at 8 p.m. CT (7 p.m. MT) on Friday. The Tigers will take on Gonzaga at 4 p.m. CT (3 p.m. MT) on Saturday, before playing two games on Sunday (vs. Nevada at 11 a.m. CT/10 a.m. MT and vs. Gonzaga at 3 p.m .CT/2 p.m. MT). This weekend's games are the first of nine-straight games in the Phoenix area for Missouri to open the season. Next Tuesday (Feb. 24), Mizzou will take on Arizona State at 7:30 p.m. CT. The Tigers will then take part in the ASU DeMarini Invitational, hosted by Arizona State, Feb. 26-March 1. Missouri will face ASU twice in the tournament (Feb. 26 and March 1), along with taking on Oregon State (Feb. 27) and Northern Illinois (Feb. 28) at Packard Stadium.
BASEBALL AMERICA TABS MU 10TH IN PRESEASON POLL
For the third time in the last four years, the Missouri Baseball team opens the season with a top-10 ranking. The Tigers are No. 10 in Baseball America's Preseason Rankings, which ties the second-highest preseason ranking in school history. Mizzou was ranked sixth by Baseball America prior to the 2008 season and was No. 10 in 2006. Texas A&M claimed the top spot in this season's preseason poll, followed by LSU and North Carolina. Five Big 12 teams are ranked in the Top-25, including four in the Top-10. Texas (fourth) and Baylor (eighth) join Texas A&M and Missouri as Big 12 teams in the Top-10, with Oklahoma coming in 16th. The Big 12 Conference tied with the Southeastern Conference with five ranked teams. Missouri is ranked 20th in both the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association preseason poll and the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' preseason poll and is No. 22 in the Collegiate Baseball poll.
FOR OPENERS
Mizzou will look to win its third-straight season opener Friday against Nevada. After the 7-1 win over UConn to begin last year's season, MU improved its record to 9-4-1 in openers under Head Coach Tim Jamieson. That record includes a 0-0 tie against San Jose in 2001, when the game was called after six innings due to poor weather conditions with no score. Missouri has won its first game of the year in five of the last six seasons.
JAMIESON NEARS SECOND PLACE ON MU'S ALL-TIME WINS LIST
The first win of the 2009 season for Missouri, will be the 481st career victory for MU Head Coach Tim Jamieson, which will place him in a tie for second on Mizzou's all-time wins list. Entering 2009, Jamieson is 480-329-2 in 14 years as the Tigers' head coach. His 480 wins currently ranks third behind legendary former head coaches John "Hi" Simmons and Gene McArtor, both of whom have their numbers retired. Simmons compiled a record of 481-294-3 from 1937-1973 and McArtor is the all-time winningest coach at Missouri with a record of 733-430-3 from 1974-1994. Jamieson, who served as an assistant coach under McArtor from 1988-94, has led the Tigers to seven NCAA Regionals, including each of the last six and is a two-time Conference Coach of the Year. Last fall, the University of Missouri extended Jamieson's contract, keeping him in the MU dugout through at least the 2013 season. With the retirement of Texas Tech's Larry Hays last summer, Jamieson and Baylor coach Steve Smith are now the longest tenured coaches in the Big 12 Conference, as each is entering his 15th year as head coach of the respective programs.
TIGERS PICKED SECOND IN BIG 12 POLL
The Big 12 Conference baseball coaches have picked Mizzou to finish fifth in the league, according to the 2009 Big 12 Preseason Poll. The Tigers received 51 points in the poll. Texas A&M was picked the win the conference, followed by Texas. Baylor and Oklahoma State tied for third in the voting. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team. Overall six of the Big 12's 10 teams are ranked nationally, including the Texas A&M (1), Texas (4), Baylor (8), Missouri (10), Oklahoma State (13) and Oklahoma (16).
SERIES HISTORIES
Missouri is 4-3 all-time against its opponents at this weekend's Grand Canyon Classic. The Tigers hold a 3-2 advantage over Nevada and are 1-1 against Gonzaga. Friday's matchup with Nevada will be the second time in the last six years the two teams have met to open the season. In 2004, MU defeated Nevada, 8-7 in the season opener, which was also played in Phoenix, as part of the Oakland A's Spring Training Tournament. Mizzou scored two runs in the ninth inning of that game to pick up the come-from-behind victory. Missouri's last contest with Gonzaga also came in Arizona, as the Tigers defeated the Bulldogs 10-3 in 2007 at the Coca-Cola Classic in Surprise, Ariz. Trevor Coleman, a freshman at the time, went 3-for-4 for the Tigers against Gonzaga, picking up his first three collegiate hits. Ryan Lollis also had three hits in that game and drove in three runs.
GIBSON, SENNE, COLEMAN NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS
Missouri juniors Kyle Gibson, Aaron Senne and Trevor Coleman are already collecting honors for the 2009 season, as each has earned Preseason All-American accolades. Gibson earned a spot on Baseball America's Preseason All-American first team and was a second team selection for the Louisville Slugger All-American, which is selected by Collegiate Baseball newspaper. Last season, Gibson had a record of 9-4, earning All-Big 12 honorable mention. Senne was named to the third team of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association Preseason All-America squad. An All-Big 12 first team selection in 2008, Senne led the team with a .347 batting average and added 13 home runs and 67 RBI. Coleman was named a Preseason Second Team All-American by Baseball America. Coleman was a Freshman All-American in 2007 and last year hit .295 for the Tigers. In addition, both Gibson and Senne have been named to the watch list for the Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Award and Gibson's name appears on the Golden Spikes Award watch list.
GIBSON LEADS TEAM USA TO UNDEFEATED 2008 TOUR
Missouri pitcher Kyle Gibson picked up his team-best fifth win of the summer for Team USA as the USA Baseball National Team defeated Japan, 1-0, in the gold medal game of last summer's FISU World Championships at Mestsky Stadium. With the game scoreless, Team USA scored in the top of the 12th inning, making a winner of Gibson who had pitched a perfect 11th inning with one strikeout. It was Team USA's third consecutive FISU title. The U.S. squad completed its 2008 tour 24-0 and established a National Team record for lowest staff ERA at 0.88 (the previous mark of 1.29 was set in 2003). Team USA did not allow more than two earned runs in any game and tossed its sixth shutout of the summer in the FISU title game. Gibson finished 5-0 on the summer to lead the team in wins. He tied for the team lead with 13 appearances on the mound and had an ERA of 1.02. He struck out 25 batters in 17.2 innings pitched.
COMING BACK
Many of Mizzou's key components from 2008 return for the upcoming season. The Tigers lost just two pitchers from last years' staff, although those two pitchers (Aaron Crow and Rick Zagone) accounted for 15 wins and 183 strikeouts. Kyle Gibson, who was second on the team with nine wins and 96 strikeouts will step in as the "ace" for the Tigers. Other possible starters for MU include senior Ian Berger, who won four games in 2008 and pitched 85.1 innings, and Nick Tepesch, a sophomore who collected four saves as he spent most of the 2008 season coming out of the bullpen. Seniors Scooter Hicks and Ryan Gargano and junior Ryan Allen totaled 81.2 innings pitched in relief last year and will lead an experienced bullpen. The MU sophomore class will be called upon to step up for the pitching staff as Kelly Fick, Tyler Clark and Brad Buehler, in addition to Tepesch, will have a chance to play vital roles for the Tigers in 2009. In addition, Greg Folgia, who spent most of the 2008 season as the Tigers' second baseman, will likely see more time on the mound this year. In 2007, as a freshman, Folgia was 5-4 and had two saves, recording 41 strikeouts. In the lineup, four of Missouri's top five hitters from a year ago return led by outfielders Aaron Senne and Ryan Lollis. Senne, a junior, led the team with a .347 average last year, with 13 home runs and 67 RBI. Lollis was second on the team with a .339 average. He returns for his senior year, passing on pro ball after being drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 20th round of last years MLB Draft. Folgia, who hit .293 last year, will complete the outfield for MU, as he is penciled in as the left fielder. Both of Mizzou's corner infielders are back, as seniors Steve Gray and Kyle Mach will take their positions at first and third base, respectively. Sophomore Andrew Thigpen hit .324 stepping in at shortstop for the Tigers in 2008. He is expected to slide over to second base this year. Behind the plate is junior Trevor Coleman. A Freshman All-American two years ago, Coleman may be the top catcher returning in the Big 12 Conference. He hit .295 last year for the Tigers.
TIGERS TO PLAY IN BOTH OF MISSOURI'S MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL STADIUMS IN 2009
Among the highlights of the Tigers' 2009 schedule are games to be played at both of the Major League Baseball stadiums in the state of Missouri. On April 1, Mizzou will take on Saint Louis University at Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals. Game time for the Tigers-Billikens matchup is set for 7:15 p.m. Three weeks later, MU will return to Kauffman Stadium, the home of the Kansas City Royals, to face Kansas at 6:30 p.m. on April 22. This will mark the third year that Missouri and Kansas have been scheduled to meet at Kauffman Stadium, however the 2007 game was cancelled due to rain. The game is considered a non-conference contest and will be played in addition to the three-game conference series between the two teams May 8-10 in Columbia.
A LOOK AT THE `09 SCHEDULE
This season Missouri will take on eight teams (Arizona State, Texas, Texas A&M, Illinois-Chicago, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Eastern Illinois and Nebraska) that qualified for the NCAA Tournament in 2008, playing a total of 21 games against those eight teams. Two of those eight teams (Arizona State and Texas A&M) advanced to the NCAA Super Regional. The teams on the Tigers' 2009 schedule had a combined record of 728-573-2 last season. Mizzou has a record of 930-772 all-time against its 2009 scheduled opponents and will be facing three teams (Northern Illinois, Ball State and Cal State-Bakersfield) for the first time in school history. This season is the first in the history of the baseball program at Cal State-Bakersfield.
MIZZOU MAKES IT SIX-STRAIGHT NCAA TOURNAMENTS
Last season, Mizzou advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth-straight season, becoming one of just16 schools in the nation to qualify for the postseason in the last six years. Only two Big 12 schools (MU and Texas) can make that claim.
ON THE AIR
Once again this year, KTGR 1580-AM is the radio home of the Tigers. All of Mizzou's regular season and postseason games will air on KTGR 1580-AM in Columbia. The games can also be heard online at KTGR.com. Tex Little is in his 19th season of calling Tiger Baseball and is joined in the booth by Hudson Guthrie, who returns for his second year as part of the Tigers' broadcast team.
ALL-ACCESS
Video webcast for all Missouri Baseball home games in 2009 is available at mutigers.com as part of Mizzou All-Access. 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.
UP NEXT
Missouri will spend 10-days in Arizona to open the 2009 season. Following this weekend at the Grand Canyon Classic, the Tigers will take on Arizona State on Tuesday, Feb. 24 in Tempe, Ariz. Next weekend, MU will play in the ASU DeMarini Invitational in Tempe as Arizona State, Oregon State and Northern Illinois join the Tigers in the tournament field.
