March 16, 2015

Leading Off - Notables About the Tigers
? At 15-4 to open 2015, Mizzou is off to its best 19-game start since 2008 when the team won 17 of its first 19 games. That 2008 team opened the year 19-2 and eventually qualified for the Coral Gables Regional.
? Mizzou is 3-0 in SEC play for the first time in history, perched atop the SEC East standing in a three-way tie with nationally-ranked South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Mizzou is coming off of its first-ever sweep in SEC play last weekend at Georgia. It was also Mizzou's first road sweep in conference play since 2009 at Nebraska.
? A win Tuesday would match the Tigers' longest winning streak of the season at six games.

FastBalls - Quick Notes About the Pitching
? Mizzou is second in the SEC in ERA after five weeks of play at 2.02
? Mizzou also leads the SEC In opponent batting, extra-base hits allowed and runs allowed.
? The Tigers rank second in the SEC in hits allowed and walks allowed
? Mizzou has allowed three or fewer runs in 15 of 19 games this season and has allowed one or fewer in eight games, including four shutouts.
? The three Tiger weekend starters have allowed just 24 earned runs in 101.2 innings pitched, good for a 2.12 ERA.
? Mizzou has a WHIP of 1.05 heading into week six.
? In SEC games, the Tigers' 1.61 ERA is a league-best after allowing just five runs over three games last weekend in Athens.
? Sunday's 6-0 win over Georgia marked Mizzou's first shutout of an SEC opponent since 2013, when former second round draft pick Rob Zastryzny tossed a complete game shutout, also at Georgia.
? In SEC play, Mizzou leads the league in ERA, opponent batting, hits allowed and runs allowed.

SERIES NOTES
? Mizzou baseball returns home this week riding a five-game win streak as it is set to host a Tuesday-Wednesday series with Air Force.
? Mizzou leads the all-time series with Air Force, 2-0. The two teams met to open the 1968 season with Mizzou claiming a 7-6 victory under John `Hi' Simmons. Gene McArtor's Tigers then defeated Air Force in a slug-fest, 19-12, in 1985. Mizzou and Air Force have not met since that 1985 season.

RECAPPING THE WEEKEND
Mizzou is 3-0 in SEC play for the first time in program history after sweeping Georgia in Athens for the Tigers' first ever SEC series sweep and the program's first road conference sweep since 2009. Mizzou allowed just five runs to the Bulldogs over the three-game set, four coming in the middle of the three-game series. Friday's contest was moved to Saturday due to rain as the teams played a doubleheader, the Tigers' fourth of the season - the result was familiar though as Mizzou earned its fourth doubleheader sweep of the season. In game one, junior righty Reggie McClain was sensational against his former school, tossing his SEC-leading second complete game while scattering just six hits and two walks while striking out eight and allowing just one run (earned) as he led the Tigers to a 5-1 win. Mizzou used the long ball for most of its offense, the bulk coming on Georgia native Trey Harris' first career homer, a three-run shot in the sixth for the freshman. Senior Case Munson also homered in the game, his second of the season and third in his career ... In the nightcap, Mizzou went on top 4-1 after Brett Bond's third homer of the season before Georgia rallied to tie the game at 4-4 with a pair of homers in the eighth. But, as Mizzou has shown all season, it won another close game, scoring four times in the top of the 10th inning to close the game. It was Mizzou's first extra-inning game of the season and marked the fourth time this season that Mizzou has won a game when tied after eight innings (Mizzou had just one such win a season ago). In the finale on Sunday, junior Peter Fairbanks allowed just one hit over 7.0 shutout innings as Mizzou earned its fourth shutout of the season in a 6-0 win the complete the sweep.

ROAD WARRIORS
As Mizzou returns home to open a seven-game homestand Tuesday, the Tigers may tell you that they would much rather play on the road this season. In fact, Mizzou is 13-1 away from Taylor Stadium this season and just 2-3 in home games. However, Mizzou is currently on a two-game home winning streak after winning a pair of midweek games over Truman State and SIUE last Tuesday and Wednesday.

FRESHMEN WITH A BIG WEEK
While plenty of Tigers swung hot bats last weekend, a pair of Tiger freshmen were huge during Mizzou's five-game win streak. Catcher Brett Bond has seemed to lock down that position as he hit .647 (11-for-17) last week while reaching base in 16 of 24 plate appearances while scoring a team-high eight runs. He also tallied a homer and drove in four runs while walking three times with a steal. Classmate Trey Harris was equally as impressive, hitting .500 (7-for-14) with six RBI, three runs, a homer and a triple. He had a huge, go-ahead, three-run homer in Mizzou's 5-1 win over Georgia in game one of the series. It was the first home run of the Georgia native's career as he got to circle the bases in front for plenty of family and friends. Those two combined to go 18-for-31 (.581) while scoring 11 runs, driving in 10 more with a pair of homers, a triple, three walks and a steal.

GOING, GOING, GONE
Mizzou hit four home runs last week, moving its season total to 11 through 19 games. That already surpasses last season's mark (10) and the Tigers have 27 SEC games remaining and 36 total games. Mizzou is on pace for 21 homers, which would be its most since hitting 29 in 2012. Freshman Brett Bond leads the team with three homers while Case Munson and Josh Lester each have two. Seven different Tigers have hit homers.

NOTHING ERRONEOUS ABOUT DEFENSE
While the Tiger pitching has been sensational this season, it may be easy to overlook the Tiger defense, which has been equally as impressive. In fact, Mizzou has committed an SEC-low 13 errors through 19 games (0.68 per game) and has just one error over the last five games (all wins). Mizzou is now fielding .982 on the season and six of the 13 errors have come from pitchers or catchers. The core Tiger infielders (Zach Lavy, Brett Peel, Ryan Howard) have combined to commit six errors on 410 chances (.985 fielding).

As a team, Mizzou is 8-0 this season when not committing an error and is 6-3 when committing one or fewer. That means that Mizzou has committed one or fewer errors in 17 of 19 games this season. Mizzou had just 13 games all of last season in which it committed zero errors a season ago. Mizzou is second in the league in fielding, trailing only defending champion Florida.

LESTER DRIVING IN RUNS
Junior Josh Lester has been clutch this season. Despite hitting just .235 on the year, he has compiled a team-best 18 RBI this season, ranking him 12th in the SEC in that category. A big reason for his incredible RBI total is the fact that he is hitting a blistering .320 (8-for-25) with runners in scoring position this season. He has already surpassed his RBI total from a season ago (13). Lester hit .333 last week over the Tigers' five-game win streak and drove in a team-best eight runs with a pair of doubles and a homer.

MCCLAIN RETURNS TO FORM
Junior righty Reggie McClain was lights out in his first three starts, earning SEC Pitcher of the Week in back-to-back weeks to open the season. He hit a slight bump in the road in his first home start against Milwaukee as he was roughed up for 10 hits and five earned runs over 5.1 innings pitched. But he rebounded last weekend at his former school, Georgia, in his home state. The Duluth, Ga., native tossed his SEC-leading second complete game, scattering just six hits with two walks against eight strikeouts. He allowed just one earned run in the start and retired 14 of the final 17 batters he faced. In fact, he allowed just one hit over his last five innings of work in the start. McClain leads the SEC in innings pitched (38.1) and ranks 10th in ERA, first in WHIP and fourth in strikeouts as he has arguably been the league's most dominant starting pitcher when looking at the numbers.

PEEL STEALS
Senior Brett Peel stole four bases over the five games last week, moving him in to first place in the SEC, passing LSU's Alex Bregman for the league lead. Peel is part of a Tiger team that has swiped 33 bases in 44 attempts this season. The 33 steals rank fourth in the SEC this season and Peel is a big part of that. He has been caught just twice this season and has scored a team-high 14 runs.

WINS IN PERSPECTIVE
While Mizzou's 15 overall wins and three SEC wins are nothing too impressive at this point of the season, one must remember the perspective needed to make those numbers impressive. Mizzou has averaged just 19 wins per season since joining the SEC and the Tigers are now just four wins shy of matching that mark and just five wins shy of matching last year's win total. Additionally, Mizzou won just six SEC games a season ago as the three wins this year are already halfway to Mizzou's SEC win total in 2014. Despite the tough transition to the nation's premier baseball conference, Tim Jamieson's Tigers appear to be trending in the right way.

NOTABLE STREAKS THIS WEEK
Heading into the week, Mizzou has a pair of impressive streaks from the guys batting in the top two spots of the order - Brett Peel and Jake Ring. Ring has reached base safely in all 19 games this season while Peel has done so in 17 consecutive games. The duo has reached base in 39-percent of its plate appearances this season and the two have combined for 26 runs scored and 18 stolen bases as they continue to be catalysts at the top of the order. Throw in Ring's team-leading 10 extra-base hits and his 12 RBI and those two have proven to be quite the formidable duo at the top of the order.

PITCHING IS STILL THE STORY
As much as the Tigers have benefited from timely hitting and good defense early this season, pitching has been the story. Below are a few talking points:

? Mizzou is second in the SEC in ERA after five weeks of play at 2.02
? Mizzou also leads the SEC In opponent batting, extra-base hits allowed and runs allowed.
? The Tigers rank second in the SEC in hits allowed and walks allowed
? Mizzou has allowed three or fewer runs in 15 of 19 games this season and has allowed one or fewer in eight games, including four shutouts.
? The three Tiger weekend starters have allowed just 24 earned runs in 101.2 innings pitched, good fora 2.12 ERA.
? Mizzou has a staff WHIP of 1.05 heading into week six.

PETE CRACKS SEC'S TOP 10 IN ERA
Junior righty Peter Fairbanks, on the heels of taking a one-hitter through 7.0 innings in his last start against Georgia, now ranks eighth in the SEC with a 1.52 ERA. That gives Mizzou a pair of starting pitchers in the SEC's top 10 in ERA as Reggie McClain checks in at 10th.

WALKING OFF
Freshman Brett Bond launched a walk-off, two-run homer in Mizzou's 2-0 win over Sam Houston State. It was Mizzou's first walk-off homer since Ryan Ampleman defeated Kansas in May of 2009. Junior Josh Lester then launched a walk-off homer in game one of the UIC series in the bottom of the ninth, Mizzou's second walk-off homer of the season. Lester's bomb was also Mizzou's third walk-off win this season after having just two all of 2014.Add in Mizzou's four-run 10th inning at Georgia, and it is clear that the Tigers have a knack for getting it done late in games this season.

WINNING CLOSE GAMES
Mizzou has also won its fair share of close games, winning five one-run games already this season. Mizzou won five of those variety all year in 2014. Mizzou is also 4-0 when tied after eight innings this season after going 1-7 in such games a season ago. Most recently, Mizzou was pushed to a 4-4 tie after eight in game two at Georgia and Mizzou rallied for four runs in the top of the 10th inning to seal the win.

BECAUSE THREE IS BETTER THAN ONE
Mizzou did something that may have never been done in school history last Sunday against Purdue. With the bases loaded and no outs in the bottom of the sixth and with the Tigers trying to preserve a 1-0 lead, Andrew Schwaab got a ground ball to third to start a 5-2-3-2 triple play. While it may have been done before at Mizzou, it is the first documented triple play in the record books. It turned out to be the play of the game as Mizzou held on to win, 1-0, behind a one- hitter from the pitching staff.

RECRUITNG CLASS IS GOOD
The 2014 Mizzou baseball freshman class earned a pair of top-25 national rankings as Baseball America tabbed the class 12th nationally while Perfect Game slotted the Tigers at No. 22. Mizzou now ranks in the top 31 in all of the major recruiting rankings after being ranked No. 31 by Collegiate Baseball with an average rank of No. 22 nationally. The No. 12 ranking in Baseball America is the best for the Tigers since 2007, when the team checked in at No. 11.

In the Baseball America rankings, the Tigers check in at 12th nationally and fifth in the Southeastern Conference. The 14-player class has two players - Bryce Montes De Oca (72) and Shane Benes (400) - that ranked among the top 400 recruits according to the publication. Montes De Oca was the third-highest ranked prospect to enter Division I this season. Baseball America described the class as `a frontline SEC-caliber class' and the publication goes on to tout the the pitchers in the 2014 class as all very projectable at the next level. In the Perfect Game rankings, Mizzou checks in at No. 22 nationally and ninth in the SEC.

NEW COACHES
Mizzou head baseball coach Tim Jamieson announced that Mizzou graduate and former Tiger All-American Hunter Mense has been promoted and will serve as the program's full time hitting coach. Mense, one of the brightest young minds in college baseball, had a very successful playing career both collegiately and at the next level. He has served as an undergraduate and graduate assistant over the last four seasons while completing his undergraduate degree and working towards his Master's degree in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis in sport psychology at Mizzou.

During his last four years with Mizzou baseball, Mense established a great rapport with the Tiger hitters and also used his schooling in the field of sport psychology to work as a positive coach, assisting in the mental side of the Tigers' approach. With a pair of degrees and an All-America honor, Mense is a truly Mizzou Made addition to the Tiger coaching staff.

Coach Jamieson will now handle the pitchers, a role that has been a specialty for the Tiger skipper, who has mentored the likes of American League Cy Young winner Max Scherzer and other current Major Leaguers Aaron Crow (Royals), Kyle Gibson (Twins), Nick Tepesch (Rangers) and Matt Stites (Diamondbacks). Scherzer, Crow and Gibson were all first-round draft picks under Jamieson's tutelage. Crow was an All-Star pick for the Royals and Gibson was been one of the best pitchers for the Twins last season.

Additionally, former Tiger catcher Trevor Coleman has returned to Mizzou to serve as a graduate assistant manager. He was a freshman All-American and Big 12 Freshman of the Year during his playing days with the Tigers and will work with the Tiger hitters and catchers.

A LOOK AT THIS YEAR'S COMPETITION
Mizzou has put together a very competitive schedule in 2014. Most of that is due to the Tigers' SEC slate, which should bring plenty of excitement to Taylor Stadium. In fact, Mizzou plays 19 games, including six weekend series against teams that qualified for NCAA Regional action a season ago. Mizzou will also play weekend series against College World Series qualifiers Vanderbilt and Ole Miss. Of course, Vanderbilt won the NCAA Championship a season ago.

Looking deeper into the schedule, Mizzou is 150-136 all-time against this year's scheduled opponents.

LESTER, BONE WIN SUMMER LEAGUES
Two Mizzou baseball players - Josh Lester and Logan Bone - won championships with their respective Summer League teams last summer. Lester and the Y-D Red Sox won the Cape Cod League, which is often recognized as the top summer ball league on Aug. 15. Bone and the Quincy Gems also won the 2014 Prospect League Championship on Aug. 13.

Starting in the Cape, Lester hit .280 over eight games in the playoffs, notching a double, five runs and an RBI. He helped the Red Sox to a 10-4 win over Falmouth in game two of the championship series, completing the sweep. Lester hit .279 in 40 regular season games as well, notching four doubles while driving in 14 and scoring 16 runs. He also was second on the team with 15 walks.

Moving to the Prospects League, Bone played in 33 games from the Gems and hit .239 with a pair of doubles and a homer while scoring 13 runs and driving in 13 more. He had three runs and an RBI in the playoffs while playing in all six games.

Ks FOR K9s
The Mizzou baseball team has partnered with the Puppies With Purpose program for the 2015 season in an effort to help raise money for Columbia service dogs. The initiative, dubbed "K's for K9's," will allow fans to pledge a donation amount to be paid per strikeout during the 2015 season.

"I'm a dog lover," head coach Tim Jamieson said. "I've read more and more about dogs and actually researched whether or not there were places in Missouri that train dogs for this purpose and ironically find out that there's one in Columbia and one on Mizzou's campus. So it seemed like it was a really good fit and I introduced it to our players and they are really excited about it."

DETTMER INDUCTED INTO MIZZOU HOF
Former Mizzou standout John Dettmer will be inducted into the Mizzou Athletics Hall of Fame this year. Mizzou's all-time career strikeout leader who was durable in addition to his flame-throwing achievements for hall of fame Coach Gene McArtor...Won honorable mention All-American honors in 1991 when he turned in one of the top individual pitching seasons in MU history... Won nine games that year, and struck out 127 batters in 120.0 innings while leading the team with a 2.63 earned run average in a time where bats were very lively... Finished his Tiger career with 374 strikeouts, which stands still as the most in program history, while his 332.0 career innings pitched ranks second to this day, and his 23 career wins are also eighth-most... Won All-Big Eight first-team honors in 1990, 1991 and 1992, as he led the Tigers in strikeouts each year, with 99, 127 and 123, respectively... Turned in 15 complete games during his career as he was a durable and dependable presence on the mound... Went on to become an 11th-round draft pick in the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft by the Texas Rangers, and eventually pitched in 12 games in the Majors.

LLWS CONNECTION
For most little league players, the Little League World Series is the pinnacle. No Mizzou player knows that better than junior Josh Lester. Lester's team won the Little League World Series in 2006. He was even interviewed by Erin Andrews after winning the whole thing. His team kept that core group of players intact and went on to win three Georgia State Championships in high school.

TV SLATE
Mizzou baseball will be televised nine times through the Southeastern Conference and ESPN's television package this season, including three contests at Taylor Stadium. The television slate was announced Tuesday (Jan. 20) by the SEC league office. The nine games are more than double the amount of Mizzou games that were slated for national television last season. In all, the Tigers' nine TV games will all air on SEC Network with 38 additional SEC Network+ games on the schedule. All nine Mizzou games featured on the SEC Network will be against preseason top-25 competition.

ON THE AIR
Once again this year, KTGR ESPN Radio is the radio home of the Tigers, with all of the game being broadcast on 103.1-FM, 100.5-FM and 1580-AM. The games can also be heard online at KTGR.com. Tex Little is in his 25th season of calling Tiger Baseball and is joined in the booth by SID Shawn Davis for road games and Sean Hamel for home games.

FRANCIS HOWELL CONNECTION
This year, the Mizzou baseball roster features three players that have played together for quite sometime. Case Munson, Jake Ivory and Brett Peel all played high school ball for Francis Howell in St. Charles, Mo., winning a state championship together during their senior season.

NEW FACILITY FOR TIGERS
As the Mizzou baseball program continues its transition into the SEC, the Mizzou Department of Athletics made a major commitment to the program by spending $4 million on a new facility, including a new locker room, coaches offices and improved seating at Taylor Stadium. The new facility is one of the best baseball facilities in the nation and will give players all they need to succeed on site. A state-of-the-art lockerroom, modeled after many big league lockerrooms, along with a team room, an auditorium and training room have been added on site at Taylor Stadium. Also, increased bleachers have been added down the LF line and the old bucket seats have been replaced with new seat-back stadium seats in order to help with the comfort of fans. It officially opened to the public last May in a grand opening ceremony.

UP NEXT
The Tigers will host South Carolina in a battle of ranked teams this weekend at Taylor Stadium. For all the latest on Mizzou baseball, stay tuned to MUTiger.com and follow the team on twitter @MizzouBaseball.

Document Links: Game Notes