BB: ASC: American Southwest Conference

[swbaseball3]

McMurry's defensive problems turned what could have been a close game into a blowout.  First a pop-up on the infield that would have been the 3rd out and kept the score at 0-0 is not caught and TLU takes advantage and scores 5 runs in the inning.  Then later a fly ball to center field that would have ended the inning is dropped and TLU again takes advantage and scores 8 runs in that inning.  If McMurry makes those simple plays they can at least have a hope of making a game of it.  Instead it got UGLY.  TLU showed how good they are by taking advantage of both of those.

Of course it may not have mattered because Orosey was awesome as usual.  I saw him pitch last year and thought he looked great.  I must brag that my son was 2 for 3 off him today though.

Ugly is probably the right word.  After the first two innings, TLU just pounded the baseball and the result was 21 hits and 4 bombs.  The wind was a factor and TLU took full advantage.  The ball in the third inning should have been  caught.  The one on the outfield, well, the game was pretty much over by then so that kind of didn't matter.

Orosey was just spectacular.  In many instances, they had to have known that a slider was coming and still counldn't hit it.

On an interesting note, McM did not pitch Dakota.  From my perspective, that sends an interesting message.  They dodn't thrown their #1, senior, leader.  Why not?  Hmmmm....knew they couldn't beat Orosey?  I just wonder what kind of message that sends.

One last thing...the bottom of TLU's order was just off the charts.  I believe they had 7 hits and a couple of  bombs.  Since McGill stepped into the DH roll, he's hitting .700 or something crazy like that!

[swbaseball3]

McMurry's defensive problems turned what could have been a close game into a blowout.  First a pop-up on the infield that would have been the 3rd out and kept the score at 0-0 is not caught and TLU takes advantage and scores 5 runs in the inning.  Then later a fly ball to center field that would have ended the inning is dropped and TLU again takes advantage and scores 8 runs in that inning.  If McMurry makes those simple plays they can at least have a hope of making a game of it.  Instead it got UGLY.  TLU showed how good they are by taking advantage of both of those.

Of course it may not have mattered because Orosey was awesome as usual.  I saw him pitch last year and thought he looked great.  I must brag that my son was 2 for 3 off him today though.

BTW, that is a pretty good feat.  Look at Orosey's stats and he's giving up .5 hits per inning.  2 hits of him has been close to impossible this year.

[Ralph Turner]

McMurry's defensive problems turned what could have been a close game into a blowout.  First a pop-up on the infield that would have been the 3rd out and kept the score at 0-0 is not caught and TLU takes advantage and scores 5 runs in the inning.  Then later a fly ball to center field that would have ended the inning is dropped and TLU again takes advantage and scores 8 runs in that inning.  If McMurry makes those simple plays they can at least have a hope of making a game of it.  Instead it got UGLY.  TLU showed how good they are by taking advantage of both of those.

Of course it may not have mattered because Orosey was awesome as usual.  I saw him pitch last year and thought he looked great.  I must brag that my son was 2 for 3 off him today though.

Ugly is probably the right word.  After the first two innings, TLU just pounded the baseball and the result was 21 hits and 4 bombs.  The wind was a factor and TLU took full advantage.  The ball in the third inning should have been  caught.  The one on the outfield, well, the game was pretty much over by then so that kind of didn't matter.

Orosey was just spectacular.  In many instances, they had to have known that a slider was coming and still counldn't hit it.

On an interesting note, McM did not pitch Dakota.  From my perspective, that sends an interesting message.  They dodn't thrown their #1, senior, leader.  Why not?  Hmmmm....knew they couldn't beat Orosey?  I just wonder what kind of message that sends.
One last thing...the bottom of TLU's order was just off the charts.  I believe they had 7 hits and a couple of  bombs.  Since McGill stepped into the DH roll, he's hitting .700 or something crazy like that!

There are very few pitchers in D-III who are pitching as well as Orosey at this time.

You are now talking managerial strategy.  You are on the road.  TLU has the best #1 in the West.  If you can match up your #1 and #2 against their #2 and #3 and get 2 wins, then you have faced your toughest road trip and come out 1 game up.  Even going 1-2 at this time may not hurt you too badly.  We are playing for the post-season, and as the #2 West seed, you will probably face the #3 East and then the #1 East seed.

Develop your very young team and hope to catch TLU in May.   

[Dawgsdad]

Ralph, I think you nailed it. Great perspective!

[dp643]

UMHB and HSU have just committed I believe their 4th balk of the series, and we are only 12 innings into it. One balk was overruled late last night or there would be 5. Anyone ever seen anything like this?

[dp643]

Make that 5 balks now. Kriegel just got called for his second. THats crazy.

[swbaseball3]

McMurry's defensive problems turned what could have been a close game into a blowout.  First a pop-up on the infield that would have been the 3rd out and kept the score at 0-0 is not caught and TLU takes advantage and scores 5 runs in the inning.  Then later a fly ball to center field that would have ended the inning is dropped and TLU again takes advantage and scores 8 runs in that inning.  If McMurry makes those simple plays they can at least have a hope of making a game of it.  Instead it got UGLY.  TLU showed how good they are by taking advantage of both of those.

Of course it may not have mattered because Orosey was awesome as usual.  I saw him pitch last year and thought he looked great.  I must brag that my son was 2 for 3 off him today though.

Well, the strategy worked like a champ.  Dakota was pretty tough.  He threw a great game.  Then Staggs matched it with what I would  say was a better game.  Should have ended the game with 1-hitter but for a lost ball in the sun/wind in the 9th.

Fun games to watch today but it was truly a tale of two games.  TLU had 16-17 hits in game 2 but only managed 5-6 in game one.  McM had 8 hits or so in game one and then 3 in game 2.  Kind of strange.

Wlel, the conference is off to the races and it will be interesting to see what happens over the next few weeks.

Ugly is probably the right word.  After the first two innings, TLU just pounded the baseball and the result was 21 hits and 4 bombs.  The wind was a factor and TLU took full advantage.  The ball in the third inning should have been  caught.  The one on the outfield, well, the game was pretty much over by then so that kind of didn't matter.

Orosey was just spectacular.  In many instances, they had to have known that a slider was coming and still counldn't hit it.

On an interesting note, McM did not pitch Dakota.  From my perspective, that sends an interesting message.  They dodn't thrown their #1, senior, leader.  Why not?  Hmmmm....knew they couldn't beat Orosey?  I just wonder what kind of message that sends.
One last thing...the bottom of TLU's order was just off the charts.  I believe they had 7 hits and a couple of  bombs.  Since McGill stepped into the DH roll, he's hitting .700 or something crazy like that!

There are very few pitchers in D-III who are pitching as well as Orosey at this time.

You are now talking managerial strategy.  You are on the road.  TLU has the best #1 in the West.  If you can match up your #1 and #2 against their #2 and #3 and get 2 wins, then you have faced your toughest road trip and come out 1 game up.  Even going 1-2 at this time may not hurt you too badly.  We are playing for the post-season, and as the #2 West seed, you will probably face the #3 East and then the #1 East seed.

Develop your very young team and hope to catch TLU in May.   

[golden_dome]

MC needed a 9th inning rally in the final game but finished a sweep of Louisiana College. The staff ERA lowered to 2.12 and the opposing batting average is .193.

Orosey has been great on the West side so far. Tyler Seaman has put up great numbers on the East side, along with several other Choctaws. The pitching staff has been great so far, and will have to pitch like that next weekend against one of the best offenses in the ASC at UT-Dallas. There were 62 total runs scored at UT-Dallas this weekend with Ozarks in town.

[BigTex]

Well the series didnt turn out quite like I was expecting it to be....but it was a good series....Orosey pitch a great game and I give him all my best in the rest of the season because he is a great pitcher. The first game started out like it was going to be close one and Cory Davis was pitching great until the lil blooper pop fly that was dropped in the infield then I dont know what happened I guess he let it get to him and everything just snowballed after that. The second game Dakota Smith pitched a great game....looked like he was back to his old ways when he pitched in '08. The third game was good and Zach Hewitt kept McM within striking distance but the TLU pitcher did a good job pitching and the bats went silent after a great game before that. TLU is an good team and will be the team to beat in the west. As for Dakota not starting the first game I dont know why he didnt, but I was looking back at the games he has pitched and they have all been the 7 inning games so it looks like he will be pitching those games I am presuming. Great Job to the other teams in the conference as well, it looks like it is going to be another great season.

[swbaseball3]

Well the series didnt turn out quite like I was expecting it to be....but it was a good series....Orosey pitch a great game and I give him all my best in the rest of the season because he is a great pitcher. The first game started out like it was going to be close one and Cory Davis was pitching great until the lil blooper pop fly that was dropped in the infield then I dont know what happened I guess he let it get to him and everything just snowballed after that. The second game Dakota Smith pitched a great game....looked like he was back to his old ways when he pitched in '08. The third game was good and Zach Hewitt kept McM within striking distance but the TLU pitcher did a good job pitching and the bats went silent after a great game before that. TLU is an good team and will be the team to beat in the west. As for Dakota not starting the first game I dont know why he didnt, but I was looking back at the games he has pitched and they have all been the 7 inning games so it looks like he will be pitching those games I am presuming. Great Job to the other teams in the conference as well, it looks like it is going to be another great season.

Hats off to both Dakota and Staggs.  They were outstanding yesterday.  Dakota had 3-4 pitches working all day.  He would hit a great pitch for strike one and the rest was history.  His curve was consistent for strikes.  He threw some great change-ups and was on his game.

As for Staggs, if he pitches like that the rest of the year (or even part), TLU will be very tough in each series.  It was good to see Travis command both sides of the plate.  He has a mean tail on is 2-seam fatsball and it was baring down on the righties.

Surprise player of the series...Jason McGill.  He's getting a chance at the plate in the DH role and this kid can hit.  For all those who wait their time only to see success when they get a chance, well, hats off.  McGill....watch this kid.  Strong and can hit.

[Voorhees]

Three dominant games from the mound. I had my own coaching duties this weekend, however, I wish I could have seen Dakota throw, from everything I've heard he threw at his potential. Good to see him step up and get a critical win to avoid the sweep.

Staggs is the one with the good fastball right? I've been trying to remember, that's the way my memory was leaning.

Congrats HSU, good to start conference against a quality opponent and walk away with two wins.

So, what to think about UMHB? They've beaten some historically good teams, but have had some recent struggles.

[dp643]

I cant quite figure out the Cru yet at this point in the season.

This weekend against HSU they played very well for about 24 of the 27 innings. On Friday night HSU scored 2 runs on balks and then hit a walk off homer in the bottom of the ninth with and unlikely homerun hitter at the plate. But that still doesnt hide the fact that they got out of a bases loaded jam in the bottom of the eighth with a linedrive double play. On Saturday they dominated both games with the exception of one inning in which the team imploded for 5 errors and gave up 10 runs.

They play awesome defense at one point, but then cant hit worth a lick. They tear the cover off the ball and then cant get anyone out at the plate. They are dominant on the mound and then cant field a ball. This is a very talented team that I think once they get it together could play with and beat anyone. If they can be consistent in 2 of the three phases of the game they are definitely one of the top 4 teams in the west. If they are clicking on all three like they should I think they can give TLU a run for their money. Lots of ifs, I know, so we will see which Cru team shows up the next few weekends.

[golden_dome]

MC splits with Spalding. Won the first game 20-2 and led 19-0 after three innings, then drops the second game 2-1 by giving up two unearned runs after a bad throw. Spalding is 4-3 but probably a bad loss, but baseball I guess.

Not all bad though, Brandon Martin threw a couple scoreless innings in his first work in a month and hopefully will be completely back by tournament. The team ERA dipped to 1.99 after today, but I'm sure they'd trade it for a win in that second game.

[Just_Some_Guy]

Staggs is the one with the good fastball right? I've been trying to remember, that's the way my memory was leaning.

He's probably 82-86, a little flat (over the top), decent run on the two seam.

Like most D3 pitchers, he's successful when he keeps the ball down and works both sides of the plates.

JSG

[swbaseball3]

Staggs is the one with the good fastball right? I've been trying to remember, that's the way my memory was leaning.

He's probably 82-86, a little flat (over the top), decent run on the two seam.

Like most D3 pitchers, he's successful when he keeps the ball down and works both sides of the plates.

JSG

Fair assessment.  I didn't see the  guns this past weekend (not sure why I didn't peek), but he was tying up hitters all game, as evidenced by 1-hit thru 8-innings.  There are much harder throwers but as we all know, pitching usually keeps you in games.  Just throwing can make being a pitcher a dangerous occupation.