Tag: lucas gordon

Texas Baseball: David Pierce announces weekend pitching rotation

Lucas Gordon gets the ball on Friday night.

Texas opens the 2023 college baseball season this weekend with a trip to Arlington for the College Baseball Showdown.

The Longhorns take on future SEC foes Arkansas, Missouri and Vanderbilt to start the new year.

Texas is going to be a new-look squad after sending eight players to the 2022 MLB Draft. David Pierce announced the expected pitching rotation we will see on opening weekend.

  • Friday: LHP Lucas Gordon
  • Saturday: RHP Zane Morehouse
  • Sunday: RHP Travis Sthele 

Lucas Gordon gets the ball on Friday night after a breakout campaign in 2022. Gordon provided much-needed stability in the rotation last season after the injury to Tanner Witt in March. He held a 7-2 record and a team-best 3.16 ERA.

Morehouse is a high-upside arm who took big strides in the offseason. He started six games holding a 6.00 ERA last year. Morehouse brings in a mid-90s fastball with a wipeout slider to the mound. Control and consistency are two keys for the righty this spring.

Sthele is a player who gained some experience in big moments for the Longhorns down the stretch last season. He made starts in the Big 12 Tournament championship and Austin Regional final.

Here is a look at the schedule for the College Baseball Showdown:

  • Feb. 17: Arkansas, 8 p.m. ET
  • Feb. 18: Missouri, 4 p.m. ET 
  • Feb. 19: Vanderbilt, 11:30 a.m. ET

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Texas baseball comes in at No. 24 in USA Today Sports Coaches Poll

College baseball season is right around the corner.

College baseball season is just around the corner as teams around the nation are picking up spring practice.

The preseason USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll was announced this week ahead of the new year. Texas comes in at No. 24 following back-to-back College World Series appearances under head coach David Pierce.

The Longhorns are set to break in a roster full of new faces following the departure of the majority of last season’s production. Starting pitcher Lucas Gordon and outfielder Dylan Campbell return hoping to lead Texas to another Omaha run.

Texas has a few newcomers coming to help make an immediate impact. Freshman duo Jalin Flores and Jared Thomas are in line to start on the corners. In addition, TCU transfer Porter Brown is a former All-Big 12 player who figures to play a role in the outfield rotation.

Texas opens the 2023 campaign against some of the SEC’s best in Arlington for the State Farm College Showdown. Here is a full breakdown of Texas’ 2023 baseball schedule.

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Texas Baseball: Horns come in at No. 4 in Big 12 preseason poll

Texas has lots to prove on the baseball diamond this season.

The Big 12 Conference announced its 2023 preseason coaches poll on Thursday. Texas checks in as No. 4 on the list behind Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and TCU.

Here is a complete look at how the coaches voted ahead of the season.

  1. TCU (5)
  2. Oklahoma State (4)
  3. Texas Tech
  4. Texas
  5. Oklahoma
  6. West Virginia
  7. Kansas State
  8. Kansas
  9. Baylor

The 2023 Longhorns are going to have a ton of fresh faces in the lineup following back-to-back College World Series appearances. Texas lost the majority of its production from last season, including the likes of Ivan Melendez, Pete Hansen and Murphy Stehly.

David Pierce even hit the reset button on the coaching staff in the offseason, making two new hires to the program.

This season’s roster includes a handful of returning veterans and a talented group of newcomers. Dylan Campbell and Lucas Gordon broke out on the scene for Texas late last season. In addition, Eric Kennedy is a rock-solid player back for his senior year.

Texas has lots to prove on the baseball diamond this season with hopes for another trip to Omaha in June.

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Texas baseball picks up USC transfer Charlie Hurley

Texas baseball picks up a big time transfer in former USC pitcher Charlie Hurley. 

Texas baseball picks up a big time transfer in former USC pitcher Charlie Hurley.

The 6-foot-8 righty tossed 73 innings with a 4.19 ERA and a 45 strikeouts for the Trojans. Hurley held a 6-2 record with a spot in the weekend rotation. He set a career high 8 innings pitched while allowing just two hits to San Jose State on April 3.

He is the second USC player to trade in the Scarlet and Gold for Burnt Orange. Catcher Garret Guillemette joined the program two weeks ago after the Trojans parted ways with head coach Jason Gill.

David Pierce’s squad is going to have a much different look in 2023. Texas is expected to see a high level of turnover after the 2022 season, but set to return key pieces Lucas Gordon, Dylan Campbell and Tanner Witt.

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Texas vs. Texas A&M: Preview and pitching matchups

Texas and Texas A&M will square off in Omaha for the first time ever.

For the first time in over 380 total meetings, Texas and Texas A&M will square off in the College World Series.

Both teams were sent to the losers bracket after a disappointing opening day in Omaha.

Notre Dame outclassed Texas in every aspect of the game. The Irish jumped out on Texas early and cruised to a 7-3 victory.

Oklahoma sent Texas A&M to the losers bracket by taking advantage of free passes and defensive mistakes by the Aggies. The Sooners held off a late A&M charge to win 13-8.

The Longhorns and Aggies met back on March 29 at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. Texas A&M won that affair 12-9 in what proved to be the jumpstart to their season.

Texas was in a similar position just a year ago before rattling off three straight wins to nearly make the championship series.

Here is a look at the pitching matchups and a few players to watch on both sides.

Texas vs. ECU: Super Regional preview, prediction

A look at the schedule, pitching matchups, players to watch and prediction for the Greenville Super Regional. 

No. 9 Texas baseball (45-19) is playing again for a trip to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.

The Longhorns swept through the Austin Regional, capped off with a dominant 10-1 victory over Air Force in the regional final. This season Texas will hit the road for the Super Regionals for the first time since 2005. Their opponent is No. 8 East Carolina (45-19).

The Pirates enter as one of the hottest teams in the country, winners of 20 of their last 21 ballgames. ECU took home both the American Conference regular-season and tournament titles. They escaped a difficult regional draw with an emphatic 13-4 game seven win over Coastal Carolina.

ECU is no stranger to the big stage. The Pirates are appearing in their fourth Super Regional in the last five years, but are still looking to the program’s first trip to Omaha. ECU holds the record for most NCAA tournament appearances without a College World Series appearance.

On the flip side, Texas has its eyes set on returning to Omaha for the nation’s best 38th time.

The rowdy ECU crowd dawned “The Jungle” will undoubtedly be ready to make an impact in favor of the Pirates.

An intriguing matchup will be Texas’ starting pitching vs. East Carolina’s bats. Pete Hansen and Lucas Gordon have been an excellent one-two punch for Texas this season. Facing a left-handed heavy ECU lineup should play to Texas’ advantage.

Here is a look at the schedule, pitching matchups, players to watch and prediction for the Greenville Super Regional.

No. 9 Texas earns a gritty 5-2 victory over Louisiana Tech

Texas shows their toughness in a 5-2 win over Louisiana Tech.

No. 9 Texas baseball is one game away from the Super Regionals after a hard-fought victory over Louisiana Tech. The 5-2 win marks the eighth straight regional win for David Pierce and Texas.

Lousiana Tech starting pitcher Ryan Jennings kept the Texas bats off balance all game. The hard-throwing righty spread out three hits across six innings of work. Dylan Campbell’s solo home run in the second inning is all Texas could muster against Jennings.

Texas’ bats woke up in a big way in the seventh inning. Louisiana Tech made the move to All-Conference closer Kyle Crigger who had been close to unhittable this year. Crigger had no answers for the Horns lineup as Texas rallied for three runs in the frame to break the game open.

Lucas Gordon did a great job of battling without his best stuff on the mound. He escaped jam and after jam to limit the Bulldogs’ offense to just one run in 5.2 innings before turning the ball over to Tristan Stevens.

Stevens picked up the win while slamming the door on Louisiana Tech going 3.1 in his new role out of the pen. His performance secured the victory for Texas as well as keeping the rest of the bullpen fresh for the rest of the regional.

Texas will await the winner of Louisiana Tech and Air Force for the regional final on Sunday night.

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Texas advances to the Big 12 semifinals with a 5-3 win over TCU

Texas is one game away from the Big 12 tournament championship.

The Longhorns are in the driver’s seat in the Big 12 baseball tournament after taking down the top-seeded Horned Frogs 5-3.

Lucas Gordon followed up Pete Hansen’s tournament-opening gem with one of his own. He kept TCU off balance by attacking the strike zone early and often. Gordon went 7.2 innings while holding TCU to just two hits and one earned run.

Texas took control of the game from the jump. After a leadoff single by Douglas Hodo and Ivan Melendez reaching on a hit-by-pitch, Murphy Stehly smoked an 85 mph slider over the left-field wall to put the Horns up 3-0.

TCU scored a pair of runs in the middle innings to cut the Texas lead to 3-2 before insurance came in the eighth. A balk and an Austin Todd RBI single put Texas up 5-2, creating some breathing room for the late innings.

Tristan Stevens secured a four-out save to take home the victory.

The win puts Texas in excellent position to host a regional next week. The Horns RPI has jumped up from No. 21 to No. 9 in the past two days.

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No. 22 Texas tops Kansas 8-1 behind four home runs

Ivan Melendez made history in Friday night’s victory.

No. 22 Texas secured the series win over Kansas with another dominant performance.

The Longhorns offense came up firing yet again en route to an 8-1 victory. Eric Kennedy and Ivan Melendez launched solo home runs in the first inning as fans were still finding their seats. Melendez’s bomb tied Kyle Russell’s all-time school home run record at 28.

Texas would add a run in each of the next four innings to take total control of the game.

Lucas Gordon threw another quality start in Big 12 play. The lefty tossed six innings allowing just one run while spreading out five hits. Gordon has been one of the Big 12’s best pitchers since stepping in for Tanner Witt.

Zane Morehouse will take the mound for game three as the Horns look to close the regular season on a high note.

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Texas returns to the D1Baseball rankings after a 3-1 week

A strong finish would get Texas back into the mix to host a regional.

Texas is back into D1Baseball’s top 25 rankings at No. 22 after a 3-1 week that included a road series victory over West Virginia. Continue reading “Texas returns to the D1Baseball rankings after a 3-1 week”