Tag: texas longhorns baseball

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 dominates Air Force 10-1, advance to the Super Regionals

Texas is on to the Super Regionals!

No. 9 Texas baseball is moving on to the Super Regionals for the second straight season after a dominant 10-1 performance over Air Force in the Austin Regional final.

The Longhorns’ offense wasted no time in this one, striking for five runs in the first inning behind an Ivan Melendez home run and a Trey Faltine two-RBI double.

Melendez’s home run marked No. 30 on the season, marking the first player in college baseball to hit 30 bombs since Kris Bryant in 2013.

The relentless Texas offense would keep applying pressure all game. The Horns finished with 10 runs on 13 hits, six of which being extra-base hits.

Dylan Campbell continues to prove his bat needs to stay in the lineup as the outfield launched two home runs over the left-field wall in the game. Campbell was locked in at the plate for the entirety of the regional.

The effort of Texas’ pitching staff should not go unnoticed. Texas pieced together a bullpen game to hold the powerful Falcons’ offense to just one run on six hits. Jared Southard picked up the victory giving Texas three shutout frames in relief.

Texas now awaits the winner of the Greenville Regional. If Eastern Carolina wins, Texas will travel for the Super Regional. If Coastal Carolina can pull off the upset, Texas will stay at home next week.

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Texas’ Ivan Melendez named Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Year

Texas first baseman Ivan Melendez has enjoyed one of the greatest seasons in program history.

Texas first baseman Ivan Melendez has enjoyed one of the greatest seasons in program history. Melendez is already starting to take home some hardware for his efforts this year.

Collegiate Baseball has named the “Hispanic Titanic” National Player of the Year following his monster season for the Longhorns. Melendez was named Big 12 Player of the Year and a first team All-American selection.

Melendez becomes the fourth Longhorn to win Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Year. Brooks Kieschnick (1993), Scott Bryant (1989) and Greg Swindell (1986) all have their number retired at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. Melendez looks to be on his way to receiving the same honor.

The powerful slugger is hitting a whopping .406 with the nation’s best 29 home runs along with 87 RBI on the season. He has Texas ranked No. 9 in the country heading into the NCAA Tournament.

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Former Longhorn Kody Clemens to make his MLB debut

Former Texas star Kody Clemens is off to the big leagues.

The Detroit Tigers have called up former Texas baseball star infielder Kody Clemens.

Clemens brings a powerful left-handed bat to the Detriot lineup. He hit .256 with 26 home runs in the last two seasons with the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate in Toledo.

The 26-year-old provides versatility on the defensive side of the ball. Clemens can play second base, third base and both corner outfield positions.

Clemens was selected in the third round of the 2018 MLB Draft after an All-American junior season at Texas.

He led the 2018 Longhorns to a Big 12 Championship and College World Series appearance while hitting .351 with 24 home runs. Clemens was named Big 12 player of the year and a Golden Spikes Award finalist.

Clemens joins right-headed pitcher Bryce Elder as Texas exes to get the call to the big leagues this season.

The Tigers will host the Minnesota Twins on Monday afternoon for Clemens’ Major League debut.

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No. 9 Texas to open NCAA regional against Air Force

Texas will host Louisiana Tech, Dallas Baptist and Air Force in the Austin Regional.

The road to Omaha starts this week. Texas is looking to make trip No. 38 to the Men’s College World Series.

Texas (42-19) was named the No. 9 national seed on Monday and will host the Austin Regional starting on Friday.

The Longhorns will open up the NCAA tournament with the Air Force Falcons (30-27). Texas took on Air Force earlier in the season as the two teams split a midweek set. Air Force took game one 14-2 and Texas stole game two 12-10 with a Trey Falitne walk-off home run.

Texas will likely be forced to pitch ace Pete Hansen against the powerful Air Force offense which ranks No. 8 in the country in batting average.

Louisiana Tech and Dallas Baptist will square off in the other opening matchup in the Austin Regional.

Here is a look at the full 2022 NCAA tournament bracket.

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How to watch Texas baseball vs. Oklahoma in the Big 12 tournament championship

You won’t want to miss this one.

The Longhorns are one win away from the Big 12 tournament title. Continue reading “How to watch Texas baseball vs. Oklahoma in the Big 12 tournament championship”

Big 12 Baseball Tournament: Seeding, schedule and how to watch

Texas and Oklahoma State will start things off on Wednesday morning.

The 2022 Big 12 Conference Baseball Tournament will begin on May 25 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. Continue reading “Big 12 Baseball Tournament: Seeding, schedule and how to watch”

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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No. 22 Texas tops Sam Houston State 9-2

While many teams around the country are canceling midweek games to protect their RPI, No. 22 Texas took care of business on Tuesday night.

While many teams around the country are canceling midweek games to protect their RPI, No. 22 Texas took care of business on Tuesday night with a 9-2 victory over Sam Houston State.

The Longhorns got going in a hurry to start the game. Doug Hodo and Austin Todd lead the game off with singles followed by a three-run home run by Ivan Melendez. Before Meledez’s ball even had time to land, Murphy Stehly followed him up with a home run of his own on the very next pitch.

Texas would add three more runs in the first inning and would cruise the rest of the way behind excellent pitching from Zane Morehouse and the bullpen. Tristan Stevens made his third straight appearance from the bullpen and appears to be fully transitioning to a relief role.

Up next Texas will host the Kansas Jayhawks for the final series of the regular season. A sweep would put the Horns strongly in the mix to host a regional in the NCAA tournament.

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Texas’ bullpen falls apart again, Oklahoma State sweeps the Longhorns

The Horns hopes of hosting a regional are hanging by a thread at this point. 

No. 10 Texas’ bullpen struggles are not getting any better. No. 8 Oklahoma State erased a 7-0 Texas lead with a 10-run seventh inning to complete the sweep over the Longhorns on Sunday.

Texas surrendered seven free passes and four hits in the inning. The Cowboys’ first baseman Griffin Doersching launched a grand slam over the left-field wall to put the Pokes on top for good.

The seventh-inning collapse takes away from a masterful performance from Lucas Gordon. The lefty struck out 11 Cowboys across six innings of work and left the ballgame with a 7-0 advantage. Gordon has been a bright spot in a forgettable year for Texas’ pitching staff.

The loss puts Texas at a disappointing 9-9 mark in Big 12 conference play. The Horns hopes of hosting a regional are hanging by a thread at this point.

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