Now Or Never: TCU Baseball Hosts Red-Hot Texas Tech

Any series loss moving forward could be devastating for the TCU Horned Frogs' season. They host the Texas Tech Red Raiders this weekend.

A little bit of Texas Tech football rubbed off on this year's baseball squad. The Red Raiders (25-9, 8-7 Big 12) have been tearing through opposing pitching staffs like tissue paper, extending their streak of 10+ run outings to six games. Now, that scorching hot offense comes to Fort Worth against a TCU team whose bats have gone completely silent.

Getting swept would prove devastating to the Horned Frogs (20-11, 5-10), who sit 4.5 games back of the conference league. A series loss would further dig the hole. However, a series win would put them back in contention and a series sweep turns things around. Truly, this weekend's series is a fulcrum for 2024.

Texas Tech at TCU begins Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT, continues Saturday at 3:00 p.m., and concludes Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Game 2 broadcasts nationally on ESPNU while the other two games stream on ESPN+. Listen to the broadcast on 88.7 FM KTCU or see it for yourself at Lupton Stadium.

TCU Hosts Texas Tech For Pivotal Weekend Series

Texas Tech ended March with barely a fizzle – the Red Raiders mustered eight total runs in a series loss to UCF on the road. Just two weeks earlier, a weather-delayed series at Baylor saw Tech post just five total runs. Interspersed with a couple weeknight buy games and a 2-1 series win over BYU, that stretch marked the low water point for Tim Tadlock's crew this season.

And then the calendar turned to April.

The Red Raiders began this month with six straight games scoring 10+ runs – including a two-game midweek stint against Stanford, a series against Houston, and another buy game at Abilene Christian – and the offense exploded. In that six-game stretch, Tech averaged 14.2 runs per game. On just Wednesday, the lineup hit nine home runs through five innings and four Red Raiders hit two round-trippers.

While TCU's pitching staff is a clear step up from Abilene Christian (No. 142, per D1Baseball's DSR Rankings), Texas Tech can flat-out hit the baseball. They're within striking distance of the Big 12 lead and have the firepower to chase down Oklahoma or West Virginia.

This weekend might come down to a difference in motivation. At the very least, we'll get a good idea of where each team is mentally.

Sizing Up Texas Tech

First baseman Gavin Kash added two homers to his 2024 season Wednesday. Last year, Kash hit 26 dingers, most in the Big 12. But the junior is a quintessential power hitter: aggressive but susceptible to striking out.

Outfielder Drew Woodcox and second baseman TJ Pompey also provide a ton of pop at the plate. Woodcox barrels the ball frequently and extremely well – he has just 13 strikeouts and eight walks on the season – and hits .378. On Wednesday, the senior hit home runs eight and nine. Pompey also rounded the bases twice, climbing his HR total to seven on the season.

Top to bottom, Tech's batting order poses some degree of power threat. Of the 16 players to appear in at least one game this season, 15 of them have at least one home run and bat at least .250. The offense is lethal and opportunistic.

However, the Red Raiders have just one game against top-100 DR competition all season with 10+ runs (an opening-weekend 11-7 win over Oregon). So while en aggregate Tech's offense appears to be unstoppable, more talented pitching staffs mitigated the damage.

Perhaps their biggest strength is coaching. Tadlock is 404-203 (.666) in 10 seasons in Lubbock with three Big 12 championships, five 45+ win seasons, and four College World Series appearances. He's a winning coach and while Kirk Saarloos is a great coach in his own, nobody's been able to out-coach Tadlock in the conference.

Pitching Matchups

Each of the last four series featured a different starting rotation. Last weekend in Cincinnati, Payton Tolle (3-2, 3.74 ERA) started Friday, Louis Rodriguez (3-1, 3.14) started Saturday, and Ben Hampton (0-1, 7.94) started Sunday. Previous to that, Kole Klecker (0-2, 6.68) took the mound Sunday. Tolle and Rodriguez have been bastions of consistency, but finding a third starter has been tricky.

As injuries mount to the bullpen, including to Kyle Ayers and Hunter Hodges, previous starters like Klecker, Zack Morris (1-1, 8.10), and Braeden Sloan (3-2, 6.38) moved into relief spots. As a result, the Frogs are just 2-3 on Sundays since starting Big 12 play.

Texas Tech has four arms that have started weekend games, with the most recent rotation being:

Game 1: Sr. LHP Ryan Free (3-0, 6.63)
Game 2: Jr. RHP Kyle Robinson (3-3, 4.10)
Game: Fr. RHP Mac Heuer (3-2, 5.03)

This rotation started the last two weekends and likely enters this weekend as the starting three. However, keep an eye out for Ole Miss transfer Jack Washburn (1-1, 6.91), who recently moved to relief duty. Six different pitchers also have a save logged, with Josh Sanders (3-1, 2.10) seeing the most work with 25.2 innings.

Tech lacks the true ace in the rotation after Mason Molina left for Arkansas. However, they've proven to be more than capable as a unit, holding Big 12 opponents to 6.3 runs per game (including a 22-run outlier against Texas).

Key To A TCU Victory

Simply, swing the bat.

During the Big 12 swing, the Horned Frogs' bats haven't been aggressive. Whether it's a game plan issue or just widespread hesitancy, TCU watches far too many strikes cross the plate. For series against teams like Kansas, who have a strong starting corps and not much behind them, being patient and running up pitch counts is a savvy move. But that's apparently carried into every other series.

The result? A TCU team scoring a paltry 4.9 runs per game since beginning Big 12 play. Removed an offensive outpouring at Houston and the midweeks, that number tumbles to 3.5 runs per game. Nationally, that mark would be second worst among the 305 D-I baseball programs.

Tech's pitchers throw strikes. But that opens the opportunity for barreled balls and extra base hits. TCU must take advantage of good pitches to outscore its opponent will not result in wins.

Player To Watch

Louis Rodriguez had his first subpar showing of the year last Saturday. The sophomore allowed six runs in two innings, bumping his ERA up from 1.40 to 3.14 on the season. He allowed five hits and walked three more batters, resulting in a three-run home run in the bottom of the second inning.

Against another aggressive offense, how does Rodriguez respond? Cincinnati showed that swinging early in the count can result in many base hits against the righty, since he's not afraid to throw strikes. While the Bearcats' offense scored runs this weekend, Tech's offense brings much more power to the plate.

Every pitcher has their day where nothing goes right. Rodriguez got his out of the way last weekend. He must rebound and take control of his start or risk throw TCU's rotation into further doubt.

How To Watch TCU Vs. Texas Tech

When: Apr. 12, 6:30 p.m. | Apr. 13, 3:00 p.m. | Apr. 14, 1:00 p.m.

Where: Lupton Stadium (Fort Worth, TX)

TV/Streaming: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ (Friday, Sunday), ESPNU (Saturday)

Radio: KTCU 88.7 FM

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