TCU's Bats Show Up but One Problem Costs Them in 13-12 Loss to Kansas State

What a start to the series this game was. It was a tough game with tons of offense. Both teams kept it close until the Kansas State Wildcats' offense walked it off in the ninth, bringing TCU's 5-game win streak to an end. A combined 25 runs were scored in this game, and this is not what you want to see for either team. While it’s good that your offense was productive, it is never good that your pitchers couldn’t find answers.

The Wildcats overcame the TCU Horned Frogs 13-12 after a pop fly to deep center scored the go-ahead winning run in the ninth inning. This was after back-and-forth scoring prior to the final inning. The Horned Frog offense has nothing to be ashamed of, as they did all they could to keep themselves in this game.

However, if you are the TCU pitching staff, you are going to be shaking your head, as this was far from their best performance. They must figure things out if they want to win this series, because the Wildcats are a very good hitting team. Let’s dive into what took place tonight.

Tough Night For Starters

It was not a pretty sight for either team’s starters tonight. In fact, it was quite ugly, not to sugarcoat it. The matchup featured Kansas State’s James Guyette, who has been nails all season long, versus TCU’s Mason Brassfield, who has had his ups and downs this year. Both pitchers had shaky starts in the first inning, with TCU scoring three off Guyette and Kansas State nearly matching it with two runs of their own.

The two pitchers seemed to cruise through the second inning, but things went south in the third as both were pulled after just three innings apiece. In those three innings, Brassfield gave up seven hits, four earned runs, three walks, and struck out five. He had his good moments but could not keep the Wildcats off the board. Guyette had a very similar stat line, giving up five hits, six earned runs, three walks, and three strikeouts. Both teams were forced to turn to their bullpens earlier than they wished, and we will see how that impacts the series.

Bat After Bat: Offenses Take Over

It was an electric night for the offenses, as both teams were trading runs and hits like it was candy. Kansas State hit slightly better than the Frogs—just by a hair—usually not enough to make a difference, but tonight it was. The Wildcats racked up 13 hits, 8 walks, 11 RBIs, and 13 runs on 36 at-bats. They were led by Carlos Vasquez, who had an impactful game. He went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer in the bottom of the third that really kick-started the Wildcat offense.

The Horned Frogs also had a strong day at the plate, recording 11 hits, 7 walks, 10 RBIs, and 12 runs on 37 at-bats. The difference came in the top of the eighth inning, when TCU had the bases loaded but failed to capitalize. Then, in the bottom of the ninth, the Wildcats loaded the bases with only one out, bringing up Kansas State’s top hitter, Dee Kennedy. He capitalized on a pitch in the zone, driving a pop fly to deep center that was just enough to score the walk-off run for the Wildcats.

an rbi-double for @ChaseBrunson7 gives TCU a 12-10 lead!#GoFrogs | #FrogballUSA pic.twitter.com/S2j7wRtp7R
— TCU Baseball (@TCU_Baseball) April 4, 2026

Neither team should be upset with how their offenses performed, but both should definitely be concerned about their pitching moving forward in this series.

Bullpen's Slowed Down The Scoring

While it still wasn’t perfect, the relievers on both sides were able to slow down the bleeding slightly. Trever Baumler came in for the Horned Frogs and looked strong through two and a half innings before getting tired, but he played a major role in keeping TCU in the game. He finished the night giving up 4 runs on 4 hits with 3 strikeouts and only 1 walk.

After that, runs really slowed down for the Wildcats as Tanner Sagouspe came in and did what he does best—slow offenses down. He pitched two innings, giving up only one hit, 2 walks, and striking out 3. However, once he was pulled, the Wildcats woke back up and scored their final run after Walter Quinn had a rough outing. Nate Stern attempted to come in and push the game to extra innings, but the damage was too much to overcome.

Kansas State had a similar night, but Miles Smith came in for the final two innings and shut the door for the Frogs. He allowed no hits, no walks, and no runs while striking out 2. The bullpens were more successful than the starters but still had their fair share of mistakes. Both teams need to straighten out their pitching for the rest of the series to have more success.

How Does This Win Impact The Series?

If you are Kansas State, you are loving this win. It gives the team a lot of energy and motivation, beating TCU, which was on a five-game win streak. They will also like that their hitters continued to dominate, forcing TCU to use some of their best bullpen weapons. Kansas State sits in the driver’s seat, but this series is far from over.

If you are TCU, you should be slightly concerned about your bullpen depth heading into the rest of the weekend. The Frogs will need someone to step up, and it would be great news if it were a starter who could give them a long outing. TCU has a lot to fix if they want to come back and win this series. To be honest, I would not be surprised if this series comes down to which team can outscore the other.

Game 2 will take place tomorrow at 4 p.m. in Manhattan, Kansas, and will be broadcast on ESPN+.