TCU Baseball: TCU set to play in Shriners Children’s Classic
It’s been a back-and-forth start for the TCU Horned Frogs to start the baseball season. Despite being on a two-game winning streak, the team has struggled to find its footing and stay consistent.
After a good opening start in Arlington, the Horned Frogs struggled with Florida State last weekend, only winning one of three against the 16th-ranked Seminoles and being outrun 22-12.
However, the Frogs will get another chance on the national stage this weekend at Minute Maid Park in Houston at the Shriners Children's College Classic.
TCU gets three straight days of 3 p.m. starts. Friday’s game against an unranked Michigan will open the showcase. The Wolverines have spent the last week on the west coast and are currently on a two game losing skid, falling to UC-Irvine 15-3 and UCLA 9-4.
14th-ranked Louisville will be the next opponent on Saturday and will be the only ranked opponent of the week. The Cardinals come in with a 7-1 record and a two game win streak after trouncing Bowling Green and Eastern Kentucky last week.
Star players Jack Payton and Ryan McCoy lead Louisville at the plate with a .462 and a .387 average respectively. They have both hit 7 home runs and have 20 RBIs combined.
The weekend will come to a close on Sunday afternoon with a game against Rice. The Owls come in with a record of 3-5. After getting swept by Stanford last weekend, they bounced back with an 11-4 win over Sam Houston.
Rice will play Texas Tech on Friday and Texas A&M on Saturday before the ultimate game of the series.
Though it would be somewhat sweet for the Horned Frogs to face off with Texas A&M to try to avenge last year’s elimination, these three games are a good measuring stick and tune up before conference play starts at Oklahoma in two weeks.
It is unknown who will be taking the mound in the three games, but it is feasible to assume Ryan Vanderhei will be starting one game. Cam Brown is also likely to get a start, having his last appearance a week ago against Florida State.
It is doubtful that TCU fans will see Braeden Sloan this weekend, having started Tuesday’s game against Dallas Baptist. However there is a possibility he could start Sunday’s game against Rice.
One interesting note to keep in mind going into the weekend, is that not a single starting pitcher has recorded a win yet. All five wins for the Frogs came out of the bullpen.
That will be a key factor going into Houston. If the bullpen stays on top of its game, TCU could have a good weekend.
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