Texas' Faltine Finds Clutch Swing As Texas Returns To College World Series
Trey Faltine is known for his defensive plays at shortstop. From quick grounders to line drives zinging past his head, there's little the freshman can't do on the field.
At the plate? There's room for improvement.
Since the start of the NCAA tournament, Faltine has gone 6-of-16 with three RBIs and one lone extra-base hit.
That wasn't the case Sunday evening at Disch-Falk Field. Instead, power in the right places was his contribution to Texas' 12-4 win over South Florida to send Texas back to the College World Series for the first time since 2018.
The Longhorns' (47-15) bats came alive in the second inning, but Faltine's carried the biggest swing. With a pair of runners on, the Richmond, Texas native lined one into right-center field, plating Caleb Williams to give the Longhorns first run.
One inning later, he'd do it again. With an 0-2 count, Faltine ripped a double down the third baseline, plating a pair of Longhorns and extending the lead by four.
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There's also the mental aspect that comes at the plate. Twice Faltine was hit by a pitch with a base-wide open. Instead of being frustrated as a young player with a chance to drive in more, he eased his way to the base.
Plate discipline at its finest, but also the maturity Pierce loves to see from his young core.
“Our kids are young for the most part,” Texas coach David Pierce said. “They’re not afraid of anything. They’re not afraid of the work, and I’ve never had a team that works so hard for each other. It’s incredible.”
Don't forget about the glove. Faltine dove on a grounder hit by South Florida's (31-30) Matt Ruiz in the fourth inning. Without a play a first, he went to third to put out Jake Sullivan. The play would end up saving a run for starter Tristan Stevens, who would give up an RBI single the next at-bat.
In the eighth, it was Faltine who started an inning-ending double play, keeping the score intact for Aaron Nixon to shut the door in the ninth.
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In Faltine's last seven at-bats, the swing has been a friend. He's reached base six times thanks to strong plate discipline. Faltine is also 3-for-4 with three doubles and three RBIs when the ball has been in play.
Of course, the glove remained strong throughout the past two weekends in Austin despite committing two errors in the 11-0 win over Southern.
Faltine improved defensively throughout the season after a limited first season at the Disch due to COVID-19. His fielding percentage remained a strong .970, forcing 33 double plays with mere eight errors on the year.
Compare that to 17 games and two errors in 2020, and one can see his development.
It was Faltine's time at the plate that had the Disch faithful over 7,000 on Sunday . Far less known for his swing, he currently is on an 11-game hitting streak as the team prepares for Omaha.
Sometimes getting hot at the right moment pays dividends. The improvement of Faltine's swing, along with his defensive numbers, is just what the Longhorns need as they return to Ameritrade Park with a chance to for a national title.
“It’s a lot tougher to get to Omaha than people understand,” Pierce said. “The word is thrown around, or the city is thrown around like it’s just going to happen. And you see some great teams not make it this week. It’s unfortunate when you put all the work in, but it’s baseball. In baseball, you never know what’s going to happen.”
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