“I think this is a crucial week. If we can play well against Baylor and then Charlotte and keep that momentum going, we could turn into a situation where we expect that every week.”
— Lance Brown

Frogs face Baylor after triple successes
By Danny Gillham
Skiff Staff

The TCU baseball team takes action today, coming off one of the most successful series of the season.

The Frogs (12-14, 4-2 Conference USA) will take on Baylor (19-8, No. 10 Baseball America) at 6 p.m today at the Baylor Ballpark in Waco.

The team will be riding the coattails of a three-game sweep against previously ranked conference for East Carolina this past weekend. The Pirates were ranked No. 20 in the nation coming into the series against the Frogs.

After what head coach Lance Brown called “probably the three worst games we’ve played all year” against Southern Mississippi, the Frogs responded by beating the Pirates 5-1, 8-4 and 7-2.

Erin Mungar/SKIFF STAFF Tim Collingsworth and the Frogs had their most successful series against a Conference USA opponent this past weekend. The Frogs swept all three games against then-ranked No. 20 East Carolina.

Brown said the biggest factor in the weekend success may have been the rain that the campus received last weekend.

“It may have been a godsend to have the weather we had last week,” Brown said. “It let us get off the field and rest a little bit, mentally and physically. That gave us time to sit down as a team to talk about some issues and some of the things that didn’t work out like we thought they should.”

The effort of the pitching staff shone in the series against East Carolina.
The Frogs, despite giving up 20 hits, allowed only 7 runs in 3 games, lowered their team ERA from 6.38 to 5.90. It was not until the third game of the series that East Carolina had a leadoff hitter reach base.

“That (pitching) is what I’m probably most excited about,” Brown said. “I think they finally got the concept of what we have talked about all year: changing speeds, getting ahead and getting the leadoff man out. I think it sort of came into focus, and we executed really well. We were throwing the pitches that we need to throw.”

The team will use that momentum to lead them into this one-game series with Baylor. Earlier this year at Enron Field in Houston, the Frogs defeated Baylor 6-5.

Brown said the team is unfamiliar with the Bears but they know how important this game will be.

“I do know that they are always going to have a good ballclub, and we are going to have to play (well) to beat them,” Brown said. “ I think this is a crucial week. If we can play well against Baylor and then Charlotte and keep that momentum going, we could turn into a situation where we expect that every week.”

Danny Gillham
d.r.gillham@student.tcu.edu

credits

TCU Daily Skiff © 2002