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University of Minnesota Athletics
TCU-Minnesota Game One Blog
3/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Minnesota (8-3) faces No. 11 TCU on Saturday, Mar. 14 at 2 p.m. in the first game of the series. Follow along on KLBB (1220 AM) or listen and follow the live in-game blog on gophersports.com. Minnesota and TCU were slated to start last night but the game was called due to inclement weather. The series has been pushed back one game. Tomorrow's game will begin at 1 pm and Monday's make-up game is set for 6:30 PM.
The Gopher baseball blog has become interactive! Feel free to email baseball@umn.edu with any questions during the radio broadcast or blog. Questions will be answered on KLBB 1220 by Steve Geller and Tom Witschen or within the blog by Gopher baseball's Director of Operations Taylor Vander Aarde. Be sure to include your name and where you are located with each query.
Here are today's starting line-ups.
Minnesota 1) Matt Nohelty DH 2) Kyle Geason 3B 3) Derek McCallum 2B 4) Michael Kvasnicka RF 5) Eric Decker CF 6) Kyle Knudson C 7) Nick O'Shea 1B 8) Jon Hummel LF 9) AJ Pettersen SS SP) Chauncy Handran
TCU 1) Ben Carruthers 2B 2) Matt Carpenter 2B 3) Chris Ellington RF 4) Matt Curry DH 5) Jason Coats LF 6) Taylor Featherston SS 7) Matt Vern 1B 8) Bryan Holaday C 9) Corey Steglich CF SP) Tyler Lockwood
2:05 PM- TCU's Tyler Lockwood delivers the first pitch for a strike.
2:12 PM Lockwood is throwing from a low, three-quarters arm slot and pitching off his fast ball. Lockwood's fast ball has some great sink which is causing the Gopher hitters to hit a majority of groundballs. Luckily, Lockwood left a fastball up to Kyle Geason which he was able to drive into the left centerfield gap. Lockwood has also flashed a 78-80 mph slider and a mid-70's change-up. Minnesota 2, TCU 0, Bottom 1.
2:20 PM- TCU's Lockwood and Minnesota's Handran have strikingly similar pitching styles. Handran also throws mostly fast balls and sliders. His fast ball is checking in at 87-88 mph, while his slider is also 78-80. Minnesota 2, TCU 0, Top 2.
2:32 PM- Handran has been throwing a lot of first pitch sliders to TCU hitters. The slider has been his best pitch so far as his fast ball has been erratic. Minnesota 2, TCU 0, Bottom 2.
2:42 PM- Minnesota's AJ Pettersen drills a lead-off triple to deep centerfield and comes home on a shallow pop fly to leftfield. The redshirt freshman showcased his speed as most players would not think about tagging on a shallow fly. Pettersen's speed is perhaps his best tool and will go a long way to help him be a productive player. Minnesota 3, TCU 0, Bottom 3.
Luke from Minneapolis asks: "The Gopher's freshmen infielders have started every game so far, where do you see their 2009 stats finishing up?
Thanks for the question Luke. I see Pettersen hitting around .280 or .290 with a lot of stolen bases. I think the pesky freshman's best attribute right now is his aggressive base running. I project Geason to hit around .270 with a couple of homers. Nick O'Shea should lift his batting average to around .270 by the end of the year. O'Shea has the most power potential out of any of the freshman and I think he is capable of hitting five homers this year once he finds his groove.
2:52 PM- TCU does a nice job of manufacturing a run. Coming into the game, their power numbers are impressive (18 homeruns in 12 games). Their ability to play small ball and hit with power shows their very balanced line-up. Minnesota 3, TCU 1, Top 4.
2:57 PM- Kyle Geason makes a tremendous bare handed defensive play on a bunt by Matt Vern. The play is the first webgem of the day. Geason's transition from shortstop to third base is crucial for the Gophers as he provides more options for Coach John Anderson.
3:05 PM- Two costly errors hurt Minnesota as TCU pushes across two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Coming into the game, Minnesota's defense had a .974 fielding percentage. .971 is the school record. Minnesota 3, TCU 3, Bottom 5.
Wayne from Minneapolis asks: Who is the Gopher's biggest draft prospect?
Eric Decker is probably the best prospect on the team this year. Baseball America listed Decker as one of the Top 100 college prospects entering the season and he hasn't done anything to disappoint. Cullen Sexton is also rising up the draft boards. Even though Sexton is a sophomore, he is draft-eligible because he turns 21 within 45 days after the draft. Sexton's fast ball is consistently clocked in the low 90's and he has even hit 95 in practice. Scouts love to see guys throw that hard and Sexton still has some projectability in him.
3:28 PM- Another Minnesota error leads to another TCU run. However, a big inning was avoided when Chauncy Handran strikes out two TCU batters with runners on second and third. Handran went back to his slider to get the big strike outs. Handran's slider has been nearly unhittable. Minnesota 3, TCU 4, Top 6.
3:42 PM- Handran escapes another TCU threat as his gets a ground ball double play. Handran has pitched very effectively today but has been hampered by four Minnesota errors. None of TCU's runs are earned. Minnesota 3, TCU 4, Top 7.
3:48 PM- After Knudson and Hummel single, TCU head coach Jim Schlossnagle calls on Trent Appleby. Appleby is from the same high school as Minnesota infielder Drew Hanish. Appleby is a side-armer in the same mold as Lockwood. Minnesota 3, TCU 4, Top 7.
3: 51 PM- Appleby loads the bases after walking Matt Nohelty and gets Geason to fly out to second base on a full count. Cullen Sexton is now pitching for the Gophers. Minnesota 3, TCU 4, Bottom 7
4:14 PM- Kyle Knudson lines a high slider into the left centerfield gap to plate Kvasnicka and Decker. Kvasnicka reached on a bunt hit and Decker walked. Knudson came into this season as a somewhat unproven hitter but is doing much to prove his critics wrong. Minnesota 5, TCU 4. Top 8.
4:15 PM Freshman Nick O'Shea hits a chopper down the left field line scoring Knudson from second. Minnesota 6, TCU 4, Top 8.
4:22 PM Cullen Sexton has pitched two scoreless innings, striking out four. Sexton is throwing mostly fastballs and mixing in an occasional slider. The Minnesota bullpen is quiet and it looks like pitching coach Todd Oakes will stay with Sexton for the bottom of the ninth. Minnesota 6, TCU 4, Top 9.
4:26 PM- Minnesota goes quietly in the top of the ninth. The Gophers have a chance to beat their first ranked opponent since they beat Missouri on March 26, 2008. Missouri was ranked second at the time. TCU is currently ranked 11th in the country. Minnesota 6, TCU 4, Bottom 9.
4:31 PM- Sexton has struggled a bit with his command as he has walked two batters and recorded zero outs. TCU now has the winning run at the plate. Minnesota 6, TCU 4, Bottom 9.
4:37 PM- After getting one out, Sexton walks a third batter which loads the bases. Todd Oakes calls on Scott Matyas to put out the fire. Minnesota 6, TCU 4, Bottom 9.
4:44 PM- Scott Matyas gets the first batter he faces to strike out and the second batter to ground out to Derek McCallum. Matyas earns the save with Sexton getting the win. The Gophers start out their eight game spring break trip by beating number 11 TCU. Minnesota 6, TCU 4, FINAL
