The eighth-ranked TCU baseball team takes the road this weekend for a three game set against the unranked Texas Tech Red Raiders. The trip presents the first road series of 2011 for the Horned Frogs, who’ve only played one other road game this season when they took down the Baylor Bears 2-0 in Waco on February 22. However, the Frogs have had a tough time since then and need nothing short of a series win against Tech. That will not come easily.
Don’t be fooled by the word “unranked.” From what they’ve shown so far, this Red Raider team has some talent. They’ve used stellar pitching and explosive offense to jump out to an 8-2 start and have out-scored opponents by a score of 79-40 in the first ten games. For all intents and purposes, they’ve won by an average score of 8-4. Averaging eight runs a game requires some hefty bats, and that is exactly what the Raiders have.
Sophomore left fielder Jamodrick McGruder is the juggernaut of the potent Tech lineup. Although he’s not the team’s leading hitter, he leads in nearly every other offensive category with a .611 slugging percentage, three triples, a .571 on base percentage and nine stolen bases in 12 attempts. He gets on base any way possible and has already taken six bean-balls so far. That hasn’t stopped him from terrorizing opposing pitchers.
Junior shortstop Kelby Tomlinson is the other face of the Texas Tech offense and will likely be the first Red Raider hitter that Frog fans witness in the series. His .457 batting average, 16 hits, 11 walks, 12 runs and 12 runs batted in lead this powerful offense. Considering Tomlinson is the team’s lead-off hitter makes those numbers all-the-more impressive. The TCU pitching staff will have their work cut out for them in retiring him. He’s just as difficult of an out on the bases as well with seven stolen bases in eight attempts. The Texas Tech team doesn’t just pride itself on hitting well, though. Their pitchers could give the Frogs trouble as well. With that being said, here are the tentative pitching match-ups for this weekend’s games.
Game One, Friday 5:30 PM – RHP Kyle Winkler (2-0) vs. LHP Daniel Coulombe (0-1)
Winkler will make his second consecutive Friday start for the Horned Frogs and enters the series with an earned run average of 0.00 and ten strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings pitched. Opponents are hitting an anemic .149 against him and will be the first big test of the season for the mighty Texas Tech hitters. The Red Raiders are 3-1 against right-handed starters on the year.
Coulombe has yet to earn a victory through his first two starts for Texas Tech. The junior transfer student did manage four shutout innings of one hit pitching in his Red Raider debut but fell one frame shy of earning the victory against Western Michigan. A week later, he suffered defeat at the hands of BYU after allowing four runs (three earned) in five innings against the Cougars. Frogs have started the season 2-0 against southpaw starters so far and have an opportunity to build on that trend. If the TCU lineup can string together a few hits, Coulombe might be in for a long day.
Game Two, Saturday 5:00 PM – RHP Steven Maxwell (0-0) vs. LHP Robbie Kilcrease (2-0)
This could be the most intriguing match-up of the weekend. Maxwell has started the season with starts worthy enough to earn victories; however run support has been a difficult thing to obtain for the fifth-year senior. His 2.77 ERA and .240 opponents’ batting average bodes well in his favor but the TCU hitters have scored a total of just seven runs in his two starts. He might be in for more of the same against Texas Tech’s top starter.
Kilcrease missed the entire 2010 season due to injury. Whatever he did during that time was the right thing, because he has started the season remarkably. The Round Rock native boasts an ERA of 2.57 along with two wins, no losses and ten strikeouts in 14 innings with an opponents’ batting average of .224. Kilcrease took down Northwestern in the second game of the season with seven innings of four-hit ball while surrendering just one run and striking out four. He looked just as strong this past Saturday in his second start of the year. He held Northern Illinois to three runs on seven hits over seven innings with six strikeouts and three walks. Like Coulombe, Kilcrease is a left-hander. No need to repeat what's already been said about that.
Game Three, Sunday 1:00 PM – LHP Matt Purke (1-0) vs. TBD
While there is currently no information available about the ever-famous "TBD," plenty exists about Purke. There's really not much to say that hasn't been already. Purke will be starting the Sunday game instead of his usual Friday spot because of a pesky blister that kept him off the mound against Fullerton this past weekend. This sholuld buy him two more days of recovery. Having Purke pitching what could be the "rubber game" of the series is not that bad, either.
Before the injury, Purke looked just as good as he had last season in his four innings pitched against Kansas on opening day. The lefty earned his first victory of the year by giving up just one hit and a walk with three strikeouts in the brief appearance against the Jayhawks. If the blister has healed by Sunday, then TCU fans should have all the confidence in the world.
Taking this series probably won't be easy for either team. The Horned Frogs still have a lot to prove in this young season. But really, it's not so much about about proving anything. Those opportunities will come later. Right now they just need to win and build momentum, and winning this series could do just that.
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