joeywa
Unofficial HS BBQ Consultant & Baseball Pundit
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2013
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Happy Opening Day, Seamheads.
The #1 Longhorns officially kick off the 2022 season tonight at Disch-Falk Field tonight, with first pitch shortly after 6:30 PM.
I will be posting on and off in this game thread throughout the games, but as usual, you can follow my PBP on Twitter. Grab your favorite beverage, sit back and watch some Texas Baseball! HookEm???
!
Some series notes from Texas Sports:
PROBABLE PITCHERS
FRIDAY–Texas LHP Pete Hansen (9-1, 1.88) vs. Rice RHP Cooper Chandler (n/a)
SATURDAY–Texas RHP Tristan Stevens (11-3, 3.31) vs. Rice LHP Brandon Deskins (3-4, 3.88)
SUNDAY–Texas RHP Tanner Witt (5-0, 3.16) vs. Rice LHP Thomas Burbank (n/a)
LONGHORNS NOTES
THE MATCHUP—For the fourth time in the last eight seasons, Texas and Rice meet on Opening Day. The Longhorns and Owls began the 2015 and 2020 seasons with a series at Reckling Park, while the 2017 season-opening series was at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. Texas swept a three-game series in 2020 and the teams split four-game series in 2015 and 2017. Texas has won five straight games over Rice and has a 9-4 advantage against the Owls since 2015.
A LOOK AT THE LONGHORNS—Texas returns six starting position players and four key pitchers from the team that went 50-17 and finished third at the College World Series in 2021. Last season, the Longhorn pitching staff led the nation with a 2.93 ERA, the program’s best since 2014. The staff also had
the most strikeouts (556) and lowest batting average against (.215) since 2011. Offensively, Texas had its highest team batting average (.275) and number of home runs (68) since the 2010 season. The team’s 126 doubles were the most since 2008 and the 92 stolen bases were the most since 2005. The
Longhorns were also elite defensively, finishing 10th nationally with a .980 fielding percentage and second in the country with 57 double plays turned.
PRESEASON RANKINGS—Returning several key members from last season’s team that went 50-17, Texas has been unanimously selected Preseason No. 1. This marks the first time that Texas has appeared at No. 1 at any point in the D1Baseball Top 25, which began in 2015. It’s the seventh time in the 42-year history of the Baseball America Top 25 that the Longhorns take the top preseason spot and first time since 2010. Texas is also ranked No. 1 in the NCBWA poll, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper rankings and USA Today Baseball Coaches poll.
PRESEASON PICKS—In a vote of the league’s head coaches, Texas was selected to finish first in the Preseason Big 12 Baseball Coaches’ Poll. The Longhorns landed in the top spot in the poll for the ninth time overall and for the first time since 2010. LHP Pete Hansen was named the Big 12 Conference Preseason Pitcher of the Year, leading seven total Longhorns on the Preseason All-Big 12 team. Tristan Stevens and Ivan Melendez were unanimous selections, while Silas Ardoin, Mitchell Daly, Trey Faltine and Aaron Nixon also landed on
the team.
MORE NATIONAL ACCOLADES—Pete Hansen and Tanner Witt were named to the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List to lead a group of seven Longhorns earning national preseason recognition. Hansen and Ivan Melendez were both named first team Preseason All-American by NCBWA and Collegiate Baseball and second team by D1Baseball and Perfect Game. Aaron Nixon earned first
team preseason honors from D1Baseball and NCBWA. Witt and Nixon, along with Trey Faltine and Tristan Stevens landed on the Collegiate Baseball preseason second team, joined by Mitchell Daly on the third team.
PIERCE AND THE OWLS— Texas head coach David Pierce served nine seasons as an assistant coach at Rice from 2003-11, helping lead the Owls to the 2003 National Championship and four College World Series appearances. Since becoming a head coach in 2012, Pierce has faced his former employer 16 times and has a 12-4 record. At Sam Houston State from 2012-14, Pierce faced Rice annually and went 5-2 including a win in the 2012 NCAA Regional at Reckling Park. Since joining Texas in 2017, Pierce has posted a 7-2 record against Rice.
ON AIR
TV Longhorn Network
Keith Moreland
Greg Swindell
LIVESTREAM WatchESPN
RADIO Longhorn IMG Radio | 104.9 FM/1260 AM
Craig Way/ Roger Wallace
Ty Harrington/Nathan Thornhill
LIVESTATS sidearmstats.com/texas/baseball
The #1 Longhorns officially kick off the 2022 season tonight at Disch-Falk Field tonight, with first pitch shortly after 6:30 PM.
I will be posting on and off in this game thread throughout the games, but as usual, you can follow my PBP on Twitter. Grab your favorite beverage, sit back and watch some Texas Baseball! HookEm???
!Some series notes from Texas Sports:
PROBABLE PITCHERS
FRIDAY–Texas LHP Pete Hansen (9-1, 1.88) vs. Rice RHP Cooper Chandler (n/a)
SATURDAY–Texas RHP Tristan Stevens (11-3, 3.31) vs. Rice LHP Brandon Deskins (3-4, 3.88)
SUNDAY–Texas RHP Tanner Witt (5-0, 3.16) vs. Rice LHP Thomas Burbank (n/a)
LONGHORNS NOTES
THE MATCHUP—For the fourth time in the last eight seasons, Texas and Rice meet on Opening Day. The Longhorns and Owls began the 2015 and 2020 seasons with a series at Reckling Park, while the 2017 season-opening series was at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. Texas swept a three-game series in 2020 and the teams split four-game series in 2015 and 2017. Texas has won five straight games over Rice and has a 9-4 advantage against the Owls since 2015.
A LOOK AT THE LONGHORNS—Texas returns six starting position players and four key pitchers from the team that went 50-17 and finished third at the College World Series in 2021. Last season, the Longhorn pitching staff led the nation with a 2.93 ERA, the program’s best since 2014. The staff also had
the most strikeouts (556) and lowest batting average against (.215) since 2011. Offensively, Texas had its highest team batting average (.275) and number of home runs (68) since the 2010 season. The team’s 126 doubles were the most since 2008 and the 92 stolen bases were the most since 2005. The
Longhorns were also elite defensively, finishing 10th nationally with a .980 fielding percentage and second in the country with 57 double plays turned.
PRESEASON RANKINGS—Returning several key members from last season’s team that went 50-17, Texas has been unanimously selected Preseason No. 1. This marks the first time that Texas has appeared at No. 1 at any point in the D1Baseball Top 25, which began in 2015. It’s the seventh time in the 42-year history of the Baseball America Top 25 that the Longhorns take the top preseason spot and first time since 2010. Texas is also ranked No. 1 in the NCBWA poll, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper rankings and USA Today Baseball Coaches poll.
PRESEASON PICKS—In a vote of the league’s head coaches, Texas was selected to finish first in the Preseason Big 12 Baseball Coaches’ Poll. The Longhorns landed in the top spot in the poll for the ninth time overall and for the first time since 2010. LHP Pete Hansen was named the Big 12 Conference Preseason Pitcher of the Year, leading seven total Longhorns on the Preseason All-Big 12 team. Tristan Stevens and Ivan Melendez were unanimous selections, while Silas Ardoin, Mitchell Daly, Trey Faltine and Aaron Nixon also landed on
the team.
MORE NATIONAL ACCOLADES—Pete Hansen and Tanner Witt were named to the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List to lead a group of seven Longhorns earning national preseason recognition. Hansen and Ivan Melendez were both named first team Preseason All-American by NCBWA and Collegiate Baseball and second team by D1Baseball and Perfect Game. Aaron Nixon earned first
team preseason honors from D1Baseball and NCBWA. Witt and Nixon, along with Trey Faltine and Tristan Stevens landed on the Collegiate Baseball preseason second team, joined by Mitchell Daly on the third team.
PIERCE AND THE OWLS— Texas head coach David Pierce served nine seasons as an assistant coach at Rice from 2003-11, helping lead the Owls to the 2003 National Championship and four College World Series appearances. Since becoming a head coach in 2012, Pierce has faced his former employer 16 times and has a 12-4 record. At Sam Houston State from 2012-14, Pierce faced Rice annually and went 5-2 including a win in the 2012 NCAA Regional at Reckling Park. Since joining Texas in 2017, Pierce has posted a 7-2 record against Rice.
ON AIR
TV Longhorn Network
Keith Moreland
Greg Swindell
LIVESTREAM WatchESPN
RADIO Longhorn IMG Radio | 104.9 FM/1260 AM
Craig Way/ Roger Wallace
Ty Harrington/Nathan Thornhill
LIVESTATS sidearmstats.com/texas/baseball
