May 2, 2002
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#15 Baylor (32-16, 13-10 Big 12) vs. Dallas Baptist (34-13, 10-2 Heartland)
Friday, May 3 (7 p.m.) * Saturday, May 4 (Doubleheader) (2 p.m.)
Baylor Ballpark * Waco, Texas
this week in baylor baseball
15th-ranked Baylor will host Dallas Baptist in the final home weekend of the regular season. The Bears and Patriots square off Friday at 6 p.m., then will battle through a doubleheader Saturday starting at 2 p.m.
The Bears will look to continue the power surge which has seen Baylor launch 11 home runs in their last four games. At the same time, the Bears' pitching staff needs to settle down in preparation for the conclusion of the regular season and postseason play.
DBU, an NAIA/NCAA D-II provisional school, took the week off before this weekend's games. The Patriots come to Waco having won 10 of their last 11 games (although the one loss in that stretch came last weekend against Incarnate Word). Dallas Baptist's primary strength is their offense; the squad has a .369 batting average as a team, with 76 home runs. Four starters are hitting over .400, and two have totaled over 20 homers apiece this season.
Before Saturday's games, this season's seniors (Kyle Edens, Justin Taylor, Steve Dorneman, Ron Zboril, Justin Spooner, Brandon Luce and Tim Hartshorn) will be honored in their last home weekend series.
baylor vs. dallas baptist
Last season, Baylor took two of three in a weekend set against Dallas Baptist. On Friday night, Baylor's bats overcame a 6-0 deficit for a 10-7 win. Chris Durbin was 3-for-4 with five RBI, including a homer in the fifth that gave the Bears their first lead of the night. Two batters later, Ron Zboril smashed a two-run home run and the Bears never looked back. Kelly Shoppach extended his hitting streak to 26 games with a 4-for-4 evening that included three doubles, giving him 15 on the year and improving his batting average to an astounding .484. Steven White settled down after a rough start and managed to pick up his eighth win after throwing six innings and striking out nine.
After dropping the first game of a doubleheader against Dallas Baptist 9-2, the Baylor baseball team rebounded to clobber the Patriots 13-2 in the nightcap Saturday. Baylor was sluggish in the early game, getting just two runs on nine hits. David Murphy was the only offensive spark, belting a home run to right in the fifth inning and smacking an RBI single in the seventh to plate Paul Richmond. Bears starter Josh Scott gave up four runs on seven hits in two-plus innings of work for the loss.
The second game was a different story as the Bears exploded for 13 runs on 11 hits and got stellar pitching from starter Justin Taylor. Baylor scored at least one run in each of the first six innings before the game was called in the middle of seventh due to the NCAA 10-run rule with Baylor leading 13-2. Durbin homered and drove in five runs to lead the Bears.
Baylor is 34-17 all-time against Dallas Baptist, dating back to a 10-5 win in 1979 (exact date unknown).
last time out
Paul Richmond's pinch-hit, two-run homer in the seventh broke a 6-6 tie, and Baylor held on to beat Texas-Arlington Tuesday night in a battle of long balls, 8-7. After three early runs put the Bears up 3-0, UTA scored once in the fourth and three times in the sixth to take a 4-3 lead. That lasted only half an inning, as Trey Webb and Chris Durbin each homered in the bottom of the sixth as Baylor reclaimed the lead. UTA tied the game in the seventh with two runs, but Richmond's pinch-hit home run gave the Bears the lead for good. Paul Thorp earned his fourth straight win, while Kyle Edens picked up his Big 12-leading 11th save of the year. The save moved Edens into second place alone in school history for saves in a season.
A tough weekend on the road ended with Baylor squeaking out just one of three games at Kansas State.
Friday, the Baylor bats scored three in the first, four in the second and another in the fourth for an 8-0 lead. But the Wildcats used three walks, a hit batsman and two key errors Paul Witt to score seven runs on just two hits in the fourth and close Baylor's early lead to 8-7. Two homers off starter Jared Theodorakos in the next inning put KSU on top to stay as the Wildcats coasted to a 14-9 win. The rough showing on the mound wasted strong offensive outbursts by Mike Huggins (two homers), Trey Webb (school-record five hits) and David Murphy (4-for-5).
The next afternoon, Baylor scored a pair of first-inning runs to take a brief 2-0 lead, but K-State answered with single runs in the first and third to tie the game at 2-2. The Wildcats took the lead for good with a four-run fifth on four consecutive run-scoring singles. A pair of two-run homers by Mike Huggins cut the KSU lead to two runs in the sixth and eighth, but the Wildcats responded by scoring twice in the sixth and four more times in the eighth. Bear starter Steven White took his second loss of the year by allowing six runs on nine hits in 4.1 innings.
In the finale, true freshman Sean Walker (making his first appearance in a Big 12 game) induced a game-ending flyout to preserve the Bears' 6-5 win over the Wildcats, salvaging the final game of the series. Starter Justin Taylor improved to 8-1 with seven complete innings of five-hit baseball, allowing just one run and a walk while striking out six. Baylor took a 6-1 lead into the bottom of the ninth, thanks to a pair of home runs by Ross Bennett and David Murphy and two-run, pinch-hit double by Josh Ford. KSU scored four runs in the ninth off Kyle Edens, Paul Thorp and Walker before the freshman got a fly out to left to strand the tying and winning runs in scoring position.
baylor in the rankings
A second-straight week with a 2-2 record dropped the Bears drastically in one poll (Baseball America, down nine spots to 25th). In the other two primary polls, Baylor held its place, staying at 15th in the USA Today Baseball Weekly ranking and 18th in the Collegiate Baseball listing.
The No. 8 ranking by Baseball America on March 18 was Baylor's top ranking so far this season and was the Bears' highest seat since they checked in at No. 8 in the Baseball Weekly coaches' poll April 9, 2001.
postseason prediction
In its Midseason Update (April 12), Baseball America pegged Baylor as one of 16 NCAA Regional hosts. The magazine projected the Bears as the No. 1 seed in the Waco Regional, joined by Georgia, San Diego and Oral Roberts.
hot dates
Important dates to remember as the postseason nears: * May 26 -- Big 12 Tournament championship game
* May 26 -- NCAA announced regional site hosts
* May 27 -- NCAA Tournament Selection Show, ESPN2, 11:30 a.m. CT
an eye on the watch list
Chris Durbin, Kyle Edens and Steven White were included on the preliminary Rotary Smith Award Watch List, released in late April. Voting to determine the list of 12 semifinalists will begin in mid-May, and the list will be announced after the conclusion of regular season play. Three finalists will be announced before the start of NCAA Super Regional Action, the week of June 7-9. Jason Jennings won the award in 1999 en route to sweeping all six major national player of the year honors.
rpi stays sky high
Baylor ranks 20th in the nation in the pseudo-RPI from BoydsWorld.com, through games of April 28. Though sitting in third in the conference standings, the Bears have the second-best RPI in the Big 12, behind only Texas (13th) and ahead of Texas Tech (28th), Nebraska (33rd) and Oklahoma (39th) among the top 50. Other 2002 opponents near the top of the charts include Houston (4th), Rice (9th), Southern California (22nd) and TCU (50th).
The same site ranked Baylor 12th in the country in its Iterative Strength Ratings (ISR), a formula that includes a more accurate strength-of-schedule ranking than the usual RPI. Rice (2nd), Houston (6th) and Texas (7th) are the only teams in the state ahead of Baylor.
bring in 'da funk, bring in 'da heat
Hard-throwing reliever Kyle Edens has laid a strong claim on the closers' role this season. A four-year lettermen who has spent most of that time in middle relief, Edens has matured into a solid closer this season. Edens has appeared in 26 games, converting 11 of 14 save opportunities and picking up five wins along the way. Through games of April 28, his 10 saves were tied for seventh-best in the nation.
His 11 saves lead the Big 12 Conference and are the second-best single-season total in school history. The senior also has moved into second place all-time at Baylor in career saves with 15, eight shy of teammate Zane Carlson's school record of 25. Edens, whose fastball tops out at a lofty 96 MPH, has struck out 46 batters in 40.1 innings with just six walks. Opponents are hitting a mere .219 against him with only five extra base hits.
bears best in the big 12
Now in its sixth season as a member of the Big 12 Conference, the Bears have the best conference record of any program in the league since the conference's inception. Earlier this season, Baylor became the first school in the Big 12 to record 100 conference wins.
Through five full seasons, Baylor leads all schools in both first team All-Big 12 selections (15) and first team Academic All-Big 12 selections (25).
Big 12 conference records, year-by-year and cumulative
Team 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 Totals Pct.Baylor 18-12 18-10 20-7 23-7 17-10 13-10 109-56 .661Texas Tech 23-7 18-11 18-8 18-12 19-10-1 13-11 109-59-1 .648Texas A&M 19-11 21-9 23-6 11-19 15-15 11-10 100-70 .588Oklahoma St. 21-9 15-12 18-9 14-13 16-14 8-9 93-66 .585Texas 12-15 11-18 17-13 19-10 19-11 15-6 93-73 .560Nebraska 7-23 10-13 16-9 21-9 20-8 14-10 88-72 .550Oklahoma 18-11 17-11 12-18 20-10 13-16-1 8-10 88-76-1 .536Missouri 15-14 17-12 14-13 13-14 11-19 9-11 79-83 .488Kansas State 10-20 9-19 11-18 5-24 10-17 8-10 53-108 .329Kansas 12-18 7-20 4-26 10-20 7-23 4-16 44-123 .263Iowa State 6-21 10-18 2-28 7-23 11-15 -- 36-105 .255
totals through games of May 2
keep your eyes on the charts
Several current Bears are making their ways up the leaderboards in the Baylor recordbook this season. Most impressively, junior Chris Durbin's career average ranks seventh all-time (.344), while Justin Taylor's 25 wins are just three shy of the school record for career victories. Other notable records:
Career Average: Chris Durbin (7th, .344)
Career Doubles: Chris Durbin (7th, 50), Mike Huggins (t-8th, 48)
Career Home Runs: Chris Durbin (t-10th, 21)
Career Slugging Pct: Chris Durbin (9th, .565)
Career Games Pitched: Kyle Edens (5th, 76), Justin Taylor (6th, 74)
Career Wins: Justin Taylor (3rd, 25)
Career Saves: Zane Carlson (1st, 23); Kyle Edens (2nd, 15)
Career Strikeouts: Justin Taylor (t-8th, 209)
Single Season Doubles: Chris Durbin (t-10th, 19)
Single Season Games Pitched: Kyle Edens (5th, 26)
Single Season Saves: Kyle Edens (2nd, 11)
Hitting Streak: Michael Griffin (8th, 16 games)
carlson out for the season
Reliever Zane Carlson is out for the year after surgery on his right (throwing) arm. After pitching in pain for much of the last two years, doctors discovered the problem was caused by an entrapment of Carlson's median nerve in the bicep area, which caused a tenderness in one particular spot in his arm when he releases the ball on a pitch. The pain was not caused by any other normal action. Carlson underwent exploratory surgery on April 12 with hopes of correcting the problem. Rehab following the surgery will keep the reliever out of action for the year.
Carlson, a junior from Dallas, set the Baylor career saves record as a freshman in 2000 with 15. He saved eight more games last season but struggled at times as the pain began sporadically early in the year. Despite resting all fall, the pain returned in January, and after multiple diagnostic tests revealed nothing, surgery was decided upon as the course of action. Baylor will apply for a medical redshirt for Carlson.
smith approaching milestone win
In just his eighth season at the helm of the Baylor program, head coach Steve Smith is approaching his 300th win. At 294-170-1, Smith needs just six more wins to reach the mark this season.
He is already the second-winningest coach in school history in terms of total wins, behind Baylor legend Mickey Sullivan. Smith's career winning percentage is the highest in program history of any manager with at least five seasons under his belt.
cardiac kids
The Bears have won 10 games already this season in their last at-bat, including six exhilarating walk-off wins. Baylor has six wins when trailing after six innings and five when trailing after seven innings.
The heroics began Feb. 23 against Oral Roberts, when Paul Richmond singled in the winning run for a 9-8 win. The next afternoon, Richmond hit a three-run home run for a 4-2, come-from-behind Baylor victory.
In March, a pair of walk-off hits led to a three-game sweep of Kansas. In the Friday game (March 15), Chris Durbin's bases-loaded blast in the bottom of the 9th first appeared to be a game-winning grand slam. Durbin passed the runner on first base, however, and the play was sorted out as a three-RBI single. Durbin was called out for passing the runner, but since the out was only the second of the inning, three runs scored and Baylor came away with the victory. The Sunday game against Kansas (March 17) was much simpler; Paul Witt singled up the middle in the 11th inning, plating Trey Webb for a 5-4 win.
At the end of the month, Baylor came from behind to take game one of the series from Oklahoma (March 29). Trailing 4-3 going to the ninth inning, the Bears put together three hits and a hit batsman to push across two runs. With two outs, Mike Huggins came through with a first-pitch single through the right side that skipped under the diving OU first baseman and into right field to drive in Tim Hartshorn with the winning run.
In game one against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Ross Bennett singled to left-center to score Chris Durbin in the bottom of the ninth as Baylor edged the Islanders, 6-5 (April 12). With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Durbin hit a screamer towards third base that ricocheted off the fielder and let Durbin take second base with a double. After an intentional walk to Mike Huggins, Bennett hit a rope over the shortstop's head. When the Islander left fielder bobbled the ball, Durbin scored easily with the winning run.
Two days later, it took a six-run eighth inning to break a 7-7 tie as the Bears defeated TAMU-CC 13-9 (April 14). After Tim Hartshorn and Paul Witt each reached base to start the inning, Trey Webb beat out a bunt for an infield single. When the third baseman's throw sailed past first base, Webb moved all the way to third as both Hartshorn and Witt scored to break the tie. Three more hits and another error added up to six runs (only three earned) off the Islanders in the frame.
Ross Bennett's bouncer up the middle drove home Tim Hartshorn with the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Bears defeated Texas A&M 6-5 (April 20). Hartshorn led off the ninth with a pinch-hit, six-pitch walk. Hartshorn advanced to third after Trey Webb showed bunt, then swung away and slashed the ball over the third baseman's head for a double, putting two men in scoring position with nobody out. After a strikeout and an intentional walk, the stage was set for Bennett. The junior hit a high hopper up the middle, where the A&M second baseman fielded the ball and flipped to the shortstop for the second out of the inning. The relay throw to first was not in time to get Bennett as Hartshorn raced across the plate with the winning run.
bears earn quintet of big 12 weekly honors
In the first five weeks of the season, Baylor had four players honored by the Big 12 for their weekly performances. Senior Tim Hartshorn was named Big 12 Player of the Week (Jan. 25-Feb. 10) after earning Most Outstanding Player honors at the Astros College Classic. Junior LHP Jared Theodorakos was named National and Big 12 Pitcher of the Week (Feb. 11-17) after he carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning Feb. 16 in an 8-1 Baylor win over No. 6 USC at Dodger Stadium.
After a week "off", first baseman Mike Huggins added his name to the list in week four (Feb. 25-March 3) as he helped the Bears take two of three from No. 9 Texas. Steven White became the latest Bear to be honored when he was named Pitcher of the Week (March 4-10) after holding No. 8 Nebraska to one run in eight innings in a 2-1 Baylor win.
Six weeks later, Huggins earned his second weekly honor and the team's fifth selection after blasting four homers in four games and slugging 1.357 for the week (games played April 22-28).
The five weekly honors is a new team record for most players/pitchers of the week in a season, besting the previous high of four set in 1996 and matched in 1998 and 2000.
baylor on the air
Catch every inning of Baylor baseball in 2002 on the flagship station for Baylor athletics, News/Talk Radio KRZI 1660/1580-AM.
John Morris, Baylor's Director of Broadcasting, heads up the team as he begins his seventh season as the "Voice of the Bears." Morris is also the signature voice for Baylor's football and men's basketball broadcasts and serves as co-host of the weekly TV show "Inside Baylor Sports." Mark Rogers, a former Baylor pitcher and currently a sports reporter for KCEN-TV in Central Texas, enters his third season providing color commentary for the baseball broadcasts.
Pete Kenworthy, Sports Director and weekday sports anchor for KWTX-TV, Tom Barfield, Program Director and on-air personality for flagship station KRZI, and Trent Weaver, a Baylor baseball letterman in 1988-89, will also be a part of the broadcast team for several games. All Baylor Baseball games in 2002 will be available world-wide on the internet at www.GoBaylorBears.com. BU baseball is also a staple of the daily "Baylor SportsBeat" hosted by Morris and airing weekdays at 7:25am and 5:25pm on KRZI 1660/1580-AM.
recruits roll in
Baylor head coach Steve Smith announced the signing of 12 players for the 2003 season during the early signing period (fall 2001), plus one additional player during the spring 2002 signing period.
Name Pos. Ht. Wt. B/T Hometown (School)Tyler Bullock C/1B 6-2 220 R/R Fort Worth, Texas (R.L. Paschal)Clint Everts RHP/SS 6-2 170 S/R Houston, Texas (Cy-Falls)Brad Ferguson RHP 6-2 170 R/R West, Texas (West HS)Seth Fortenberry OF/LHP 6-2 175 L/L Waco, Texas (Midway HS)Zach Golden RHP 6-2 183 R/R Pearland, Texas (Pearland HS)Ryan LaMotta RHP/IF 5-11 170 R/R Sugar Land, Texas (Clements HS)James Loney LHP/1B 6-2 190 L/L Missouri City, Texas (Elkins HS)Mark McCormick RHP 6-2 190 R/R Clear Creek, Texas (Clear Creek HS)Andy Pape RHP 6-4 235 R/R San Antonio, Texas (Ronald Reagan HS)Kyle Reynolds SS/2B 6-2 160 L/R Houston, Texas (Second Baptist HS)Jake Rippee IF 6-0 165 S/R Kerrville, Texas (Tivy HS)Kevin Sevigny OF 6-0 180 S/R Springvale, Maine (Sanford HS)Blake Womble* OF/2B 5-8 160 R/R Tyler, Texas (Robert E. Lee HS)* indicates spring 2002 signee
Twelve of the Bears' 13 signees come from the state of Texas; the lone exception is outfielder Kevin Sevigny, who was ranked by Baseball America/Perfect Game as the top prospect in the state of Maine. Of the 11 Texas natives to sign with Baylor, eight were named to the Baseball America/Perfect Game Top 400 Prospects for the Class of 2002. Five of those players were ranked among the 25 best prospects in the state by Texas Baseball News: RHP Mark McCormick, RHP/SS Clint Everts, RHP Zach Golden, LHP/1B James Loney and RHP Ryan LaMotta.
In addition to having put up excellent numbers on the field, the class as a whole also has an exceptional academic background. Six of the signees qualified for academic merit scholarship as a part of their overall aid package.
baylor alums in the pros
Catcher Kelly Shoppach topped a list of five Baylor players taken in the 2001 MLB First-Year Player Draft. Shoppach was taken in the second round by the Boston Red Sox (48th overall), and was actually Boston's first pick of the draft.
Trevor Mote (15th round, Houston Astros), Matt Williams (15th round, St. Louis Cardinals) and Josh Scott (25th round, Philadelphia Phillies) each signed after completing their careers at Baylor. First baseman Mike Huggins was taken in the 25th round by the Colorado Rockies, but elected to return for his junior year.
Three Baylor signees were also taken. Outfielder Alan Moye (3rd round, Cincinnati Reds) and infielder Josh Barfield (4th round, San Diego Padres) each chose to go pro, while LHP Trey Taylor turned down the Colorado Rockies, who used a supplemental pick before the third round on him.
Baylor alums and former first-round draft picks Jason Jennings and Kip Wells began the 2002 season in major league rotations -- Jennings with the Rockies and Wells with the Pittsburgh Pirates (after an offseason trade). In all, 15 former Bears are active at some level of professional baseball.
head coach steve smith
Head coach Steve Smith is in his eighth season as head coach at Baylor; in that time, he has compiled a 294-170-1 record. Smith led the Bears to their first-ever 50 win season in 1999 and a Big 12 Championship in 2000, and has piloted the team to four straight NCAA appearances. Through the 2001 season, Smith ranked 40th among active coaches in winning percentage with a .629 mark.
The 2000 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Smith came to Baylor from Mississippi State, where he was an assistant under Ron Polk for five seasons. Prior to that, he served as a graduate assistant at Texas A&M.
A former standout pitcher at Baylor in 1982-1983, Smith led the Southwest Conference with a 1.72 ERA as a junior, bettering league foes and future major leaguers Norm Charlton, Roger Clemens, Doug Drabek and Calvin Schiraldi.
An accomplished pitching coach, Smith has tutored six pitchers in the last 10 years who were selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft. He has also had at least one pitcher named to the all-conference first team in each of the last 10 years. In 1999, right-hander/designated hitter Jason Jennings won the Golden Spikes Award and was the 16th overall pick by the Colorado Rockies.
In Smith's seven full seasons as head coach, the Bears have produced three first-round draft picks, eight all-Americans, five GTE/CoSIDA Academic all-Americans, one GTE/CoSIDA Academic all-American of the Year, 21 first-team all-conference performers, three freshman all-Americans, and three conference players of the year. Baylor has also placed 25 players on the Academic All-Big 12 first team in the past five seasons.
bears among big 12 statistical leaders
As a team, Baylor ranks second in the Big 12 Conference in batting average (.319) and sixth in ERA (4.54), through games of April 29. For conference games only, the Bears lead the Big 12 in hitting at .307, six points ahead of second-place Kansas State, while placing fifth in ERA (5.39).
A number of Bears ranked among the Big 12 individual leaders in a variety of statistics, through games of April 29. Kyle Edens led the league in saves with 10 and in appearances with 25, Jared Theodorakos led all hurlers with 80 strikeouts and Chris Durbin topped the conference in doubles with 19. Others:
Ross Bennett: 4th in hitting (.381)
Chris Durbin: t-1st in doubles (19), 7th in hits (67), 9th in runs (47), t-9th in walks (27), t-16th in hitting (.354)
Kyle Edens: 1st in saves (10), 1st in appearances (25)
Michael Griffin: t-4th in RBI (47)
Tim Hartshorn: t-4th in triples (5)
Mike Huggins: 4th in total bases (109), t-4th in triples (5), t-4th in RBI (47), 9th in slugging percentage (.616), t-9th in walks (27), t-10th in hits (64), t-12th in hitting (.362)
Justin Taylor: 2nd in wins (8), 2nd in starts (14), 2nd in innings pitched (89.0), 4th in strikeouts (65), 13th in ERA (3.84)
Jared Theodorakos: 1st in strikeouts (80), t-8th in complete games (2), 10th in opp. batting average (.244), t-10th in starts (11)
Paul Thorp: t-2nd in appearances (22), 19th in ERA (4.15)
Trey Webb: t-7th in runs (48), 8th in hits (66), t-9th in steals (12)
Steven White: t-3rd in starts (12), 9th in innings pitched (73.2), 9th in strikeouts (57)
