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GAMES 54-56 • MAY 20-22, 2005

No. 9 BAYLOR (35-18, 18-6)

vs.

No. 20 MISSOURI (35-18, 14-10)

BAYLOR BALLPARK • WACO, TEXAS

THE SERIES

Overall Record: Baylor leads 21-13

Waco: Baylor leads 9-5

Columbia: Baylor leads 7-5

Neutral Site: Baylor leads 5-3

Since start of Big 12: Baylor leads 19-13

Smith vs. Missouri: 19-13

First Meeting: 5/5/1905 [result unknown]

Last Meeting: Missouri 10, Baylor 7 [5/29/2004]

COACHES

BAYLOR: Steve Smith

Alma Mater: Baylor, 1986

Career Record: 407-252-1 (11th season)

Record at Baylor: 407-252-1 (11th season)

MISSOURI: Tim Jamieson

Alma Mater: New Orleans, 1984

Career Record: 359-257-2 (11th season)

Record at Missouri: 359-257-2 (11th season)

BAYLOR RADIO NETWORK

ESPN/KRZI 1660 AM (Waco)

Tom Barfield, play-by-play

Lark Smith, color

INTERNET FEEDS

GameTracker: www.BaylorBears.com

Audio: www.BaylorBears.com

Video: www.BaylorBears.com

BAYLOR NATIONAL RANKINGS

Baseball America 9th

Sports Weekly/ESPN/Coaches 12th

NCBWA 9th

Collegiate Baseball 8th

Baylor returns to action this weekend, hosting Missouri at Baylor Ballpark in the final Big 12 Conference series for both teams. The Bears and the Tigers meet Friday at 7 p.m. CDT, Saturday at 3 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.

Baylor (35-18, 18-6) has won four straight and eight of its last 10 after defeating Texas State 7-4 Tuesday night at Baylor Ballpark. Ranked ninth in this week's Baseball America Top 25, the Bears are 19-8 this season at Baylor Ballpark -- 10-2 in Big 12 play -- and have won 10 of their last 11 home games. Baylor enters the weekend atop the Big 12 standings, two games ahead of Nebraska.

Missouri (35-18, 14-10) split a pair of midweek games at O'Fallon, Mo., falling Tuesday to Southern Illinois 7-0 and winning Wednesday against Illinois 6-2. The Tigers, ranked 20th in this week's Baseball America Top 25, are 7-11 on opponents' home fields this season. Missouri enters the weekend fourth in the Big 12 standings, one-half game behind Texas, two games behind Nebraska and four games behind Baylor.

All Baylor baseball games are broadcast live on ESPN/KRZI 1660 AM in Waco. Live streaming audio and GameTracker also are available for all Baylor baseball games online at www.BaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor Athletics and a member of the College Sports Network.

Live streaming video also is available for the Missouri series. For more information, visit the BearCasts link at www.BaylorBears.com.

LEADING OFF

SEVERAL EVENTS PLANNED FOR MISSOURI SERIES

In what shapes up to be a big weekend at Baylor Ballpark, this weekend's series against Missouri features several special events.

Kim Mulkey-Robertson, head coach of Baylor's 2005 National Champion women's basketball team, is scheduled to throw out the first pitch at Friday's series opener.

Saturday, members of Baylor's Diamond Girls squad will be honored before the game. Senior captain Jennifer Ham will throw out the first pitch.

Sunday is Senior Day at Baylor Ballpark. Reid Brees, Clay Coats, Cody Hall, Trey Taylor, Sean Walker, Paul Witt and co-captains Josh Ford and Michael Griffin will be honored in a pregame ceremony at 1:30 p.m. CDT. Outgoing Baylor president Dr. Robert B. Sloan Jr. will throw out the first pitch.

Sunday also is Family Day at Baylor Ballpark. Families can get four general admission tickets, four hot dogs and four Dr Peppers for $20.

QUICK NOTES ...

• Baylor and Missouri meet for the 35th, 36th and 37th times this weekend. The Bears hold a 21-13 advantage in the all-time series.

• According to this week's rankings at www.BoydsWorld.com, Baylor ranks fourth nationally in RPI and seventh in ISR (Iterative Strength Rating).

• Baylor's strength of schedule ranks ninth nationally, according to www.BoydsWorld.com.

• Baylor's 18-6 start in Big 12 play is its best eight-series start since starting the 1999 season 18-6. That team finished second in the Big 12 at 20-7. The 2000 Big 12 Championship team was 17-7 through seven series and finished 23-7.

• Baylor is 11-4 this season against nationally ranked opponents, second nationally behind only Tulane (9-2).

• The Bears are tied with Arizona State for fourth nationally in wins against ranked opponents. Louisiana State, Tennessee and Texas lead the nation with 13 wins each.

• Against ranked opponents this season, Baylor's pitch staff has a 2.09 ERA with 115 strikeouts against 47 walks in 129.0 innings and a .214 opponents' batting average.

• RHP Mark McCormick is 2-1 with a 1.78 ERA in four starts against ranked opponents.

• LHP Cory VanAllen is 4-1 with a 2.56 ERA in five starts against ranked opponents.

• RHP Abe Woody is 3-0 with two saves and a 1.84 ERA in seven appearances against ranked opponents.

• RHP Ryan LaMotta is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 8.2 innings over six appearances against ranked opponents.

• Baylor is the only team in the Big 12 Conference with a team batting average higher in conference play (.282) than its overall season team batting average (.272). Baylor joins Oklahoma as the only Big 12 teams with a staff ERA lower in conference play (2.79) than its overall season staff 5ERA (3.24). In conference games, Baylor's pitching staff leads the Big 12 in ERA, saves and opponents' batting average, while Baylor's batters lead the Big 12 in batting average (tied with Texas), runs, hits, RBI, total bases and slugging percentage.

• Baylor has won a program-best six consecutive games against teams ranked in the top 10 nationally. The previous program best was five in 1999.

• The Bears are 28-8 this season when the starting pitcher goes at least 5.0 innings.

• Baylor is 11-2 this season on Sunday.

• Baylor is 12-3 this season in Championship Gold jerseys.

• Baylor is 27-4 this season when scoring first and 10-2 when scoring in the first inning.

• Baylor is 29-5 this season when scoring at least four runs and 22-2 when scoring at least five runs.

• Baylor is 8-0 this season when hitting at least two home runs.

• Baylor is 28-3 this season when out-hitting the opponent.

• Baylor is 10-1 when leading after one inning, 14-4 after two, 17-3 after three, 19-3 after four, 21-1 after five, 28-1 after six and 29-1 after seven innings or later.

• Baylor has recorded 58 infield hits, 15 bunt singles and 47 sacrifice bunts this season. Last season, the Bears produced 48 infield hits, six bunt singles and only 25 sacrifice bunts.

• 2B Michael Griffin will establish a Baylor record Friday when he plays in his 243rd career game. The current record of 242 is held by Matt Williams (1998-2001).

• OF Kevin Sevigny is hitting .305 (25-for-82) since April 1; he entered April hitting .136.

• OF Reid Brees is hitting .318 (27-for-85) since April 1; he entered April hitting .247.

• C/DH Josh Ford is hitting a team-best .350 (35-for-100) since April 1.

• C/DH Zach Dillon is hitting .330 (33-for-100) since April 1 and leads the team with 21 RBI in that time.

• CF Chase Gerdes is hitting .309 (17-for-55) since April 1.

• Ford has not hit below .298 at any point this season, dipping below the .300 mark for only one at bat. He has reached base safely in 50 of 52 games and has hit safely in 42 of 52 games. Ford enjoyed a career-long 14-game hitting streak earlier this season; he also enjoyed a career-long streak of 37 games in which he reached safely.

• Ford is hitting .385 (20-for-52) over the last 14 games with four doubles, a triple and two home runs. He also has a .615 slugging percentage and a .500 on base percentage in that time with a 10-to-8 walk-to-strikeout ratio.

• Baylor is 10-3 this season in McCormick's 12 starts.

• In LHP Trey Taylor's last 24 starts, he has allowed three or fewer earned runs 20 times and two or fewer 16 times. Baylor is 16-5 in Taylor's last 21 starts; he is 9-4 in that time.

• 10 times since the beginning of the 2004 season, Taylor has pitched at least 5.0 innings and allowed fewer earned runs than the opposing pitching staff and did not earn a win. Taylor is 0-3 in those 10 starts with seven no-decisions.

• In his last three starts, Taylor is 1-1 with a 1.08 ERA. He has allowed two or fewer earned runs in five consecutive starts; he has allowed three or fewer earned run in seven consecutive starts and in 10 of 12 starts this season.

• Since March 1, RHP Ryan LaMotta is 3-0 with four saves and a 1.05 ERA, allowing only seven runs, five earned, on 29 hits and nine walks with 50 strikeouts in 42.2 innings. In that time, LaMotta has held opponents to a .196 batting average.

• Since March 1, RHP Abe Woody is 7-3 with seven saves and a 1.94 ERA, allowing 10 runs, nine earned, on 25 hits and eight walks with 23 strikeouts in 41.2 innings. In that time, Woody has held opponents to a .180 batting average.

• LaMotta has allowed six of 22 inherited runners to score. Four of those six runners scored by virtue of an error.

• SS Paul Witt has produced 14 of his 24 RBI this season with two outs (58.3 percent), the best such percentage on the team.

• C/DH Zach Dillon leads the team with 21 two-out RBI. He also hits .344 with runners on base and .394 with runners in scoring position, both tops on the team.

• Since the start of the Big 12 in 1997, the Bears have the league's best conference record at 155-89 (.635). Baylor leads all conference schools in both first-team All-Big 12 selections (21) and first-team Academic All-Big 12 selections (47), and the Bears are the only Big 12 Conference program to have ranked in the top 10 nationally at some point during each of the past eight seasons (1998-2005).

THE MISSOURI SERIES

Baylor and Missouri meet for the 35th, 36th and 37th times this weekend. The Bears hold a 21-13 advantage in a series that dates back to the 1905 season. Baylor holds a 19-13 lead in the series since the inception of the Big 12 Conference in 1997; however, the Tigers have won five of the last eight meetings.

The Bears are 9-5 all-time against the Tigers in Waco. Missouri won two of three at Baylor Ballpark in 2003, but Baylor won two of three in each of the Tigers' previous three visits since the inception of the Big 12 (1997, 1999, 2001).

Baylor took two of three at Columbia last season, rebounding for wins of 15-9 and 9-6 after dropping Friday's opener 12-4. However, the Tigers claimed both meetings in the Big 12 Tournament, eliminating the Bears 10-7 in the semifinals.

WOODY NAMED BIG 12 PITCHER OF THE WEEK

RHP Abe Woody was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, the league office announced Tuesday. Woody shares the weekly honor with Max Scherzer of Missouri. Nebraska's Curtis Ledbetter and Texas Tech's Cameron Blair were named co-players of the week.

Woody was 1-0 with one save in three appearances last week, leading the Bears to a 3-1 mark and a sweep of Texas A&M. In 5.2 innings of scoreless relief work, Woody did not allow a hit or a walk and struck out three. Opposing batters were 0-for-18 against the Round Rock, Texas, native; only one opposing batter reached base against Woody, that one by way of an error.

On the season, Woody is 7-3 with nine saves and a 2.12 ERA. In 46.2 innings, he has allowed only 28 hits and nine walks with 26 strikeouts; opponents hit .177 against him. Woody is tied for eighth in the league in wins and ranks third in the league in saves.

This is the first time in his career Woody has been so honored. He joins LHP Cory VanAllen (Feb. 15, Feb. 22) and RHP Mark McCormick (March 8, March 22) as Baylor pitchers who have been named pitcher of the week this season. Baylor pitchers have been honored as Big 12 Pitcher of the Week five times this season, most in the conference. No other staff has earned more than three weekly pitching honors.

BEARS BEST IN THE BIG 12

Baylor has the best conference record of any team in the Big 12 Conference since the league's start in 1997. At 155-89 (.635), the Bears are ahead of Texas (149-98, .603) and Texas Tech (146-99-1; .596). Included in the first eight seasons for Baylor are one Big 12 championship (2000) and a pair of runner-up finishes (1998, 1999).

On top of that, Baylor is the only Big 12 Conference school to have ranked in the top 10 nationally during each of the past eight seasons (1998-2005). Baylor joins Oklahoma State as the only schools to have never finished below .500 in Big 12 play.

Including the 2004 totals, Baylor leads all conference schools in Big 12 history in both first-team All-Big 12 selections (21) and in first-team Academic All-Big 12 selections (41).

BEARS AGAIN AMONG ONE-RUN GAME LEADERS

Last season, Baylor led the nation in both one-run games (23) and one-run losses (16), both of which also were school records. This season, the Bears again are among the national leaders in one-run games with 16. However, the 2005 Bears are 10-6 in such contests.

Texas has played the most one-run games nationally, going 15-6. Auburn (14-6) is the only other team to have played at least 20 one-run games.

Here's a look at the national leaders through games of May 18:

21 - Texas (15-6)

20 - Auburn (14-6)

18 - South Alabama (7-11)

17 - North Carolina (10-7)

17 - Stanford (7-10)

16 - Hawai'i (11-5)

16 - BAYLOR (10-6)

16 - Wake Forest (9-7)

16 - Oklahoma State (7-9)

15 - Texas A&M (9-6)

15 - Nebraska (7-8)

15 - South Florida (9-6)

15 - Western Carolina (9-6)

15 - Louisville (8-7)

14 - Georgia Southern (10-4)

14 - Davidson (7-7)

14 - Clemson (6-8)

DILLON, GRIFFIN NAMED ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT

C/DH Zach Dillon and 2B Michael Grififn earned ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District VI honors, the College Sports Information Directors of America announced last week. Dillon is honored for the first time in his career, while Griffin earns academic all-district accolades for the third time.

At least one Baylor baseball student-athlete has earned academic all-district honors every year since 1998. In that time, 12 Bears have been so honored 17 times. Griffin, Baylor's first three-time honoree, joins Jason Jennings (1998, 1999), Jon Topolski (1998, 1999) and Ross Bennett (2002, 2003) as the only Baylor baseball student-athletes to earn academic all-district honors multiple times.

In order to be eligible for academic all-district honors, a student-athlete must maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.20 on a 4.00 scale and participate in at least 50 percent of his team's games. Freshmen and first-year transfers are not eligible. Those selected all-district are automatically nominated for Academic All-America honors.

HEAD COACH Steve Smith

Steve Smith begins his second decade as head coach at Baylor in 2005. In his first decade, Smith guided the program to near unprecedented heights, including the most successful six-year run in the program's 100-year history.

Smith has compiled a 407-252-1 (.617) career record, all at Baylor. He holds the best winning percentage of any coach in Baylor baseball history, and he ranks second among the program's 18 head coaches in career victories. Smith has led Baylor to six NCAA Regional appearances, two NCAA Super Regional appearances and the 2000 Big 12 Conference title. He also has coached 12 All-America selections and seven USA Baseball National Team members while at Baylor.

In January 2005, Smith was named head coach of the USA Baseball National Team for the upcoming summer. Smith is just the second Big 12 Conference coach to serve as head coach of the national team. He also previously served as an assistant coach under his former Mississippi State boss Ron Polk on the 1998 USA Baseball National Team that posted an overall record of 30-12.

Smith led the Bears to their first-ever 50-win season in 1999 and a Big 12 championship in 2000, and piloted the team to six straight NCAA appearances from 1998 to 2003. His Bears have the best conference record in the Big 12 since the league began. Through the 2004 season, Smith ranked 47th nationally among active coaches in winning percentage with a .628 mark, fourth among Big 12 coaches.

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. He was drafted in the fifth round of the 1983 Major League Draft by the San Francisco Giants and played four years of pro ball before moving into the coaching ranks.

An accomplished pitching coach, Smith has tutored six pitchers in the last 12 years who were selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft. He also had at least one pitcher named to the all-conference first team for 11 straight years (1992-2002).

In Smith's first 10 seasons as head coach, the Bears produced four first-round draft picks, 10 All-Americans, six Academic All-Americans, one National Player of the Year, one GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year, 25 first-team all-conference performers, nine freshman All-Americans, and three conference players of the year. Baylor also placed a league-leading 41 players on the Academic All-Big 12 first team in the past eight seasons.

UP NEXT ...

Baylor begins postseason play next week at the 2005 Big 12 Conference Tournament at Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City. The tournament begins Wednesday, May 25. The Bears will be either the No. 1 seed or the No. 2 seed. If the Bears are the No. 1 seed, they will play at 8 p.m. CDT. If the Bears are the No. 2 seed, they will play at 1 p.m. Fans should check www.BaylorBears.com Sunday for official pairings and times.