March 27, 2006

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GAME 25 • MARCH 28, 2006 • 6:00 P.M. CST
BAYLOR (16-8)
vs. TEXAS SOUTHERN (11-14)
BAYLOR BALLPARK • WACO, TEXAS
THE SERIES
Overall Record: Baylor leads 3-0
 Waco: Baylor leads 3-0
 Houston: Never Met
 Neutral Site: Never Met
Smith vs. TSU: 3-0
First Meeting: at Baylor 10, TSU 3 [4/28/2004]
Last Meeting: at Baylor 10, TSU 3 [3/29/2004]
COACHES
BAYLOR: Steve Smith
 Alma Mater: Baylor, 1986
 Career Record: 434-266-1 [12th season]
 Record at Baylor: 434-266-1 [12th season]
TEXAS SOUTHERN: Candy Robinson
 Alma Mater: Grambling, 1965
 Career Record: [14th season]
 Record at TSU: [14th season]
BAYLOR/ISP SPORTS NETWORK
1660 ESPN RADIO (Waco)
 Tom Barfield, play-by-play
 Lark Smith, color
INTERNET FEEDS
GameTracker: www.BaylorBears.com
Audio: www.BaylorBears.com
Video: none
BAYLOR NATIONAL RANKINGS
Baseball America NR
Sports Weekly/ESPN/Coaches 25th
NCBWA 29th
Collegiate Baseball 24th
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
TUESDAY, MARCH 28
BU   RHP Jake Weghorst (1-0, 6.14 ERA, 7.1 IP, 5 K)
TSU      TBA
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29
BU   RHP Randall Linebaugh (2-0, 3.07 ERA, 29.1 IP, 22 K)
SHSU     TBA

Baylor returns to action Tuesday, hosting Texas Southern in a single game at Baylor Ballpark. First pitch between the Bears and the Tigers is scheduled for 6 p.m. CST. This is the first of two midweek games for Baylor, which also hosts Sam Houston State at 6 p.m. Wednesday. The Sam Houston State game is a schedule addition, replacing one of the three games from the weather-cancelled California series last month. The Bears (16-8) look to rebound from Sunday's 11-10 loss in the series finale at 23rd-ranked Oklahoma. Baylor dropped the final two games of the series after rallying to win Friday's series opener. The Bears are unranked in this week's Baseball America Top 25. Baylor is ranked 25th in the Sports Weekly/ESPN Coaches Poll, 24th in the Collegiate Baseball Top 30 and 29th in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 30. Texas Southern (11-14) swept a doubleheader at Grambling State, winning 5-1 and 5-2. The Tigers are 9-3 since opening the season 1-11. TSU is unranked in all four major polls. Baylor and Texas Southern have not yet played a common opponent. Sam Houston State (15-11) is 9-4 in its last 13 games, including a three-game sweep of Louisiana-Monroe at home over the weekend. The Bobcats are 7-2 in Southland Conference play after winning series against McNeese State and Northwestern State prior to last weekend's sweep of ULM. Sam Houston State is unranked in all four major polls. The Bears and the Bobcats have not yet played a common opponent; however, SHSU did sweep a three-game series against Texas Southern to open the season Feb. 11-13. The Bobcats are 0-1 against Texas A&M and 1-1 against Rice, defeating the Owls 9-8 at home two weeks ago. All Baylor baseball games are broadcast live on Waco's 1660 ESPN Radio. 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 CSTV Network.

QUICK HITS ...
• Since the start of the 2003 season, Baylor is:
- 102-32 (.761) when its starting pitcher lasts at least 5.0 innings
- 26-7 (.788) when its pitching staff records at least 10 strikeouts
- 99-27 (.786) when scoring first
- 113-22 (.837) when out-hitting its opponent
- 103-26 (.798) when holding its opponent to fewer than five runs
- 95-19 (.833) when scoring at least six runs
- 84-14 (.857) when scoring at least seven runs
• Sunday's 11-10 loss at Oklahoma ended a 30-game winning streak for Baylor when scoring at least seven runs. The last time Baylor lost a game when scoring at least seven runs was May 22, 2004, at Texas Tech (19-18). Ironically, that also was the last time Baylor lost a game when leading by at least four runs at any point in the game.
• Baylor has won 15 consecutive games when hitting at least two home runs.
• Since the start of the 2002 season, Baylor is 134-6 when leading after eight innings. The Bears have won 28 straight and 63 of their last 64 such games.
• Baylor has not lost three straight games since being swept at Texas Tech in the 2004 regular season's final series. The Bears have lost consecutive games seven times in that span.
• After reaching the 10-hit plateau only twice in the season's first 10 games, Baylor has tallied at least 10 hits in 11 of the last 14 games. The Bears are hitting .337 (142-for-421) over the last 12 games.
• Baylor batters are hitting .299 (52-for-174) when leading off an inning with a .399 on base percentage (22 walks, seven HBP)
• 2B/3B Kevin Russo leads the team with a .450 average (9-for-20) when leading off an inning and a .500 on base percentage (two walks).
• 1B/3B Tim Jackson and C Zach Dillon are a combined 12-for-26 (.462) with 17 RBI with runners on base and two outs.
• Jackson and Dillon also are a combined 9-for-19 (.474) with 16 RBI with runners in scoring position and two outs.
• Baylor is 9-for-29 (.310) with the bases loaded. The Bears have produced 29 RBI with the bases loaded.
• A Baylor catcher has reached safely in 126 consecutive games. The last game in which a Baylor catcher did not reach safely was April 2, 2004, at Missouri.
• RF Kevin Sevigny has not committed an error since May 14, 2004 vs. Nebraska (93 games, 189 chances).
• SS Beamer Weems has reached safely or sacrificed in all 23 games played.
• Baylor's 2006 schedule was rated as the nation's 10th toughest, according to preseason rankings at www.BoydsWorld.com. Georgia, which ranks ninth, joins Baylor as the only non-California school in the top 10.
• Since the start of the Big 12 in 1997, the Bears have the league's best conference record at 158-92 (.632). Baylor leads all conference schools in total first- and second-team All-Big 12 selections (42), first-team Academic All-Big 12 selections (45), NCAA appearances (seven) and Major League Baseball draft selections (51).
• Baylor is the only Big 12 school to have never suffered a sub-.500 season in conference play.
• The Bears join Oklahoma and Oklahoma State as the only programs to have qualified for every Big 12 Tournament.

BAYLOR STARTERS
Baylor sends a pair of right-handers to the mound for this week's games. Junior Jake Weghorst earns his first career start Tuesday against Texas Southern, while sophomore Randall Linebaugh starts Wednesday against Sam Houston State. Weghorst claimed his first career decision last Friday with 0.2 innings of scoreless relief at No. 23 Oklahoma. He has appeared in seven games this season, his first after a two-year stint at Angelina Junior College. Linebaugh makes his sixth career start Wednesday; each of his previous five starts came this season, and Baylor is 4-1 in those games. He is second on the team with 10 appearances this season. ... Wednesday is Linebaugh's first career appearance against Texas Southern.

THE TEXAS SOUTHERN SERIES
Baylor and Texas Southern have a brief history: the teams met twice during the 2004 season and once last season, all at Baylor Ballpark. The 2004 meetings were schedule additions; this is the second straight season in which Texas Southern has been on Baylor's schedule. The Bears won by scores of 10-3 and 11-3 in 2004 and 10-3 last season.

BAYLOR vs. SOUTHWESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
Baylor is 5-0 all-time against teams currently playing in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Along with a 3-0 mark against Texas Southern, the Bears are 1-0 against Prairie View A&M and 1-0 against Southern. Baylor defeated PVAM 4-3 in a schedule-addition game last season. The Bears defeated Southern 10-3 in the second round of the 2003 NCAA Hattiesburg Regional.

LAST TIME vs. TEXAS SOUTHERN
BAYLOR 10, TEXAS SOUTHERN 3 -- MARCH 29, 2005 • WACO, TEXAS
Michael Griffin went 3-for-4 with a grand slam, and Andy Pape pitched 4.0 no-hit innings in relief as Baylor defeated Texas Southern 10-3 at Baylor Ballpark. Baylor pitchers did not allow a hit until a sixth-inning double that scored three unearned runs. Pape entered the game in the second inning after starter Sean Walker issued his third walk of the game to start the inning. Walker walked two batters and hit another in the first but escaped unscathed. Baylor used six pitchers on the night, including Nick Cassavechia, who pitched a scoreless ninth inning in his first career appearance. Kevin Russo provided the game's first runs on a two-run single in the third inning. The Bears added two runs in the fourth on a Reid Brees sacrifice fly and a Mike Pankratz RBI groundout. Three straight two-out walks in the fifth set the stage for Griffin's grand slam, Baylor's third slam of the season. Josh Ford capped Baylor's scoring in the seventh with a two-run homer to left. Ford finished the night 2-for-3 and scored three times. Griffin added a double, while Zach Dillon and Kyle Reynolds each scored twice.

THE SAM HOUSTON STATE SERIES
Baylor and Sam Houston State meet for the 93rd time Tuesday, making this the eighth most-played series in Baylor baseball history. The Bears hold a 55-37 advantage in the all-time series. Baylor is 8-2 against Sam Houston State under head coach Steve Smith. This is the first meeting between the programs since a 10-8 Baylor victory April 13, 2004 at Baylor Ballpark.

BAYLOR vs. THE SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE
Baylor is 273-127-1 all-time against current members of the Southland Conference, 95-30 during head coach Steve Smith's tenure. Baylor has played more games against Southland Conference teams than any other active conference.

LAST TIME vs. SAM HOUSTON STATE
BAYLOR 10, SAM HOUSTON STATE 8 -- APRIL 13, 2004 • WACO, TEXAS
Mike Pankratz homered and drove in three, and Baylor held off a Sam Houston State mid-inning rally en route to a 10-8 victory at Baylor Ballpark. Baylor scored in each of the first four innings, building a 10-3 lead. Sam Houston State climbed back into the game with a run in the fifth and four in the sixth. However, Zane Carlson and Abe Woody combined to close the door, holding the Bearkats to one unearned run over the final 4.0 innings. Woody entered the game with one on and one out in the eighth, induced a double play and struck out the side with one walk in the ninth for the save. Ryan LaMotta, the second of five pitchers used by the Bears, earned the victory; he struck out all four batters he faced and got Baylor out of a jam in the third. The Bears made Sam Houston State pay for a two-out error in the bottom of the first. Kyle Reynolds and Reid Brees followed with singles to plate Drew Sutton, who reached on the Bearkat miscue. Baylor pushed its lead to 3-0 with two in the second. Pankratz led off with a double to left-center; two batters and two outs later, Chase Gerdes scored Pankratz with a triple down the right-field line. Michael Griffin followed with a double to right-center, plating Gerdes. The Bearkats answered, though, with three runs on four hits and a Baylor error in the top of the fourth. The tie was short-lived as Pankratz lined a two-out, two-run home run down the line in left in the bottom of the inning. Baylor then batted around in the fifth, scoring five runs on four consecutive hits and a Bearkat error. Griffin had the big hit in the inning, a two-run double sandwiched between RBI singles by Gerdes and Sutton.

BAYLOR STAVES OFF LOSING STREAKS
Baylor has not dropped three consecutive games since being swept at Texas Tech in the 2004 regular season's final series. That works out to a span of 98 consecutive games without a losing streak of at least three games and only seven occasions of consecutive losses. Last season was the first time since 1978 that Baylor did not have a losing streak of at least three games for an entire season.

BAYLOR IN BIG 12 STATISTICAL RANKINGS
Through games of March 26, Baylor ranks ninth in the league in team batting average (.290), fifth in team ERA (3.50) and second in team fielding percentage (.977). Just as has been the case each of the past four seasons, Baylor is hitting better in Big 12 Conference games than in non-conference tilts. In league games, Baylor ranks second in the league in team batting average (.322). However, the Bears are seventh in team ERA (4.33). Baylor is third in team fielding percentage (.983). Here is how Baylor players rank individually:
OVERALL
BATTING AVERAGE: Zach Dillon (17th, .370)
TRIPLES: Seth Fortenberry (t-1st, 5), Beamer Weems (t-3rd, 3)
STOLEN BASES: Kevin Russo (t-6th, 9)
WALKS: Zach Dillon (1st, 24)
ON BASE PERCENTAGE: Zach Dillon (2nd, .529)
ERA: Randall Linebaugh (17th, 3.07); Cory VanAllen (19th, 3.53)
SAVES: Jeff Mandel (2nd, 6)
GAMES STARTED: Ryan LaMotta (t-9th, 7)

BIG 12 GAMES
BATTING AVERAGE: Zach Dillon (t-6th, .444); Chase Gerdes (8th, .435); Beamer Weems (9th, .429); Matt Sodolak (t-15th, .409)
HITS: Chase Gerdes (t-2nd, 10); Matt Sodolak (t-4th, 9); Beamer Weems (t-4th, 9); Zach Dillon (t-8th, 8); Kevin Russo (t-8th, 8)
RUNS: Kevin Russo (t-1st, 7); Beamer Weems (t-1st, 7); Chase Gerdes (t-4th, 6); Matt Sodolak (t-7th, 5)
RBI: Matt Sodolak (t-1st, 9); Kevin Russo (3rd, 7); Chase Gerdes (t-4th, 6); Zach Dillon (t-6th, 5)
DOUBLES: Beamer Weems (t-1st, 3); Ben Booker (t-3rd, 2); Zach Dillon (t-3rd, 2); Chase Gerdes (t-3rd, 2); Matt Sodolak (t-3rd, 2)
TRIPLES: Beamer Weems (t-2nd, 1)
HOME RUNS: Seth Fortenberry (t-2nd, 1); Chase Gerdes (t-2nd, 1)
TOTAL BASES: Chase Gerdes (2nd, 15); Beamer Weems (3rd, 14); Matt Sodolak (t-8th, 11)
STOLEN BASES: Kevin Russo (1st, 5); Chase Gerdes (t-2nd, 3); Matt Sodolak (t-2nd, 3); Seth Fortenberry (t-4th, 2)
WALKS: Zach Dillon (t-2nd, 5); Kevin Russo (t-6th, 4); Seth Fortenberry (t-6th, 4); Beamer Weems (t-9th, 3)
ON BASE PERCENTAGE: Zach Dillon (5th, .560); Chase Gerdes (t-8th, .500); Beamer Weems (t-8th, .500)
SLUGGING PERCENTAGE: Beamer Weems (8th, .667); Chase Gerdes (9th, .652)
ERA: Ryan LaMotta (20th, 2.84)
WINS: Ryan LaMotta (t-2nd, 1); Tim Matthews (t-2nd, 1); Jake Weghorst (t-2nd, 1)
INNINGS: Cory VanAllen (4th, 13.2); Ryan LaMotta (t-8th, 12.2); Tim Matthews (10th, 12.1)
STRIKEOUTS: Cory VanAllen (t-6th, 10); Ryan LaMotta (t-8th, 9)
APPEARANCES: Nick Cassavechia (t-3rd, 4); Jeff Mandel (t-5th, 3)
GAMES STARTED: Ryan LaMotta (t-1st, 2); Tim Matthews (t-1st, 2); Cory VanAllen (t-1st, 2)
SAVES: Nick Cassavechia (t-3rd, 1), Jeff Mandel (t-3rd, 1)

NUMBERS WATCH
• C Zach Dillon needs five RBI to reach 100 career RBI, seven games played to reach 200 career games and 14 walks to reach 100 career walks.
• CF Chase Gerdes needs three stolen bases to reach 30 career steals.
• RHP Ryan LaMotta needs four strikeouts to move into a 10th-place tie on Baylor's career strikeouts list. He also needs 25.0 innings pitched to crack Baylor's career innings top 10 and three wins to reach 20 career wins.
• RHP Jeff Mandel needs one save to move into a tie for eighth place on Baylor's career saves list. He also would move into a tie for seventh on Baylor's single-season saves list. Mandel needs two strikeouts to reach 50 career strikeouts.
• 2B/3B Kevin Russo needs two hits to reach 100 career hits.

BEARS TOUGH WITH LEAD IN NINTH
Baylor is 134-6 when leading after eight innings since the beginning of the 2002 season. In fact, the Bears have won 28 straight and 63 of their last 64 such games. The lone loss in that span was at TCU last season when the Horned Frogs tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth and later won 2-1 in 11 innings. Baylor has not lost when leading by more than one run after eight since Feb. 4, 2003, against Texas State when the Bobcats scored seven runs to overcome a 5-2 Baylor lead.

LaMOTTA CLIMBS STRIKEOUTS LIST
RHP Ryan LaMotta is three strikeouts shy of cracking Baylor's all-time top 10 career strikeouts list. He currently has 221 career strikeouts in 251.2 innings pitched. 1. Jason Jennings - 377
2. Steven White - 320
3. Kris Lambert - 292
4. Kip Wells - 288
5. Josh Scott - 285
6. Trey Taylor - 253
7. Justin Taylor - 229
8. Glenn Nevill - 225
9. Zane Carlson - 225
10. Brett Bergman - 224
11. Mark McCormick - 223
12. Ryan LaMotta - 221

TRIPLE YOUR PLEASURE
Baylor has 13 triples through its first 24 games of the 2006 season. The Bears had only 21 three-baggers in 70 games last season. LF Seth Fortenberry is tied for the Big 12 Conference lead with five triples, one more than his career total entering the 2006 season and matching CF Chase Gerdes' team-leading total last season. SS Beamer Weems has three triples, while C Zach Dillon, Gerdes, DH/RHP Jeff Mandel, RF Kevin Sevigny and DH/C Matt Sodolak and have the other five triples.

LaMOTTA REACHES 100 APPEARANCES
RHP Ryan LaMotta made his 100th career appearance March 10 with his start against Pacific. Of his previous 99 appearances, 92 were in relief. The senior drew three starts as a freshman in 2003, including the championship game of the NCAA Hattiesburgh Regional. In that game, he held Southern Mississippi to a pair of runs on six hits over 8.1 innings. LaMotta is just the second pitcher in Baylor history to appear in at least 100 games. Zane Carlson appeared in 111 games from 2000 to 2004, a mark that ranks first in Big 12 history and 20th in NCAA Division I history. If LaMotta appears in 15 games this season, Baylor would join Georgia Tech, Miami (Fla.) and North Carolina as the only schools in NCAA Division I history to have two pitchers appear in at least 110 career games. LaMotta and Carlson, who played together in the 2003 and 2004 seasons, would be the first Division I teammates to both reach the milestone. Florida closer Darren O'Day entered the season with entered the season with 84 career appearances. Should O'Day reach 26 appearances this season prior to LaMotta's 15th appearance, Florida would be the first school with teammates to both reach 110 career appearances (Florida's Connor Falkenbach appeared in 124 games from 2002 to 2005). O'Day has appeared in 14 games this season through games of March 22.

BAYLOR STRONG IN LATEST APR REPORT
Baylor's baseball team scored a 961 in the latest Academic Progress Rate (APR), released Wednesday by the NCAA. That score was the best among the eight Big 12 schools whose scores were released; scores for Kansas and Texas A&M have not yet been released. Baylor was the only Big 12 baseball team that scored above the national male student-athlete average (943). The Bears joined Missouri as the only Big 12 baseball teams to score above the national baseball average (931).

2005 SEASON HIGHLIGHT DVD ON SALE
"Experience the Dogpile," a comprehensive season highlight DVD that chronicles Baylor's 2005 season, is on sale at the Baylor baseball office. The one-hour, 47-minute piece features highlights, interviews and commentary on the program's most successful season. To order, call 254.710.3029.

BAYLORBEARS.COM
Baylor's official athletic web site can be found at www.BaylorBears.com. The comprehensive site, which includes releases, photos, biographical sketches and audio broadcasts, is part of the CSTV Network, which currently hosts sites for more than 100 universities, including four Big 12 schools.

BAYLOR/ISP SPORTS NETWORK
Catch every inning of Baylor baseball in 2006 on the flagship station for Baylor athletics, 1660 ESPN Radio. Popular on-air personality Tom Barfield enters his fourth season as the primary play-by-play man for Baylor baseball. Barfield, the operations manager for KRZI/KRZX and KLRK-FM in Waco, is best known as co-host of the afternoon "You Make the Call" call-in show. Barfield also serves as host for the "Countdown to Kickoff" and "The Baylor Fifth Quarter Show" during football season. He has previously served as the radio voice for Tarleton State, McLennan Community College, Mary Hardin-Baylor and several high schools across the state. Barfield is joined by Lark Smith in the booth. Smith, whose attachment to Baylor baseball dates back to the days of coach Dutch Schroeder, was sports director for the Baylor campus radio station in the late 1970s and served as play-by-play voice for the Bears' 1977 and 1978 College World Series teams. After nearly two decades in broadcasting, Smith now works for the Heart O' Texas Federal Credit Union in Waco. Live audio for all Baylor baseball games also are available online at www.BaylorBears.com.

BEARCASTS AVAILABLE FOR SELECT GAMES
Live streaming video is available for select games during the 2006 season. A total of 24 games will be available online at www.BaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor athletics and a member of the CSTV Network. Thirteen of the 24 webcasts will be against Big 12 Conference opponents, including the Bears' three-game league sets against Kansas, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and Nebraska, as well as the home game of the Texas series.

INSIDE BAYLOR SPORTS TV SHOW
Inside Baylor Sports, a half-hour look at the world of Baylor athletics, airs weekly throughout Central Texas and the region. The program, co-hosted by John Morris and Lori Scott-Fogleman, airs on KCEN-TV Channel 6, Fox Sports Net Southwest and the College Channel (Waco cable channel 18). KCEN carries the show at 10:30 p.m. Sundays, and it airs at 1 p.m. Wednesdays on FSN Southwest.

HEAD COACH Steve Smith
Steve Smith is in his 12th season as head coach of Baylor's baseball program in 2006. In his first 11 years, Smith guided the program to unprecedented heights, including the most successful eight-year run in the program's 100-year history and a College World Series appearance in 2005. Smith has compiled a 434-266-1 career record, all at Baylor. He holds the best winning percentage (.620) 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 seven NCAA Regional appearances, three NCAA Super Regional appearances, one College World Series appearance and two Big 12 Conference titles. He also has coached 12 All-America selections and seven USA Baseball National Team members while at Baylor. The 2005 USA Baseball National Team head coach, 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 for Mark Johnson at Texas A&M from 1987 to 1989. 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. Smith has tutored seven pitchers in the last 13 years who were selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft. He also has coached at least one all-conference pitcher in each of the last 13 years.

BAYLOR: BIG 12'S MOST TENURED STAFF
With 38 years of combined service at Baylor, the Bears' on-field staff is the Big 12 Conference's most tenured. Head coach Steve Smith joins Missouri head coach Tim Jamieson as the league's second-most tenured head coaches, both in their 12th season in 2006 and trailing only Texas Tech's Larry Hays (20th season). Assistant coach Mitch Thompson (12th year) joined the Baylor staff in Smith's first season, while assistant coach Steve Johnigan (11th year) joined the following season. Volunteer assistant coach Chris Berry (7th year) joined the staff prior to the 2000 season and assumed pitching coach duties this season. Thompson and Johnigan are the second- and third-most tenured assistant coaches in the Big 12 behind only Texas' Tommy Harmon (16 seasons). In fact, Harmon, Thompson, Johnigan and Missouri's Evan Pratte are the only assistant coaches with more tenure at their respective schools than Berry.

UP NEXT ...
Baylor returns to the road this weekend, traveling to Lubbock, Texas, for a three-game Big 12 Conference series at Texas Tech. The Bears and the Red Raiders meet Friday at 6:30 p.m. CST, Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. All three games will be played at Dan Law Field on the Texas Tech campus.