Sunday, March 20
Waco, Texas
1 PM
Baylor
10-9, 0
7
vs
3
TCU
14-5, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
TCU
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
3
7
1
Baylor
1
2
0
0
1
0
2
1
X
7
14
0
BSB Tops No. 21 TCU, 7-3, in Series Finale
3/20/2022 6:01:00 PM | Baseball
Bears salvage weekend set with 14-hit performance
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Bouncing back from a heartbreaking extra-inning loss, Baylor scored early and often and belted double-digit hits for the second-straight day in beating No. 21 TCU, 7-3, Sunday afternoon to salvage a win in the three-game, conference-opening series at Baylor Ballpark.
Will Rigney (1-0) threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings to pick up his first win of the season, and Tre Richardson kept his hot streak going with three of the Bears' 14 hits and two RBI.
"Earlier in the week, I was talking about us all struggling together," said shortstop Jack Pineda, who went 2-for-4 out of the leadoff position. "I think it allows us the opportunity to get hot together as well. These guys are starting to settle in and not trying to do too much. I am really proud of how we approached the weekend, especially from the offensive side."
The Bears (10-9, 1-2) didn't let Saturday's 11-9, 11-inning loss linger, jumping out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, when Chase Wehsener delivered a two-out single through the right side to score Pineda after a leadoff single off TCU starter Cam Brown (2-2).
"Even after the frustration of yesterday, to get right back in and watch the offense continue to pound the baseball and continue to work the base paths and executing, that was really fun to watch," Baylor coach Steve Rodriguez said. "You could just tell our guys were playing with a lot of freedom, a lot of excitement, and the hard work has paid off."
While Rigney retired the first seven batters he faced and took a no-hitter into the fourth, the Bears tacked on two more two-out runs in the second to go up 3-0. Pineda drove in Harrison Caley with an RBI single, then came around to score on Richardson's single when he somehow avoided the tag of catcher Kurtis Byrne.
"Instincts took over, I guess. I don't practice that," said Pineda, who jumped around Byrne's tag attempt and then touched home plate to push the lead to 3-0. "Just don't get tagged, that's the only thought thing on my mind. I think there are some pretty cool pictures."
With replay reviews now, Rodriguez said, players have to do "everything you can to try to be safe."
"Watching (Pineda) going around and get past the catcher and then come back," Rodriguez said, "you do everything you can to be safe. Let the cameras and the umpires figure it out after that."
TCU (14-5, 2-1) broke up the no-hitter with a two-out double by Tommy Sacco in the fourth, but Rigney retired Byrne on a fly to right. And then in the fifth, he struck out dangerous hitter Brayden Taylor on a 2-2 slider with runners at second and third.
"That was huge," said Rigney, who gave up two hits and three walks with five strikeouts. "I got him out twice on a slider. Me and (pitching coach Jon) Strauss were both on the same page. I wanted to throw the slider again I think he's one of, if not the best, pitch callers in the country. I felt like we were on the same page all day."
Richardson led off the fifth with a double down the left-field line and scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-0. The Horned Frogs finally put a run on the board in the seventh, when Luke Boyers singled to lead off and scored on freshman Owen Blackledge's sac fly to left.
Baylor struck back with two runs in the seventh on RBI hits by Wehsener and Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo, then got a run back in the bottom of the eighth after back-to-back home runs off reliever Cam Caley in the top half of the inning.
"Every time he goes on the mound, you want to play a little bit harder for him," Pineda said of Rigney, "because you want him to have as much success as possible, knowing everything he's gone through and how much he fights. So, you do have a little extra motivation to make plays behind him. He's a warrior, man."
TCU got two runners in scoring position with one out in the top of the ninth, but Hambleton Oliver got his first save of the year by getting Elijah Nunez on a fielder's choice grounder and striking out Taylor for the fourth time on the day.
"We should have won (Saturday), and we weren't executing some things," Rodriguez said. And then right off, first inning, boom, here we go. That's what it's going to take. You don't let a team know you were frustrated yesterday. You've got to come back and keep punching and let them have to deal with it."
Baylor closes out a four-game home stand with a matchup against UTSA (12-7) at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, before going back on the road for a series next weekend at Oklahoma (12-7).
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Baylor baseball (10-9, 1-2) salvaged its series against No. 21 TCU (14-5, 2-1) by winning a 7-3 ballgame at Baylor Ballpark on Sunday.
The Bears' offense stayed hot, racking up 14 hits and scoring in five different innings to claim victory in the series finale.
BU put the first run of the game on the board in the bottom of the first thanks to an RBI single by Chase Wehsener. The Bears followed it up with two more in the bottom of the second, as Jack Pineda singled home a run and later scored with an eye-popping slide on Tre Richardson's base hit.
A 3-0 lead was all Will Rigney needed, as he matched his career high with 5.1 innings of scoreless work, allowing just two hits and notching five strikeouts in collecting his first win of the season. The Baylor offense added another run in the bottom of the fifth after Richardson doubled and crossed the plate following two wild pitches.
A sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh put TCU on the scorecard, but BU was quick to respond with two runs in the bottom half as Wehsener tallied his second RBI of the day and Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo followed suit with a sacrifice fly.
Back-to-back solo homers for the Frogs in the top of the eighth cut the Baylor lead to 6-3, but the Bears tacked on an insurance run in their turn at the plate as Richardson once again doubled in Pineda.
In the ninth, Hambleton Oliver came on to shut things down and picked up his first-career save in the win.
NOTES
• Baylor improved to 11-10 against TCU under seventh-year head coach Steve Rodriguez.
• BU gathered its fifth win of the season against a ranked opponent.
• The Bears followed up a season-high 17-hit game with 14 in the series finale, their second-highest output of 2022.
• This was Baylor's seventh game of the year with double-digit hits. The Bears have done so in three of their last four ballgames and four of their last six.
• BU tied a season-high with four extra-base hits as a team.
• Will Rigney earned his first win of the season, matching a career-high with 5.1 scoreless innings and five strikeouts.
• Hambleton Oliver got the save, the first of his career.
• Jack Pineda posted his ninth multi-hit game of the season, a team high. He has recorded two hits in five of his last six games.
• Pineda also collected two stolen bases, adding to his team high of eight on the year.
• Tre Richardson tallied his seventh multi-hit and fourth multi-RBI game. He also tied a career high with two doubles.
• Chase Wehsener recorded his fourth multi-RBI game of the year. He has driven in four runs over his last four games.
• Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo notched his fourth multi-hit game of 2022, while Harrison Caley delivered his third multi-hit effort.
STAT OF THE GAME
4 – Baylor salvaged its weekend series against No. 21 TCU with a four-run win and produced four extra-base hits in the game, matching a team-best in 2022.
TOP QUOTES
Head coach Steve Rodriguez
On the continued offensive production…
"How about it, even after the frustration of yesterday, to get right back in and watch the offense continue to pound the baseball and continue to work the basepaths and executing, that was just really fun to watch. You could just tell our guys were playing with a lot of freedom, a lot of excitement, and the hard work has paid off. I know they've been frustrated early. They're wanting to put up a lot of great numbers and do a lot of great things, and I think that once you hit rock bottom you need to get back to basics. That's just what they've done. You can see the reaction on the basepaths and on the field has really paid off for them."
Sophomore RHP Will Rigney
On getting a late strikeout to cap off his outing…
"It was huge. I think it was [TCU's Brayden] Taylor that I struck out, and he's a great hitter. I got him out twice on a slide. Me and Coach Strauss were both on the same page. Wanted to throw the slider again. I think he's one of, if not the best, pitch callers in the country. It felt like we were on the same page all day.
Junior INF Jack Pineda
On his impressive slide to score a run…
"Yeah, I thought I got in there. You know, I'm just trying to fight for every run. Instincts took over, I guess. I don't practice that. Just don't get tagged, that's the only thing that's on my mind. I think there are some pretty cool pictures."
WHAT'S NEXT
Baylor (10-9) welcomes UTSA (12-7) to Baylor Ballpark on Tuesday, March 22, for a midweek contest at 6:30 p.m. CT.
For the latest news on the Baylor baseball team all season long, follow its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorBaseball.
Baylor Bear Insider
Bouncing back from a heartbreaking extra-inning loss, Baylor scored early and often and belted double-digit hits for the second-straight day in beating No. 21 TCU, 7-3, Sunday afternoon to salvage a win in the three-game, conference-opening series at Baylor Ballpark.
Will Rigney (1-0) threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings to pick up his first win of the season, and Tre Richardson kept his hot streak going with three of the Bears' 14 hits and two RBI.
"Earlier in the week, I was talking about us all struggling together," said shortstop Jack Pineda, who went 2-for-4 out of the leadoff position. "I think it allows us the opportunity to get hot together as well. These guys are starting to settle in and not trying to do too much. I am really proud of how we approached the weekend, especially from the offensive side."
The Bears (10-9, 1-2) didn't let Saturday's 11-9, 11-inning loss linger, jumping out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, when Chase Wehsener delivered a two-out single through the right side to score Pineda after a leadoff single off TCU starter Cam Brown (2-2).
"Even after the frustration of yesterday, to get right back in and watch the offense continue to pound the baseball and continue to work the base paths and executing, that was really fun to watch," Baylor coach Steve Rodriguez said. "You could just tell our guys were playing with a lot of freedom, a lot of excitement, and the hard work has paid off."
While Rigney retired the first seven batters he faced and took a no-hitter into the fourth, the Bears tacked on two more two-out runs in the second to go up 3-0. Pineda drove in Harrison Caley with an RBI single, then came around to score on Richardson's single when he somehow avoided the tag of catcher Kurtis Byrne.
"Instincts took over, I guess. I don't practice that," said Pineda, who jumped around Byrne's tag attempt and then touched home plate to push the lead to 3-0. "Just don't get tagged, that's the only thought thing on my mind. I think there are some pretty cool pictures."
With replay reviews now, Rodriguez said, players have to do "everything you can to try to be safe."
"Watching (Pineda) going around and get past the catcher and then come back," Rodriguez said, "you do everything you can to be safe. Let the cameras and the umpires figure it out after that."
TCU (14-5, 2-1) broke up the no-hitter with a two-out double by Tommy Sacco in the fourth, but Rigney retired Byrne on a fly to right. And then in the fifth, he struck out dangerous hitter Brayden Taylor on a 2-2 slider with runners at second and third.
"That was huge," said Rigney, who gave up two hits and three walks with five strikeouts. "I got him out twice on a slider. Me and (pitching coach Jon) Strauss were both on the same page. I wanted to throw the slider again I think he's one of, if not the best, pitch callers in the country. I felt like we were on the same page all day."
Richardson led off the fifth with a double down the left-field line and scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-0. The Horned Frogs finally put a run on the board in the seventh, when Luke Boyers singled to lead off and scored on freshman Owen Blackledge's sac fly to left.
Baylor struck back with two runs in the seventh on RBI hits by Wehsener and Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo, then got a run back in the bottom of the eighth after back-to-back home runs off reliever Cam Caley in the top half of the inning.
"Every time he goes on the mound, you want to play a little bit harder for him," Pineda said of Rigney, "because you want him to have as much success as possible, knowing everything he's gone through and how much he fights. So, you do have a little extra motivation to make plays behind him. He's a warrior, man."
TCU got two runners in scoring position with one out in the top of the ninth, but Hambleton Oliver got his first save of the year by getting Elijah Nunez on a fielder's choice grounder and striking out Taylor for the fourth time on the day.
"We should have won (Saturday), and we weren't executing some things," Rodriguez said. And then right off, first inning, boom, here we go. That's what it's going to take. You don't let a team know you were frustrated yesterday. You've got to come back and keep punching and let them have to deal with it."
Baylor closes out a four-game home stand with a matchup against UTSA (12-7) at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, before going back on the road for a series next weekend at Oklahoma (12-7).
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Baylor baseball (10-9, 1-2) salvaged its series against No. 21 TCU (14-5, 2-1) by winning a 7-3 ballgame at Baylor Ballpark on Sunday.
The Bears' offense stayed hot, racking up 14 hits and scoring in five different innings to claim victory in the series finale.
BU put the first run of the game on the board in the bottom of the first thanks to an RBI single by Chase Wehsener. The Bears followed it up with two more in the bottom of the second, as Jack Pineda singled home a run and later scored with an eye-popping slide on Tre Richardson's base hit.
A 3-0 lead was all Will Rigney needed, as he matched his career high with 5.1 innings of scoreless work, allowing just two hits and notching five strikeouts in collecting his first win of the season. The Baylor offense added another run in the bottom of the fifth after Richardson doubled and crossed the plate following two wild pitches.
A sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh put TCU on the scorecard, but BU was quick to respond with two runs in the bottom half as Wehsener tallied his second RBI of the day and Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo followed suit with a sacrifice fly.
Back-to-back solo homers for the Frogs in the top of the eighth cut the Baylor lead to 6-3, but the Bears tacked on an insurance run in their turn at the plate as Richardson once again doubled in Pineda.
In the ninth, Hambleton Oliver came on to shut things down and picked up his first-career save in the win.
NOTES
• Baylor improved to 11-10 against TCU under seventh-year head coach Steve Rodriguez.
• BU gathered its fifth win of the season against a ranked opponent.
• The Bears followed up a season-high 17-hit game with 14 in the series finale, their second-highest output of 2022.
• This was Baylor's seventh game of the year with double-digit hits. The Bears have done so in three of their last four ballgames and four of their last six.
• BU tied a season-high with four extra-base hits as a team.
• Will Rigney earned his first win of the season, matching a career-high with 5.1 scoreless innings and five strikeouts.
• Hambleton Oliver got the save, the first of his career.
• Jack Pineda posted his ninth multi-hit game of the season, a team high. He has recorded two hits in five of his last six games.
• Pineda also collected two stolen bases, adding to his team high of eight on the year.
• Tre Richardson tallied his seventh multi-hit and fourth multi-RBI game. He also tied a career high with two doubles.
• Chase Wehsener recorded his fourth multi-RBI game of the year. He has driven in four runs over his last four games.
• Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo notched his fourth multi-hit game of 2022, while Harrison Caley delivered his third multi-hit effort.
STAT OF THE GAME
4 – Baylor salvaged its weekend series against No. 21 TCU with a four-run win and produced four extra-base hits in the game, matching a team-best in 2022.
TOP QUOTES
Head coach Steve Rodriguez
On the continued offensive production…
"How about it, even after the frustration of yesterday, to get right back in and watch the offense continue to pound the baseball and continue to work the basepaths and executing, that was just really fun to watch. You could just tell our guys were playing with a lot of freedom, a lot of excitement, and the hard work has paid off. I know they've been frustrated early. They're wanting to put up a lot of great numbers and do a lot of great things, and I think that once you hit rock bottom you need to get back to basics. That's just what they've done. You can see the reaction on the basepaths and on the field has really paid off for them."
Sophomore RHP Will Rigney
On getting a late strikeout to cap off his outing…
"It was huge. I think it was [TCU's Brayden] Taylor that I struck out, and he's a great hitter. I got him out twice on a slide. Me and Coach Strauss were both on the same page. Wanted to throw the slider again. I think he's one of, if not the best, pitch callers in the country. It felt like we were on the same page all day.
Junior INF Jack Pineda
On his impressive slide to score a run…
"Yeah, I thought I got in there. You know, I'm just trying to fight for every run. Instincts took over, I guess. I don't practice that. Just don't get tagged, that's the only thing that's on my mind. I think there are some pretty cool pictures."
WHAT'S NEXT
Baylor (10-9) welcomes UTSA (12-7) to Baylor Ballpark on Tuesday, March 22, for a midweek contest at 6:30 p.m. CT.
For the latest news on the Baylor baseball team all season long, follow its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorBaseball.
-BaylorBears.com-
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Rigney, Will (1-0)
L: Brown, Cam (2-2)
S: Oliver, Hambleton (1)
Batting:
2B: Sacco, Tommy 1 ; Boyers, Luke 1 ; Maxwell, Logan 1
HR: Taylor, Brayden 1 ; Bishop, David 1
RBI: Taylor, Brayden 1 ; Bishop, David 1 ; Blackledge, Owen 1
SF: Blackledge, Owen 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Taylor, Brayden 1 ; Bishop, David 1 ; Boyers, Luke 1
SB: Nunez, Elijah 1
Batting:
2B: Richardson, Tre 2 ; Nevin, Kyle 1 ; Cardoza-Oquendo, Esteban 1
RBI: Pineda, Jack 1 ; Richardson, Tre 2 ; Wehsener, Chase 2 ; Cardoza-Oquendo, Esteban 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Pineda, Jack 3 ; Richardson, Tre 1 ; Nevin, Kyle 1 ; Wehsener, Chase 1 ; Caley, Harrison 1
SB: Pineda, Jack 2 ; Richardson, Tre 1
HBP: Pineda, Jack 1
Game Leaders
AB
5
R
1
H
3
RBI
2
AB
4
R
3
H
2
RBI
1
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
C
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball1B
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