2004 Big 12 Conference Baseball Notes – Apr. 27, 2004 Top O’ the Notes: Central Oklahoma becomes the handcuff the hard-hitting Frogs and to lower the Big epicenter of the Big 12 in baseball, softball, tennis, 12’s second-best team ERA to 3.39, No. 18 nationally and outdoor track and field Wednesday-Sunday as and second to Texas at 2.34 in Big 12 stats. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State host conference events KANSAS and at least the 86th “Bedlam Series” in baseball since After adding a game with Baker in Lawrence, Kan., on the teams competed in the old Southwest Conference Monday, May 3 at 7 p.m. (CDT), the Jayhawks are on in 1919. track to play a 63-game permissible schedule after a While OU and Norman serve as hosts for the seven-game trip to Hawai’i-Hilo to start the year. IF Thursday-Saturday Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Travis Metcalf of Wamego, Kan., leads the Big 12 Championships and the Thursday-Sunday Big 12 with 16 home runs—four more than Casey Spanish hit postseason tennis tournaments, the Sooners’ and in 2003 over 62 games to lead coach Ritch Price’s Cowboys’ baseball teams take to the nearby roads. young team with 12. The diamondmen start Thursday at 7 p.m. at KANSAS STATE Driller Stadium in Tulsa before moving to SBC KSU’s relief pitching has been at its highest peak Bricktown Ballpark at Oklahoma City on both Friday since possibly the 1986 season. The team went 19-0 in and Saturday at 7 p.m. It’s a rare Thursday-Saturday the first 19 games in which the Wildcats had the lead series in Big 12 baseball, and the teams actually faced after seven frames. With 11 saves over its first 22 off in Tulsa and Oklahoma City over a Saturday- victories, K-State has been paced by RHP Matt Monday time frame for three games in their first year Petersen of Mead, Colo., with five saves in his first 15 of Big 12 competition in 1997. relief outings. He’s tied for the Big 12 individual lead, Oklahoma State takes a 134-132 edge into and the team has the co-second best tally in the league the 267th meeting of the storied series which has with Texas A&M. produced three NCAA championship teams MISSOURI (Oklahoma in 1951 and ’94 and OSU in 1959) and With a solid 1-2 punch at the plate in 1B Cody Ehlers some of the most competitive college activity of Stillwater, Okla., and OF James Boone of Clinton, nationally. They even tangled annually five times Okla., coach Tim Jamieson’s Tigers are pushing the (three counted in Big Eight Conference standings) .400 mark in on-base percentage at .399 and continue throughout the 1980s and 1990s—plus having several to average better than one homer per game (42 in 41 classic confrontations in the postseason Big Eight games prior to Wednesday’s match with Saint Louis). tourney at Oklahoma City from 1976-96. Ehlers is eighth in Big 12 batting average at .358 While the Oklahoma schools tussle for state along with 12 HR while Boone is hitting .336. superiority and higher slots in Big 12 standings, much NEBRASKA of the rest of the league looks up at OU (13-5 in the The Huskers are on track for a fifth consecutive 40- league for second place) and OSU (10-4, third place). win season and have a good look at a record third Texas takes a conference-best 13-4 mark into a three- consecutive 45-victory campaign after sweeping game series at Missouri Friday-Sunday. Northern Colorado in a two-game series. NU stopped Other key Big 12 three-game sets Friday- UNC 13-7 Wednesday to advance to 29-12 overall. 3B Sunday include Texas Tech at Kansas, Texas A&M at Alex Gordon of Lincoln, Neb., launched his 15th home Nebraska (with a Saturday tape-delayed national in the second game between those teams after the telecast by CSTV at 4:30 p.m., CDT), and Baylor at Huskers stopped the Bears 4-3 last Tuesday. Kansas State. OKLAHOMA The conference as a whole celebrates 1B Ole Sheldon of Roseburg, Ore., has been posting another midseason perk as an NCAA leader in surreal numbers in his first trip through the Big 12 statistical trends. Big 12 teams are third nationally in Conference round-robin slate. He leads the league in scoring with 7.1 runs per game, second in pitching Big 12 games-only with a .436 average (34-for-78 in earned run average at 3.99 and tops nationally in 18 games with 17 RBI)—some 40 points ahead of No. composite fielding percentage with a .970 mark—an 2 Curtis Ledbetter of Nebraska at .396 in 13 all-time high for this late juncture of the year (please conference contests. Relief ace Jarod McAuliff of see note after Big 12 batting streaks). Stillwater, Okla., is 3-0 with three saves in 11 Ticket inquiries for the 2004 eighth annual conference appearances. Phillips 66 Big 12 postseason tourney on May 26-30 OKLAHOMA STATE at The Ballpark in Arlington can be made to the Texas OSU took a non-conference break before meeting Rangers at 817-273-5100 or by accessing the Big 12 Oklahoma in Tulsa Thursday, and the break came in official website at www.Big12Sports.com. handy after the Cowboys swept a doubleheader at BAYLOR Kansas State 4-16, 2-2 last Sunday. Coach Frank BU is approaching the .300 mark—at .297 some 55 Anderson’s first edition at O-State is 17-10 outside the points ahead of a .242 team batting at the 18-game league with Ratings Percentage Index-aiding wins mark—after downing TCU 4-0 at Fort Worth, Texas, over USF, Eastern Michigan and Indiana State, among last Tuesday. The Bears used seven shutout innings others. C Jason Jaramillo of Franksville, Wis., paces from soph RHP Andy Pape of San Antonio, Texas, to the hitting parade at within the Big 12 at .364. TEXAS 14—Travis Metcalf, KU After adding a game against Texas State on Tuesday, 14—Jeff Scuderi, OU May 4, the Longhorns have the opportunity co 13—Ritchie Price, KU complete their 59-game regular-season schedule (with 12—Matt Bose, OU a three-game series at Hawai’i at season’s start. Coach 12—Erik Schindewolf, A&M Augie Garido’s crew has won nine consecutive weekend series and has a rugged test at Missouri Big 12’s Longest Hitting Streaks of 2003 upcoming. Freshman OF Drew Stubbs of Atlanta, 23—Curtis Ledbetter, NU Texas, leads the speedier 2004 UT bunch with 20 SB. 21—David Murphy, BU TEXAS A&M 21—Omar Quintanilla, UT (2002 and ‘03) A&M receives more national television exposure 20—Joe Ferin, UT Saturday with a tape-delayed CSTV encounter. The 20—Jose Virgil, OSU teams have first pitch at 2:05 p.m. (CDT) Saturday 20—Josh Fields, OSU after the Aggies throw Friday night anticipated ace 20—Matt Tribble, KU Jason Meyer of Abilene, Texas. He also averages just 18—Mark Saccomano, BU under 10 (9.98) strikeouts per nine innings and has 17--Jose Virgil, OSU whiffed 71 opposing hitters in 64 innings. Meyer also 16--Ty Soto, KSU (2002-03) is 4-0 in five starts since entering the Big 12 rotation. 16--Brett Williams, KSU (2002-03) TEXAS TECH Tech closed a nine-game homestand last Tuesday Big 12’s Longest Hitting Streaks of 2002 night with an 8-1 mark and 10-1 victory over New 30—Gera Alvarez, TT (2nd-longest in Big 12 history) Mexico of the Mountain West Conference. SS 24—Jayce Tingler, MU Cameron Blair of Dallas, Texas, extended his season- 23—Jeff Salazar, OSU best hitting streak to 14 games (top active skein in the 17—Daylon Monette, OSU conference) with a grand slam in that tilt while junior 16—Michael Griffin, BU RHP John Milton of Honey Grove, Texas, remained 16—Eddie Cornejo, OU undefeated on the hill at 3-0. 15—Omar Quintanilla, UT 14—Jayce Tingler, MU Big 12’s Longest Hitting Streaks of 2004 14—John Grose, NU (Through Apr. 28, 2004) 14—Tim Moss, UT 20—Cliff Pennington, A&M (all in 2004) 17—Matt Tribble, KU Big 12’s Longest Hitting Streaks of 2001 17—Ole Sheldon, OU 28--Kelly Shoppach, BU (4th in Big 12 history) 17—Scott Kirby, OSU (2003 and ’04) 20—John Cole, NU 16—Michael Griffin, BU 20--Pat Maloney, KSU 16--Lee Laskowski, MU 19--Adam Stern, NU 16—Austin Boggs, A&M 18—Greg Dobbs, OU 15—Curtis Thigpen, UT 18—Nebassett Brown, OSU 14—Cameron Blair , TT (current) 18--Jeff Leise, NU 14—Andy Scholl, KU 18—Ryan Stegall, MU Trendy Big 12 Big 12 teams have been among national leaders in everything from No. 2 in composite home runs nationally in 1997 to being part of earned run averages that were lowered almost every season after bat speed velocity measures were enacted prior to the 2001 campaign. In fact, the Big 12 led the country in best ERA in ’01 at 4.34—down almost 1.50 points from a conference-high 5.83 overall ERA in ’97. That figure has remained in the 4.00s consistently from 2001-2003 with a on-record-pace 3.99 at the April 26 juncture of 2004. Big 12 fielding, which topped the nation at .970 in midseason ’04, has been a consistent .957-.962 with ever-so-slight increases annually from an .957 mark in the initial ’97 campaign.