14 Friday, April 15, 1994 SPORTS UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN Pitcher follows father's footsteps Valerie Bontrager / KANSAN Royals drafted Jamie Splittorff out of high school Senior pitcher Jamie Splittorff throws a pitch against Wichita State. Splittorff gave up three runs in five innings pitched during Wednesday's game. Although he didn't receive the victory, he is 8-0 with a 2.90 ERA. By Andrew Gilman Kansan sportswriter Kansas pitcher Jamie Spittorff doesn't have good stuff. Splittor insists, with his 8-0 record and 2.90 ERA, that his fastball is just average and that his offense and his bullpen have balled him out countless times. "I've gotten lucky along the way," the Blue Springs, Mo., sophomore said. "Whenyoulookatme,you'renot awestruck." But Splittorff has compiled the best record on a strong Kansas pitching staff this season and has a 15-2 record in the 21 times he has started the last two seasons, already the eighth best pitching record in Kansas history. "I think he has progressed much farther than we thought," Kansas coach Dave Bingham said. "The number of innings and the quality of his games have exceeded what we thought." But despite the praise he has earned from Bingham, Splittorff thinks that he has not shown his best effort. "I haven't thrown consistently all year," he said. "But sometimes you don't have to have good stuff to win." son I like father like son Splittorf is an all-state pitcher his senior year at Blue Springs. Not surprising. His father, Paul Splittorf, is the Royals-all-time leader in victories. But the younger Splittorf said pitching was not his first love. It was. He was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 25th round out of high school. He was all-conference at third base for three seasons, but he said he had known that pitching was his way to success. "I didn't like pitching until my junior year in high school," he said. "I played third base and loved hitting, but I realized that pitching was my ticket. That importance led Splittorff to make a promise to his mother. "I considered it," he said. "And sometimes I thought that was what I wanted, but my parents talked me out of it. My parents instilled in me the importance of education." He'll have that opportunity at Kansas, and Bingham said he had a good feeling about Splittorff. "I promised my mom in high school that I would get my college degree," he said. "Whether it's in four years or come back and do it by semesters." "We started recruiting him during his junior year," he said. "We knew there was a lot of competition just to play at Blue Springs, because it was the biggest high school in Missouri. The only thing I was worried about was if he could compete at the national level. Jamie had never done that before." nnn Off to a good start Baseball did not come easy to Splitorff when he got to Kansas. Splitorff said he constantly had been bombarded with comparisons to his father. He had trouble finding his identity, he said. "The last year of high school was tough," he said. "But when I got to college it got worse. It was never Jamie Splittertorf, right-handed pitcher. It was always Jamie Splittertorf, son of Paul. It was OK at first, then it got real old." Jamie Splittorff got through it. He went on to post a 7-2 record with a 3.61ERA his freshman season. In just his third start, Splittorf went to Stillwater, Okla., to pitch against the Cowboys. He went five innings and earned the victory. "I didn't throw that great," he said. "But I knew that I could beat the best teams in the country." There were times when he was throwing worse than that. Against Nebraska last season, he hit four batters in three innings and took the loss. It was a game in which Kansas had a chance to win the regular season Big Eight Conference championship. Since then, Splittorff has shined even with the pressure of a successful freshman season. "I knew more would be asked of me this year," he said. "I knew that I would have to pitch more innings and get off to a good start." Those innings have stacked up, and Splittorffis suffering from soreness in his right arm. He missed his last start weekend but pitched five innings Wednesday night against No. 6 Wichita State. He gave up three runs and seven hits before leaving the game when his pitch count of about 70 had expired. Bingham and Splittorff agreed that his soreness was nothing serious. "it's really nothing too severe," Splittorff said. "It got to the point where I was getting too cautious, so the coaches decided to hold me back." Bingham also was not concerned. "The problem is conditioning," Bingham said. "Once he starts getting used to the innings, he'll be fine." nnn Quality performer When Jamie Splittorff has taken the mound this season, he has won eight times. When Jamie Splittorff has taken the mound this season, his teammates have known that they were in the game. "Unless you do something wrong, you're going to have a chance," senior designated hitter Kent Mahon said. "Jamie is one of those guys you expect a quality performance from every game." So far this season, he has thrown four complete games, including a six-hit shutout of Oklahoma on March 26. He has not gone less than six innings in any game, except Wednesday's game against the Shockers, and he struck out 10 against Arkansas on Feb. 18. But, Splitorff does not consider himself to be anything special. Jamie Splitttorff #21 **Game by Game performances:** Opp. DecIP H ER BB SO N.C. St. W 6.0 3 0 3 6 Arkansas W 9.0 7 1 0 10 Grand View W 6.0 9 5 1 7 Washburn W 6.0 6 1 1 4 Emporia St. W 6.0 7 3 0 5 Oklahoma W 9.0 10 6 2 2 Oklahoma W 9.0 6 0 3 6 Missouri W 9.0 10 3 3 6 Wichita St. ND 5 7 3 1 3 1994 Totals 8-0 65 64 21 14 49 ERA: 2.90 "I've been inconsistent," he said. "At times, my stuff is good. I'm a good pitcher. Not flashy, but one that just gets the job done." TODAY Baseball Kansas at Iowa State 3 p.m. Baseball SATURDAY Softball Kansas vs. Missouri at 2 p.m. at Jayhawk Field. Kansas at Iowa State, 2 p.m. Men's and Women's tennis Kansas at Oklahoma State. Football Spring scrimmage, 1 p.m. at Memorial Stadium. Men's and Women's Track John Jacobs Invitational, Norman, Oklahoma. Basketball Kansas Basketball recruit Billy Thomas will play in the High School Basketball Classic at 7p.m. at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo. SUNDAY Kansas at Missouri. s's and Women's tennis Kansas at Oklahoma State. Baseball Kansas at Iowa State, 1 p.m. Dave Campbell / KANSAN Women's team signs recruits Kansan staff report the Kansas women's basketball team announced yesterday that it had signed two recruits. Brenda Moffitte is a 5-foot-9 guard form Garden City Community College. She was coached by former Kansas assistant Kevin Cook. Moffitte averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds for Garden City. Tamara Gracie is a 6-foot forward who averaged 14 points and 9 rebounds for Guthrie High School in Oklahoma. The Jayhawks also signed four other players during the early signing period. NATURALWAY natural fiber clothing 820-822 Mass S. 11-0100 New Music! On Sale Now! On Sale Now! On Sale Now! $699CS/$99CD Sale Price Expires 4/30/94 Kristin Hersh "Your Ghost" (with Michael Stipe) - the single from HIPS AND MAKERS Morrisey "The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get" - the single from VAUXHALL & I $7??/$10?? Sale Price Expires 4/30/94 hastings We're Entertainment! 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