8B
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY,MAY 2.2008
KU FIRST PITCH
LAST TIME OUT
Kansas got back on track Tuesday,shutting out No.15 Missouri,3-0,at Kauffman Stadium.That victory came on the heels of a winless weekend in Stillwater,Okla.,against No. 9 Oklahoma State — Kansas' third sweep at the hands of a Big 12 foe.
BYTHE NUMBERS
0. 00 The lowest ERA of any Kansas pitcher in Big 12 play, belonging to sophomore right-hander Thomas Marcin in 1.2 innings. The next lowest is Nick Czyz's 4.01 conference ERA.
1 - The number of home runs Erik Morrison needs to pass
pass
Travis
Metcalf
and
move
into
second place on the Kansas all-time home runs list.
7. 26 - Kansas' team ERA during Big 12 play.
UP TO BAT
LHP Nick Czyz - Alz although Czyz took the loss last Friday against Oklahoma State he
couldn't have done much better against the Cowboys' high-octane offense. In 6.1 innings, he allowed three runs
— two earned — on four hits and five walks while striking out three. Oklahoma's offense is solid, but it's a notch below Oklahoma State's, so a similar performance from Czyz could earn him his first victory since April 11.
ON DECK
RHPT.J.
Walz - it's been an up and down last couple weeks for the Omaha native. Two
Sundays ago he beat a ranked Nebraska team in his home state and the performance landed him on the College Baseball Foundation's National All-Star Lineup. Last week against Oklahoma State, he struggled to command his pitches, allowing three runs on five hits and two walks in three innings. As the Sunday starter, it may be up to him to clinch the series and keep Kansas' Big 12 Championship hopes alive.
INTHE HOLI
RHP Andres Esquibel— As reliever, Esquibel was lights out. Other than his eight-inning, one-run outing against Texas Tech, Esquibel has allowed 19 earned runs in 14.2 innings in his four Big 12 starts. Miraculously, his 4.68 ERA leads the team. Esquibel needs to prove why he was moved to the weekend rotation in the first place.
SHAKY'PEN MAY HURT SOONERS Jayhawks face top hitting team in the Big 12
KANSAS VS. OKLAHOMA 6 p.m. Hoglund Ballpark, Lawrence
Kansas (26-22,5-13)
PITCHING
The Jayhawks pitching staff can't look to strike out every Sooner it faces this weekend because it won't happen. Oklahoma is in the bottom half of the Big 12 in strikeouts, averaging just more than six a game, and it is first in the conference in hits. The Sooners will make contact, so it's up to the Jayhawk pitches to use that to their advantage and let their defense record the outs. Junior left-hander Nick Czyz (2-5) has improved in this area of late. He's gotten into the seventh inning his last three starts and in six Big 12 starts he has a 4.01 ERA, which is $ 10^{\mathrm{th}} $ best in the Big 12, compared to his 5.72 season ERA. Unlike Czyz, who will start Friday, senior right-hander Andres Esquibel's ERA has ballooned since conference play started. Saturday Esquibel (3-4) will look to let some of the air out of his 6.23 in-conference ERA and bring it closer to his 4.68 season ERA. Freshman right-hander T.J. Walz (3-0) will take the mound Sunday in hopes of rebounding
from his last outing, when he allowed Oklahoma State's leadoff man to reach every inning before being pulled in the fourth. Still, in his three Big 12 starts, Walz has a 3.38 EPA and a 2-0 record to show for it. He may be young, but if the series comes down to his start in the series finale, Kansas has to feel good about its chances.
Oklahoma (29-17-1,6-11-1)
PITCHING
The Sooners come to town with the fourth-best team ERA in the Big 12 at 4.42. Oklahoma has a good team ERA, but its pitchers have also thrown the most innings of any Big 12 team and this has been a problem. The Sooners have relied on starting pitcher Ryan Duke to carry the team so far this season. Duke's 5-3 record and 3.06 ERA has been a key component to the Sooners success. With a thin bullpen, Oklahoma needs its starting pitchers to have good outings to be successful.
OFFENSE
OFFENSE
The Jayhawks are probably hoping the gusting winds that are sure to come this weekend will be blowing out during their at-bats. In its last five games, Kansas is averaging 2.8 runs. Its 10 games before that, Kansas was averaging 7.2 runs. Kansas is still getting production from its big three — left fielder John Allman, right fielder Ryne Price and shortstop Erik Morrison — in conference play, though. The senior trio is hitting .323, .300 and .299, respectively in conference and have combined for eight home runs. Price jacked his $10^{th}$ home run of the season Tuesday, which leads the team, but close behind is junior catcher Buck Afenir who has seven home runs on the season and is hitting .292 in the Big 12. Kansas' problem in Big 12 play has been stringing rallies together. Often times, unless someone hits a two- or three-run homer, the Jayhawks use outs to sacrifice men into scoring position and come away with one-run innings. Kansas relies heavily on sacrifices because it's basically a station-to-station offense. Of the Jayhawks' 26 stolen bases this season, only three have come in conference and those are thanks to Morrison's aggressiveness on the bases. If a team can't steal bases, it takes pressure off the opposing pitcher and saddles it onto its own offense. Kansas' 368 strikeouts this season are a reflection of that.
Oklahoma is a team that likes to hit and is very good at doing so. The Sooners have three of the league's top hitters in designated hitter Mike Goose, right fielder Jamie Johnson and center fielder Aljay Davis. Goose leads the Big 12 in doubles at 20 and is second in hits at 73. With a top-to-bottom lineup of hitters, the Sooners are a powerful offense. Leadoff man Johnson is hitting .371 this season with 4 homeruns. The Sooners have a very balanced attack and have six of the nine starters hitting better than .300. Oklahoma is a force to reckon with lineup is a threat.
Shawn Shroyer
There was a time when facing a base-stealing team would worry the Jayhawks. It used to be up to Kansas' pitchers to control opponents' running game. That's not the case anymore with the Afenir's development as a backstop. Once a liability when facing running teams, Afenir is proving that runners who test his arm are at risk of getting nailed. That's significant this weekend because Oklahoma is aggressive on the base paths. The Sooners have stolen 60 bases in 83 attempts, so they aren't likely to shy away from challenging Afenir. It'll be up to Afenir to make them pay. If he can, Kansas pitchers can focus more on batters than runners.
DEFENSE
DEFENSE
↙
QUESTION MARK
The Sooners rank second-to-last in the Big 12 in team fielding and have been known to kick the ball around this year. With 66 errors as a team, the defense has often been a source of frustration. Oklahoma has been letting runners reach base on errors, then has had problems keeping them there. The Sooners have allowed 34 stolen bases on 56 attempts this year and have let runners move to scoring position early and often. Oklahoma will need to keep these numbers down to make a late-season run.
-Tyler Passmore
Same story, just a different weekend: What will Kansas get out of its starting pitching? As a whole, Kansas plays better at home and that seems especially true for its pitching staff. In its last home conference series, Kansas held Texas Tech to eight runs in three games. With their next eight games at home - seven of which in conference - the Jayhawks are hoping that's the start of a trend.
QUESTION MARK
While the Sooners offense scores as much as the football team, will the defense commit errors and let teams back in the game? After the starting pitchers, the Sooners bullpen has some inexperience and has been shaky as of late. If the Sooners pitching and defense show up, Oklahoma can be hard to beat.
OU FIRST PITCH
LAST TIME OUT
BY THE NUMBERS
Down three runs in the bottom of the ninth, the Sooners found themselves struggling to stay alive against the Wichita State Shockers. With one out, first baseman Aaron Baker sent a three-run blast over the wall and sent the game into extra innings. Just as the Shockers scored two runs in the top of the ninth, they scored another in the top of the 10$^{th}$. Once again however, the Sooners got heroics from their best hitter, as Goose hit a two-out, two-RBI double to win the game 12-11.
73 - Gosse's number of hits this season. He's second in the Big 12
20 - Mike Gosse's number of doubles this season. He leads the Big 12
.392 - Gosse's batting average. He's third in the big 12
66 - Number of errors Oklahoma has committed this season. It is second worst in the Big 12
517 - Total number of team hits this season. It leads the Big 12
DH Mike Gosse —
UP TO BAT
Gosse has been on a tear in 2008 and has shown no sign of slowing down.
Atop almost every batting category in the Big 12, Gosse provides the Sooners with an air attack that makes the middle of their lineup lethal. Coming off a 3-5 performance against the No. 14-ranked Shockers, Gosse provided the winning double.
ON DECK
RF JAMIE Johnson — While Gosse gets all the publicity, Johnson is someone
who has been flying under the radar. As a leadoff batter, Johnson has been hitting .371 and is getting on base, allowing the middle of the order to drive him in. Not only does Johnson get on base with a great average, but he has also hit four home runs this season.
INTHE HOLE
RP Mark Guest —
Coming into the game in a late-game situation, Guest
5
almost gave the game away to the Shockers his last time out. The freshman gave up two hits and two earned runs, forcing the Sooners bats to pick him up. In his 14.2 innings pitched this year, Guest is 0-2 with a 7.36 ERA.
.
---