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Freshman pitcher Thomas Taylor rifles the ball in the first inning Tuesday. Taylor had only one earned run against him in 2.2 innings and recieved the loss.
Kansas sinks under poor pitching. Wichita State's nine-run innings
ahammond@kansan.com
THURSDAY
April
29
2010
4:30 PM
Dole Institute
BY ANDREW HAMMOND
ROBERT J. DOLE
INSTITUTE OF POLITICS
The University of Kansas
NEXT TO THE LED CENTER.
FREE PARKING.
WICHTA — During the fourth inning of Kansas' game against Wichita State Tuesday, 43 minutes proved to be too much for Kansas to overcome. In a stretch that put the game away, Wichita State put together a season-high nine-run inning before cruising past Kansas 22-7.
"This one hurts," shortstop Brandon Macias said. "It's tough. Our pitchers are trying out there and it's hard to stay on your toes when stuff like that happens."
Starting pitcher Thomas Taylor exited in the third inning, giving way to the Kansas bullpen, a group that delighted the pro-Wichita State crowd by walking batters, giving up hits and hitting the Shockers. Three pitchers were used in a fourth inning that saw nine runs cross the plate, two batters hit and two errors.
Coming into the game, the bullpen had given up a collective eight runs in relief against Texas Tech. Wichita State not only got nine in the fourth, but scored nine in the sixth inning as well.
"I told our guys after the game that our pitching had been strong all season," coach Ritch Price said. "Things got out of hand for us in the second game against Texas Tech and we struggled coming back from one day's rest,
as you guys saw."
Indeed, Kansas' bullpen has struggled since the second game in the Texas Tech series. The group has now given up a staggering total of 30 runs in the last three games.
With the loss of closer Brett Bochy, who had season-ending Tommy John surgery, the bullpen hit a rough patch.
But with strong outings against Creighton, Nebraska and Missouri after Bochy's injury, things were looking up, or at least they appeared to be.
Not only did the bullpen have a bad night, but the defense did not help either.
There were times in the fourth when the Jayhawks seemed to
recover, but errors only worsened the situation. A key moment occurred when Thompson failed to throw out a runner at home. The play was ruled an error.
Then a ground ball bounced off Brandon Macias' glove, extending the inning. The Jayhawks created their highest error total since last Friday's game against Texas Tech by committing three errors.
Coming up next for the Jayhawks is Oklahoma State, which averages 7.7 runs per game.
"We have to find a way to get this out of our memory and get ready for Stillwater and Oklahoma State," third baseman Tony Thompson said.
—Edited by Katie Blankenau
Bottom of the fourth
KEY INNINGS
Wichita State already led 3-1 when it sent 14 batters to the plate and scored nine runs in the inning, blowing the game wide open. Wichita State tallied only four hits in the inning, but capitalized on six walks, two hit batsmen and an error.
GAME TO REMEMBER
Redshirt freshman Jake Marasco
The Wichita native didn't enjoy an ideal homecoming, but had a standout evening at the plate. Marasco went 2-for-2, with two doubles while drawing a walk and getting hit by a pitch. He also scored three o the Jayhawks' seven runs.
GAME TO FORGET
Game to forget: Kansas' pitching staff
Jayhawk pitchers made it easy on the Shockers offense, which didn't need the additional help. Kansas' pitchers continually fell behind in the count, issued walks and hit batters. All five Jayhawk pitchers were ineffective, and at times made simply recording an out appear a laborious task.
STAT OF THE NIGHT
Forty three minutes. That's how long it took Kansas to get off the field in the fourth. Three Jayhawk pitches were needed in the inning, which was by far the longest half inning this season.
IN PERSPECTIVE
Tuesday's lopsided defeat was the third straight game in which the Jayhawks have surrendered 10 or more runs. Many members of Kansas' bullpen were tired from a lengthy weekend series against Texas Tech, but that was ultimately no excuse for the pitching Tuesday. This defeat wasn't merely a blip on the radar; it's further evidence that pitching is now a major concern for the Jayhawks going forward.
Ben Ward
PITCHING (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
inning was only a preview to the Jayhawks' full-blown meltdown in the fourth.
Wichita State sent 15 batters to the plate in the inning and scored nine runs – extending its lead to 12-1 despite only tallying four hits in the frame. The rest were reached
because of jayhawk miscues: six walks, two hit batters and two errors.
Surely, that had to be the ugliest that things would get for the Jayhawks, right? Wrong.
After scoring a single run in the fifth inning, Wichita State exploded
for nine more runs in the sixth. Two more Jayhawk pitchers were subject to the second barrage of offense by the Shockers, which included a towering grand slam to straight-away center field.
"it's not often you see a nine-spot
put up, and it's not often you see it
Even in the wake of a secondstraight crushing defeat, the sentiment from Kansas' players was a confidence in their pitching staff.
"Like I said, they've been good all season so they're going to snap out of it," junior third baseman Tony Thompson said.
done to you twice in a game," coach Price said.
for their teammates, the message for the jayhawks was simple: Put this latest setback behind them and continue to fight through adversity.
And aside from steadfast support
"We've got a lot of games left," Macias said. "A lot of games."
Edited by Megan Heacock
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