@MizzouBaseball Welcomes No. 4 Vanderbilt for Three-Game Series
3/24/2016 11:57:00 AM | Baseball
| OPPONENT | LOCATION | DAY // TIME | LIVE STATS |
|---|---|---|---|
| #4 Vanderbilt | Taylor Stadium | Friday, March 25 // 6 p.m. | Stats |
| #4 Vanderbilt | Taylor Stadium | Saturday, March 26 // 5 p.m. | Stats |
| #4 Vanderbilt | Taylor Stadium | Sunday, March 27 // 12 p.m. | Stats |
Game Notes | $1,000 Gift Card Giveaway Details
Setting the Stage
- Mizzou Baseball returns home this weekend to face No. 4 Vanderbilt in a three-game series at Taylor Stadium. Friday's game is set for a 6 p.m. first pitch and will air live on SEC Network+ with Beau Baehman and Ryan Allen on the call. Saturday's game is set for a 5 p.m. first pitch and will air on SEC Network and Sunday's game is set for a noon start on SEC Network. Steve Lenox and Gabe Gross will be on the call for SEC Network.
- Mizzou, which will have played 14 of its last 17 games at home following this weekend's series, is in one of the toughest stretches of its schedule after playing at No. 1 Florida last weekend. In fact, Mizzou and Georgia are the only teams in the SEC who play Florida and Vanderbilt in back-to-back SEC weekends and Mizzou gets both in a row to open SEC play.
- Vanderbilt is Mizzou's second ranked opponent this season as the Commodores are ranked in the top 10 in nearly every major college baseball poll, including a No. 4 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Mizzou is in a stretch in which it plays nine ranked opponents in 10 games (last weekend at Florida, this weekend vs. Vanderbilt and April 1-3 at Arkansas). Six of those nine games will be played on the road. The only reprieve is a midweek contest with St. Louis next Tuesday in Kansas City.
- Mizzou and head coach Tim Jamieson will go with the same pitching rotation as last weekend at Florida, starting with RHP Reggie McClain on Friday night vs. Vanderbilt's Jordan Sheffield. Below is a complete look at the pitching matchups.
- Friday's game which pits McClain vs. Sheffield is one of the nation's premier pitching matchups this weekend. Sheffield ranks second in the SEC with his 0.88 ERA while McClain is right behind Sheffield at third with his 1.11 mark. McClain leads the SEC in innings pitched (40.2) and Sheffield leads the SEC with his 45 strikeouts, 15 of which have been looking.
- This weekend's matchup features two of the most patient lineups in the SEC as Vanderbilt and Mizzou enter the weekend ranked 1-2 in the league in walks. Vanderbilt has walked an SEC-best 126 times while Mizzou has drawn 113 free passes, second-best in the SEC.
Pitching Matchups
- Friday: Reggie McClain (3-0, 1.11 ERA) vs. Jordan Sheffield (3-1, 0.88 ERA)
- Saturday: Tanner Houck (2-2, 2.65 ERA) vs. TBA
- Sunday: Austin Tribby (2-2, 4.40 ERA) vs. TBA
Series History With Florida
- 2016 will mark the fourth three-game series between Mizzou and Vanderbilt and the Tigers have yet to defeat the Commodores since joining the SEC, trailing the all-time series, 10-0. The two also met in the SEC Tournament last season with Vanderbilt claiming a 7-6 win in 10 innings, rallying for the come-from-behind win. Mizzou has not had much success in the 10 games against Vanderbilt as it has been outscored in that span, 81-21. Last season, Mizzou and Vanderbilt met in Nashville with first place in the SEC East on the line. Both teams entered the weekend at 12-6 in SEC play last year, but Vanderbilt won all three games from Mizzou and wound up winning the east with a 20-10 mark while Mizzou finished third at 15-15.
- Having played Vanderbilt every year since joining the SEC, plenty of Tigers have stat lines against the Commodores. Junior SS Ryan Howard is hitting .400 with three doubles, four walks and three RBI while scoring four runs. Below is a breakdown.
- SS Ryan Howard - 10-for-25 | 4R | 3 RBI | 3 2B | 4 BB
- OF Jake Ring - 4-for-23 | 2R | 3 RBI | 5 BB | SB
- OF Trey Harris - 4-for-14 | 1R | 2B | 3BB
- 1B Zach Lavy - 4-for 17 | 2 2B | 1 RBI | SB
- C Brett Bond - 2-for-12 | 2 RBI | 2 BB |
- 3B Shane Benes - 0-for-5 | 1 RBI
- C Alex Del Rio - 1-for-1
- C Jack Klages - 1-for-5 | 1R | 1 BB | 1 HBP
- RHP Tanner Houck - 0-1 | 5.0 IP | 12.60 ERA | 8H | 7R | 7ER | 0BB | 5K | .348 OPP BA
- RHP Reggie McClain - 0-1 | 2.2 IP | 27.00 ERA | 9H | 8R | 8ER | 0BB | 4K | .563 OPP BA
- LHP Austin Tribby - 0-1 | 1.2 IP | 5.40 ERA | 2H | 2R | 1 ER | 1BB | 2K
- LHP Lake Dabney - 0-0 | 4.0 IP | 0.00 ERA | 4H | 1R | 0ER | 1BB | 3K | .250 OPP BA
- RHP Ryan Lee - 0-0 | 1.0 IP | 9.00 ERA | 1H | 1R | 1ER | 1BB | 1 K | .333
Up Next
Mizzou will head to Kansas City, Mo., to play St. Louis in a midweek game at Kauffman Stadium, home of Major League Baseball's Kansas City Royals. First pitch is slated for 6:30 p.m. on March 29. Tex Little and Trevor Coleman will have the call on KTGR. For all the latest on Mizzou Baseball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MizzouBaseball.
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