2011 Baseball Season Kicks Off Friday
2/17/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 17, 2011
FORT WORTH, Texas - The No. 1 ranked TCU Horned Frog baseball team is set to kick off the 2011 campaign Friday night in the opener of a three-game series against Kansas. First pitch of the season is slated for 6:30 p.m. The game will be aired live on The Mtn.SERIES INFORMATION
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 18 • 6:30 p.m.
Matt Purke (16-0, 3.02) vs. T.J. Walz (8-6, 5.06)
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19 • 2 p.m.
Kyle Winkler (12-3, 3.39) vs. Wally Marciel (8-6, 4.26)
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 20 • 1 p.m.
Steven Maxwell (11-2, 2.70) vs. Tanner Poppe (3-4, 5.25)
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Friday and Sunday's games will air live on The Mtn. Saturday's game will be tape delayed to Sunday at 5:30 (CST) p.m.
KTCU 88.7 FM will broadcast Friday and Sunday's contest, but there will be no radio coverage on Saturday due to basketball.
All three games of the series will be streamed live on www.gofrogs.com.
TCU NOTABLES
• TCU enters the season as the preseason No. 1 team in the nation according to two polls (Collegiate Baseball and the NCBWA).
• The Frogs return seven of nine starters in the field and all three starters on the mound.
• Jerome Pena, Jantzen Witte, Taylor Featherston, Jason Coats, Steven Maxwell and Matt Purke were all named preseason all-conference.
• Maxwell, Purke, Coats and Kyle Winkler have all been tabbed preseason All-Americans.
• Lupton Stadium received a face lift as 1,000 more seats were added to the upper deck.
• TCU's motto for the season is "We Fight Back" in honor of the Frogs For The Cure campaign that benefits the Susan G. Komen Foundation in its quest to find a cure for breast cancer.
• TCU is 5-2 in season-openers under Jim Schlossnagle.
LUPTON STADIUM NOTABLES
• The Horned Frogs will play 33 home games in 2011.
• The Frogs ranked 21st nationally in attendance in 2010 with an average of 3,127 fans per game.
• TCU carries a seven-game home winning streak into the 2011 season.
KANSAS NOTABLES
• The Jayhawks received votes in the NCBWA poll to open the season.
• Kansas returns 19 letterwinners from last year's squad that finished seventh in the Big 12.
• All three pitchers the Jayhawks will send to the mound saw significant time in 2010.
• Jimmy Waters, Brandon Macias, Casey Lytle and Chris Manship are the most experienced bats returning for Kansas in 2011.
• Waters is the top returning home run hitter as he connected for nine a year ago.
• The Jayhawks posted 31 wins in 2010, their seventh under ninth year head coach Ritch Price.
• Three members of the squad hail from Texas (Alex Harris, Taylor Hart and Tyler Smith).
SERIES NOTABLES
• The Horned Frogs own a 2-1 series lead over the Jayhawks.
• TCU's two wins have come in Fort Worth, both of which were one-run victories to open the 1990 campaign.
• Kansas' lone win came in the 2001 season opener played in Round Rock, Texas.
PASSING THROUGH THE GATES
The TCU baseball program set attendance records galore in 2010. After averaging 2,165 fans in 2009, the Frogs saw almost 1,000 more fans per game in 2010 as they averaged 3,127 fans in 2010. That total ranked 18th nationally.
Additionally, the Frogs ranked 21st nationally with a total attendance of 90,687.
Seven of the top 10 attended games in program history came last season as did all five of the top attended series. TCU set a school record with 4,375 fans against Texas A&M on April 13.
The Horned Frogs have had a tremendous two-year run on attendance, averaging 2,623 fans per game.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Frogs have enjoyed the home cooking of Lupton Stadium since it opened in 2003. TCU has an all-time record of 187-57 at Lupton.
In 2010, the Frogs boasted a 26-4 record in 30 home games. As a team, TCU outscored its opponents 258-101. The Frogs hit .343 with 73 doubles, 10 triples and 27 home runs at home in 2010.
No hitter enjoyed Lupton Stadium more than Taylor Featherston who hit a blistering .465 at home in 2010. For his career, he is a .390 hitter at home.
On the mound, the pitching staff enjoyed the friendly confines to the tune of a 2.84 ERA with five shutouts. The staff fanned 254 batters and held opponents to a .245 batting average against.
Kyle Winkler has made a home on the Lupton Stadium mound. In two seasons, he is 11-0 with a 2.65 ERA in 17 appearances.
NEARING A MILESTONE
All Jim Schlossnagle has done since arriving in Fort Worth in 2003 is rack up victories. A veteran coach of nine seasons, Schlossnagle is nearing a significant coaching milestone. With 382 career victories between his time at TCU and at UNLV, Schlossnagle needs just 18 victories to reach 400 career wins.
305 victories have come during his tenure at TCU, a mark that ranks second all-time in school history. During the Frogs playoff run in 2010, Schlossnagle passed the legendary Frank Windegger who had 298 wins during his career.
WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE RETURNS
The TCU baseball team returns the bulk of its record setting 2010 squad. In total 19 members return, including seven starters.
Of the 19 returners, seven earned All-Mountain West Conference honors. Six of the seven were first-team performers (Jason Coats, Brance Rivera, Taylor Featherston, Jerome Pena, Matt Purke and Steven Maxwell).
The offense returns 76% of its runs scored, 77% of its total hits and 77% of its RBIs. The returning players combined to hit .330 as a group.
On the mound, the Frogs return 72% of its innings pitched and 82% of its starts. The group posted a combined ERA of 3.08 and struck out 404 batters. Opponents hit just .243 off of the returning staff.
STACKED ROTATION
The Horned Frogs return their entire starting rotation from 2010. All three have earned preseason All-American honors as well.
Matt Purke leads the way and teamed with Steven Maxwell and Kyle Winkler to guide the Frogs to a 54-14 record. As a trio, they combined for a 39-5 record. They accounted for 55.3 percent of the innings pitched (336.1), limited opponents to a .234 batting average, fanned 327 and posted an ERA of 3.05.
Purke has been tabbed as a first-team All-American by Louisville Slugger and the NCBWA. Winkler was a third-team honoree by Louisville Slugger and a second-team selection by the NCWBA. Maxwell has been tabbed as a second-team performer by both outlets.
FROGS WELCOME 11 NEWCOMERS
The Frogs added 11 newcomers to their roster in the fall. The group includes nine freshmen, one sophomore and one junior college transfer. Eight of the 11 newcomers hail from the state of Texas, while two come from Oklahoma and one from Arkansas.
Tony Rizzotti is the lone member of the class to be drafted as he was picked in the 28th round by the Colorado Rockies. Teddy Nowell is the lone junior college transfer. He spent the last two seasons at Navarro Junior College.
The class also includes Stefan Crichton, Nick Frey, Axel Johnson, Brett Johnson, Andrew Mitchell, Al Ralston, Caleb St. Laurent and Trey Teakell.
AMONG THE NATION'S ELITE
The TCU baseball team has put together four straigth 40-plus-win seasons dating back to the 2007 campaign. Over the last four seasons, the Frogs have posted a 186-65 record for a .741 winning percentage.
The 186 victories are tied for fifth nationally, while the .741 winning percentage is fourth-best nationally. Both totals are tops in the state of Texas.
