Baylor Lights Up UT-Arlington in Midweek Clash, 15-9

WACO, Texas –  Baylor baseball (13-11, 2-4) cruised to a win over UTA (8-16) thanks to a fifteen-run explosion on Tuesday night at Baylor Ballpark. 

The game tonight was played in 20-30 mph winds. The wind most definitely had an impact on all aspects of the game, but mostly to the benefit of the Bears' offense. 

It all started in the bottom of the second inning.

Casen Neumann, in his fourth start of the season, hammered the first pitch he saw over the right-field wall to give Baylor the 2-0 lead. When Neumann is in the lineup, good things tend to happen. I hope moving forward Coach Rod can give him some more at-bats. He has most definitely earned them. 

The inning continued when Esteban Oquendo-Cardoza was nailed in the back by an errant pitch. Oquendo-Cardoza was able to advance to third on a perfectly executed hit-and-run by Alex Gonzales. With runners on the corners and one out, Cortlan Castle delivered with a single through the left side. 3-0 BU. 

Baylor Athletics

Jack Pineda followed with what originally looked like a routine pop-fly to right field that carried out of the ballpark to add on to the lead. The ball left the UTA right fielder bewildered, he positioned himself to make the catch. However, he quickly realized the ball was carrying past him and tried to sprint to the wall. He was late and it wouldn’t have mattered. 6-0 Baylor.

Kyle Nevin continued his hot streak by hitting his third double in three games into the right-center field gap. Tre Richardson and Jared McKenzie scored to widen the lead to 8-0. 

The Bears pitched seven guys tonight. No one looked particularly dominant and allowing walks is still a clear issue. Eight walks were handed out and three UTA batters were hit by pitches tonight. 

However, I will say I have been intrigued by Adam Muirhead so far this season. In his limited opportunities, he has shown consistency in hitting the strike zone, which is something this team desperately needs. Moving forward, I would like to see him get a chance to pitch over the weekend. Even after the game, Coach Rod mentioned that Muirhead is an X-factor.

As the momentum was starting to shift to UTA’s dugout ever so slightly, Chase Wehsener picked up a huge 2 RBI double to score McKenzie and Nevin in the bottom of the fourth. Esteban Oquendo-Cardoza then grounded out to second allowing Wehsener to score from third. 11-4 Baylor. 

Jack Pineda crushed a double into the right-center gap to start the fifth inning. Thanks to a few miscues by UTA, three more runs came across for the Bears, pushing the lead to 10 runs. 

With the bases loaded in the sixth, UTA was able to tack on two more runs thanks to a major wind gust. A pop-fly that was originally hit foul in between LF and 3B soared back into play and dropped in between Alex Gonzales, Esteban Oquendo-Cardoza, and Jack Pineda. 

The Bears were able to cruise the last few innings en route to a victory thanks to the offensive outpouring.

The Baylor offense continued their blistering streak by picking up sixteen hits and registering five extra-base hits over the course of the game. Pineda, McKenzie, Nevin, Wehsener, and Castle all had multi-hit performances. The Bears have put up a combined 31 runs over the past two games. 

Final: Baylor 15 - UTA 9

W: Brett Garcia (1-0) L: Cade Citelli (0-3) 

POTG: Chase Wehsener 3-4, BB, 2 R, 2B, 4 RBI

TOP QUOTES

Coach Rodriguez on the success of the offense in the past few games

Jack Mackenzie - SicEm365

“The biggest thing is I don’t want to say we’re going to get fifteen runs and eighteen hits or whatever it is in every game but the biggest thing is we are going to have quality at-bats. When you have quality at-bats during the game, you are giving yourself a chance for success. When you go up there and chase balls in the dirt and not execute, the chances of winning start to go down. But having good at-bats, being able to execute, which we did a great job of today”

Jack Pineda on the offense peaking at the right time

”Definitely. Our team is getting better with each at-bat. I think that kind of shows, especially lately with the amount of runs we have been able to score late in games. As the season carries on, we kind of get a better idea of what teams are trying to do and we just feel our swing better”

Chase Wehsener on his plate approach after his 4 RBI performance 

”For me, I have tried to really buy into that middle-opposite field approach. It’s helped out, even seeing offspeed pitches. When I am thinking the other way, I’m going to be on time for that offspeed pitch a lot better... It’s been great for me to buy into that and see the results from it”

WHAT’S NEXT

Baylor baseball (13-11, 2-4) takes a brief pause from conference play and welcomes East Tennessee State to Baylor Ballpark for a three-game set this weekend.