Walk Off Weekly: Baylor’s Big 12 Tourney Preview plus another series win
Baylor won their fourth conference series in a row after defeating West Virginia in Morgantown twice. The Bears earned the number 5 seed in the Big 12 Tournament finishing with a 32-19 record and 13-11 in conference play along with a 42 RPI ranking.
Since the Big 12 Tournament is this week I decided to do a preview of Baylor's part of the bracket. So let's see what Baylor has coming up this week.
Baylor’s Big 12 Tournament Preview
The Bears are grouped with Texas, Kansas, and Oklahoma. The winner of the group will advance to the Championship to face the winner of the other grouping.
Baylor starts with Oklahoma on Wednesday who swept the Bears earlier this season but Cody Bradford did not pitch in that series. Wednesday’s matchup will likely be Cody Bradford against Jake Irvin who shut down the Bears the first time these teams met. OU is 7-6 over the last month of the season but they are by no means an easy win especially with their ace on the mound.
If Baylor wins they will play the winner of Texas vs. Kansas and if they lose they will play the loser.
Texas swept Baylor earlier this season and are probably the hottest team in the conference outside of the Bears. They have won seven of their last eight and won series over Texas Tech and TCU during that span to claim the regular season title. Baylor’s season turned around after getting swept by the Longhorns and the Bears will be looking for some revenge in this one.
Kansas took the series against the Bears in Waco early on in conference play which was definitely a disappointment for the Bears since Kansas only won three conference series this year. Baylor will probably be pitching Hayden Kettler in the second game and he was the only Baylor pitcher that beat Kansas this season.
An interesting grouping for the Bears since they had a 1-8 record against these teams but I actually think it is the better draw. This Baylor team did not play these teams earlier in the season and I think they can surprise. It all starts with Cody Bradford if he can win the OU game then Baylor has a shot to make a big tourney run.
The Bears RPI should move up with a game against #39 Oklahoma and potentially #14 Texas. But the Bears cannot go 0-2 with another loss to #93 Kansas. If that scenario played out I do not think Baylor would make the Tournament.
The Finals are up in the air since there are four teams fighting for that spot but I think Baylor would definitely want to see anyone but Texas Tech out of that group if the Bears made it that far.
Slugger of the Week
Richard Cunningham (.330) 5-for-14; 2 RBI
Cunningham was the only Baylor hitter that had a hit in every single game of the series and he drove in two runs in the rubber match.
Heating Up
Shea Langeliers (.235) 5-for-11; 2BB
Langeliers has not had the greatest year but this week may go a long way to getting him hot for a postseason run. He did not drive in any runs but got on base a lot this weekend which is huge for Baylor.
Cooling Off
Andy Thomas (.347) 2-for-13; 5 SO
Thomas has been the most consistent hitter for the Bears but not this weekend as he had just two hits over the three-game series. Baylor is going to need him to heat up for the Big 12 tournament which he probably will since he has not had two bad weekends in a row all season.
Ace of the Week
Alex Phillips (6-1; 3.18 ERA) 1 Win; 4.0IP; 4H; 0ER 5SO
Phillips has turned into a major force out of the bullpen and his consistency relieving for Tyler Thomas has been huge for the Bears. He got the win in the rubber match as he shut down West Virginia for 4.0 innings.
Heating Up
Troy Montemayor (1-1; 11 Saves; 2.42 ERA) 1 Save; 2.0IP; 2H; 0ER; 3SO
Montemayor has continued to put games away when given the lead in the 9th and he now has tied a Baylor record for saves in a career and is only four away from the Big 12 record.
Hayden Kettler (7-4; 3.84 ERA) 1 Win; 5.0IP; 6H; 1ER; 2BB; 3SO
A really good outing for Kettler after a poor one last week. It was big for him to ge tback on track before the Big 12 tournament.
Cooling Down
Tyler Thomas (3-2; 2.42 ERA) 3.0IP; 2H; 1ER; 5BB; 5SO
Thomas continues to struggle with command as he walked five in just 3.0 innings.Luckily with Phillips pitching so well behind him it did not cost the Bears. Coach Rodriguez has been relying on his bullpen a lot on Sunday games and it has been effective.
Quote of the Week
We had a really good compliment from [West Virginia head coach] Randy Mazey earlier today, saying that we are the best team he’s seen all year.” – Baylor Head Coach Steve Rodriguez
Postseason Hopes
Big weekend for the Bears as their RPI jumped to 42. I think Baylor would be in as of today but one more win solidifies it. As a side note it is unfortunate that Baylor had to change opponents the first weekend of the season. They were suppose to play #40 Purdue and instead played #114 Houston Baptist which would have made quite a big difference.
Coming Up
Baylor takes on Oklahoma at the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday in Oklahoma City.
Prediction
Baylor will go 2-2 this week at the tournament and punch their ticket to a Regional.