Update: The game has been postponed today and a doubleheader will be played Saturday starting at 2 pm, with the second game beginning 20-30 minutes after completion of the first game.
The Sooners venture across the Red River to take on the Longhorns in a critical Big 12 tilt over the weekend. Currently leading the league with an 8-4 record in conference play, Oklahoma has not lost a conference series, but has also failed to sweep any of their opponents. Riding the cusp of a long overdue hitting tear, the Longhorns have won seven consecutive games and seven of the last eight at UFCUDFF and look to extend their historic dominance of the Sooners. On the year, the Longhorns are 18-2 at home. More so than Oklahoma, the concern this weekend is the weather, as the Friday and Saturday games are in danger of being rained out. Updates on that as they come.
News and Notes
- Brandon Belt currently has an 11-game hitting streak, hitting .383 in Big 12 play, but an outstanding .458 over those 11 games, including eight extra-base hits and seven games with multiple hits. Kid is a great hitter and will have favorable match ups against right-handed pitchers for Oklahoma in at least each of the first two games.
- Kevin Keyes is working on a hitting streak of his own at eight games, a stretch that has seen him raise his average over .300, getting hits that are often a result of cutting down his big swing and making good contact with the ball, an approach taken across the board by Longhorn batters.
- The Longhorns will retire 17-year major league veteran Greg Swindell's no. 21 before the game on Friday. Check out the ridiculous stats from Swindell's sophomore season in 1985 -- 19-2 record, 1.67 ERA, 15 complete games, six shutouts, and 204 strikeouts in 172 innings. And you thought that the Longhorn pitching this year was impressive. A well-deserved honor for a Texas great.
- OU Saturday starter Stephen Porlier made his first start since 2007 last weekend and shutout the Red Raiders over five innings. Crimson and Cream Machine believes that Porlier and Andrew Doyle may be the top Friday/Saturday combination in the league. Undoubtedly Chance Ruffin and Cole Green will have something to say about that, as the Longhorns are one of two teams in the country to possess a team ERA under 3.00. Despite CCM's lofty claim about Doyle and Porlier, the Sooners are not the other team.
- Texas has traditionally owned the Sooners in baseball, a trend that has held over the last 10 years, as the only Oklahoma series victory came in 1998, with the Longhorns sweeping four of those series.
- Chance Ruffin, Brandon Belt, Brandon Workman, and Cameron Rupp have all been named to the 2009 Brooks Wallace National Player of the Year watch list compiled by the College Baseball Foundation.
Preview
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday, April 17, 2009 - 6 p.m. Central
Texas: RHP Chance Ruffin (5-2, 2.55 ERA)
Oklahoma: RHP Andrew Doyle (5-2, 3.67 ERA)
Friday, April 18, 2009 - 2 p.m. Central
Texas: RHP Cole Green (3-0, 2.42 ERA)
Oklahoma: RHP Stephen Porlier (1-0, 0.00 ERA)
Saturday, April 19, 2009 - 1 p.m. Central
Texas: RHP Brandon Workman (3-3, 2.76 ERA)
Oklahoma: TBA
Weather
1983
If you really want impressive pitching, back up a couple of years to 1983 and you’ll find Swindell on a staff with Roger Clemens and Calvin Schiraldi. Those were the days.
Caradoc - April 17, 2009
Do you mean 1984? That would have been Swindell's freshman season.
Wescott Eberts (GoBR) - April 17, 2009
'83 pitching staff (CWS champs)
Schiraldi. Clemens. Capel. Killingsworth. With arms like Bruce Ruffin, Eric Boudreaux and Wade Phillips in reserve. . . . One of Gus’ amazing coaching performances was losing all four aces from that title team and getting the ‘84 ’Horns to the CWS title game (lost to Augie’s Fullerton team 3-1). Swindell was ace of that staff as a freshman.
edsp - April 17, 2009
Any idea of streaming / live TV options? I'd like to catch one of these games..
TXinDC - April 17, 2009
All the home games are available on texassports.com
Wescott Eberts (GoBR) - April 17, 2009
I'm thinking the first one gets pushed back a day or two.
run Bevo run - April 17, 2009
i can't be the only one
who thinks that retiring swindell’s number is related to revelations that roger clemens was a cheater.
amorphous - April 17, 2009
I think it has more to do with the fact that they've started retiring a lot of numbers in different sports
After being very careful about it before.
Texas Wahoo - April 17, 2009
Friday game postponed
Double header tomorrow with the first game at 2 and the Swindell jersey retirement between games.
Sweed4Heisman - April 17, 2009
Supposed to begin clearing
late morning Saturday, but chances of playing two not great. DH Sunday seems a fair possibility.
edsp - April 17, 2009
f***ing rain. nt.
The Mack Attack - April 17, 2009
Clemens vs. Swindell
Clemens having his number retired was more for his accomplishments after UT. Even though he won the championship game against Alabama in 1983 4-3, he struggled down the stretch of a 13-5 jr. year, and was 25-7 over his 2 year career ( 1982-83).
Swindell, on the other hand, was 43-8 over 3 years, and was mostly untouchable, even though he often pitched a complete game Friday night only to pitch in relief on Saturdays.
The current requirement is that players must be a national player of the year to have a jersey retired, which Clemens never accomplished, having never been even 1st team all-conference.
Longhorn90 - April 17, 2009
I suppose having the award named after him is kind of like winning player of the year...
Although not of any particular year.
Texas Wahoo - April 17, 2009
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