Highway65
04-22-2006, 11:53 PM
MU NOTEBOOK
Baseball not living up to hype
By NICK BROMBERG
Special to The Star
COLUMBIA — Not long ago, Missouri entered the 2006 baseball season basking in the sunniest of expectations.
The Tigers were poised to make the school’s first appearance in the College World Series since 1964 and boasted a potential top-five pick in this summer’s amateur baseball draft.
Ah, the good ol’ days.
Now, thanks to a nine-game losing streak before Wednesday’s 4-0 win over St. Louis, the Tigers are fighting to stay close to .500. Meanwhile, Max Scherzer, once considered a potential draftee by the Royals, who have the first overall pick in June’s amateur draft, is out indefinitely with arm troubles.
The Tigers, 17-18, appeared to be ending their skid Saturday when they took a 6-2 lead in the ninth inning against Oklahoma. The Sooners rallied to score six runs in the bottom of the ninth, including Kevin Smith’s two-out, two-run, walk-off home run against Mizzou closer Taylor Parker, giving Oklahoma an 8-6 victory.
“He’s struggled the last four times out, and there’s no question it concerns me, but he’s a pretty confident kid,” Missouri coach Tim Jamieson said of Parker.
If Saturday wasn’t bad enough, Mizzou blew another ninth-inning lead Sunday, allowing Oklahoma to score three in the ninth and steal a 7-6 win.
“Saturday’s game was the hardest loss I have ever dealt with,” Jamieson said. “You can’t write a script like that. We had a great effort on Sunday and should have won the game, and the same thing happened.”
Despite the team’s struggles, designated hitter Jacob Priday is on a roll. Priday has a 12-game hit streak, the longest of his career, and leads the team with four home runs and 33 RBIs.
Second baseman Trevor Helms hit a two-run home run and eight Tiger pitchers combined for a one-hitter Wednesday in the Wood Bat Classic in O’Fallon, Mo.
The Tigers open a three-game series against Oklahoma State on Friday in Columbia
Baseball not living up to hype
By NICK BROMBERG
Special to The Star
COLUMBIA — Not long ago, Missouri entered the 2006 baseball season basking in the sunniest of expectations.
The Tigers were poised to make the school’s first appearance in the College World Series since 1964 and boasted a potential top-five pick in this summer’s amateur baseball draft.
Ah, the good ol’ days.
Now, thanks to a nine-game losing streak before Wednesday’s 4-0 win over St. Louis, the Tigers are fighting to stay close to .500. Meanwhile, Max Scherzer, once considered a potential draftee by the Royals, who have the first overall pick in June’s amateur draft, is out indefinitely with arm troubles.
The Tigers, 17-18, appeared to be ending their skid Saturday when they took a 6-2 lead in the ninth inning against Oklahoma. The Sooners rallied to score six runs in the bottom of the ninth, including Kevin Smith’s two-out, two-run, walk-off home run against Mizzou closer Taylor Parker, giving Oklahoma an 8-6 victory.
“He’s struggled the last four times out, and there’s no question it concerns me, but he’s a pretty confident kid,” Missouri coach Tim Jamieson said of Parker.
If Saturday wasn’t bad enough, Mizzou blew another ninth-inning lead Sunday, allowing Oklahoma to score three in the ninth and steal a 7-6 win.
“Saturday’s game was the hardest loss I have ever dealt with,” Jamieson said. “You can’t write a script like that. We had a great effort on Sunday and should have won the game, and the same thing happened.”
Despite the team’s struggles, designated hitter Jacob Priday is on a roll. Priday has a 12-game hit streak, the longest of his career, and leads the team with four home runs and 33 RBIs.
Second baseman Trevor Helms hit a two-run home run and eight Tiger pitchers combined for a one-hitter Wednesday in the Wood Bat Classic in O’Fallon, Mo.
The Tigers open a three-game series against Oklahoma State on Friday in Columbia