Big 12 Baseball Friday Six-Pack: Kansas Walks off Texas Tech While Oklahoma State Sweeps BYU
Is there anything better than cold beer and baseball? It’s a combination that is hard to beat during the season. No matter what kind of beer you drink (or how many), let’s take a look at some of the best action on the Big 12 baseball diamond from Friday with a nice six pack.
Best Game
Texas Tech at Kansas
While this was an important series, I didn’t see this one being the best game in the Big 12 but it certainly was after that wild ending. Drew Woodcox got the game started early for the Red Raiders with his two-RBI single in the first inning.
Kansas finally got on the board in the sixth inning as Ben Hartl went deep.
But Damian Bravo had something to say about that in the seventh inning to give Texas Tech a 3-1 lead.
Despite being down, Kansas fought back. Jake English gave the Jayhawks another run in the bottom of the seventh with a sac-fly, but it was Lenny Ashby who tied the game with his double.
Then in the bottom of the ninth with the game tied at three, Ben Hartl walked it off for the Jayhawks with his clutch hit.
It was a big win for Kansas over a hot Texas Tech team. While the Jayhawks will need to win another game to clinch the series, this was a confidence building win for this team.
Best Win
#19 Oklahoma State over BYU
I could have gone with TCU’s dominant win over Kansas State here, but I chose the Cowboys. Oklahoma State and BYU started this series on Thursday and due to potential weather issues on Saturday, they decided to finish the series with a doubleheader on Friday.
After taking game one 17-5, Oklahoma State followed up with two more wins and racked up a total of 23 runs on Friday. The Cowboys hit a whopping seven home runs on Friday between the two games and O’Brate felt like a home run derby all day long. This was a must win series for Oklahoma State and they dominated finishing with a clean sweep to stay near the top of the conference title race.
Worst Loss
Kansas State
There is no way to sugar coat it, TCU absolutely dominated Kansas State on Friday night. The Wildcats failed to score a single run against TCU pitcher Payton Tolle and Kansas State’s pitching wasn’t any better, giving up 11 runs in the first four innings. In fact, starting pitcher Ty Ruhl only lasted one inning before being pulled. I hope this was a wake-up call for Kansas State.
Friday MVP
Kansas 1B Ben Hartl
Ben was the hero for Kansas on Friday night. Not only did he hit a home run earlier in the game, but he also won the game for his team with a walk-off single.
Pitcher of the Day
TCU LHP Payton Tolle
Anytime this man pitches, he wins pitcher of the day. Payton had another impressive performance as he went five scoreless innings against a really good Kansas State lineup.
Best Home Run
West Virginia SS JJ Wetherholt
When JJ is playing, it’s must watch tv for reasons like this.
Full Scoreboard
#18 Oklahoma: 9, Texas: 4
#19 Oklahoma State: 11, BYU: 5 (game one)
#19 Oklahoma State: 12, BYU: 5 (game two)
West Virginia: 18, Baylor: 5
Kansas: 4, Texas Tech: 3
TCU: 12, Kansas State: 0
Cincinnati: 9, UCF: 4
Houston: 17, UT Arlington: 7
