TCU vs Tech Game Preview and Open Thread

Original Content via GoFrogs.com

FORT WORTH - The No. 15 TCU Horned Frogs will carry a four-game winning streak into a non-conference tilt against No. 23 Texas Tech Tuesday night in Abilene. Game time against the Red Raiders is set for 6 on the Abilene Christian campus.

TCU NOTABLES

• TCU is coming off its first sweep of No. 4 Texas since 1994 to move within one game of the top spot in the Big 12.
• TCU improved to 11-1 in the month of April and climbed up to 18th in the RPI.
• The TCU pitching staff pitched three shutouts in four games last week, allowing just one run in 36 innings pitched.
• The Horned Frogs lead the Big 12 with nine shutouts this season. That's the most since 1975.
• The TCU pitching staff has struck out 10 or more 18 times this season.
• Riley Ferrell collected three saves over the weekend and now has nine on the season.
• Garrett Crain paced the team offensively, hitting .400 (4-for-10) in the series at Texas.
• Boomer White has reached base safely in 13 straight games.
• Brandon Finnegan struck out 11 on Thursday bringing his season total to a career-high 95. He is two off the national lead of 97 from Cal Poly's Matt Imhof.

TEXAS TECH NOTABLES

• Texas Tech enters the week with an eight-game winning streak with a Monday contest at New Mexico on the docket.
• The Red Raiders have swept each of their last two weekend series (vs. Kansas State, vs. Prairie View A&M).
• The Red Raiders ranked second in the league with a .288 batting average and third in ERA at 3.17.
• Eric Gutierrez ranks second in the league with seven home runs and paces the Red Raider offense with 37 RBIs.
• Adam Kirsch is also a power threat with six home runs.
• Jonny Drozd leads the way on the mound with a 4-0 record and a 1.80 ERA in 16 appearances.
• Texas Tech is the top defensive team in the league with a .981 fielding percentage and 42 double plays turned.

SERIES NOTABLES

• Friday's game will be the 155th meeting all-time.
• TCU leads the series 82-71-1.
• The Frogs are 17-6 against Texas Tech under Schlossnagle, including a 14-3 mark as non-conference opponents.
• TCU and Texas Tech are meeting in a non-conference midweek game for the first time since April 13, 2009 when the Red Raiders came to Fort Worth.
• Texas Tech and TCU are meeting at a neutral site for the first time since March 2, 2010 at the Houston College Classic.
• TCU is 1-2 against Texas Tech this season.

STINGY ON THE MOUND

In four games last week, the Horned Frogs allowed just one run in 36 innings pitched. Included in that stretch were three consecutive games and a stretch of 27 2/3 innings without allowing a run to cross the plate.

Twenty-five times this season, the Frogs have allowed two or fewer runs. TCU has recorded nine shutouts, the most since tallying nine in 1972. Eleven times, the pitching staff has held an opponent to just one run.

The nine shutouts rank fifth in the nation and are tied for second all-time at TCU. The record for shutouts in a season is 11 set in 1972.

RETURNING WITH A VENGEANCE

In the March 15 game against Dartmouth, Garrett Crain suffered his second injury of the season. He missed five games completely and saw time off the bench in five others. TCU is 10-1 in the 11 games since his return.

Since returning to the field on April 4 against West Virginia, Crain has been a key cog in the Horned Frog lineup. He is hitting .351 (13-for-37) with five runs scored, two doubles, a triple and six RBIs. He has hit safely in eight of 11 games and reached base safely in nine.

Defensively, he has been a steady force in the field. He has just one error on the season in 112 chances between first and second base.

TURNING THE PAGE

Since the calendar flipped to April, the Horned Frogs have been on a tear to the tune of an 11-1 record. Included in that total is an 8-1 record in conference play. The Frogs have climbed all the way up to second in the Big 12 standings.

The Horned Frogs are no strangers to heating up at the right time as they boast a 143-46 record in the month of April under the guidance of head coach Jim Schlossnagle.

TCU is hitting .311 as a team and averaging 5.3 runs per game. On the mound, the staff has posted a 1.60 ERA and limited opponents to a .192 batting average. Defensively, the group is fielding at a .983 clip and has surrendered just one unearned run.

SLAMMING THE DOOR

Riley Ferrell played an integral part of TCU's road sweep of fourth-ranked Texas this past weekend, tallying a save in each game. He has nine this season.

In each of his last six appearances, he has tallied a save. He's allowed just four base runners total in those six appearances and has 14 strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings pitched.

The nine saves are tied for the most since Andrew Cashner (2008) and Eric Marshall (2009) tallied nine. The last Horned Frog to record double-digits in saves was Sam Demel in 2007 when he saved a school-record 13 games.