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The Texas Tech baseball team is looking to increase their so-so record against the Big 12 so far this season with a series win against the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Red Raiders are 5-4 so far this conference season, with a 1-2 series loss to the Texas Longhorns and 2-1 series win against both Kansas and Kansas State.
We’ve arrived at Security Bank Ballpark in Midland!
— Texas Tech Baseball (@TTU_Baseball) April 9, 2019
#WreckEm⚫️ pic.twitter.com/FcSmzLf3MN
This West Virginia team is 4-5 in conference play so far this season. They are led by their pitching staff, including their staff ace, Alek Manoah. They have four quality starters that can win them games. We will have a pitching match-up later on in the article. They have a couple of good batters, but they rely on their pitching staff to get their wins.
Mountaineers add a run!! Darius Hill with an RBI single to extend WVU's lead in the 9th!
— WVU Baseball (@WVUBaseball) April 7, 2019
M-9, WVU 4, #23 OSU 2
FCS, https://t.co/2USR4zxSVk
@WVUIMGSports, https://t.co/tIRzGtKd5A #HailWV pic.twitter.com/NeKZpHQW1j
Their best hitter in their lineup is lead-off second baseman Tyler Doanes. He is currently hitting .306 with 3 home-runs and 19 RBI this season. His OBP is .406 so he does draw a fair amount of walks. Darius Hill is their best hitter with runners in scoring position. Hill has 23 RBI including 13 doubles this season.
Hill will bat third in their lineup and plays right field. Their best power hitter is catcher Paul McIntosh, who has 7 home-runs and 20 RBI. He is hitting .263 overall and hits in the middle of the lineup. Like I said early on, West Virginia doesn’t have a ton of great hitters, but they have a good amount of average hitters that provide enough runs for the pitching staff to win games. Here is what I predict the lineup will look like:
2B Tyler Doanes
CF Brandon White
RF Darius Hill
DH Marquez Inman
C Paul McIntosh
3B Ivan Gonzalez
1B Kevin Brophy
SS Tevin Tucker
LF Austin Davis
The Red Raiders will come out with a similar offensive gameplan as they usually have. Cole Stillwell has taken over as the designated hitter and will bat second for the Red Raiders. His batting has gotten much better compared to the beginning of the season. Stillwell has really come into his own and is on a nice 9-game hitting streak.
Let's gooooooo.
— Texas Tech Baseball (@TTU_Baseball) April 7, 2019
Third homer of the year for Jung. He's got 3⃣ hits and 3⃣ RBI on the day.
#WreckEm⚫️ pic.twitter.com/3FbNTZTWZp
As per usual, the Red Raiders will also rely heavily on the top of the lineup for a good chunk of its run production. Relying on big hitters such as Josh Jung and Cameron Warren later in the lineup to drive in runs. They will need to especially rely on their heavy hitters to get hits when hits might be hard to come by.
Pitching Match-Up:
Game 1:
Texas Tech Starting Pitcher:
Erikson Lanning LHP
0-0 3.21 ERA 28.0 IP
West Virginia Starting Pitcher:
Alek Manoah RHP
4-2 2.44 ERA 51.2 IP
What a play by Alek Manoah! He barehands a slow roller and fires to 1st to get the out!
— WVU Baseball (@WVUBaseball) April 6, 2019
E-2, WVU 4, #23 OSU 0
FCS
@WVUIMGSports, https://t.co/3LHybM4gSO#HailWV pic.twitter.com/RFN3aDFyb8
Game 2:
Texas Tech Starting Pitcher
Micah Dallas RHP
3-0 3.29 ERA 27.1 IP
Freshman Micah Dallas in his third career start & Big 12 debut:
— Texas Tech Baseball (@TTU_Baseball) April 5, 2019
7.0 IP (career high)
7 K (matches career high)
5 H
4 R
#WreckEm⚫️ pic.twitter.com/dIKkOLWpOD
West Virginia Starting Pitcher:
Jackson Wolf LHP
2-2 3.64 ERA 42.0 IP
Game 3:
Texas Tech Starting Pitcher:
Caleb Kilian RHP
4-2 5.59 ERA 38.2 IP
West Virginia Starting Pitcher:
Kade Strowd RHP
4-2 3.54 ERA 48.1 IP
Kade Strowd gets the strikeout to strand the bases loaded! He walks 4 in the inning, but does not allow a run.
— WVU Baseball (@WVUBaseball) March 31, 2019
M-1, WVU 0, #19 OU 0
https://t.co/I2C2oHJnHA#HailWV pic.twitter.com/IL8UnF5Azc
These pitching match-ups will be fun to watch this weekend. West Virginia has a slight edge in pitching I believe but the Red Raiders have an advantage batting. It will definitely be a low scoring battle when these two come together this weekend in Morgantown.
I predict a 2-1 series win for the Red Raiders. They probably don’t have the gas to completely sweep a good team like the Mountaineers on their home turf, but they will have enough in the tank to take at least two of these games. What do you think?