Post-Red & Black Series Wrap

Texas Tech Baseball has wrapped up its annual fall Red & Black Series and I’ll do my best to tide y’all over through the winter with some baseball content here and there before the season kicks off in mid-February. I’m not going to give starting lineups just yet because there are still a lot of question marks around the diamond, but I will lay out some basic observations and give some updates on what to keep your eye on.

The team is young. There is no way around that overwhelming fact. There will be a lot of new names to learn for you hardcore baseball fans. The pitching staff is going to be young. The names that you will recognize are Andrew Devine, Bo Blessie, Trendan Parish, Mason Molina, and Brendan Girton will be back, thankfully. Jack Washburn transferred in from Ole Miss after winning a national championship, to play with his brother Owen in Lubbock. Zane Petty a freshman from Corsicana, who, after being drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 13th round, decided to come to Lubbock instead, will be a huge piece of the staff.

Texas Tech is also having to replace the entire infield, minus the catcher position, which is Hudson White’s to lose. Newcomer Gavin Kash had a good R&B series, and he looks to have an early lead on the first base battle.

It is very weird to have an infield without a Jung. But Texas Tech will take the field without one this season, and what I’m seeing from the pieces still here in Lubbock, there is a lot of versatility. I think that there are guys that can play all three positions, which is an exciting idea. There are guys who had huge R&B Series’ like Travis Sanders and Kevin Bazzell. Sanders played SS in high school but played 3B during the series. Jake Dukart is also an intriguing name, as the transfer from Oregon State looks to make an impact on the field.

Owen Washburn has right field locked down one would think, but Ryan Brome might put some pressure on him. There are some interesting developments elsewhere in the outfield, Nolan Hester, the transfer from Wofford will most likely play in the left field corner opposite Washburn, but it appears all eyes will be on center field. After last season I thought it was Dillon Carter’s spot. However, Carter didn’t play much in the R&B Series, and from what I’ve read and heard elsewhere, it seems he is dealing with a shoulder injury once again. If he is sidelined for an extended amount of time, the battle will be between freshmen Jeric Curtis and Gage Harrelson.

Ty Coleman is back and will most likely continue to be the veteran presence in the lineup slotting in at the DH.

My overall outlook right now is that this team will be similar to last year’s team. The hitting will be there, and Tadlock & Co. will be looking for some younger guys to step up on the bump. It makes for a fun exciting brand of baseball and with ²⁄₃ of the schedule being played at home this coming season, you should get to the Law as often as possible to support these kids starting in February.