Baseball welcomes Baylor to Abilene for first time ever

ABILENE – After a three-game sweep of Marist this past weekend, the ACU baseball team plays its fourth of eight games this season against a power five team, when it welcomes in the Baylor Bears of the Big 12. It is the first-ever trip to the Big Country for Baylor (6-5), when they take on the Wildcats (7-4), who go for their longest winning streak of the season. First pitch is slated for 6:05 p.m. Wednesday night at Crutcher Scott Field, and the game will air on ESPN+. It is the first-ever baseball game being played at The Crutch to air on ESPN+.

SERIES HISTORY VS. BAYLOR

• ALL-TIME | 2nd meeting (Baylor leads, 1-0)
• LAST MEETING | Baylor 6, ACU 3 (March 13, 2019 - Waco, Texas)
• STREAK | Baylor, w1
• IN ABILENE | n/a
• IN WACO | Baylor leads, 1-0
• NEUTRAL | n/a
• POSTSEASON | n/a

THE PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUP

ACU TBD vs. Baylor TBD

ACU STORYLINES

• MARIST SWEEP
  • ACU swept the Marist Red Foxes of the MAAC this past weekend at The Crutch, and it was all about the offense. ACU won 9-2 on Friday, an absurd 23-1 on Saturday, and a high-scoring 10-8 game on Sunday. ACU scored 42 runs, tallied 47 hits, and dominated in all facets of the game. The sweep was ACU's second of the year, and it's the second three-game winning streak of the season. ACU swept Michigan State the weekend before at home as well.
• RIDICULOUSLY GREAT OFFENSE OVER THE WEEKEND
  • We mentioned the 42 runs and 47 hits. ACU hit .395 for the weekend, slugged .832, and tallied 41 RBI as a team. Grayson Tatrow hit .500 for the weekend (7-14), hit three homers and a double, and drove in nine runs. Bash Randle hit .455 with two bombs and five driven in, while Hunter Gieser hit .444 with two homers, a double, and four RBI. Tanner Tweedt launched a pair of homers out of Crutcher Scott as well, and hit .545 (6-11). Riley Bender went 4-for-6 and Alexei Cazarin and Aaron Staeheley all hit homers as well. Colton Eager hit .417, Miller Ladusau hit .300, while Mitchell Dickson and Tommy Cruz also hit homers.
• TEAM RANKINGS THIS SEASON
  • Slugging Percentage - .565 (1st WAC, 7th NCAA)
  • Home Runs - 21 (1st WAC, 8th NCAA)
  • Strikeouts Per Nine Innings - 11.9 (1st WAC, 8th NCAA)
  • Batting Average - .324 (1st WAC, 17th NCAA)
  • Hit by Pitch - 24 (1st WAC, 18th NCAA)
  • On Base Percentage - .430 (1st WAC, 19th NCAA)
  • Scoring Average - 8.6 (1st WAC, 34th NCAA)
  • Runs - 95 (1st WAC, 35th NCAA)
  • Hits - 125 (2nd WAC, 27th NCAA)
  • Doubles - 26 (4th WAC, 39th NCAA)
• SELLING OUT ON THE MOUND
  • Right hander Carter Sells was great again out of the bullpen this weekend. Sells went 4.0 innings to earn the save Friday night, allowing no runs on just one hit with a strikeout. Sells this season has a 1.04 ERA in three appearances, allowing one earned in eight innings of work.
• WHO'S BACK?
  • ACU returns 26 players from the championship roster from a year ago, including all nine starters in the batting order.
• PRESEASON POLLS
  • ACU was picked to win the WAC's southwest division, and Colton Eager was named the preseason player of the year in the league. Grayson Tatrow and Tommy Cruz were also selected to the preseason all-WAC team. Eager was the Southland Conference hitter of the year last season, while Tatrow was the newcomer of the year in 2021. Cruz earned third team all-conference honors last spring.
• WELCOME HOME
  • ACU opens with 11 of their first 12 games at the friendly confines of Crutcher Scott Field. The schedule includes midweek games with Air Force, Texas Tech, TCU, Baylor, as well as future WAC opponents UIW and UT Arlington.

SCOUTING BAYLOR (6-5)

• The Bears are coming off an upset win in Houston against #7 LSU on Sunday, 9-6, and went 2-1 at the Shriner's Children's College Classic at Minute Maid Park. Baylor topped #23 UCLA, 2-1, to open their run at the tournament that weekend.
• Baylor is led by Jack Pineda's .292 batting average, and Kyle Nevin's 12 runs driven in. The Bears have only hit four homers this season, and are hitting .237 as a team, facing some great early-season opponents.

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