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Rice Baseball: 2020 Summer Ball August 5 Update

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Current, former and incoming Rice baseball players are participating in Summer Ball leagues around the country. Here’s the latest on those Owls.

First a quick note on rosters. I’ve tracked down all players that I could find with listed statistics, but I know there are others playing ball this summer. If you come across information on anyone else associated with Rice baseball playing summer ball, please send it my way. You can leave it in the comments or send it to me some other way. Thanks!

Hitters

It seems like most of the summer leagues are starting to wind down as the calendar meanders into August. Playoff brackets have been announced and started with Owls mixed in the various championship hunts.

There wasn’t much in the form of updated stats from the plate. Cullen Hannigan saw action in four more games, failing to register a hit but walking six times in 17 plate appearances. His OBP is up to .394 for the summer.

Hitting Stats

Pitchers

Rice baseball will have some decisions to make in the weekend rotation this coming season. Mitch Holcomb has done all he can this summer to warrant inclusion in those conversations. He’s been strong through five outings, going six scoreless innings his last time out for the Round Rock Hairy Men.

Rice needs arms that can pitch deep into games. Holcomb, a grad transfer from Penn and a Texas native, should be one of those guys the Owls can rely on in some fashion next spring.

https://twitter.com/RRHairyMen/status/1288654502036475905

Pitching Stats

*All stats as of Aug 5 taken from league and team websites. Not all players listed have complete stats and some have no official stats listed at all.

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Rice Baseball: Anthony Rendon’s LA debut and MLB Owls update

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All three active MLB Owls saw action with their big league clubs this week. Here’s the latest on the Rice Baseball alums in the pros.

Tyler Duffey was the only former Rice baseball player who saw action in the opening weekend of the MLB’s 2020 season. He threw a scoreless inning while the other Owls worked to get back into their respective lineups. Both Anthony Rendon and Brock Holt made debuts with their new clubs in the days that followed with Rendon making his presence known quickly.

Jon Duplantier is in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ player pool but is currently rehabbing. Reports of his progress have been positive.

Anthony Rendon – Los Angeles Angels

Rendon missed the Angels season-opening series against the Oakland Athletics with an oblique injury. He made his debut in their fourth game of the year, a home contest against the Seattle Mariners. He went 1-3, walking twice and scoring two runs in five plate appearances. His lone hit — his first as an Angel — was a big one. It came in the eighth inning against Mariners’ pitcher Zac Grotz.

Rendon also weighed in on what it’s like playing with fake crowd noise. “It’s like you have two of your senses that aren’t coinciding with one another,” he said. “It’s like you’re looking at pizza, but you’re smelling a hamburger.”

Through August 3, Rendon is hitting .200 with two extra-base hits, 10 walks and six strikeouts. His OPS is .867.

Tyler Duffey – Minnesota Twins

Tyler Duffey is as locked in as ever. The Twins reliever has allowed one hit and struck out six of the 10 batters he’s faced this season. 64 percent of his pitches have been strikes. He explains a bit of the modifications he made during the offseason that’s helped him have such a tremendous start to the season so far.

Through August 3, Duffey has a spotless 0.00 ERA and a 0.250 WHIP. He’s averaging 18 strikeouts per nine innings.

Brock Holt – Milwaukee Brewers

An ankle injury slowed Holt out of the gate. He’s only been used sparingly in the Brewers six games. His debut came on July 27th against the Pirates as a defensive replacement at third base in the 10th inning. He struck out looking in his only plate appearance but would come around to score as the “ghost” runner in the 11th to give the Brewers the win.

Through August 3, Holt is hitless in three plate appearances. He’s struck out once, been hit by a pitch and grounded out.

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Rice Football: Potential replacements for canceled LSU game

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With the LSU game canceled, Rice Football has an open weekend on their schedule. Here are a few schools the Owls could seek out to fill the gap.

Schedules are going to look different in 2020. Rice football has lost one game to cancelation so far. Multiple conference peers are missing multiple games, and the Big 12 has yet to announce their decision. That could come after school presidents meet on Monday, but no one knows for sure at this point.

What we do know is that Rice won’t be playing LSU on September 19. That game was nixed when the SEC opted for a conference-only schedule this season. Rice athletic director Joe Karlgaard indicated he might make some calls and look into who else might be free on that date, but wasn’t in a rush to nail down a replacement game immediately with Power 5 schedules still in flux.

If Rice Football does decide to fill their open date, who should the Owls add to the schedule? Here are six picks, based on who is available and geographic fits.

South Alabama

Originally scheduled to visit the Swamp and play Florida on September 19, the Jaguars were freed up with the same SEC decision that cleared the Owls calendar. Rice and South Alabama have never met on the gridiron.

If Rice opts to go the FBS rout, this would be one of the more manageable drives. The two campuses are a seven-hour bus ride apart. South Alabama just constructed brand new Hancock Whitney Stadium which is expected to open for the first time this fall. If Rice were to make the road trip, a closer destination and brand new facilities would be an optimal fit.

Troy

Rice and Troy have only met on the football field once. The Trojans defeated the Owls in the New Orleans Bowl in 2006. Troy was meant to host NC State on September 19th. The ACC’s ruling allowed for each school to play one non-conference game, but specified it must take place in the state of the ACC school. Unless Troy wants to fly to North Carolina, this game is likely to get the axe.

It takes a little more than nine hours to drive between Rice and Troy campuses. That’s probably pushing the limits on a day trip, but it’s probably still doable given the circumstances.

Arkansas State

The Red Wolves won’t be making their previously scheduled trip to Ann Arbor to take on the Michigan Wolverines on September 19th, opening things up for a potential pairing with Rice. These two schools have never met despite playing in bordering states.

Jonesboro, AR is roughly nine hours away from Houston, putting it on the fringe of driving distance along with Troy.

Charlotte

Charlotte would be an unconventional pick, and the 49ers might not be free on that date just yet. They were scheduled to play Duke on Septemeber 17th, which would still be allowed to happen under the ACC’s same-state non-conference guidance. Duke is also scheduled to host Middle Tennessee, meaning at least one of those C-USA schools won’t be playing in Durham this season.

Rice could opt to play Charlotte in a non-conference game. Wake Forest and North Carolina did something similar last fall. Staying in C-USA would (theoretically) ensure alignment on health and safety procedures. Rice beat Charlotte in their only two meetings to date, defeating the 49ers in 2015 and 2016.

BYU

If Rice looks a bit further than driving distance, their options increase significantly. The first place to start might be the schools most in need of makeup games. BYU has lost three games so far, with contests against Michigan State (Sept. 12), Arizona State (Sept. 19), Minnesota (Sept. 26) and Missouri (Oct. 10) all canceled.

Rice could slide into what has now become a wide open stretch of weekends for BYU. Future scheduling might come into play if this game can be agreed upon. Rice is scheduled to play in Provo in 2023 with BYU making the return trip in 2025. Rice is 1-1 against BYU.

Boise State

Boise State was supposed to be playing the second half of a home-and-home series with Florida State. Last year’s matchup was adjusted to avoid a hurricane. This year’s matchup could fall away should Florida State choose to go a different direction for their one allotted non-conference game.

Boise State is 1-1 with Rice. The two teams have a series on the books right now, but it doesn’t start until 2027 when the Broncos are scheduled to visit Houston. Rice would return to Boise in 2029. The Owls don’t have an open non-conference data free until 2024, but securing additional future games with a premier Group of 5 opponent would be worth looking into.

Other possible opponents

  • UConn (originally scheduled to play at Virginia on Sept. 19)
  • UCF (at Georgia Tech, Sept. 18)
  • Air Force (at Purdue, Sept. 19)
  • UNLV (at Iowa State Sept. 19)
  • Toledo (at Michigan State, Sept. 19)
  • Buffalo (at Ohio State, Sept. 19)
  • Kent St (at Kentucky, Sept. 19)
  • Bowling Green (at Illinois, Sept. 19)
  • App State (at Wisconsin, Sept. 19)

Have a team you’d like to see the Owls play? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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College Football and COVID-19: End of July Roundup

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This week has brought plenty of updates as to the status of the upcoming college football season amid a pandemic. Here are a few highlights.

It wasn’t that long ago that we thought we’d have answers regarding the status of the upcoming football season by the time August arrived. With August here, uncertainties seem as abundant as they were months ago. Here’s a snapshot of what’s happened in recent days and weeks and, as a result, what we know about the upcoming season.

Big 12 planned media days … and then canceled them

Most every conference postponed their regularly scheduled media days with the season teetering back and forth. The Big 12 is the first FBS league to set a date for a virtual media day with limited participation. That lasted a few days before it was canceled.

ACC adopts Conference +1 scheduling

The Big Ten and the Pac-12 were the first Power 5 conferences to chop off the nonconference portion of their schedule entirely. The ACC is planning for a hybrid approach, allowing each team to play 10 conference games plus one nonconference opponent. And for the first time in their history, Notre Dame will have an opportunity to compete for a conference championship.

SEC moves to conference-only schedule

Shortly after the ACC decision, the SEC  became the next major domino to fall. That left the Big 12 as the only P5 conference with non-conference games. This decision directly impacts Rice football, which was originally scheduled to play LSU in Houston on September 19.

Opt-outs begin

With most conferences sponsoring some sort of scholarship protection should a player decide not to play this season, we knew opt-outs were going to occur. With prominent NFL players making the decision not to play this week, college players have started to follow suit. The most notable so far is Virginia Tech corner Caleb Farley, projected by some to be a first-round pick.

COVID protocol suspensions at Arizona

For the most part, schools are taking the current health challenges as seriously as possible. Michigan State and Rutgers have quarantined their entire football teams in July. Meanwhile, in Arizona, Kevin Sumlin’s staff has suspended a player for violating safety protocols.

NCAA guidance slim, but fearful

The NCAA has offered little guidance during the past few months, following behind their member institutions and offering vague comments that all precautions must be taken. NCAA President Mark Emmert said this week he was “very concerned” about the status of fall sports.

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The Roost Podcast | Ep. 44 – 2020 Houston Football Preview

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The Roost Podcast welcomes Sam who covers Houston football with the Scott and Holman Pawdcast to break down the Cougars’ upcoming season.

The Extended Offseason series takes its first step away from Conference USA this week. After touching base with folks in the know across C-USA, we venture across town for a Bayou Bucket discussion with Sam from the Scott and Holman Pawdcast Sam and his co-host Dustin cover all things Houston football.

You can always find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to our chat with Sam on Episode 44.

Episode 44 Notes

  • Housekeeping — Thanks to all of you who have followed the show on Twitter and left a review on iTunes. It’s quick, but it makes a difference. Make sure you check out the Scott and Holman Pawdcast on Twitter and let them know you enjoyed having him on the pod.
  • Rice/COVID-19 Updates — Rice football back to regularly scheduled offseason workouts and the university has announced its plans for the upcoming fall. As of now, the Owls’ first football game is scheduled to kick off within a month’s time.
  • Sam and Dustin join the show — Sam and Dustin talked through what’s been an up and down offseason for Houston football and gave us this inside scoop on the latest happenings across town:
    • Expectations for newly minted Cougars’ starting quarterback Clayton Tune
    • What to make of Dana Holgorsen’s “Year 0” and redshirt usage
    • Who steps up on the Houston defense this season?
    • The possibilities for an altered schedule and an extended crosstown series
    • The Lightning Round

Where can you find us?

Download and subscribe to The Roost Podcast on any of your favorite podcast providers. The show is available on iTunes, GooglePlay, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn and PodBean. Please consider leaving a review wherever you listen.

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