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Rice Baseball 2023 Season Review: Lineup

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The offense was underwhelming for Rice baseball in 2023, posting the second-lowest OPS in Conference USA with over 500 strikeouts.

It wasn’t a good year at the plate for Rice baseball. The 2023 season saw the Owls finish in the bottom three in the league in batting average, runs, RBI, total bases and OPS, among other offensive measures. There were individual highlights — described in more detail below — but for the most part, the offense struggled.

More: Rice Baseball Season Review – Bullpen
More: Rice Baseball Season Review – Starting Pitching
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Rice Baseball swept by WKU, extending Owls’ C-USA slump

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Rice Baseball was swept for the third consecutive weekend, this time falling in three games to Western Kentucky on the road.

FRIDAY | WKU 5  – Rice 4 (10 inn.)

Rice baseball ace Parker Smith was met with a forceful greeting on Friday night in Bowling Green, allowing four runs in the first two innings, more than he typically allows over the course of a full start. Even with the rocky beginning, though, Smith settled in and was able to pitch into the eighth, allowing no further runs as he waited for the offense to arrive.

Last Time Out: Rice baseball snaps losing skid with win over Houston

The Owls got on the board for the first time in the fifth, using three doubles to score three runs, followed a frame later by a solo home run from Drew Holderbach to even the score. Smith left without a decision, but the game was within reach. He had done his job. Justin Long would be less fortunate. He pitched a scoreless remainder of the eighth and a flawless ninth before WKU walked it off against him in the tenth.

SATURDAY | WKU 10 – Rice 2

With JD McCracken on the bump, Rice and WKU moved quickly through a pitching-centric game in the early goings on Saturday. Both starters had allowed just one run through four innings and it wasn’t until McCracken ran into some trouble in the fifth that the bats on either side began to wake up. McCracken would battle through another two innings, leaving in the seventh in a one-rune game.

Jack Ben-Shoshan was called upon for just one batter — he walked him — before handing the ball to Krishna Raj. That would turn out to be a fateful decision. Raj was handed the disservice of entering the game with the bases loaded an no outs, but he was pelted to the tune of seven runs (four charged to him) as Rice fell behind 10-2. That would be the eventual final score.

SUNDAY | WKU 5 – Rice 2

Rice struck first in the finale on a Guy Garibay RBI single in the top of the second, but the lead was short-lived. WKU took the lead back in the bottom of the inning, scoring twice. The Hilltoppers added single runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to cautiously extender their advantage. Much of those insurance runs would prove unneeded.

Jack Riedel, who saw his 16-game hit streak snapped, delivered an RBI groundout in the top of the seventh, scoring the Owls’ only other run of the afternoon. Rice simply had no answer for WKU hurler Dawson Hall who earned the win with six innings of one-run ball, tallying as many strikeouts (five) as hits allowed.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

Rice baseball couldn’t afford to be swept this weekend, but they were handed three-straight losses nonetheless. Here are three takeaways from a tough weekend on the road.

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1. Fast start fizzles again

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ON DECK | vs PVAMU (Tues), vs FIU (Thr-Sat)


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“It Killed Us”: Rice Baseball swept in heartbreaking fashion by DBU

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Rice Baseball took Dallas Baptist to the wire three times but came away winless. More on a tough weekend at Reckling for the Owls.

Rice baseball had their chances to win this series, but fell short. I asked head coach Jose Cruz Jr. for his take on the frustrating weekend and left it unlocked for all to read.

“It killed us”

“This hurts because we’re playing good. We’re desperate for wins. And we’re playing good enough to win, we’re just not getting the end result which stinks,” head coach Jose Cruz Jr. said. “If you tell me that we’re going into the ninth inning with a two-run lead, I’ll take it all day. For whatever reason, it just hasn’t gone our way here of late.”

Rice baseball knew what it was up against when Dallas Baptist came to town this weekend. Even without the impressive 14-game winning streak, which was snapped on Tuesday by TCU, Rice was going to be up against it facing one of the most complete teams in Conference USA and the No. 19 ranked team in the nation.

To win, Rice was going to have to take risks. If not perfect, the Owls were going to have to be pretty darn close. And for most of all three games, it sure looked as if Rice had accomplished just that. Rice led DBU through seven innings in all three games: 4-3 on Friday, 2-1 on Saturday and 3-1 on Sunday.

As if that weren’t enough, entering the weekend, Rice was 13-2 when leading after seven innings, that’s a clip of victories on 87 percent of such occasions. That’s what made this weekend sting all the more, because not only did they come in well below that 87 percent threshold, they were winless.

On Friday and on Sunday, it was the longball that did Rice in. “It killed us,” Cruz said of the DBU home run that put Rice behind. “It’s part of the season, right? It’s part of it. “You get ups and downs and you get a bit of heartbreak and gut punch. And that’s basically what happened this last weekend.”

In an alternate universe, Rice baseball sweeps DBU and we’re talking about a resurgence late in the season. That’s not what happened, and it’s been a downward trend that’s been apparent for a month now. But as Cruz pointed out, the pieces are there. If Rice can hang with DBU they can hang with anyone in C-USA. It’s time to turn that effort into results.

“We played good enough to win at least two games. I mean, we led in the ninth by two runs, twice,” Cruz said. “It’s just a matter of our belief in ourselves to be able to do what needs to get done to win. I think that’s the essence of what we need to do right now is just believe that we can and I think we will.”

FRIDAY | DBU 8 – Rice 6 (12 innings)

It was a race to beat the rain on Friday night and both starting pitchers certainly did their parts. Rice starter Parker Smith threw 5.1 innings with six strikeouts, allowing three runs, two of which came in his final inning of work. DBU’s ace Ryan Johnson was lifted after four innings and Rice pounced quickly, tying the game 3-3 quickly after he left.

From there, Rice tacked on solo runs in the seventh (a Drew Holderbach RBI single) and the eighth (a Guy Garibay home run) to go ahead 5-3 before thunderstorms forced a postponement to Saturday. Upon resumption, DBU tied the game in the ninth with a two-run home run before pouring on three more in the 12th to complete the come-from-behind win.

SATURDAY | DBU 10 – Rice 3

Even though the Owls had used several arms to complete the first game on Saturday afternoon, the pitching staff came through in a big way in the early portions of the evening game. JD McCracken racked up a career-best seven strikeouts and Matthew. Linskey looked much more like his old self, striking out three while allowing one run in two innings.

MORE: Roost Pod – Rice Football Spring Ball Recap and Basketball Recruiting

McCracken and Linskey’s arms combined with two solo home runs from Jack Riedel positioned Rice with a 2-1 lead entering the eighth inning. Five walks, two home runs and a single later, DBU had hung an eight-spot on the Owls and put the game out of reach.

SUNDAY | DBU 4 – Rice 3

DBU struck first in the finale, but Rice was quick to follow. They trailed for a matter of minutes, answer a DBU solo home run in the first inning with three straight two-out hits, capped off by a two-RBI single from Manny Garza. Jack Riedel added some insurance in the third with a sacrifice fly, staking the Owls to a 3-1 lead in the early going.

That lead held for a good while thanks to strong pitching performances from Cristian Cienfuegos, Ryland Urbanczyk and Justin Long. When Long was relieved in the top of the ninth following a lead-off home run from DBU, Rice led 3-2. Once again, the Owls were unable to get those last three outs. Jack Ben-Shoshan was credited with the loss, allowing a walk and a go-ahead home run in relief of Long.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

Rather than a series win, Rice baseball is reckoning with one that got away. Here are three takeaways from a tough weekend at home.

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ON DECK | vs Houston (Wed), at UTSA (Fri-Sun)


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Rice Baseball grinds out hard-fought sweep at UAB

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Rice Baseball earned their second straight weekend sweep, this time taking all three games in their conference opening series at UAB.

FRIDAY | Rice 8 – UAB 1

Connor Walsh got the party started with a  three-run bast over the left field wall in the third inning to give starter Parker Smith some breathing room on the road. UAB would scratch across a run in the fifth on a single, but that would be the only damage ceded by the Rice pitching staff on the day.

More: Rice Baseball nonconference Stat of the Program

Leading 3-1 after seven, the Rice bats provided some extra insurance runs in the eighth and ninth. Graiden West picked up his first career hit, contributing to late inning boon. Manny Garza had RBI in both frames and Benjamin Rosengard and Walsh (again) drove in one apiece to round out the parade. Altogether Rice entered the bottom of the ninth with a commanding 8-1 lead and won by the same score.

SATURDAY | Rice 2 – UAB 1

JD McCracken earned the Saturday start and tossed a strong 4.1 innings of one-run ball, striking out five before ceding his turn on the mound to Justin Long who continued the impressive pitching run. He worked 3.2 scoreless innings and was credited with the win, thanks to an RBI single from Drew Holderbach in the seventh that broke an early 1-1 stalemate that had persisted since the third inning.

Krishna Raj was called upon to close out the game in the ninth. He allowed one walk, but struck out two, collecting his second save of the season and his first of the weekend.

SUNDAY| Rice 3 – UAB 1 (10 inn.)

Unlike most getaway days, this Sunday affair was a low-scoring slugfest that echoed Saturday’s nailbiter. It was UAB who took the early lead this time, chasing Rice starter Blake Brogdon from the game in the second inning and driving in the first run off Tom Vincent that same inning, although the blame lies on Brogdon’s box score.

Down 1-0 for most of the game, Rice finally had their chance in the seventh. Max Johnson drew a leadoff walk then advanced to second on a wild pitch. Ben Royo moved him to third on a single to left field before Pierce Gallo’s sac-fly tied the game. The game would stay knotted at 1-1 until the 10th when Rice delivered the game-winning run courtesy of an RBI single from Manny Garza before he came around to add one more insurance run to secure the sweep.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

Rice baseball has now swept consecutive weekend series, something they never accomplished last season. It was also the Owls’ first series sweep to open conference play since 2015. Here are a few takeaways from the weekend.

1. Being elite in one thing

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ON DECK | at Texas A&M (Tues),  vs UTSA (Fri-Sun)


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Rice Baseball 2023: Names to Know — Lineup

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Entering Year 2 under head coach Jose Cruz Jr the Rice baseball roster is starting to take shape. Here are a few names to know at the plate.

Rice baseball hit somewhat of a reset last season in the first year under Jose Cruz Jr that featured a significant amount of turnover in the lineup following the departure of several veteran players. With the exception of a few notable transfers and incoming freshmen, the 2023 roster should have more continuity than the previous year.

Moving On

The presence of Austin Bulman will be missed this year. He was a keystone in the lineup and in the infield. Among the other notable departing names are outfielders Antonio Cruz and Justin Dunlap as well as infielders Hal Hughes and Drew Woodcox. Those losses aren’t insignificant, but it’s worth noting the Owls bring back a significantly larger portion of their production than they’re losing. That wasn’t the case last year.

Coming Back

Rice baseball is set to return seven of their top nine hitters from the 2022 season, led at the top of the lineup by outfielder Guy Garibay Jr. Nathan Becker, who led all everyday Rice players with a .310 batting average, is back as well as is standout freshman Aaron Smigelski.

Jack Riedel, Pierce Gallo and Connor Walsh, all of whom played important roles in last year’s squad, return as well. That’s a strong core for Rice to build around on offense.

Added to the Mix

Catcher Manny Garza isn’t a new face — he actually led the team with a staggering 1.023 OPS last season — but was limited to 22 appearances because of injuries. Adding his bat and defense to the lineup for the long haul will provide a boost.

As for newcomers to the squad, be on the lookout for big contributions from grad transfer Drew Holderbach, a DIII transfer who slashed .356 / .436 / .516 over four years at Mariette College, won two DIII gold gloves at first base and led his team to a DIII World Series appearance.

More: Expectations rise for Rice Baseball, Cruz Jr. in Year 2

Max Johnson, who joins Rice from Indiana where he appeared in 11 games last year, has drawn some early positive reviews, too.

Rice also signed five freshman position players who are expected to be in action this season. Christian Salazar, Trey Duffield and Jacob Devenny could each contend for playing time in the outfield this season. Paul Smith is a catcher from just down the road at Episcopal. Ben Royo, who has impressed early, has a good shot to find some at bats.

** Photo Maria Lysakar **

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