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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: Nonconference State of the Program

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Rice Baseball begins conference play this week. Here’s where the program stands and what’s next for the Owls on the diamond this spring.

With a three-game set with UAB in Birmingham now on deck, Rice baseball is about to enter the thick of its conference schedule. Scattered non-conference games remain in the midweek, but as the Owls enter the middle portions of their season, every game will start to count a little bit more. Nonconference games aren’t finished, but a new portion of the Owls’ schedule is getting ready to start.

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Following a series sweep of Houston Christian, Rice baseball head coach Jose Cruz Jr. says the staff is “excited for the direction that we’re headed.” In this midseason State of the Program, we’ll look at the highs, lows and everything in between as we explore where Rice baseball is now and where it might be in the weeks ahead.

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Rice Baseball shows sparks, but gets swept by Stanford

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Rice Baseball gave Stanford a fight at the Farm this weekend but left California without a win, falling to 2-5 on the season.

THE PLAY BY PLAY | Rice drops series 3-0

FRIDAY | Stanford 6 – Rice 3

Parker Smith cruised through the first several innings of the series opener against Stanford on Friday afternoon, giving up a hit or a walk here or there, but never really feeling like he was in any real danger early on. Part of that comfort was generated by Drew Holderbach, who delivered a two-out single through the left side to put Rice ahead 2-0 in the third inning. Stanford would get one run back in the fourth, but Rice was in control as the game went into the later innings.

More: Under the radar players for Rice baseball in 2023

Things got hairy in the sixth after Pierce Gallo committed a pair of errors that enable Stanford to tie the game. With runners on second and third and one two outs, the Owls went to Matthew Linskey, who gave up the go-ahead run and eventually two more after he lost command in the seventh. That would be it for the Owls’ who couldn’t claw back from the late deficit.

SATURDAY AM | Stanford 11 – Rice 1

With a doubleheader scheduled for Saturday, a string of bullpen games was expected. Mauricio Rodriguez got the start in the first game and gave up two earned runs in 3.2 innings. Unfortunately for him, the Owls’ offense would only score once, eventually saddling him with the loss

Stanford was able to get to almost every Rice reliever that followed. Tyler Hamilton got it the worst, allowing five runs on two hits and three walks in the eighth inning, more or less the unofficial white flag for a Rice team that had collected just four hits on the day.

SATURDAY PM | Stanford 7 – Rice 4

Headed to the bottom of the second inning tied 2-2, Rice has weathered Stanford’s first scoring strike and answered. Stanford would punch back, going up 4-2 only to see Rice respond in the fourth with two runs of their own. After going through much of Friday in an evenly matched game, the second half of the doubleheader had a similar feel.

Rice had the chance to break things open with the bases loaded in the fourth inning. They scored twice, one of which came on a bases-loaded walk to Trey Duffield. They couldn’t get a bigger number across, despite the fortuitous situation. Justin Long gave the Owls a chance with a masterful 4.2 innings of scoreless relief, but the lack of run production in that key moment would come back to bite them, with Stanford scoring three in the eighth to take the lead for good.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

Rice baseball made it into the sixth inning tied with the No. 2 Stanford Cardinal twice this weekend but walked away without any wins. The Owls had the muscle to hang around with the Cardinal but didn’t possess that extra oomph needed to close out either of their close games. Here are a few takeaways from the weekend.

1. Rice baseball has a Friday night guy

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ON DECK | at Sam Houston (Tues),  Shriners Classic – vs Texas Tech (Fri), vs Texas A&M (Sat), vs TCU (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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MTSU thumps Rice Baseball in Owls’ final home series of 2022

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Rice Baseball wrapped up their final homestand of the 2022 season with a whimper, falling in three straight games to Middle Tennessee at Reckling Park.

THREE FOR THE ROAD | Rice baseball loses the series 3-0

The final home series of the 2022 Rice Baseball season ended with a thud. Not only were the Owls officially eliminated from any sort of postseason appearance, they were outscored 33 to 11 in the three-game slate. The sweep is the Owls’ fifth of conference play. Rice is now 13-37 overall and 6-21 in conference play. Here are a few takeaways from the weekend.

1. The Seniors

Sunday was Senior Day for Rice Baseball. Pregame festivities included jersey presentations and a formal thanks in front of the crowd at Reckling Park. This class features several players who have become mainstays for the Owls in recent seasons.

Austin Bulman, Alex DeLeon and Brandon Deskins each made their marks at Reckling Park. Bulman has been one of the most productive bats in the Rice lineup over the past three seasons. DeLeon has worked as a Friday Night starter, bullpen option and everything in between. Deskins became one of the more reliable options out of the pen, becoming a frequently used reliever during his time at Rice.

Last Time Out: Rice baseball swept by explosive ULL offense in midweek duet

Roel Garcia, Thomas Burbank, Jonny Hoyle, Justin Dunlap, Dalton Wood, Drake Greenwood and Antonio Cruz were also honored.

2. The Future

After reflecting on the contributions of the seniors, head Coach Jose Cruz Jr. did express his excitement for the young core of players who saw meaningful experience on the diamond this year. Guys like Aaron Smigelski, Guy Garibay and Nathan Becker proved they’d be key pieces of this team moving forward. Garibay and Becker each collected hits in each of their starts on the weekend.

Catcher Manny Garza, who missed the middle portion of the season, went 3-for-5 on Saturday and 2-for-4 on Sunday, driving in four runs across those two games.

Cruz Jr. hopes the same will be true on the mound. Mark Perkins battled through two innings early before the wheels fell off on Sunday. Matthew Linskey through three innings on Saturday, allowing one earned run while facing 12 batters.

3. Four more

There will be much more to be said about the season as a whole in the weeks and months ahead. For now, Cruz Jr. hasn’t turned the page just yet. Regarding their midweek game against Houston and final C-USA series against FIU, Cruz said “I try to win every game I play. I’m still expecting them to go out and give me high effort and get out there and try to win a ballgame.”

By virtue of their losses this weekend, Rice baseball will officially fail to qualify for the Conference USA Tournament. Even given the understandably lowered expectations entering this season, to fall this far in the conference standings can only be viewed as a disappointment.

THE PLAY BY PLAY

FRIDAY | MTSU 7 – Rice 0

For the second consecutive Friday night, Rice baseball was shut out by their opponent. This time around they were overpowered by Middle Tennessee starter Peyton Wigginton, who threw a complete game, striking out 10 batters and allowing just two hits and three walks. He kept the Owls off balance from start to finish.

On the mound, the two-man tandem of David Shaw and Alex DeLeon did what they could to limit the Blue Raiders’ bats. DeLeon entered in the fifth inning and held MTSU to three runs on five hits, but he did not get the support he needed from his offense to make the game competitive down the stretch.

SATURDAY | MTSU 5 –  Rice 4 (10)

Manny Garza opened up the scoring with a single that drove in Pierce Gallo in the bottom of the second inning. The Rice lead would not last long. Middle Tennessee answered immediately with three runs in the third and one more in the sixth, taking a 4-1 lead into the ninth inning.

For the second day, Rice struggled to get productive at bats against MTSU’s starting pitcher. This time, though, they were able to do some damage against their bullpen. Rice scored three in the ninth inning, two from a Jack Riedel home run, to force extra innings. Matthew Linskey would be charged with the loss allowing one run in the 10th in his third inning of relief.

SUNDAY | MTSU 21 – Rice 7

All smiles that lingered from Senior Day festivities were quickly put away in the Sunday finale as the Middle Tennessee bats went to work. The visitors scored one run in the first, two in the second and 11 in the third. Starter Mark Perkins was driven from the game in the third but Thomas Burbank did little to stifle the Blue Raiders’ attack, ceding to Garrett Zaskoda before the inning was over.

Trailing 14-0, Rice got its first hit of the game in the bottom of the third. Two runs that inning wouldn’t be nearly enough to stem the onslaught. MTSU would go on to hang 21 runs on Rice, taking the game and the series in landslide fashion.

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


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