HI NOTES: 2 -0 At Home, $9.95 For Tex

OPENING DAY

The field and the grandstands were clear of snow, the afternoon was sunny and briskly cold, and the Tigers came ready to play.  Only a few hardy souls showed up to watch, and a number of those didn't stay for the entire double-header (myself included).  But the Tigers finally got the home opener behind them, and increased their winning percentage from .000 to .250

♦ Missouri baseball sweeps home-opening doubleheader (Columbia Missourian)

Both of Missouri's starting pitchers, junior college transfers Jace James and Keaton Steele, put the team in prime positions to win...

♦ Baseball gets first win of the season over Eastern Michigan (The Maneater)

Seventh time’s the charm...

♦ Tigers dominate second half of doubleheader, winning 7-1 (The Maneater)

The Tigers won handily over the Eagles 7-1 thanks to junior pitcher Keaton Steele offering five solid innings, only giving up two hits, and junior second baseman Kendall Keeton bashing out three hits and scoring twice...

♦ The Columbia Tribune has a set of great photos of the home opener double-header.

NO MORE FREE TEX

@lsufootball_net we are not allowed to webcast mizzou baseball games
— ESPN100.5/103.1 KTGR (@KTGRsports) March 6, 2013

This is the first season that KTGR.com does not have live streaming audio of the games.  It's a bit disappointing, but then I'm still getting my TV channels by way of rabbit ears.  Mizzou is actually one of the few major conference D-1 programs that was still giving it away for free.  Online streaming of the Mizzou Baseball Broadcasts IS still available ... for a price ... by signing up for Mizzou All Access. $9.95 a month will get you access.

MIZZOU BASEBALL IN SPRING TRAINING

♦ Bond's future? He hopes it's with Giants (mlb.com)

Bond played Little League with Scott Van Slyke, the son of center fielder Andy Van Slyke, who starred for St. Louis and Pittsburgh. One day, Andy Van Slyke mentioned to Bond that he possessed a Major League-quality right-handed swing. That kind of stuff tends to stick with a person into adulthood.

As Bond observed, "When things aren't going well, you can always remember, 'Well, Andy Van Slyke said ...' "

Bond has all but legitimized Van Slyke's scouting report. The switch-hitter has batted .313 in six Minor League seasons, including .332 last year at Triple-A Fresno. He has seized his opportunities in Cactus League action, hitting .500 (6-for-12) with a team-high 1.083 slugging percentage in seven games...

MIZZOU MATCHUP: Eastern Michigan Eagles

Head Coach: Jay Alexander 
(277-270 in 5th season at Eastern Michigan)

Taylor Stadium – Columbia, MO
Wednesday Double-header @ 1 PM CT

Eastern Michigan (3-7, 0-0 MAC) @ Missouri (0-6, 0-0 SEC)

Mizzou takes their second attempt at a home opener in a two-game midweek set against the Eastern Michigan Eagles. The Eagles are 3-7, all of their games either being on the road or at a neutral location. The Tigers are still winless in 2013, and will try and change that against an Eastern Michigan team that has had struggles of their own. Two of their three wins came against Kansas over this past weekend down in Grand Prairie, TX, where they split their series.

Position Players

In his first year with the team after transferring from junior college, Junior Adam Sonabend is taking full advantage of his opportunity as everyday catcher for this Eagles ball club. He leads the team in BA (.421) and RBIs (9). In his last series against Kansas he hit .500, including going 3-for-5 on Sunday with 2 RBIs. In his 10 games so far, he has as many multi-hit games (4) as he does strikeouts. He enters the series with a 6-game hitting streak.

First baseman and left fielder Jamie Simpson has enjoyed success of his own early in the season, batting .343 and a team-high slugging percentage of .571. Of his 12 hits so far, 4 have been for extra bases, including 2 triples. He is arguably the most important hitter in the lineup, as the three batters that come after him in the order have struggled early on.

True freshman Mitchell McGeein has provided some power for the Eagles early in the year. The Alberta native leads the team with 2 homeruns, and despite his .227 batting average, he is second on the team with a slugging percentage of .500.

Preseason All-MAC First Teamer Sam Ott has not disappointed so far this season. Building off of a First Team All-MAC as a DH last year, he has taken over the duties in right field this season. He is hitting a strong .359 with 1 homerun and 8 RBIs. He has also struck out only 3 times in 10 games to his 6 walks. The redshirt junior also leads the team with 10 runs. Ott is coming into the series red-hot, with 3 multi-hit games in his last 4 contests, finishing off the series against Kansas on Sunday going 3-for-5 with 4 runs scored.

Cleanup hitter Lee Longo has held his own in the middle of the lineup, as he has started the season hitting .333 despite only collecting 3 RBIs. His 5 multi-hit games were highlighted on Sunday when he went 3-for-5 with an RBI and 3 runs scored. Him and Jamie Simpson hold the team lead in total bases with 20.

Projected Lineup

CF Daniel Russell .237
SS John Rubino .244
RF Sam Ott .359
DH Lee Longo .333
C Adam Sonabend .421
1B Jamie Simpson .343
3B Mitchell McGeein .227
LF Dae Bowden .188
2B Marquise Gill .111

Pitchers

The only Eagle starting pitcher that did not pitch over the weekend is redshirt senior Kendall Lewis. Lewis has been nothing short of dominant in his first two starts, which is a relief to the team after he missed all of 2012 after elbow surgery. He is carrying a team-leading 1.38 ERA into the series, and was stellar in his last start at Washington State. Against the Cougars, his line was 7 IP, 0 R, 3 K, but got the no decision as the Eagles eventually lost the game 1-0. He has thrown 9 consecutive scoreless innings and has only walked 2 batters all season.

Reliever Taylor Dimmerling is a close second behind Lewis in ERA, having given up only a single earned run in his 6.1 IP (1.42 ERA). He has been a strikeout pitcher in his career, as in 2012 he racked up 19 strikeouts in 13.1 innings of work.

Projected Matchups

Tuesday: Jace James (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Kendall Lewis (1-0, 1.38 ERA)
Wednesday: Alec Rash (0-1, 0.00 ERA) vs. Michael Marsinek (0-0 4.32 ERA)

Matchup Wrap-up

In order to keep the Eagles from racking up a substantial amount of runs, the Tigers will have to go after the bottom of the order. The 7-9 batters in the Eastern Michigan order are hitting a combined .169 this season, whereas the 3-6 hitters are at a staggering .364. Those middle of the order guys do not strike out a whole lot either, so the defense will have to be flawless to keep those guys off the bases.

Other SEC games this weekend:
Alabama vs. Auburn 3/5
Florida vs. Jacksonville 3/5-6
Western Carolina @ Georgia 3/5
Cincinnati @ #11 Kentucky 3/5
Xavier @ #11 Kentucky 3/6
Stephen F. Austin @ #8 LSU 3/5
Sacred Heart @ #8 LSU 3/6
Southeastern Louisiana @ #7 Ole Miss 3/5-6
Mississippi Valley State @ #3 Mississippi State 3/5
Ball State @ #6 South Carolina 3/5-6
Belmont @ Tennessee 3/5
Prairie View A&M @ Texas A&M 3/5
Eastern Illinois @ #2 Vanderbilt 3/5

Rankings from Baseball America

HI NOTES: Tuesday game time moved to 4 PM

Baseball is practicing! twitter.com/hickmantl/stat…
— Tim Hickman (@hickmantl) March 4, 2013

GAME DAY

♦ Check out yesterday's Mizzou Matchup feature, profiling the Eastern Michigan Eagles

♦ Are you game for a home opener you'll be telling stories about for years to come? Layer up and come out to the Tigers on Deck Tailgate Party and then enjoy a "cold one" with Mizzou's Boys of Summer!

♦ Weather forecast for Tuesday & Wednesday (Weather.com)

• Tuesday: Gusty winds. Snow flurries developing in the afternoon. Cold. Temps nearly steady in the low to mid 30s. Winds WNW at 20 to 30 mph
• Wednesday: Sunny, high of 40, Winds NNW at 13 mph

MIZZOU BASEBALL IN THE MAJORS

♦ Max Scherzer could be poised for stardom (ESPN)

Asked if he was confident this spring that that delivery was now burned into his DNA, Scherzer replied: "When you struggle and then you find something mechanically that works for you, you don't have to write it down. That's just instilled in you. I know exactly what it feels like to have my hands break in front of my body. And now, it's just second nature."

But Scherzer also knows that merely finding something that worked for him last year "doesn't guarantee success" this year. That delivery tweak only allows him to go out and "execute my pitches." But now, he said, "it's up to me to go out there and do it."

Nevertheless, at age 28, Scherzer approaches this season in what seems to be a far different place than he's ever entered any season in his career. ..

COLLEGE BASEBALL VIDEO OF THE WEEK

♦ From a Division 3 game between Berry College and Hendrix College on Sunday. I'm picturing Eric Anderson doing this and knocking the runner into the grandstand.