HI NOTES: Jayce Speaks Out, MU Out-Hit, Lars Shout-Out & Mav Fake-Out

♦ An interview with my all-time favorite former Tiger:

BEARRRRRSSSSS WIIIINNNN!! Take down Mizzou 4-2!!! And the series is tied once more! But Def not a rivalry. #OURstate #MOState #sgf #MSUBears
— MO State Bear Nation (@TheBearNation) April 25, 2013

Always fun listening to@mizzoufan_1. Truly cares about Mizzou athletics and is the best super fan in the land! #thingswillturnaround
— Brandon Platts (@DatOthaDudeBP11) April 24, 2013

♦ One of Mizzou's 2013 opponents, Nebraska-Omaha, demonstrates a unique rundown move in this video:

MIZZOU MATCHUP: Missouri State Bears

Head Coach: Keith Guttin (1,056-663 in 31^st season as Missouri State Head Coach)

Taylor Stadium – Columbia, MO

Wednesday – 6 PM CT

Missouri (13-22, 5-13 SEC) vs. Missouri State (24-11, 9-3 MVC)

The Tigers will try and get their makeup game in Wednesday against Missouri State that was postponed last weekend. Since last week’s postponement, the Bears swept conference foe Bradley, outscoring them 23-6. Since not a lot has changed since then, here is the link to the last Mizzou Matchup against the Bears.

Other SEC games this week:

Alabama @ Southern Mississippi 4/24

Oklahoma @ (14) Arkansas (Cancelled)

South Florida @ Florida 4/23

Georgia vs. Georgia Tech 4/23

Kentucky @ Western Kentucky 4/23

Tulane @ (2) LSU 4/24

(18) Ole Miss @ Arkansas State 4/23

(16) Mississippi State vs. Memphis 4/23

(15) South Carolina vs. Gardner-Webb

Tennessee @ Middle Tennessee State 4/23

Texas A&M @ Texas State 4/23

(3) Vanderbilt @ (12) Louisville 4/23

Idle: Auburn

Rankings from Baseball America

MIZZOU MATCHUP: Missouri State Bears

Head Coach: Keith Guttin (1,034-654 in 31^st season as Missouri State Head Coach)

Taylor Stadium – Columbia, MO

Wednesday @ 6 PM CT

Missouri (12-20, 4-11 SEC) vs. Missouri State (21-10, 6-3 MVC)

The Bears will travel to Columbia to play Mizzou for the second time in as many weeks on Wednesday. Last Tuesday the Tigers edged Missouri State 5-4, Jace James getting the win in 3 innings of work. Keaton Steele led the offense going 3-4 with an RBI. Over the weekend, the Bears took two of three from Southern Illinois, putting up 26 runs and improving their road record to 7-6. You can view my last Mizzou Matchup on Missouri State here, as today’s column will be more of an update after their weekend series.

Position Players

Tate Matheny had a solid series, boosting his hitting streak to six games. At this point his hitting streak is of the multivitamin type, just getting one a day. Only one of those six games has he collected more than one hit. He also added 4 RBI and 4 R against Southern Illinois.

Left fielder Keenen Maddox was the one who carried the Bears over the weekend. He hit an even .500 (7-14), picking up 3 R and 6 RBI. This improved his average for the year to .290. If he keeps this up, it gives Missouri State another threat in the lineup that could make a difference if the rivals play another close game.

Catcher Luke Voit is another Bear that collected a hit in all three games, also adding six walks in the three games. This helped him carry a .625 OBP. Mizzou pitching needs to go right after him because the way the two in front of him are hitting as of late, adding Voit to the base paths almost guarantees there will be a runner in scoring position ahead of him.

Projected Lineup

CF Tate Matheny (R) .358

SS Travis McComack (L) .267

C Luke Voit (R) .300

DH Koby Peebles (S) .277

1B Conor Smith (R) .274

LF Keenen Maddox (R) .290

RF Dylan Becker (L) .216

3B Joey Hawkins (R) .278

2B Eric Cheray (L) .293

Pitchers

Even though Matt Hall didn’t start last weekend as I anticipated, I could see him getting the ball Wednesday, but lets face it, it’s a crapshoot when guessing who is going to start during the week so bear with me. Hall threw 2.2 innings on Saturday, only giving up 2 hits on no runs. This was an improvement after the Tigers smacked him around last week, when he only lasted 0.2 innings, giving up 3 ER.

Projected Pitching Matchup

RHP Jace James (3-1, 1.98 ERA) vs. LHP Matt Hall (3-0, 2.01 ERA)

Matchup Wrap-up

Pitching is not as much of a concern as the bats for the Tigers. If they can get the bats going even a little bit they should be able to pull out another victory over their in-state rival. I can’t see Andy Cheray getting another start against Mizzou this week since he just threw on Sunday and did not perform as well as he did against the Tigers.

Other SEC games this week:

UAB @ Alabama

(12) Arkansas @ Nebraska

Auburn @ Samford

Florida @ Florida Gulf Coast

Presbyterian @ Georgia

(8) Louisville @ (17) Kentucky

Grambling State @ (3) LSU

(21) Ole Miss vs. Southern Miss

College of Charleston @ (18) South Carolina

Tennessee vs. Virginia Tech

Texas A&M @ Sam Houston State

Tennessee Tech @ (2) Vanderbilt

Idle: (16) Mississippi State

Rankings from Baseball America

HI NOTES: A Great Night For Tigers Past, Present & Future

Tep you da man! Proud of ya! 7 and a third, 1 run, 5 strikeouts, 4 hits and a standing ovation! #Rangers #Diesel

— Kelly Fick (@kfick21) April 10, 2013

There he is baby! Lets go Tep! #diesel twitter.com/MichaelLiberto…
— Michael Liberto (@MichaelLiberto) April 10, 2013

And Nick Tepesch's first out in the bigs. Liner right to Kinsler. Tiger-to-Tiger. #Mizzou.
— Mizzou Baseball (@MUTigerBaseball) April 10, 2013

RT: @rangers Nick Tepesch is the 1st Ranger to pitch into the 8th in ML debut since (fellow #Mizzou Alum) John Dettmer in 1994.

— Eric Blumberg (@BlumbergOTB) April 10, 2013

Tepesch is trending on Twitter! @mutigersdotcom twitter.com/IamScottSinger…

— Scott Singer (@IamScottSinger) April 10, 2013

GAME DAY

Miles gets a 6-4-3 double play off the bat of Luke Voight to end the game!! 5-4 Tigers!

— Mizzou Baseball (@MUTigerBaseball) April 10, 2013

Sal Belfonte has left Mizzou Baseballthemaneater.com/blogs/sports/2…
— ManeaterSports (@ManeaterSports) April 9, 2013

MIZZOU BASEBALL RECRUITING

No hitter for Devin Williams today against Kirkwood! Wildcats win 2-0! Great job!

— HazWestBaseball (@HazWestBaseball) April 10, 2013

Mizzou recruit Devin Williams
♦ Tigers topple TEC foe (Pal-Item.com)

The last time Cole Bartlett opened the Tri-Eastern Conference season at the Milton baseball field, he was tagged with the loss despite striking out 12 and not allowing a hit.

Before he even took the mound on Monday, the NCAA Division I-bound Hagerstown senior already had a three-run lead and comfortably went to work.

With plenty of run support, Bartlett struck out nine in a five-inning complete game as his Hagerstown Tigers opened the TEC season with a 13-0 victory over Lincoln.
. . .
Bartlett gave up just two hits, a walk and hit a batter, but was a big part of his team’s offensive outburst, too.

He was making his second start from the Tiger lead-off spot and reached base every time — twice on walks and twice on infield singles — and came around to score three of those times...

Thee Jake Ring #ManCandyMonday #Jacked #LadyKiller #BaseballPlayer #Mizzou #MyInspiration #NoHomo instagram.com/p/X3PUQKydPG/
— Chris Martinez (@Chrissyzard) April 9, 2013

Mizzou Recruit Jake Ring

WHATNOT

Remove all the space within the atoms making up the human body, and every person that’s ever lived would fit inside a baseball.
— Brian Greene (@bgreene) April 5, 2013

HI NOTES: Man of Steele, Strength of Schedule, Tigers & Bears Oh My

Big ups to @k_steele29 on being named #SEC Player of the Week! Hit .545 and slugged 1.000 while pitching season-high 7.1 IP w/ 9Ks.
— Mizzou Baseball (@MUTigerBaseball) April 8, 2013

The only way to sum up what @k_steele29 did for @mutigerbaseball this weekend: video game numbers.
— Brandon (@bmweiss18) April 7, 2013

♦ SEC Baseball Players Of The Week (SEC Digital Network)

Player of the Week: Keaton Steele, Missouri

• Had a huge week at the plate, batting .500 with three doubles and a homer while driving in three runs and scoring three more...Extended his hitting streak to eight straight games with hits in each contest at Georgia, hitting .545 vs. UGA and slugging 1.000 (11 total bases) on the weekend with an OBP of .571...Drove in the winning runs with his first Division I homer on Friday.

• In the Sunday finale, took over on the mound with Mizzou trailing 4-0 and allowed just one earned run over the final 7.1 innings, striking out nine in that span while allowing just four hits (and four total base runners).

• Retired the final 15 batters he faced in that game as he was perfect over the final five innings, allowing the Tigers to come back from down 5-0 to win the game, 8-5.

• Earned the win in the relief outing as he went a career-best 7.1 innings while the nine Ks in the outing were also a career-best.

♦ Conference Realignment (College Baseball Today)

Another indication that your conference has too many freakin’ teams in it: Vanderbilt and LSU won’t even play each other in the regular season. And if they DO face each other in Hoover for the SEC tournament, chances are their post-season fate will already be sealed and though it will be a great matchup it will essentially be ballast for the show...

STATS

♦ According to BoydsWorld.com, Mizzou's Strength of Schedule is ranked 27th among Division 1 schools.

MISSOURI STATE

Nice job out there @breckinw! #ESPNU #WCalum
— Tyler Burgess (@TBurgess29) April 7, 2013

♦ Be sure to check out Sam Nasci's Mizzou Matchup preview of the Missouri State Bears

♦ Baseball Bears not focused on MVC woes (Springfield News-Leader)

As for MSU, [Kendall]Rogers said the Bears have the look of “a very good team which has played very well this season,” as evidenced by MSU’s No. 25 ranking in this week’s Perfect Game top 25.

Rogers said MSU should be a bit concerned by a strength of schedule that ranked only No. 192 this week, according to Warrennolan.com.

The Bears have not played a game against a top-50 RPI opponent and the league has only four wins — three by Indiana State — over current top-50 teams. MSU is 7-3 against teams rated 51-100...

MIZZOU MATCHUP: Missouri State Bears

Head Coach: Keith Guttin (1,032-652 in 31^st season as Missouri State Head Coach)

Hammons Field – Springfield, MO

Tuesday @ 6:30 PM CT

Missouri (11-17, 4-8 SEC) vs. Missouri State (19-8, 4-2 MVC)

The Tigers follow up their series against Georgia by visiting Missouri State for the first of two games, the second coming next week in Columbia. Missouri State boasts a 19-8 record, and their 4-2 conference record is good for second in the Missouri Valley Conference. They have been especially tough to beat at home, where they have a record of 9-1.

Position Players

The top of the Bears lineup is freshman Tate Matheny, the son of current St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny. The freshman has put together a solid season, as his .383 average is by far and away the best on the team. He is the only player on the Missouri State squad to have a BA above .300, OBP over .400, and SLG over .500. He also leads the team in RBI and HR, which is some production coming from the leadoff spot.

Picking Matheny up from the 3-spot in the order is catcher Luke Voit. The senior has earned Second Team All-MVC the past two seasons, and he relies on Matheny for most of his RBI production. Voit brings speed to the order, as he has swiped five bases in 2013, more than anybody on the team, and has yet to be caught.

The Missouri State batting order shows a lack of speed, as they have stolen only 13 bases in the 27 games they have played. Tiger pitchers may have to keep an eye out for Matheny or Voit to take a base, but other than that, nobody has shown they can be a consistent base-stealer. They are also not a very patient lineup as they average over seven strikeouts per game, have four players that have 20+ (Matheny, Peebles, McComack, and Becker), while not a single batter has drawn 20 walks.

On defense, their infield has been questionable at times, second baseman Eric Cheray has made 7 errors this year and across the diamond, third baseman Joey Hawkins has made 6, putting his fielding percentage below .900.

Projected Lineup

CF Tate Matheny (R) .383

SS Travis McComack (L) .264

C Luke Voit (R) .292

DH Koby Peebles (S) .284

1B Conor Smith (R) .277

LF Keenen Maddox (R) .262

RF Dylan Becker (L) .208

3B Joey Hawkins (R) .297

2B Eric Cheray (L) .258

Pitchers

Most of my anticipated starting pitcher’s time has been spent coming out of the pen, but Matt Hall has started two games this year, and he carries an ERA that is under 1.00. He has yet to lose a decision this year, and his numbers show that he is more than capable of shutting down a lineup. His 2 ER in 19 innings of work earn him the second best ERA on the Bears. His last appearance came March 27 vs. SEMO when in relief he went 3.1 innings, giving up only two hits and striking out three, not allowing a run to score.

Projected Pitching Matchup

RHP Jace James (2-1, 1.76 ERA) vs. LHP Matt Hall (3-0, 0.95 ERA)

Matchup Wrap-up

If Bears starter Matt Hall is on his game, Mizzou hitters will have to jump on him early in counts. He has the capability of striking out anybody in the order, and doesn’t walk a whole lot of people. If Jace James does in fact get the ball, then it should lineup to be a great pitching matchup. These two will meet again next Wednesday back in Columbia.

Other SEC games this week:

Alcorn State @ Alabama 4/9-10

New Mexico @ Arkansas 4/9-10

Alabama State @ Auburn 4/10

Florida @ Florida State 4/9

Georgia Tech @ Florida 4/9

Austin Peay State @ Kentucky 4/9

Southern @ LSU 4/9-10

Mississippi State vs. Ole Miss 4/9

The Citadel @ South Carolina 4/9

Tennessee @ East Tennessee State 4/9

Sam Houston State @ Texas A&M 4/9

Vanderbilt @ Tennessee-Martin 4/9