Yada Yada - 1997
This bit o' webspace is my "catch all" area...which is mainly devoted to a running commentary (generally disjointed and thoroughly biased) on the team as the 1997 season progresses.
Last updated: May 4, 1997
Feb. 1st ...The alumni game...
I had a great time at the alumni game...I'm sure that doesn't shock
anyone that followed my Gusball page last year. And, speaking of the
Gusball page: as you can see, I've settled on the oh-so-boring name of
Joanna's Longhorn Baseball Page. For now. We'll see how it goes.
Back to the Alumni game day festivities. The atmosphere was great and
the weather couldn't have been better (sunny and warm). The field was
teaming with ex-players (dating back to players who'd played at UT in
the 40's), current players, and their families when I arrived at noon.
The day started with a hitting contest, which was followed by a nice
tribute to Coach Gus, and then the game.
On a personal note, I was more than a little sad to have reality hit me
over the head when there was no sign of
Wanda at the Disch.
Feb. 2nd ...Texas splits a double-header with UT-Arlington...
What a change from last year when the Horns opened the season with a
series against CSUN in near-freezing weather. Today was a very
different story. According to the scoreboard, it was 80 (deg. F) when
I got to the park at 12:30...the temperature rose to a high of 85 and
then fell back to 76 by the time the second game was completed. 'Twas
a gorgeous day. UTA won the first game
behind some very solid hitting (Texas starter Rad Weaver was
taken for 8 hits...2 of them homeruns...and 7 runs in 2+ innings of
work) and great fielding (UTA scored 4 double plays and narrowly missed
a 5th in the 7-inning game). The major highlight for Texas pitching
squad was Tony Zamarripa's 7th inning (UTA went down in order on 5
pitches). Offensively, Walsh and Gutierrez had back-to-back triples in
the 3rd. Things turned around in the second
game, despite the fact that UTA jumped to a 3-run lead in the 1st.
Kendal Adare had a pretty nice game (putting UTA down in order in the
3rd and 4th innings...on 4 and 8 pitches respectively). Eric French
showed the same strength he had last season as he collected a save by
putting UTA down in order in the final two innings.
Feb. 3rd ...Texas takes its first series...
I was in and out of the office (mostly out) throughout the afternoon so
didn't get to hear much of the game. Speerstra started (and got the
win), Zamarripa pitched for a couple of innings, and French closed the
door as the Horns beat UT-Arlington by a score of
8-4.
Feb. 5th ...Errors abound...
I took the afternoon off and went to the
game. It was not pretty. Each team was
charged with 3 errors and 7 of the teams' combined 15 runs were
unearned. Ouch. I hope things look up this weekend in the series
against Oral Roberts.
Feb. 7th ...The Horns go over .500...
I managed to listen to about half of today's
game. Adare started and pitched a good 6+ innings...leaving the
game with a 5-1 lead. Zamarripa came in, I had to leave my office, and
Texas was at bat in the bottom of the 7th with the score tied at 5-5
when I returned...no idea what happened. Spiker picked off two runners
at 1b...catching both off the bag after pitches. Offensively, Spiker
went 3 for 4 with a homerun, Harkrider went 3 for 4, and Johnson hit a
2-out double in the bottom of the 8th to drive home the final two runs
of the game. The final score was 7-5 (ORU scored 5 runs on 11 hits
with 2 errors, UT scored 7 runs on 11 hits with 0 errors). Zamarripa
got the win and French scored another save.
Feb. 9th ...The Horns sweep ORU...
The weather outside was frightful! Especially when compared to last
weekend's 80-degree days. Yesterday, the temperature hovered between
40 and 41. Today, it started at 43 and rose to a balmy (ahem) 46.
Brrrrrr. Speerstra had yesterday's game
well in hand (throwing 9 K's, no walks, and allowing only 4
base-runners) when Kip Harkrider put the game out of reach by hitting
his first homerun of the season (3 RBI) in the 7th.
Today's game started out poorly as ORU
(who came into the series with a 3-0 record including two big wins over
TCU) jumped to a 3-run lead in the top of the 1st. The Horns jumped
right back with 6 in the bottom and they were off to the
races...winning 20-8 (Weaver got the win).
Feb. 11th ...Texas gets a scare from Tarleton State...
I didn't get to hear much of the game today. Texas fell behind early.
Again. By a score of 4-0. They tied things up at 5-5 and eventually
pulled ahead 11-6 in the bottom of the 8th. However, in the top of the
9th, Tarleton State managed to score two runs and had the bases loaded
with only one out when Speerstra went in to shut them down. Texas
ended up winning 11-8. Barker got his
first start of the year. I'm not sure how long he stayed in the game
or who was credited with the win (Dunn, McKinney, and Zamarripa also
participated). There were several offensive highlights...the standout
being Walsh's first homerun of the year.
Feb. 13th ...Hopefully, it's out of their system now...
I only heard the last two innings of today's
game. I guess I lucked out, eh? From what I heard, the Horns simply
didn't play well. St. Mary's jumped to a 2-1 lead and never relinquished
it. Clements took the loss and the final score was 8-4 (St. Mary's
scored 8 runs on 10 hits with 1 error, UT scored 4 runs on 5 hits with 4
errors).
Feb. 14th ...The Horns get a much-needed boost...
Once again, I didn't get to hear much of
today's game but what I did hear was quite
encouraging. Adare pitched a complete game (4 hits, 3 K's and no walks)
as Texas beat Sam Houston State by a score of 10-0 (Texas scored 10 runs
on 10 hits with 1 error, Sam Houston failed to score on 4 hits with 1
error). Harkrider provided the most impressive offensive highlights of
the game by going 3 for 5 (a single, a double, and his 2nd homerun of
the year) with 3 runs batted in as he filled the lead-off position in
the batting order for the first time this season.
Feb. 16th ...Will the real Longhorns please step forward...
Texas managed to take the series from Sam Houston State.
Yesterday's game might've led one to
believe they weren't really interested as the team allowed SHSU to score
5 runs on 2 outs in the top of the 6th. Today was a different story,
however...the Horns held on and won by a score of
7-6. Justin Lee (in at rf in the 9th after
some shuffling of pinch-hitters in the 8th) fell as he was chasing down a
ball in the rf corner and twisted his knee pretty severly...I'll post an
update on his condition as soon as I hear anything.
Feb. 21st ...Ugh, where'd those uniforms come from?...
The Horns were sporting new uniforms in today's game. All I have to say
about them is: blech. I'm sorry but...they're lackluster at best. Plain
white and boring. I dunno...I hope they grow on me. I guess one of my
main objections is based on one of my pet peaves: the jerseys don't have
the player's names printed on them and that's something I just don't like.
Sigh... Anyway, back to the game... The
Horns played a great game to beat TCU 3-1 (Texas scored 3 runs on 5 hits
with no errors, TCU scored 1 run on 5 hits with 2 errors). Speerstra got
the win (he pitched 7-2/3 innings scattering 5 hits, 6 strikeouts and 1
walk) and French earned another save. On the offensive side of things,
Johnson (who transferred to UT from TCU this year) went 2-for-2 with 2
walks in 4 plate appearances and scored 2 of UT's 3 runs. Loeffler hit a
ground-rule double over the fence in the cf/rf gap and scored on a
subsequent error by the catcher for the Horns' final run.
March 4th ...Nine games and counting...
The Horns are on a 9-game winning streak. And, I've missed the last
four. Woe is me. I only got to listen to the last 20 minutes or so of
today's game. Texas defeated UT-San Antonio by a score of
17-3. Barker got the win. Rumfield (who
started the season playing 3b) pitched a couple of scoreless
innings...retiring all 6 batters he faced...good show! On the offensive
side of things, the radio announcers reported that Milo Gutierrez went
3-for-5 with 2 runs batted in and 2 runs scored, Kip Harkrider went
4-for-6 with 4 runs batted in and 2 runs scored, and David Johnson went
2-for-4 with 2 runs batted in and 2 runs scored. All-in-all, it sounds
like the Horns are defnitely on the right track these days.
March 7th ...2,500 wins...
Oh boy! What fun! The Horns got their 2,500th collegiate victory and
their first Big 12 win on the same day. I got to see the first two
innings of today's game against Tech before having to come back to the
office. Speerstra was in a groove and did a great job to get the win
before tiring in the 6th. Dunn came on and was relieved by Rumfield
who, once again, did a fine job on the mound. French came on in the
top of the 9th to close out the game and get yet another save (his 7th
of the year, I believe). Texas had jumped to a 4-0 lead by the time I
left and managed to stay ahead the whole game...but just barely as
things got exciting in the second half of the game. Texas eventually
won by a score of 7-6 (Texas scored 7 on 9
hits with 3 errors, Tech scored 6 on 6 hits with 1 error). Ward, who
had a tough time getting started, took the loss for Tech. The offensive
stars for Texas were Brett Loeffler who hit a 2-run homerun and Chris
Edelstein who hit a solo shot off the top of the wall in rf in the 2nd.
March 16th ...Struggling onward...
'Wish I knew what to say about the current state of the team but I
really don't have a clue. Offensively, the Horns just don't seem to be
taking advantage of opportunities. In today's game, they actually hit
3 homeruns (way to go Johnson, Cridland, and Hart!)...but two were solo
shots and there were other opportunities squandered. For example, in
the 5th, Gutierrez got caught in a run-down between 3b and home with
only one out...the team stranded two in scoring position. In the 6th,
with runners at 1st and 2nd and no outs, Cridland was picked off by the
catcher at 2b...the team ended up stranding 1 at 1b. In the 7th, Spiker
led off with a walk and then Gutierrez hit into a double play before
Loeffler came up and doubled...he was stranded at 2b. And, the team
seems to be going down on called strikeouts a lot: 8 called strikeouts
in the 2 games I scored against Tech and 7 in the 3 games I scored
against Baylor. The Baylor series showed improvement in that area
but...still not good. 'Wish I had something better to report...
March 29th ...A brawl...
Today, during the second of a 3-game series against OU, a brawl erupted
on the field. In the top of the 8th (OU ahead 6-3 with 1 out and a
runner at 2b) OU's Hill got angry. He took a swing at a 1-1 pitch and
Spiker dropped the ball which rolled away from him toward the pitcher's
mound. Spiker, in an attempt to keep the runner at 2b from advancing,
pushed Hill out of the way so he could get to the ball. It looked like
a pretty standard play...you see catchers do this same sort of thing all
the time. Hill, however, took exception and threw his bat at Spiker's
feet. Spiker jumped up and Hill shoved him. Within seconds, both
benches had cleared. Punches were thrown. Players were dragged to the
ground. A couple of secondary skirmishes broke out. It took about 15
minutes to get everyone calmed down enough to continue with the
game...after Hill and Spiker were ejected. It was ugly. It was
distressing. I hope it never happens again. According to newscasters,
this was the first such fight in the history of the Disch. I hope it's
the last. Hill and Spiker will probably be suspended for tomorrow's
game. I suspect after the video tape is examined, some other players
might also be benched. I didn't see any of the fans fighting...so I
guess that's one good thing. But, surely, it's not enough. I hope
tempers can be held in check for tomorrow's game. Afterall, that's what
it is: a game. Yes, I know...it's also big bucks once you get to the
next level and many of the players at UT and OU hope to reach that level.
But, still...it's just a game. I honestly see no place for brawls in
the game of baseball. At any level. I hope this is the last of it.
April 1st ...Where to go from here?...
I only got to see about half of this evening's
game. When I got to the Disch, the Horns were behind by one...had
committed 4 errors...but seemed to be recovering. They had the bases
loaded with 1 out. And, nothing came of it. Then, they managed to
scrape together a run to tie things up. Then a DBU player hit a
towering shot over the rf fence. The Horns had a couple more chances
with men in scoring position...runners at 1b and 2b with one out in the
9th, in fact...but failed to capitalize. In the post-game summary, the
radio announcers said the Horns left 15 on base during the game (11 in
scoring position). This seems to be a trend over the last couple of
weeks...way too many men left on base, a very high percentage of
them in scoring position. They simply must figure out a way to get hits
with men on base. Otherwise, they don't stand a chance of getting past
the regular season this year. And, that ain't no April Fool.
April 22nd ...Things are looking up...
After winning 4 games in-a-row, I can't help but feel optimistic about
the Horns' chances of getting into the Big 12 tourney. Two pitchers
(Rad Weaver and Scott Dunn) stepped up to the challenge and did some
good work this week. Part of their success may have to do with the fact
that Burt Hooten started calling the pitches from the dugout this past
weekend. The teams is in the middle of a tough stint (playing 9 games
in 10 days) so it's great to see everyone doing so well.
May 4th ...And so it ends...
Wow. The season has come to an end for the Horns much earlier than
usual. In fact, it's the first time since 1978 that a Longhorn baseball
team hasn't participated in conference post-season play. It's been such
an up-and-down season, I guess it's fitting that it end on such a very
odd note. And, as much as this team has
struggled (how funny to think that a team with a winning record is still
viewed as struggling), I have to say that this has been one of my
favorite Longhorn teams. You can just feel the heart of these players
when they take the field. It's been a pleasure to watch the likes of
Patrick Walsh go all out and hustle every day ... to watch Kip
Harkrider lead the team in such fine fashion (what will UT do without a
Harkrider at ss after the past 6 years, first Tim and now Kip?) ... to
watch David Johnson come to UT and do so well, especially at the plate
... to see Scott Dunn step up and do such a fine job as the season was
coming to an end (what fun does he have in store for us next year?) ...
to watch Matt Simpson do the same ... and to see Mark Cridland and Brett
Loeffler come off their injuries and illnesses of last season and have
such fine seasons. I wish the best to all the players who'll be leaving
the team this year and am looking forward to what Coach Garrido has in
store for us next year. Hook 'em!
1997 Summary page |
Joanna's Longhorn Baseball page |
Joanna L. Castillo
Email: joanna@joanna.org
URL: http://www.joanna.org/hook-em/yadayada_97.html