The super regional mentality continues for Texas baseball in Palo Alto
Longhorns head coach David Pierce said Wednesday that his program has treated each weekend during the past 40-plus days like a round of 16 matchup.
[Join Inside Texas and get three months for $1 OR half off a one-year subscription!]
“I think ever since May 1, we’ve looked at — and I’ve used the theme — we’re in super regionals right now,” Pierce said Wednesday.
But this weekend, Texas is actually in the super regionals. The Longhorns head to Palo Alto, Calif. for a best-of-three series with the No. 8 overall national seed Stanford Cardinal, the champions of the Pac 12.
The Longhorns had to overcome a lot to make it to this point in the year. Texas started slow versus a number of SEC teams and Cal State Fullerton before embarking on a lengthy winning streak. They won the Big 12 regular season title, but went two-and-out in the conference tournament. Then, Texas swept through the Coral Gables regional, twice defeating host team Miami.
After starting the year unranked, Texas is in a position to return to the College World Series for the third straight season under Pierce. Still, he thinks his team is being slept on.
“I still think we’re overlooked,” Pierce said. “Right now, nobody’s picked us to win anything. We came in first. We were the No. 1 seed in the conference. We were expected to finish in the middle. People used the word rebuild. We got a lot of new players. I’d hate to use the world rebuild. I just feel like it probably took a little longer. It is what it is.
“We’re a very good team when we play together. We can look like a poor team if we’re not doing things right. We’re not as talented as some people to just lean on a couple of players. We have to lean on the team.”
There are a number of new contributors on this year’s team. Many of those players were thrust into new roles ahead of 2023, taking over for some of the stars like Ivan Melendez and Pete Hansen who led the Longhorns to the College World Series in 2021 and 2022.
What’s the key for those new contributors as they try to advance?
“The key is to go play at Palo Alto, play our baseball, and try to be as clean as we can,” Pierce said. “If and when we make a mistake, move past it, and get to the next pitch.”
Preview press release from Texas baseball
June 10-12, 2023
Where: Sunken Diamond
Time: Saturday at 5 p.m. CT; Sunday TBA; Monday TBA (if necessary)
TV: ESPN2
Radio: 104.9 FM The Horn/1260 AM
Live stats: NCAA.StatBroadcast.com
NCAA Super Regional Appearances (last): 13th (2022)
All-Time Super Regional Record: 23-8
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
SATURDAY–Texas LHP Lucas Gordon (7-1, 2.45) vs. Stanford RHP Joey Dixon (6-0, 4.99)
SUNDAY–Texas RHP Lebarron Johnson Jr. (8-3, 2.62) vs. Stanford LHP Quinn Matthews (9-4, 3.65)
MONDAY (if necessary)–Texas TBA vs. Stanford TBA
THE MATCHUPS—The Longhorns head on the road for the NCAA Stanford Super Regional to face No. 8 national seed Stanford at Sunken Diamond. Texas is making its 13th NCAA Super Regional appearance all-time and this will be just the fourth road Super Regional for the Longhorns. Texas and Stanford have played 82 times dating back to 1981 and in 12 total postseason games the series is tied 6-6. The teams have never met in a Super Regional but have competed in regional play with the Cardinal holding a 4-3 advantage in those games.
A LOOK AT THE LONGHORNS—Texas swept its way to the NCAA Coral Gables Regional Championship with wins over Louisiana and Miami. RHP Lebarron Johnson Jr. earned Regional Tournament MVP honors after his complete game against Miami. Texas is batting .295 as a team with 89 homers, the second-most in program history. The pitching staff leads the Big 12 and ranks 10th nationally with a 4.07 ERA, while the defense ranks second in the Big 12 and 17th nationally.
DC MAKES HISTORY—Dylan Campbell is riding the longest hitting streak in Texas Baseball history at 38 games. He shattered the previous Texas record of a 25-game hitting streak by Michael Torres in 2008 and overtook the Big 12 mark set by Ty Wright of Oklahoma State in 2007. Campbell’s hitting streak started on March 25 against Texas Tech but he’s been scorching hot for even longer, with a hit in 47 of the last 50 games. He has also reached base safely in 44-striaght games. During the historic streak, Campbell is hitting .409 with 14 doubles, three triples, eight homers, 35 RBI and 41 runs scored.
ALL-AMERICAN ARMS—LHP Lucas Gordon was named a Collegiate Baseball Newspaper First Team All-American, while RHP Lebarron Johnson Jr. landed on the second team. This is the first time Texas has had two starting pitchers named to All-America teams since Cole Green and Taylor Jungmann in 2010.
BIG 12 PITCHER OF THE YEAR—Lucas Gordon was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, posting a 2.45 ERA and a 7-1 record in 17 appearances (16 starts) this season. Gordon has struck out 98 batters in 95.1 innings pitched, while also holding hitters to a .217 batting average against. Gordon is the Longhorns’ eighth Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and second in the last three seasons after Ty Madden won the award in 2021.
[Subscribe to the ON TEXAS FOOTBALL YouTube channel for daily videos from Inside Texas!]
ALL-BIG 12 HONORS—LHP Lucas Gordon led a group of eight Longhorn players named to the All-Big 12 teams. C Garret Guillemette, OF Porter Brown, OF Dylan Campbell, and RHP Lebarron Johnson Jr. joined Gordon on the first team. The five first team selections were the most for any team in the league. INF Peyton Powell landed on the second team, while OF Eric Kennedy and INF Jared Thomas received honorable mention honors. Thomas was also recognized on the All-Freshman team.
DOWNTOWN PORTER BROWN—Porter Brown has had a productive season after transferring from TCU and is batting .326, with 13 doubles and 12 home runs. Brown etched himself into the Texas Baseball record book by becoming the seventh Longhorn to hit three home runs in a game, against West Virginia on May 18. He also picked up the March 27 Big 12 Player of the Week award after helping the Longhorns sweep Texas Tech. In parts of four seasons at TCU, Brown batted .286 with 20 doubles, nine home runs, 63 RBI and 83 runs scored. He also stole 25 bases during his time at TCU.
POW!—Peyton Powell has had a breakout season for the Longhorns and is the team’s second-leading hitter with a .341 batting average, 15 doubles, 10 homers and 45 RBI. Powell burst onto the scene during the month of March, starting all 19 games and picking up at least one hit in 16-of-19, with multiple hits in 11 of them. His versatility has also been beneficial, as he has played first base, third base and catcher this season.
SNAKE FARM—Jared Thomas is having an outstanding freshman campaign, batting .333 with 15 doubles, three triples, four homers, 27 RBI and 53 runs scored. He has batted in the leadoff spot over the last 18 games and Texas has gone 13-5 during that stretch. Thomas’ season started to turn the corner in early April and over the last 27 games he is batting .431 with nine doubles, three triples, three homers and 37 runs scored.
BACK IN THE SUPERS—The Longhorns are back in the NCAA Super Regional for the third-straight season with a roster featuring several new faces and all new assistant coaches. Texas returned just 27% of its at-bats from a year ago and only 37% of the innings pitched from last year’s staff. The 2022 Longhorns also set the program record with 128 home runs but only 23 of those were hit by players that returned in 2023. Seven Longhorns hit double-digit home runs last season and only Dylan Campbell (10) is back this season. On the pitching staff, Lucas Gordon is the most experienced returner with 16 starts last season and a 7-1 record with a 3.05 ERA in 85.2 innings pitched.
ROAD REGIONAL—Texas played in just its seventh road regional since 2000 and the first since 2017. The Longhorns advanced to the final of the Long Beach State Regional in 2017 but lost to the Dirtbags in the ‘if necessary’ game. In 2014, Texas won the Houston Regional at Reckling Park before hosting the Super Regional and advancing to the College World Series. In 2000, the Longhorns took down Arizona State in the Tempe Regional and went on to the College World Series.
HOME SWEET HOME—Texas holds a 28-8 record this season at the friendly confines of UFCU Disch-Falk Field. In the 36 home games, the Longhorns are hitting .323 and fielding .983, while the pitching staff has a 3.57 ERA. In the 25 games played away from UFCU Disch-Falk Field, Texas holds a 13-12 record and is batting .258 with a .974 fielding percentage. Of the Longhorns’ 43 errors as a team this season, 24 of them have come in the 25 games away from home.
NARROW MARGINS—The Longhorns have played several close games this season with 33 games decided by three runs or less. In those games decided by three runs or less, Texas has a 18-15 record and the Longhorns hold a 6-8 record in one-run ballgames. Texas has a pair of walk-off wins this season at UFCU Disch-Falk Field but have also been on the wrong end of a walk-off four times. Fifteen of the Longhorns’ 20 losses have been by three runs or less and eight of the defeats have been by one run.
G-WAGON—Catcher Garret Guillemette has batted in the cleanup spot for Texas most of the season and has been productive, batting .316 with a team-high 60 RBI and 43 runs scored. He’s also caught the majority of the games with 42 starts behind the plate. Through the first 21 games of the year Guillemette still had not hit a homer but now has 11 since then, including the walk-off blast to complete the sweep against Texas Tech.
EK—Eric Kennedy holds the team lead with 16 home runs this season after hitting 14 total in his first four seasons combined. The fifth-year outfielder is batting .293 with 45 RBI and 54 runs scored. In addition to his power display, he also leads the team with 22 infield hits and 11 bunt singles this season.
INFIELD HIT MACHINE—Throughout his career on the Forty Acres, Eric Kennedy has used his speed as a means to get on base. With 22 infield singles (11 bunt) this season, Kennedy now has 80 career infield singles (42 bunts). In 2021, Kennedy had a career-best 27 infield singles (16 bunts).
HEAR ‘EM—In partnership with Learfield IMG College, Texas games will be broadcast on the Austin Radio Network, primarily on 104.9 The Horn and AM 1260. Craig Way handles primary play-by-play duties alongside Roger Wallace. This season fans will also hear analysis from Longhorn greats Keith Moreland, Ty Harrington and Nathan Thornhill throughout the season.
