Anthony Silva hits two home runs, TCU extends win streak to six against UT Arlington

TCU’s starting pitcher, Braeden Sloan, allows two earned runs in five innings in a 14-3 victory over UT Arlington on March 28, 2023. (Photo courtesy of GoFrogs.com)

By Charles Baggarly
Published Mar 29, 2023

ARLINGTON – The Horned Frogs have started their six-game road trip with a sizable win.

TCU’s offense dominated, scoring in bunches and defeating UT Arlington 14-3 on Tuesday. The Frogs are on a six-game winning streak, where they have thrived in all three aspects of the game: hitting, pitching and fielding.

TCU head coach Kirk Saarloos said it’s hard not to be excited about the current state of the offense from a numbers standpoint.

“I thought they won a lot of pitches,” Saarloos said. “They got in some counts, laid off some good pitches down, got back into counts and took good swings. So I think that’s the biggest thing, is the process of our bats now. Not chasing and getting them in the strike zone and then putting good swings on them in the strike zone.”

Ahead of an important weekend series against Texas Tech in Lubbock, the Horned Frogs are building momentum. They’ve won six games against relatively easy competition.

Nothing is guaranteed, and just because a team is supposed to win doesn’t mean they’ll deliver. Following a weekend series loss to Oklahoma, TCU bounced back, taking care of business. Now, they’ll head into Red Raider territory on a hot streak.

For shortstop Anthony Silva, who hit two home runs against the Mavericks, the key to continuing the team’s success is avoiding over-thinking.

“When we think bad things happen,” Silva said. “So we just gotta stay simple and just continue to do what we’ve been doing.”

Thriving in all three aspects

TCU used five pitchers: Braeden Sloan, Chase Hoover, Cohen Feser, Garrett Wright and River Ridings. Sloan, the starter, gave up a two-run home run in the second inning, but those were the only RBIs the Mavericks tallied during his stint. Sloan pitched five innings, allowing five hits, walking a batter and striking out seven.

Saarloos said the one blemish in Sloan’s outing was the home run pitch, a fast ball facing a 1-0 count. He mentioned the breaking ball and the fastball command throughout the outing were “really good.”

“I thought [Sloan] showed a lot of resiliency and some guts in terms of that wasn’t his best outing last time he faced UTA and it didn’t really faze him,” Saarloos said. “He was in the dugout and was locked in the whole night.”

Hoover took over, keeping the Mavericks off the scoreboard for an inning and recording a strikeout. Hoover passed the baton to Feser, who also pitched a scoreless inning.

Wright gave up a run in the eighth inning after a four-pitch walk and a double down the third baseline. Ridings followed up Wright, loading the bases but escaping the inning unscathed to finish the ballgame.

On the offensive side of things, the Frogs were firing on all cylinders. Silva led the charge with his two home runs, continuing his hot streak. The Horned Frog shortstop has three home runs this season, and all were hit during the last two ballgames.

Due to the stretch of increased power, Silva is tied with catcher Karson Bowen and left fielder Luke Boyers for third on the team with three home runs. Silva, who finished with five RBIs against UTA, said associate head coach TJ Bruce has helped him see pitches more effectively and put good swings on balls late in counts.

Silva mentioned he’s taking less repetitions in batting cages and putting more emphasis on hitting game-like pitches.

Saarloos said when players hit home runs, they often do so in bunches, which is what Silva has done the past two games.

“[Silva] put a couple of really good swings on balls the last two days,” Saarloos said. “He’s had some really good at-bats besides the home runs. You know, but I think he’s settling in. I think he’s getting pitches and he’s not missing. That’s the big thing.”

First baseman Cole Fontenelle also had a strong outing, tallying three hits and four RBIs. Fontenelle hit his fifth home run of the season, a towering shot to left center.

During the Frogs’ home stand, they made one error, and facing UT Arlington, the stretch of clean defensive play continued. TCU left Clay Gould Ballpark with zero errors made.

“I think everyone’s trusting the work that we’ve put in the fall and we continue to put in in the spring and just not thinking whenever we get ground balls,” Silva said.