The Frogs completed the sweep of UCLA today with a blowout 13-3 run-rule victory. This TCU team is firing on all cylinders and is primed to move up even farther in the rankings this week after a dominant showing this weekend.
There was some trouble early today. Starting pitcher Zack Morris worked out of a bases-loaded nobody out jam in the first inning. A strikeout into a 4-6-3 double play got the Frogs out of the first without surrendering a run.
“There’s no panic. Just a belief in each other,” said head coach Kirk Saarloos. “It’s amazing how pitching and defense leads to good offense.”
Led to good offense it did, as the Frogs put up a blistering seven runs in the bottom half of the first to put the game out of reach early. From there they would tack on six more runs throughout the game leading to the 10 run lead, forcing the game to be called in the seventh inning.
Catcher Karson Bowen had a great game. He went 3-for-3 with five RBIs today. This is the second consecutive Sunday with five RBIs for Bowen.
The lineup is starting to solidify itself. Third basemen Brody Green had an excellent weekend and is starting to emerge as the everyday third-basemen. He’s slashing .529 on the season and despite the one error today, has played great defense at the hot corner.
The lineup top to bottom has been outstanding all season long, going into the weekend the big question was how the starting pitching would respond after a shaky first week against FGCU.
All three weekend starters bounced back well. On Friday night Peyton Tolle went five innings giving up two runs and on Saturday Kole Klecker went four and 1/3 innings giving up one run. Today Morris went four innings, giving up two runs on three hits with five strikeouts.
“Starting pitching was so much better, gave us some length and the bullpen did what they do best,” said Bowen.
After the great weekend, the staff is confident after the series sweep.
“We got starters who are really good, we got a bullpen who is really good as well. We got a really good chance to be one of the best staffs in the country,” said Morris.
After all the hype of the preseason, TCU has lived up to expectations so far. The Frogs now find themselves as the only team ranked in the top 10 that remains undefeated.
“They were ready to answer the bell. It tells me it’s a bunch of guys that know how to win and play together and play for each other,” Saarloos said.
Despite getting national praise, the players are not focused on the rankings.
“We take it with a grain of salt, we really don’t think it means much to us, we just want to go out there and play our best baseball,” Bowen said.
After the sweep of the Bruins, TCU gets one day of rest before a packed week against the Pac-12. The Frogs will welcome Washington State on Tuesday and Arizona on Wednesday before heading to Globe Life Field in Arlington this weekend for a game against Arizona State and two against USC. First pitch against Washington State on Tuesday is set for 6:00 p.m. CST from Lupton Stadium and will be streaming on ESPN+.
