I'd like to see Fox's run support compared to our other starting pitchers. For whatever reason, it seems like the bats come alive when he's on the mound.

(04-05-2014 02:57 PM)Hardball Owl Wrote:  Very satisfying win. Fox made many ECU batters look foolish, although I'm not sure how. Mixing his speeds was part of it. Excellent defense by the Owls.

Blake simply knows how to pitch. Period. He doesn't have great stuff, but he mixes his speeds well, and works both sides of the plate (as well as the upper and lower parts of the zone)...and he consistently pounds the strike zone. He issued but one free pass, and that didn't come until the 7th inning. He also has exceptional poise with runners on base, and does a fantastic job holding runners on base. Finally, needless to say, he fields his position very well.

Second consecutive well-played game by the Owls, following two weeks of mental and physical errors.

Game Ball #1: Blake Fox (W, 7-0, 6.2 IP, 7 hits, 0 runs, 1 BB, 8 Ks)-- who once again played the role of stopper as he stays a perfect 13-0 for his Rice career. He's become an elite college pitcher before our very eyes.

Game Ball #2: It could have gone to JC Reeves (3-4, 1 run, 1 RBI) who miraculously returned to behind the plate despite having difficulty walking as recently as Thursday, or Connor Teykl (2-4, 1 run, 1 RBI, 2 line shot outs) who is currently en fuego, but I'm giving it to Shane Hoelscher (2-3, BB, sac bunt, double, 2 runs, 2 RBIs)-- for both his offensive production and sterling defense (save for what could have been a game-changing error in the 8th inning).

Game Ball #3: Trevor Teykl (1.2 IP, 0 hits, 0 runs, 0 BBs, 3 Ks)-- yes, he came in with a comfortable 5-run lead and, no, he didn't earn a save, but if not for his poise ECU could have easily made a game of it in the 8th inning. Trevor relieved Blake with runners and 1B and 2B, with one out, and promptly delivered the desire ground ball, only to see Shane unable to get a handle on it, leaving the bases loaded. A hit there, and ECU was right back in it, and with the momentum...but Trevor got a HUGE strikeout on the next batter, after falling behind 3-1 in the count, and then induced an easy, threat-ending ground out to preserve the shutout. He followed that up with a dominant, 1-2-3, two strikeout 9th inning to finish things off.

Unlike in last Sunday's rubber match, we need to bring the focus and energy level tomorrow (NOTE: start time changed to 10:30am CST due to weather concerns), and find a way to get the win and clinch the weekend series. We need Chase to really step up for us and play the role of upperclass leader tomorrow. Let's get it done-- just win, baby! Go Owls!

keithlaw ‏@keithlaw

And you will know Wayne Graham by the trail of dead arms.

^^^troll alert^^^

I looked it up. Fox is 7-0 (1 no-decision) and in those 8 starts, Rice has outscored its opponents 58-7. In the last 4 Fox starts, Rice has won 8-0, 8-0, 14-1 and 10-2. There was also a 9-1 win over Purdue but we've been held in check offensively the other three starts (a 3-2 win over Old Dominion in 17 innings, a 1-0 win over TCU and a 5-1 win at Stanford).

In Rice's 25 non-Fox starts, Rice has still outscored the opposition but not by much (124-89).

So basically we're averaging about a 7-1 win in Fox starts, and about a 5 to 3 1/2 win in the non-Fox starts.

(04-05-2014 05:49 PM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I looked it up. Fox is 7-0 (1 no-decision) and in those 8 starts, Rice has outscored its opponents 58-7. In the last 4 Fox starts, Rice has won 8-0, 8-0, 14-1 and 10-2. There was also a 9-1 win over Purdue but we've been held in check offensively the other three starts (a 3-2 win over Old Dominion in 17 innings, a 1-0 win over TCU and a 5-1 win at Stanford).

In Rice's 25 non-Fox starts, Rice has still outscored the opposition but not by much (124-89).

So basically we're averaging about a 7-1 win in Fox starts, and about a 5 to 3 1/2 win in the non-Fox starts.

You do realize it was a 1-0 game through Fox's first 4 innings pitched today? You cannot simply look at the final score. Fox may be getting more run support than some other guys (though I'd bet our Sunday starter is getting similar support), but he's also pitching lights out early in games (as well as later in games) before he eventually gets the run support.

Fox has given up all of 6 runs combined (earned = unearned) over 8 games and 54.2 innings. In other words, he's giving up a grand total of .8 runs per outing. Of course, our run differential is going to be good, even without great run support.

Per my preview, these are the guys we're likely to see on the mound Sunday for ECU...

D.Lucroy (RS So LHP): 5 starts, 1-3, 21.1 IP, 5.48 ERA, .313 BAA, 8 BBs, 3 HBP, 12 Ks

D.Reynolds (Sr, RHP): 9 app, 1-0, 4 saves, 9.2 IP, 0.93 ERA, .176 BAA, 0 BBs, 9 Ks
R.Wiliams (Sr, RHP): 16 app, 8-1, 2 saves, 48.0 IP, 0.75 ERA, .207 BAA, 3 BBs, 38 Ks

Mabrey won't be available after throwing 5.1 innings today. And we did hit Williams pretty well in his one inning of work on Friday. (He doubled his ERA with the one run we got off him.) Since he only worked one inning, and didn't pitch mid-week, he's probably good for at least 3 innings tomorrow (since he's been averaging 7 innings a week this year).

As noted, Lucroy had his best inning of the year, by far, last Sunday, but was it reflective of a regaining of form or simply an anamoly given the weak level of competition? Regardless, he has been very hittable so far this year, and is not a strikeout pitcher. Given another southpaw, I'd expect we'll go with the same lineup as today, unless Reeves' legs prohibit him from going behind the plate.