Husker Baseball scouting report on Texas

It’s scouting report day and this time it’s that burnt orange team from down south.  Texas returned 18 lettermen, including 7 starters and began the season ranked as high as 6th. The Longhorns finished last year ranked 3rd. Huskers come into the weekend having split a 2-game series with Cal State Fullerton and a record of 18-7.

Texas has an overall record of  17-8. They took the series against #14 Rice and split a 4-game series with Stanford.  More recently the Longhorns took the series against West Virginia and both midweek games against K-State. They are ranked 16th in the D1Baseball top 25.

Nebraska Baseball

Hot hitter for Texas is outfielder Ben Johnson with a .393 average in 107 at bats. Sophomore catcher Tres Barrera is at .318 and catcher Michael Cantu is at .297.

Ace pitcher Parker French, who was drafted last year but chose to stay for his senior season, has a 1.69 ERA in 6 appearances in 37.1 innings. He is a righty with a great command. Chad Hollingsworth has appeared in 5 games and pitched 30.1 innings with an ERA of 2.97. He is also a righty. They aren’t going to make it easy for the Huskers.

Head Coach Augie Garrido has his team ready to play again this year. He said they have one of the best pitching staffs and toughest hitting lineups in the county. He also said defensively they are tough to beat. (They have CWS All-Tournament Team shortstop C.J. Hinojosa) In the Big 12 the preseason poll had Texas ranked second to TCU.

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This will indeed be a tough challenge for the Huskers and Mother Nature will not be very friendly as Friday’s forecast is for 48 degrees and Saturday, 56. Sunday will be the warmest at 64. Perhaps the cooler temps will keep Texas off balance.

Texas has a rich tradition in baseball and likes to flex their muscle. However, Big Red is coming off a gritty performance against Cal State Fullerton proving they can play with the big boys of baseball and an 11 game win streak before that loss. First game is Friday at 6:35, NET/BTN Plus will carry televised coverage, and Saturday at 2:05 and Sunday at 12:05 at Hawks Field. Get out to the ballpark, bring a blanket and GO BIG RED!!!