Playing with a cause

Friday, April 20, 2007

When the Jayhawks and the Red Raiders take the field tonight, baseball might make them enemies, but their uniforms will reflect their unity.

Both Texas Tech (22-16, 5-9) and Kansas (19-23, 5-10) will wear special Virginia Tech batting practice jerseys to honor the victims of Monday’s tragedy. On Thursday, Texas Tech proposed providing the jerseys for each team to wear, and Kansas accepted.

KANSAN FILE PHOTO

With the tribute on display, the mood will be somber, but the atmosphere at Dan Law Field in Lubbock, Texas, will likely be intense. The series battle may not be for glory, but this three-game set could determine who takes last place in the Big 12 Conference, as Tech and Kansas hold the ninth and 10th spots, respectively.

Neither team heads into tonight’s series opener on a high note, although Texas Tech may be on a steeper decline. This weekend, the Red Raiders were outscored 21-5 en route to being swept by No. 6 Texas.

Yet to have been swept by a Big 12 opponent this season, Kansas lost both its games against No. 10 Wichita State. It marked the first time the Shockers swept the Jayhawks in coach Ritch Price’s time at Kansas. The Jayhawks dropped the second game of the two-game series Wednesday night in Wichita. The loss was a tough one, said the game’s starting pitcher Andres Esquibel, but the close 2-1 margin of defeat actually gave the Jayhawks a little momentum.

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Both squads are also striving to reach consistency at the plate, but have yet to completely reach it. Kansas is at the .281 mark as a team, whereas Tech is at .288. On the opposite side of the ball, each is facing a 5.00 ERA. The Jayhawks are just under it at 4.91 as a staff for the advantage over the Red Raiders’ 5.23.

“I know definitely if we had won this game, we would have been going in there doing pretty good,” Esquibel said on Wednesday. “I think after doing well here and knowing that we can play, and pitch and field, I think we’re going to do really well this weekend.”

Because Kansas faces an opponent enduring similar struggles, Esquibel’s words could ring true. Though Texas Tech has a commanding 22-10 all-time record against Kansas, the Red Raiders have not won a series against the Jayhawks since 2004.

Both bring similar strengths to this weekend’s match-up, as well. Red Raider right-handed starter AJ Ramos (7-2, 4.48) ranks fourth in the Big 12 with 63 strikeouts, while his Friday counterpart, lefty Andy Marks (3-4, 6.87) is tied for first with 68.

Marks and junior lefty Zach Ashwood will welcome left-handed freshman Wally Marciel to the rotation this weekend. Marciel is slated to start Sunday after tossing three scoreless innings of relief against Wichita State on Wednesday.

The three will have their hands full with the Red Raider lineup. They don’t have many victories to show for it, but three of the starting nine hitters are at the 10-home run mark. Outfielder Roger Kieschnick leads the way with a .329 average and 39 runs scored. Catcher Matt Smith, another Red Raider with 10 home runs, leads the team with 37 RBI.

On the Jayhawks’ side, junior right fielder Brock Simpson leads the team with 33 RBI, despite posting just a .260 average. Simpson was the only Jayhawk to score in their last time out, which was an offensively sluggish game not expected to be repeated.

“They had some good arms on the mound, but this club is pretty offensive,” said sophomore catcher Buck Afenir, one of four Jayhawks to collect a hit on Wednesday. “So I think it was just a cold night with the bats.”

Kansan senior sportswriter Alissa Bauer can be contacted at abauer@kansan.com

—Edited by Ashley Thompson

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