Wednesday, March 4, 2009
It’s been only three games, but it’s safe to say Buck Afenir is living up to his preseason acclaim after being named to the All-Big 12 team.
Photo Gallery
Kansas Baseball vs. North Dakota
A photo gallery of the Jayhawks 8-2 win over North Dakota Tuesday afternoon at Hoglund Ballpark.
The senior catcher has had a significant impact on the Kansas lineup since he returned against Arkansas last week and it showed once again in Kansas’ 8-2 victory against North Dakota yesterday afternoon.
“I feel great; it’s good to get back with the team,” Afenir said. “Just to get back in there and have some fun.”
After going 1-4 with an RBI yesterday, Afenir is now 6-13 (.462 average) with 3 RBIs. His presence has allowed Kansas to increase its scoring during the past three games from 3.3 runs per game to 8.3. But coach Ritch Price is more impressed with what his fourth-year catcher does at the backstop rather than the batter’s box.
“I’m more impressed with the defense to be honest with you,” Price said. “He really struggled throwing the baseball last year, and it became a weakness for our team.”
Afenir was the only Jayhawk to be named to the preseason All-Big 12 team and he said he hadn’t let any pressure mount from the expectations.
“I just pretty much think about wins right now,” Afenir said. “I keep that out of my mind for the most part.”
OPPOSING PITCHER GOES ON STREAK
After giving up the double to extend Tony Thompson’s hit streak to 15 games, North Dakota left-hander Brandon Baumgartner retired 10 of the next 11 hitters in one of his most efficient stretches of the season. It’s hard to fault an eight-run output, but the Jayhawks are going to have to be able to consistently hit pitchers like Baumgartner in order to win in the Big 12.
ON A ROLL AT HOME
With Tuesday’s win against the Fighting Sioux, the Jayhawks extended their home-opener win streak to 10 games, with their last loss coming in 1999. The Jayhawks are 41-8 in home-openers in Hoglund Ballpark, and coach Ritch Price is 113-57 at home with Kansas, good for a winning percentage of nearly 67 percent.
STRONG IN SECOND AND SEVENTH
Kansas picks some strange innings to show up in, but it got the job done Tuesday. The Jayhawks have outscored opponents 9-1 in the second inning and 8-1 in the seventh. With a 4-0 second and 2-0 seventh, that trend continued to grow against North Dakota.
HOME RUN DROUGHT
The Jayhawks have started the season with six straight games without a home run. Their longest streak of that nature last year? Four. The Jayhawks are still scoring, with 8.3 runs per game in the past three outings, but the power outage is getting a little disconcerting for coach Ritch Price. “I’ll be honest with you,” he said. “I’m a little nervous that we haven’t had a home run in six games.”
— Tim Dwyer
Kansas once again used a small-ball approach to help support freshman starter Lee Ridenhour to his second win of the season. Ridenhour (2-0) had fewer base-runners this time around and credited that to his ability to stay ahead of hitters in the count.
“I learned a lot from the Arkansas game that I took into this game,” he said. “Really getting ahead of hitters was huge and not letting the leadoff guy get on was one big thing too.”
The Jayhawk offense collected eight hits, five of them singles, and used three sacrifice flies to move runners over and keep the pressure on North Dakota starter Brandon Baumgartner (0-2). He still managed to last six and one-third innings, but by that time the Jayhawks were able to take advantage of a comfortable six-run lead.
— — Edited by Chris Hickerson
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