Texas State batters Baylor for 11-3 midweek win

For the second time this season, No. 19 Texas State took down a Big 12 opponent.

The maroon and gold won their first midweek game since March 15 on Tuesday, belittling Baylor inside Bobcat Ballpark for an 11-4 win in front of a crowd of 2,047. It was the team's seventh win over a Power 5 school this year, setting a new program record.

“It was just another great win,” head coach Steven Trout said. “And so you know, we expect to win these games. We feel like we're a really good team and have had really good success. But yeah, it's always a little bit more when you beat a Big 12 team because you're beating a Power 5. And so for us, it was just another good night of playing good baseball and at the end of the day, that's what it comes down to.”

Texas State’s bats were hot from the get-go, as the hosts scored in each of the first four innings. The visitors put up two runs in the top of the first but the Bobcats got one back in the bottom frame. Senior shortstop Dalton Shuffield sent a line-drive double to left field, advanced to third on a groundout in the next at-bat and crossed home on a wild pitch.

Senior right fielder John Wuthrich led off with a walk in the next inning and senior first baseman Wesley Faison brought him across with a two-RBI home run to left centerfield, giving the maroon and gold their first lead of the game at 3-2. Junior designated hitter Jose Gonzalez and Justin Thompson extended the edge in the third, each swinging for a solo home run to right center.

The Bears (16-16, 2-7 Big 12) picked up a run in the top of the fourth to trim the deficit, but the maroon and gold responded in a big way. Senior left fielder Ben McClain and Shuffield each drew walks to lead off the fourth and Gonzalez was hit by a pitch in the next plate appearance, loading the bases with no outs. Thompson singled through the right side to score McClain and Shuffield, forcing Baylor to make a pitching change. Redshirt sophomore catcher August Ramirez doubled to right field, plating Gonzalez and moving Thompson to third. Senior second baseman Cameron Gibbons followed it up with another double, sending Thompson and Ramirez home for a five-spot and pushing the Bobcats in front, 10-3.

“I think the main thing with this team is we stick to our approach, which sounds cliche but it's really true,” Thompson said. “One thing, I mean, we've got a ballpark that's great. It's a hitter's park sometimes, you know, like tonight. So we really just stick with our approach and focus on hitting line drives, middle of the field, not trying to do too much and the big flies will come. So that's what Trout preaches, everybody sticks to it and that was it.”

Both teams began to cool off, neither scoring over the next two innings. Wuthrich tacked on another score with an RBI double that bounced off the left field wall in the seventh and Texas State closed out to take the 11-3 victory.

The teams combined to use 14 pitchers throughout the game — seven each. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Otto Wofford (3-0) received the win, allowing two hits, two walks, two earned runs and ringing up a batter in 2.0 innings in his first career start. Four of the relievers Texas State used in the game were true freshmen.

“We knew Otto was only gonna go one or two for us. We kind of had a plan for the guys behind him and kind of the game was going to dictate — the score — who we were going to bring in. And so, it was really good to get (freshman lefty Victor) Loa in there because we've been trying to see him, he's throwing the ball pretty well. 

“And then (sophomore RHP Jonathan) Martinez is one of those guys that his numbers are actually pretty good right now, so we need to continue to build his innings up and get him going. He was going through an ankle injury there for a little while. And then to see those young guys there at the end to come in and throw strikes and get after it was good. You never know if we're gonna need them and so those guys got a little better today.”

The Bobcats (25-9, 9-3 Sun Belt) will head to UT Arlington (11-22, 4-8) this weekend for a three-game series, beginning Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Thompson thinks Tuesday's win will give the team more confidence moving forward.

“After a week like (last week), we know it wasn't our best week. We competed hard against (Georgia) Southern but fell short in the series,” Thompson said. “I think it's just big coming back and playing a good team like (Baylor) and getting a good dub. So it'll help with our momentum going into this weekend, so we'll try to carry it on.”