Why No. 1 TCU needs Tuesday starter Mitchell Traver

Fifth-year senior Mitchell Traver is scheduled to begin the season in the pitching rotation as the Tuesday starter for No. 1-ranked TCU.

That does not make the right-hander an afterthought, coach Jim Schlossnagle said.

“I’ve never liked that term, ‘Tuesday starter.’ When you’re playing Dallas Baptist and Rice and Long Beach State, those games decide seasons,” Schlossnagle said. “They decide whether you host (in the NCAA Tournament). They decide seeding, all that kind of stuff. I don’t ever want to be one of those teams that thinks the Tuesday game is some sort of exhibition.”

TCU (3-0) visits UT Arlington (2-2) on Tuesday at Clay Gould Ballpark after a season-opening sweep of Penn State. UTA split games with Southeast Missouri and Stephen F. Austin.

He redshirted as a freshman in 2013 after Tommy John surgery, related to another injury. The next season, a stress fracture in his back delayed his debut until the Big 12 tournament in May.

Healthy in 2015, he went 9-2 in 16 appearances, including 14 starts, and pitched four innings in relief to win a Super Regional game against Texas A&M that sent the Horned Frogs to the College World Series.

Last season, primed to be the Friday night starter, a muscle strain in his back caused him to sit out until May, and he was 1-3 in seven appearances.

He turned down professional baseball last summer for a fifth season at TCU and appears on track for a full season after another surgery.

“He rehabbed his arm, he’s been throwing,” Schlossnagle said. “Hate to say too much about him, he’s been through so much. But he’s pitched well. He’s had his moments where he’s been just OK. The last couple of weeks, he’s been really good. His stuff looks good. Now it’s just a matter of having consistent command. When you haven’t pitched for so long, that’s one of the things that comes last.”

When he turned down a pro contract, Traver enrolled as a part-time student in the fall at TCU. That meant he couldn’t practice with the team before the spring semester, Schlossnagle said.

But his presence on campus was enough for a boost, and he earned a rotation spot this spring despite a stacked roster of candidates.

Traver has pitched in 24 games for TCU, 21 as a starter. He is 3-2 in eight postseason appearances.

This story was originally published February 20, 2017 at 4:35 PM with the headline "Why No. 1 TCU needs Tuesday starter Mitchell Traver."