TCU’s Schlossnagle eager to see Lodolo pitch after adversity

TCU will keep its pitching rotation the same as last weekend for a series starting Friday at UC-Irvine, with coach Jim Schlossnagle eager to see how freshman left-hander Nick Lodolo bounces back from a rough outing.

“It’s not what happens to you, it’s how you respond to it,” Schlossnagle said. “He’ll get back to work. It’ll be interesting to see how he pitches.”

Lodolo gave up four runs on five hits in failing to get out of the first inning last weekend against Texas A&M in the Shriners College Classic. Victimized by a leadoff walk, two errors and a three-run home run, he left with just two outs and trailing 5-0.

It was the first taste of adversity in college for the centerpiece of the TCU recruiting class.

“Certainly disappointed for Lodolo on Saturday, but the way he handled it the rest of the game in the dugout, the way he handled it the next day was good,” Schlossnagle said. “It’s actually a good experience for him for his future, both in college and professional baseball.”

Lodolo (2-0) won his first two starts for the Horned Frogs, debuting with a victory against Penn State, and he led the team in innings and strikeouts. His ERA is now 5.91 as he goes into his Saturday start against a UC-Irvine team that began the week leading the Big West in hitting at .318. Irvine will throw right-hander Cole Spear (1-0, 4.76).

Brian Howard (2-1, 4.50) will start the series Friday for TCU against right-hander Louis Raymond (2-1, 6.75), and Jared Janczak (3-0, 2.66) will pitch Sunday against a UCI pitcher to be named.

This story was originally published March 9, 2017 at 8:49 PM with the headline "TCU’s Schlossnagle eager to see Lodolo pitch after adversity."