Good pitching helps Jim Schlossnagle tie TCU victory record
Someone one day will remember Saturday as the day TCU coach Jim Schlossnagle tied Lance Brown for most wins by a coach in the baseball program’s 121 seasons.
Nowhere will it show the grit required to secure victory No. 517 for the coach.
Horned Frogs pitcher Brian Howard and three relievers turned in a determined performance in combining on a three-hit 1-0 shutout against Loyola Marymount, a nail-biter that doubled as TCU’s first victory of 2016.
It’s good to get that first win of the season.
TCU starting pitcher Brian Howard
Howard and Preston Guillory worked out of jams in the sixth and seventh innings to make Cam Warner’s run-scoring base hit in the third stand up as the game winner.
Howard, a junior from St. Louis, gave up all three hits, walked two and struck out five over 6 1/3 innings in earning the win.
“It’s good to get that first win of the season,” Howard said. “The boys played really well behind me. It’s fun when you go out and pitch and can trust your defense. Those guys made a bunch of incredible plays.”
Most notable were two stellar defensive plays by Warner at second, and Brian Trieglaff was the beneficiary of a nice back-handed snag and long throw across the diamond by third baseman Elliott Barzilli for the second out in a three-up, three-down ninth.
The shutout marked TCU’s 25th since the beginning of 2014.
TCU, No. 11 in the USA Today poll, evened its record to 1-1. So did Loyola.
Cory Abbot took the loss for the Lions.
Howard worked around doubles in each of the first and fourth innings, but it was a hit batter to lead off the sixth that started trouble.
Austin Miller followed with a single that put runners on first and second with no outs.
The big, lanky, 6-foot-9 righty, though, found the formula.
He struck out Sam Erdman, who couldn’t get a bunt down, and the next hitter, Jamey Smart, looking. The next hitter, Cassidy Brown, got out in front of Howard’s cutter for an inning-ending groundout.
With one out in the seventh, Howard exited after walking Seaver Whalen. Lefty Drew Gooch then hit the only hitter he faced, leaving Guillory with runners on first and second with still only one out.
Guillory induced a forceout and a foul popout at the plate that catcher Evan Skoug corralled.
That’s just a reflection of having had the chance to coach a lot of great players and work with a lot of great assistant coaches.
TCU coach Jim Schlossnagle on tying the school victory record
“It feels really good, especially when you’re in a tight game,” Howard said of the sixth. “That inning was huge for us. It gave us a little momentum to go out there and win the game.”
Guillory worked a scoreless eighth to set up Trieglaff in the ninth. Guillory struck out two in an efficient 21 pitches. For Guillory, the outing marked a refreshing turn of events for a guy who hasn’t had his best stuff, Schlossnagle said.
“I don’t worry about the situation,” Guillory said. “I just try to make good pitches and whatever happens, happens. It’s still baseball; you just need to make good pitches and everything else will fall into place.”
Next in line is Schlossnagle officially taking his place atop the school’s record book. It’s appropriate for a guy who has led TCU baseball to its most successful era.
“That’s just a reflection of having had the chance to coach a lot of great players and work with a lot of great assistant coaches,” Schlossnagle said. “I’m at a place really committed to the highest level of winning in college baseball.”
This story was originally published February 20, 2016 at 7:54 PM with the headline "Good pitching helps Jim Schlossnagle tie TCU victory record."