UT Baseball Reality Check
By Christopher Bond, 2:10PM, Tue. Mar. 18, 2008
In an earlier column, I wondered how the youngsters were going to react to the adversity and difficulties they would face. My thought process was that the elder statesmen were going to be solid, and the new guys were going to struggle. To my dismay, it has been quite the opposite.
In the belief that Jordan Danks, Kyle Russell, and Preston Clark are the face of Texas baseball, one might have to think otherwise with these three players being outplayed to date by so many new faces. Typically, as a baseball season rolls on, leaders tend to emerge and the better players step up their game to a higher level. While Danks is quietly putting together a good season, Russell and Clark are struggling to find a rhythm at the plate batting .255 and .267, respectively, with only two home runs combined. So, does Texas have any leaders this year? If so, it’s been difficult to pick them out.
In an odd turn of events, the young and mostly inexperienced players have held the team together to this point. Freshman catcher Cameron Rupp has come to life, leading the Horns with a .423 batting average and three home runs. He single-handedly beat Kansas in the first game of this past weekend's series with two home runs and five runs batted in.
In addition to Rupp, Brandon Belt has been a bright spot for the Horns all season batting .386 and leading the team with 25 runs batted in. David Hernandez has performed surprisingly well at the plate, though he needs to improve on his fielding. Hernandez has already committed seven errors in the first 17 games.
Texas is going to need these young guys to keep playing well and improve defensively to make a push in the Big 12. Currently the Horns record is 12 wins, five loses (overall) and two wins, one loss in conference play. If Russell can get anywhere close to his form of a year ago, and with the younger guys continuing to play well, Texas has as good a chance as any team to win the Big 12 and go on to the College World Series.
I just wonder if Augie Garrido has the right combination of players and leaders to make that happen.
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cameron rupp, brandon belt, david hernandez
