ST. CHARLES, Mo. – No. 25/29 Missouri continues its nine-game road swing with a 3 p.m. nonconference matchup against Lindenwood Wednesday afternoon at the Lou Brock Sports Complex.
The Tigers (18-6) edged Illinois, 6-5, Tuesday to claim the Braggin’ Rights series win at GCS Credit Union Ballpark and maintain their perfect record in midweek games this season.
Wednesday’s contest will be broadcast on KTGR AM/FM, with Tex Little and Matt Michaels describing the action.
PITCHING PROBABLES
TBD vs. TBD
SERIES HISTORY
• Mizzou holds a 3-0 edge over Lindenwood.
• The Tigers claimed a 17-2 victory over the Lions in the two clubs’ first meeting on Feb. 28 in Columbia.
MEET THE TIGERS
• Missouri is off to an 18-6 start in 2023, including a 15-3 mark in nonconference contests.
• The Tigers are ranked in at least one top 25 poll for the second week in a row, checking in at No. 25 in this week’s Baseball America poll and No. 29 in the NCBWA poll.
• Mizzou’s 2023 roster features a heavy helping of talent from within the state of Missouri’s borders, with 16 players from the Show-Me State.
• Additionally, Mizzou head coach Steve Bieser has brought in players from a total of 16 different states, plus the territory of Puerto Rico.
• Hank Zeisler has been the Tigers’ most consistent power threat and run producer, totaling nine home runs and 39 RBIs to date.
• Luke Mann is hitting .359 to go along with eight homers, three of which came in last Friday’s contest at No. 4 South Carolina as part of a 4-for-5, 6-RBI night; the senior third baseman is also hitting .377 in nonconference games.
• Zach Franklin leads the club with four victories, two saves and 39 strikeouts in nine relief appearances.
• As a team, the Tigers are batting .285 through the first 24 games of the season.
• The Mizzou pitching staff has logged double-digit strikeout totals in 17 of its 24 games and ranks 26th nationally in team ERA (3.93).
MEET THE LIONS
• Led by 25th-year head coach Doug Bletcher, Lindenwood is off to a 3-21 start in its initial Division I campaign, including a 17-2 setback against the Tigers on Feb. 28.
• The Lions are led by Dawson Hokuf, who brings a .292 batting average into the week.
• On the mound, sophomore Graham Breite and freshman Carson Subbert have been strong in relief roles, each posting sub-2.00 ERAs to date.
SUPERMANN TAKES FLIGHT
• Luke Mann became the second Tiger in 10 days to hit three home runs in a game last Friday at No. 4 South Carolina as part of a career-best four-hit performance.
• Mann continued his climb up the Mizzou home run chart (see above), hitting his 34th, 35th and 36th career home runs in Friday’s contest to move into sole possession of the No. 7 spot on the list.
• Mann needs one more long ball to tie Cody Ehlers (37) in the No. 6 spot and two more to match Griffin Moore (38) and climb into Mizzou’s top 5.
• The St. Louis native logged a career-best 12-game hit streak (Feb. 24-March 15).
• The fifth-year third baseman hit .400 (18-for-45) with four homers and 11 RBIs during his hit streak.
• Mann was tabbed for first-team preseason laurels, becoming the first Tiger honoree since Kameron Misner’s second-team selection five years ago.
• Mann’s 17 home runs in 2022 were the most by a Tiger since Ehlers hit 18 round-trippers in 2004.
NON-CON DOMINATION
• Mizzou’s 15-3 mark against non-SEC foes continues a string of recent dominance in nonconference play.
• The Tigers went 18-3 in nonconference play last spring, giving them an overall mark of 33-6 in non-SEC competition since the start of the 2022 season.
• Mizzou hit .310 against non-league foes and averaged more than nine runs per game, while also posting a 3.76 team ERA in those contests.
• Individually, Luke Mann is batting .377 with five home runs and 15 RBIs during nonconference play.
• During Steve Bieser‘s tenure as head coach, the Tigers have posted a cumulative 114-39 record in nonconference play, good for a .745 win percentage.
THROWING SMOKE
• Mizzou’s pitching staff is off to a blazing hot start, with 17 double-digit strikeout totals in its first 24 games.
• With 262 K’s to date, the Tigers are on pace to shatter the program’s single-season record for strikeouts (559 in 2019).
• The Tigers ranked eighth nationally as a staff in strikeouts per nine innings (11.7) entering the week.
• Mizzou’s team WHIP of 1.18 ranked 11th among all Division I pitching staffs as well, while the Tigers’ two shutouts on the season ranked 36th nationally.
• As a staff, the Tigers have limited the opposition to a collective .197 batting average, with seven different pitchers logging averages against of .200 or less.
• Individually, Zach Franklin’s four wins are tied for 25th among all Division I pitchers.
• Rorik Maltrud has been dominant as well, ranking among the national leaders in WHIP, walks allowed per nine innings and hits allowed per nine innings.
TO BE FRANK
• Mizzou graduate transfer Zach Franklin has made an immediate impact in his first season with Mizzou, going 4-1 with a team-best 39 strikeouts and two saves in just 20.0 IP.
• Franklin is the SEC’s active leader in career wins (20) and strikeouts (253), ranking third among all active NCAA Division I pitchers in those two categories as well.
• The Marion, N.C., native has also recorded 13 saves in his career, which rank third on the active SEC list.
• Franklin has also recorded the top velocity by a Tiger pitcher, topping out at 98.26 MPH vs. TCU on Feb. 19.
BIESER BELIEVER
• Mizzou head coach Steve Bieser is in his seventh year guiding the Tigers, entering the week with a 176-137-1 record as MU’s bench boss.
• Bieser topped the 300-victory mark with Mizzou’s 10-4 win at FIU on Feb. 25, and enters Wednesday’s game with a career 314-234-1 mark in 11 seasons as a collegiate head coach.
• The Tigers have finished with an overall record above .500 in five of Bieser’s six seasons.
• Bieser’s 104 wins from 2017-19 were the most ever by a Mizzou baseball coach in his first three campaigns.
• Additionally, Bieser’s win total marked the winningest three-year stretch by the Tigers since 2008-10 (103 victories).
• Mizzou produced 39 wins in Southeastern Conference play from 2017-19 as well, marking its top three-year stretch in league play since joining its new conference in 2013.
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