Why Texas Tech baseball has historically struggled in Omaha

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Tech has played sloppy baseball in Omaha

For whatever reason, Texas Tech has struggled with errors and unforced mistakes in the College World Series. Because T.D. Ameritrade is such a pitcher’s park, games are almost always close meaning that mistakes are magnified.

All-time, Tech has committed 16 errors in 12 CWS games. Only twice have the Red Raiders had an error-free game, and coincidentally, both came against Arkansas.

Many of those errors have been costly and untimely. In Tech’s first ever CWS game in 2014, TCU scored two runs in the bottom of the 8th to take the lead and they were aided tremendously by an error from Tech second baseman Alec Humphreys. In the next game, the Red Raiders gave up two unearned runs in a 2-1 loss to Ole Miss in an elimination game.

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Two years later, the Red Raiders committed three errors in an elimination game loss to Costal Carolina. In that game, six of C.C.U.’s seven runs were unearned.

Again this year, errors and passed balls were huge in causing Tech’s demise. In the opener against Michigan, a Braxton Fulford passed ball led directly to the Wolverines’ first run and a throwing error by Josh Jung resulted in UM’s final run as Tech lost another close game to open the CWS and head back into the losers’ bracket.

By comparison, Michigan has committed just one error thus far in Omaha this year as they find themselves one win away from the national title. The Wolverines have relied on two pillars of the game that have remained in tact since its invention, pithing and defense, and unfortunately, those are two areas where Tech has struggled when playing in Omaha.

In its eight CWS losses, Tech has averaged 1.3 errors per game. In its four wins, that number drops to 0.7. Additionally, Tech has never won a game in Omaha in which it has made more than one error.

At Rip Griffin Park, Tech can out-slug its mistakes. Giving up an unearned run there is not as costly because there is likely a three-run homer or multi-run inning waiting right around the corner.

How Tech fared against Big 12 rivals in 2018-19. dark. Next

But in Omaha, where offense is restricted and the opposing teams often have elite pitching, mistakes are fatal. The Red Raiders have been proof of that thus far in their four trips to the CWS and if their fortunes are ever going to change, they will have to stop making so many unforced errors.

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