Mizzou’s Bats Have Been As Cold As The Weather

Photo from mutigers.com

Temperatures have been unseasonably cold this March in Mid-Missouri.  We are less than a week away from April and we still have snow on the ground and temperatures are struggling to get out of the 30’s. It’s not the weather were used to seeing in early Spring and it definitely doesn’t feel like baseball season. Unfortunately one thing that might be even colder than the weather, are the bats for the Missouri Tigers baseball team.

The Tigers have struggled in the early going of the 2013 season, and their biggest weakness has been their hitting. Mizzou is only hitting .240 as a team through 20 games this season, which ranks dead last in the SEC. They also rank last in the SEC in runs scored, home runs, RBI’s, walks, and on-base percentage.

The offensive woes for Missouri has them sitting at 8-12 overall and 2-4 in the SEC. The Tigers join Florida and Georgia, as the only other SEC teams to have a below .500 record overall. The Tigers only have two players on their roster that are currently hitting over .300.

Dane Opel and Dylan Kelly have been the only bright spots in Mizzou’s lineup. Opel is hitting .358 with 2 homers and 11 RBI’s, and Kelly is hitting .354 and also has 11 RBI’s. The remainder of the Missouri Tigers are all hitting below .275.

Mizzou’s pitching staff has been pretty solid over the last couple weeks. The Tigers rank 9th in the SEC with a 3.28 ERA, but they have a 2.92 ERA in six SEC games. Ace, Rob Zastryzny, has also improved since posting a 6.25 ERA in his first two starts. Zastryzny is 1-4 and has improved his ERA to 4.05. Rob leads the team in strikeouts with 31, and he’s only walked 12 batters in 33.1 innings. Zastryzny has a 2.78 ERA and 24 strikeouts in his last 3 starts.

The Tigers have struggled on the road this year, losing 8 of 9 games, but they are 7-4 at home. The Tigers return to Taylor Stadium this week when they host Nebraska-Omaha on Wednesday and the No. 2 ranked LSU Tigers this weekend. Temperatures are supposed to warm up this weekend, so get out there and support Mizzou baseball at Taylor Stadium.