Baseball: TCU cruises over Kansas in Big 12 semifinals

The Horned Frogs will compete for the conference championship against Arizona this evening.

TCU baseball continued making its case to host an NCAA Regional on Friday evening, when the Horned Frogs tallied 16 hits in an 11-1 thrashing against Kansas in the Big 12 Conference tournament semifinals. TCU (39-17, 19-11 Big 12) broke the game open with six runs in the top of the eighth inning and shut the Jayhawks down in the bottom half to win the game via run rule. The Horned Frogs, who are now 4-0 against Kansas this season, will advance to face Arizona in the Big 12 tournament finals at 6 p.m. this evening. TCU faced the Wildcats in Tuscon earlier this season, with Arizona taking the series over the Horned Frogs 2-1.

Trailing 1-0, TCU rallied for four runs in the top of the second inning, where Chase Brunson smacked an RBI double to even the score and Anthony Silva shot an RBI single into center to give the Horned Frogs their first lead of the game. Jack Bell, who moved into the lead-off hole in place of infielder Colton Griffin, who was suspended for the semifinal after being ejected on Thursday, ripped a two-run double to cap off the four-run frame for TCU.

A sacrifice fly from Cole Cramer gave the Horned Frogs a 5-1 lead entering the top of the eighth inning. Meanwhile, TCU’s tandem of Mason Brassfield and Louis Rodriguez shut down the Kansas offense, holding the Jayhawks to five hits over eight frames of work. Brassfield earned the start for the Horned Frogs, throwing three innings and striking out five while working around two walks and two hits allowed. Rodriguez spun arguably his best relief outing of the season, firing five frames on 56 pitches with four strikeouts to earn the win and improve to 5-1. Rodriguez only walked one and held Kansas to three hits.

The Horned Frogs loaded the bases in the top of the eighth inning, where a wild pitch and an RBI single from Isaac Cadena sparked a six-run effort that put TCU ahead 11-1 with one and a half innings remaining. Bell delivered the hit of the game for the TCU offense, pulling a bases-clearing three-run triple down the right-field line. Cramer shot an RBI single up the middle to drive home the 11th run for the Horned Frogs, who clinched their win with a scoreless bottom of the eighth. Bell went 3 for 5 with five RBIs from the top of the order, while Brunson went 3 for 5 with an RBI and Cramer went 2 for 4 with two RBIs in the win.